Intonation Problems - Equal Temperament
Posted: 21:28, 16 August 2017
Having just purchased a new Roland FA-08 at retail, with high expectations for enjoying its capabilities and quality, I was surprised and disappointed to find what I consider to be a significant defect in the instrument's equal temperament intonation. This issue could affect the entire acoustic piano category, and perhaps extend to other tone categories as well.
In playing a major scale from C6 to C7, using the Full Grand 1 tone, I perceived (initially by ear) pitches which were inconsistent with a normal equal tempered scale.
To verify whether this discovery was accurate, I tested two other identical FA-08 instruments, which were floor demonstration models at the same retailer. Both exhibited the identical intonation symptoms as my new instrument.
In testing one of the two demo FA-08s, a chromatic digital turner smartphone app was used, which displayed the anticipated pitch deviations. Thereafter, I tested my instrument using a Korg ToneWorks rack mounted chromatic tuner.
The Korg tuner not only verified the C6 to C7 hypothesis, but pitch inconsistencies were also found elsewhere on the keyboard.
In equal temperament, when an instrument is calibrated to A4 = 440 Hz (i.e., the A above middle C), the pitch of the perfect octave above it, A5, should be 880 Hz. The Hertz frequencies associated with each equal tempered pitch is precise, when the instrument is properly tuned.
So far, I have found no Internet references to intonation problems associated with the FA-08. Roland's U. S. support representative says no such incidents have been reported since the product's release in 2014.
My instrument is using 2.0 firmware. A factory reset has been initiated several times to reduce the possibility that the problem is a firmware related anomaly.
I'd be grateful to hear any possible remedies or constructive suggestions on how to address what is for me a troubling issue.
Thank you.
In playing a major scale from C6 to C7, using the Full Grand 1 tone, I perceived (initially by ear) pitches which were inconsistent with a normal equal tempered scale.
To verify whether this discovery was accurate, I tested two other identical FA-08 instruments, which were floor demonstration models at the same retailer. Both exhibited the identical intonation symptoms as my new instrument.
In testing one of the two demo FA-08s, a chromatic digital turner smartphone app was used, which displayed the anticipated pitch deviations. Thereafter, I tested my instrument using a Korg ToneWorks rack mounted chromatic tuner.
The Korg tuner not only verified the C6 to C7 hypothesis, but pitch inconsistencies were also found elsewhere on the keyboard.
In equal temperament, when an instrument is calibrated to A4 = 440 Hz (i.e., the A above middle C), the pitch of the perfect octave above it, A5, should be 880 Hz. The Hertz frequencies associated with each equal tempered pitch is precise, when the instrument is properly tuned.
So far, I have found no Internet references to intonation problems associated with the FA-08. Roland's U. S. support representative says no such incidents have been reported since the product's release in 2014.
My instrument is using 2.0 firmware. A factory reset has been initiated several times to reduce the possibility that the problem is a firmware related anomaly.
I'd be grateful to hear any possible remedies or constructive suggestions on how to address what is for me a troubling issue.
Thank you.