I have a chance to buy a really nice grand reproducing piano but
it has an Art Echo player.  I seem to remember someone saying that
these can be converted to play Ampico as they are somewhat related.
Has anyone had experience doing this and what was the ending result?
Did it play as well as a good Ampico?

My guess is that the best way for a conversion would be to replace
everything with conventional Ampico and use the existing stack.
I would appreciate opinions on this.  I am probably not looking in
the right places but I cannot seem to find much of anything on Art Echo
players etc. and stacks.  I know that rolls can be very difficult to
find.

Randy Hammond

 [ The ArtEcho expression system was developed by Melville Clark
 [ Piano Co., manufactured under contract by Amphion, and sold by
 [ Wurlitzer as the Apollo reproducing piano.
 [
 [ A good overview is the article, "Understanding the Artecho", by
 [ David L. Saul, published in "Encyclopedia of Automatic Musical
 [ Instruments", by Q. David Bowers, page 293.  A nice history is at
 [ http://www.bluesrolls.com/BT_MelvilleClark.html  See also
 [ http://mmd.foxtail.com/Archives/KWIC/A/apollo.html
 [ http://mmd.foxtail.com/Archives/KWIC/A/artecho.html
 [ http://mmd.foxtail.com/Archives/KWIC/A/art_echo.html
 [ http://mmd.foxtail.com/Archives/KWIC/E/echo.html
 [
 [ Those who have heard restored ArtEcho instruments playing ArtEcho
 [ rolls say it performs as well as other "reproducing" systems.
 [
 [ -- Robbie