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How to reproduce sound of piano


I currently own a decent rig, Mac MA 2275, AP Sparks, Marantz 8001, Rega Apollo, Benchmark DAC w/ Squeezebox Duet. I love the way it sounds with jazz, voice, orchestral works and also it's decent with chamber music.

But I find when I'm listening to piano solo performances it doesn't quite sound nearly good as the live instrument. This is too bad because I mainly listen to classical piano works. I want to build a new system from scratch dedicated to listen to solo piano works as well as piano conertos.
I don't care for "warmth", "timbre", "soundstage" or other loaded audiophile terms. Just want absolutely accurate piano reproduction as possible.

What qualities should I look for? Analog vs digital source. Solid state vs tube amp? I find my tube amp unable to keep up with technical masters as Pollini or Horowitz. But will going to SS take away from the performces of more romantic pianists like Kempf and Zimerman? As for speakers, I never heard of a speaker capable of reproducing the deep bass of a 9ft+ concert Steinway grand. Are electrostatics way to go? My budget is around $25K USD. Thanks for any feedback.
plaser

Showing 3 responses by halcro

halcro's avatar
halcro
2,664 posts
 
The grand piano is probably the hardest instrument to recreate convincingly in a domestic hi-fi system. This is because its frequency range is possibly the widest of any musical instrument and the dynamics of the keys-on-strings from ppp to fff without compression, is often beyond the ability of most amplifiers and speakers to reproduce at realistic sound levels without distortion.
It IS possible to achieve but I suspect that it might require more than $25K (although you may be lucky to do it 2nd hand)?
I've only heard it achieved on vinyl so a top quality turntable is essential with an equally top flight tonearm and cartridge.
A great preamp is required as is an amplifier capable of providing immense effortless undistorted power into the finest speakers you can find. This last requirement (for both amp and speakers) will be more realistically achieved by the use of a high-pass filter into 2 self-powered subwoofers like the Vandersteen 2Wq.
This will free-up the amplifier from the onerous task of powering the low frequencies (below 80Hz) and thus give it far more 'headroom', whilst the main speakers will provide better undistorted sound with the subwoofers providing the bottom foundation that the grand piano requires.
If you can obtain a realistic presentation of the grand piano from your system, it will almost certainly provide great sound from all musical genres.
halcro's avatar
halcro
2,664 posts
 
On the subject of realistically recording the grand piano, I don't know that it's particularly difficult rather than the engineers being scared to do it without compression?
Listen to Keith Jarrett- The Koln Concert on ECM (recorded live) to see how realistically you can transfer the concert grand to vinyl or Masaru Imada-Piano on Three Blind Mice.
The best recorded classical concert grand I've yet heard is Liszt Sonate h-Moll B Minor by Daniel Barenboim on Deutche Grammophon.
halcro's avatar
halcro
2,664 posts
 
"-how to make a grand piano sound real in a room that is not big enough for a grand piano."
I know what you're saying Shadorne, but my living room is not big enough for a symphony orchestra.....come to think of it....it's not big enough for the Beatles??!
But it doesn't stop us trying to suspend belief? Isn't that what we're all trying to achieve?
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