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| The fact remains, however, that, just like Asia or Europe, the United States actually has many different climates and even "micro-climates" within relatively small geographic areas. Our climates run to both extremes (arid, and humid) and the whole spectrum in-between. It is also difficult to understand how any piano manufacturer can compensate in advance for all possible climatic extremes that a piano might encounter. I suggest there are a few factors that should be kept in mind while contemplating how (and if!) this can possibly work: 1) Any piano, no matter how well its wood is seasoned, will ultimately have problems with warping, failed glue joints, loose tuning pins or soundboard cracks and/or compression ridges if exposed to an extreme enough climate. A piano whose lumber is seasoned or dried to a very low moisture content can have just as many problems if it ends up in Florida or the deep South (or other places in the U.S. which can get very humid) as a piano whose lumber is dried to a higher moisture content, and then sent to the Mojave Desert or one of the arid states such as Arizona or New Mexico. 2) No piano manufacturer can completely prepare a piano against humidity fluctuations or extremes it may encounter. A major factor of how a piano survives through the years is the amount, or degree, of care exercised by the piano's owner in protecting the instrument from extreme or adverse climate conditions. For anyone really serious about maintaining their piano in optimum condition, they should look into climate control systems for the instrument. (This may not be necessary if the person lives in a moderate climate where the humidity remains at a fairly constant median level. In either very dry climates or very humid ones, though, climate control should be considered more essential.) 3) New pianos "specially" prepared for the U.S. market can easily end up in worse shape than a used piano that was originally sold for and in Japan (which later ends up in the U.S. ), simply because of adverse climate conditions, or lack of proper care, in the home, regardless of what the outdoor climate is. And due to the wide range of climates we have here in the U.S., it is possible that, under certain conditions, a piano that was originally seasoned for the Japan "climate", might be better off here than one that was targeted for a "dry" U.S. climate (which "dry climate" is far from universal, or even the rule here.) If Yamaha's objective, on the other hand, was targeting a theoretical indoor climate, represented by frequent use of air conditioning and heating, and a well-insulated home where the windows and doors are often kept shut, then they should be made aware that, just like in Japan, many Americans also believe in "open-air" living; and also many don't have air conditioning, like to keep their windows open, and/or rarely use the heater. 4) People do move to different parts of the country, and sometimes out of the country. They often take their piano and other furniture with them when they move, and pianos are frequently very treasured possessions. If Yamaha prepares the U.S.-targeted pianos for a dry climate, does that mean that people who buy such an instrument can't subsequently move it to a humid environment, and will have to either leave it, store it, or sell it? I'm sure that if this came out it would definitely make it less attractive for someone to buy a Yamaha piano, and I doubt that Yamaha, (or any other piano manufacturer for that matter), would support this idea, although it is implied by Yamaha's paradigm of different climates needing different seasoning procedures. |
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