Product Description
Pianos are not machines —
Yamaha makes musical instruments
Pianos, and in fact all musical instruments, are intended to convey the performer’s deepest intentions and feelings to the listener. To that end, a good piano must be able to fill a space with sound, giving the listener the impression of a color, or a scent, or sometimes even a shape. Each piano is comprised of more than 8,000 parts, combining fine woodworking and casting techniques. Despite this complexity, Yamaha aims to achieve more than just mechanical perfection; we seek to create a musical instrument — a work of art of which we can be truly proud, and this ambition is evident in every component of the CX Series.
Resonating with the emotions of the performer.
As with the CF Series, the CX Series utilizes unique crown manufacturing techniques.
A violin is built around a beautiful body with three-dimensional contours and a delicately curved shape, which is similar to the three dimensional concave design of a piano soundboard called the “crown.” The manufacture of this crown is pivotal to the crafting of any piano, and is thus of paramount importance to piano engineers in addressing the problem of how to most efficiently transmit the vibrations of the strings from the soundboard into its surroundings. Yamaha has taken experience accumulated through many years of crafting pianos and combined it with unsurpassed engineering ability to ensure that the soundboard always provides superior projection. The resulting design capitalizes on physical phenomena unique to the craft of piano-making, to create a soundboard assembly with a structure that allows it to vibrate easily, something that would not have been possible without the deep understanding of the traditional art of piano crafting that goes hand-in-hand with Yamaha’s experience and engineering know-how. The same techniques developed for gluing the soundboard, ribs, and bridge in the CFX are used for the C3X and above — models which require a great deal of projection — and the process of installing the soundboard into the piano body has been investigated carefully with precision and accuracy. This has resulted in dramatically improved projection and the unprecedented response that performers demand.
CX Series pianos feature a thickened back beam for improved support, providing a rich, resonant tone.
One of the most important factors in achieving a rich tone is the support provided within the instrument. When playing powerful fortissimo the force exerted on the instrument causes it to bend slightly, losing energy. The part of the piano that accepts this force and transforms it into deep reverberation is called the back beam, which could be likened to the skeleton in a human body. On the C3X for example, this back beam is approximately 20％ thicker than on other pianos, providing significantly improved support and reflecting the considerations on which the CX Series has been completely redesigned.
Expertise in frame making shines through in the robust quality of Yamaha pianos.
The frame in a modern piano must be able to withstand a total string tension in excess of twenty tons; not only does the frame work together with the wooden body to support the string tension, but it has a profound effect on the instrument’s sound. Yamaha makes its own frames, relying on a method of casting referred to as the “vacuum process,” developed over many years to create some of the best piano frames in the world. During this time we have built up a storehouse of knowledge on factors such as the manner in which controlling the temperature and composition of casting, and even the coating used on the frame itself, affects the acoustic characteristics of the piano. This is a major reason as to why Yamaha is able to ensure reliable quality when crafting our pianos.
Revolutionary new music wire in the middle and treble registers offers beautiful sustain and harmony.
It is music wire that actually creates sound of a piano. While affected by its matching with the hammers, soundboard and body of the piano, music wire has a profound effect on the timbre and sustain of the instrument. The CX Series utilizes music wire that produces a rich sound with a full complexity of overtones in its middle and upper registers. Coupled with the support from a solid foundation, this gives CX Series pianos a rich, harmonic sound.
The hammers used in the CX Series utilize the same felt as the CFX, giving these pianos bright tonal colors and a finely nuanced sound.
Great hammers are essential for producing a beautifully expressive and malleable sound. Yamaha, unlike most other piano manufacturers, produces most of its own high-quality components and is constantly looking for new ways to use the abilities developed to give our piano hammers resilience and power. The CX Series has also benefitted from the results of this research and development, and utilizes the same felt as the CFX, adjusted to match the size of each instrument in the series. This ensures that all CX Series pianos possess a clear range of tonal colors and a nuanced, expressive sound.
Breathing life into the piano .
Pianos offer pianists only a limited amount of freedom; indeed, apart from the pedals, the pianist’s scope for expression is limited to the 10 mm travel of each of the 88 keys on the keyboard. Even so, the combination of the pedals with the speed and velocity applied to the keys produces a range of tonal changes so broad that they cannot be reproduced with current digital technology. This is the true soul of an acoustic instrument, allowing the pianist to obtain an incredible amount of expression from just 10 mm of key travel. That is precisely why Yamaha devotes so much time into breathing life into the piano through this, the interface through which the intentions of the pianist are conveyed to the strings. In regulation, a craftsman adjusts the movement of the action so that it accurately transmits every nuance of the pianist’s touch. In voicing, the hammers, which cause the strings to emit sound, are pricked with a pick to create a balanced tone that will respond beautifully when played. Even today, in an era when technology continues to evolve rapidly, these tasks remain the domain of skilled craftsmen who must ensure the high quality of these instruments, and are the main reason that Yamaha has remained one of the top piano makers in the world.
