Macs Music Services
Regulation & Voicing
What is Regulation?
Periodically pianos require regulation, which is a series of adjustments to mechanical parts to compensate for the effects of wear, the compacting and settling of cloth, felt and buckskin, as well as dimensional changes in wooden and wool parts. The weight of keys can also be adjusted.  The goal of regulation is to make adjustments to the piano’s touch and sound making it consistent across all notes.
Regulation allows the piano to achieve the widest possible range of dynamics and makes the keys responsive to even the most rapid or subtle motions of the player.
What is Voicing?
The felt hammers on your piano, with use over time, become more firm and compressed. Additionally, as each hammer strikes the strings it causes grooves to imprint the felt making the hammers uneven on the surface. The harder the hammer the harsher the sound of the piano becomes. Softening the hammers gives the opposite effect.
Voicing works with the condition of the hammers and other affecting components to adjust the relative brilliance of the piano. Voicing provides an even graduation of volume and tone over the entire range of the keyboard, as hammers do not wear evenly.  Voicing procedures may involve reshaping the hammers, and the use of needles on the hammer felt and may include the application of special softeners or hardeners in order to produce the best sound possible.
