Why not the piano as a reference for bass


I see a lot of commentary/reviews on a systems bass response that all seem to hinge on the 41 hz double bass and such range.  At 27.5 the A0 note on a piano seems a better point to judge.  Lots of piano in normal music vs say an organ note.  I know when I feel that deep chord played it is one of things I enjoy about listening the most!  Was listening to Wish you were here live and the piano was sublime.

So is it more of how much musical energy is perceived in the 40 hz range or what that makes this more of a reproduction benchmark?

I welcome your input!

New Joe Bonamassa out BTW!

guscreek

Artificially generated sound hurt my soul...

Generally...

 Why ?

 

Because a Natural vibrating sound source, a pipe  organ for example or a piano string transmit an acoustical information about its physical state...

An electronical sound do not...

 Sound is not  a subjective experience only it is an objective takes on some aspect of the physical world (timbre) informing us....

 

 It is why i hate A.I. invasion so useful it could be on some specfic case...

I dont listen electronica....

 

Synthesizer beats an organ for bass.

All organ bass has a slow attack compared to what can be done with a synthesizer.  And the right synthesizers can go infrasonic, and not just to modulate the audio oscillators, filters, and voltage controlled amplifiers.

 

What synthesizer can we hear, preferably on record, that can compare and exceed the rich harmonics of a pipe organ?  Why is fast attack preferrable to slow?  Does something that is below the threshold of human hearing add to the enjoyment of the musical experience in some subliminal way?  Just wondering.

 
 

 

 

@billstevenson 

You are well ahead of me, I can't even play the drums.  But I did not make up the bit about Yamaha using sound recorded from a Bosendorfer Imperial!

From Yamaha's Australian website: CLP-765GP - Features - Clavinova - Pianos - Musical Instruments - Products - Yamaha - Music - Australia

Newly sampled Yamaha CFX and Bösendorfer Imperial voices

Clavinova grand piano sounds are recorded from several world-renowned concert grand pianos. One of them is the CFX, Yamaha’s top-flight concert grand piano. Pianists around the world are enamored with the impressive, dazzling, richly expressive sound of the CFX in concert halls. Another sampled concert grand is the Imperial, the flagship model of Bösendorfer, a time-honored Viennese piano brand with an ardent following. The Imperial is known for its abundance of color and natural, warm feeling. Yamaha faithfully reproduces the idiosyncrasies of these concert grand pianos by carefully recording the entire tonal range of each of the 88 keys, making minute adjustments to capture the most harmonious tones each piano has to offer.

@billstevenson 

Beethoven was limited by the piano technology available during his lifetime.  It is interesting to speculate that perhaps with advances in technology perhaps a future composer will expand the possibilities of piano music yet to come

I recently bought Hyperion’s CD (no SACD available) of Marc-Andre Hamelin playing the opus 106 Hammerklavier Sonata.  According to the notes, during its composition Beethoven was given a Broadwood piano from London.  Like Viennese pianos of the time, these had a six octave range, but started half an octave lower at CC compared to FF.  The first two movements of the sonata use the higher range, the last two the lower one.

So it would seem that Beethoven did indeed compose for a future instrument, since no single piano he was aware of could manage all the notes in the Hammerklavier Sonata.

Similar thinking is behind the Stuart and Sons extended keyboard instruments, which have some other revolutionary features including a fourth pedal, which moves the hammer closer to the strings for really soft playing.  The strings couple to the soundboard vertically rather than horizontally, and transmit more sound energy than conventional pianos.  They are deliberately designed for a livelier sound than say Steinways or Bosendorfers.

The attack on a pipe organ on a really deep note takes time for the pipe/chamber to fill so the note comes on more gradually.

A synthesizer can play basically any waveform all the way down to subharmonic.  A subharmonic square wave with an instantaneous rise time is harder on the speakers that have to make the transition more quickly. 

I privately messaged Bill Stevenson, respecting his opinion on the latest Clavinova. 
All I can say is please let me know when you get to see a Clavinova at any one of the best concert halls in the world?? I will confidently say NOT IN MY LIFETIME!! Also, remember that yes, a synth can be programmed aimed to make subsonic frequencies, but what transducers can accurately reproduce them?? A 32 foot organ pipe will, even if you don’t hear the 16hz, your body will definitely feel it!! 
Wonderful discussion, but with many misunderstandings about the actual physics of the lowest frequencies.