Having just finished installing a QRS Pianomation system in a recently
rebuilt Knabe grand, I have some responses to this thread.

You are right-on as far as I am concerned, particularly with soft playing
(if it even CAN play softly???).  My findings are that the dynamic range
at the loud end are seemingly endless.  It can play much louder than I
would ever want, probably loud enough to break shanks, strings, etc.

Where I'm more than a little disappointed is in its inability to play
softly, even if the MIDI file you're feeding it has soft passages.
Its concept of PPP is P at best, this due to having to set the minimum
solenoid strength at a point where the key actually produces a note.
And forget about soft trills or fast repeats at low volume.  They just
don't happen.

I don't know if this is a software issue, a solenoid control problem, or
if this particular piano is not regulated for best solenoid performance.
I shall continue to experiment, but there's a real chance that I'm just
seeing the limits of the system.

All this being said, however, it does play 99% of the music I like really
nicely, and there is some good expression.  Not up to par with the finest
Duo-Art or Ampico perhaps, but there are some really significant
advantages to this new age of mechanical music makers:

1. I can download any MIDI file I want from the web or otherwise, and
just play them.  Those who haven't been there will amazed at the quantity
of really good classical/ragtime/other pieces available for free.

2. I can edit the files to my liking, adding pedal controls, touching
them up, etc. (I use Cakewalk.)

3. The maintenance of the system is almost non-existent.  Once in a long
while a solenoid gets some dust in it, and needs to be cleaned.  This
takes about a minute.

4. The piano doesn't weigh a ton.  The last time I tried to lift the
corner of an Ampico grand by hand, I couldn't.  Period!

5. You can play for hours and hours, no paper rolls, no drawer to clunk
your knees into, etc.  And there's no risk of losing your favorite music
because of degrading/aging paper.

So, there's a definite trade-off.  Perhaps the PianoDisc is better
(opinions???), but they don't let non-authorized installers do the work
(and their prices... EEK).  That leaves me out, since I don't do enough
of them to go through the rig-a-ma-role to get "legal".  As far as I know,
other than Yamaha (who doesn't sell kits), the Pianomation is my only
choice.

I'd like to hear other's comments, and also to share notes with other
Pianomation installers/users.

Regards,

Neil Rosenberg
New Hampshire
(603) 465-2788