Conversion kits for pianos

Judith Conrad wrote:

> I saw on rec.musicmakers.piano the other day that Story and Clark piano
> company sells conversion kits for putting electronic innards into old junk
> pianos. Anyone know anything about this? Are they tunable? I was once
> given an 88-note silent keyboard...

I have seen a number of these systems - including MIDI compatible
ones. There is a company in Cambridge UK which specialises in such
transformations, and there certainly used to be various
do-it-yourself kits available. I can't remember the names of them
now (there was one available some years ago called 'Crystal Keys') -
but at some point when I have time I could find out easily enough.
(By 'electronic innards' I'm assuming you mean sensors under the
piano keys which pick up note on/off, velocity, and presumably some
thing to do with the sustain pedal - rather than player-piano type
innards?). To damp the piano some very heavy felt or even felted
wire to catch the hammers will do, tho you wouldn't need it on the
silent keyboard.

> >Are they tunable?

As tunable as the MIDI device you play it through.

Patrick O-L