Top notes on a piano

Yamaha is a quality mfr so I have some doubt it's the piano but it's unclear from the info you provide. This type of instrument is capable of a lot of different musical instrument voices.. Is it also not producing sound for all the instruments?

Yamaha Clavinova link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clavinova

It could be damaged if:

(A) it's been heavily used and/or not been maintained properly..as would be the case with any electric piano.. due to contact wear or corrosion.)
(B) has something freakish or environmental that is damaging it

Simple enough to diagnose whether on not it's you or the piano:

Bring in a youthful 18 yr old to listen to the highest notes who hasn't been listening to loud music for most of their young life.

- or -

Plug the output of the piano into an oscilloscope. I know you don't have access to one so...

Take a hearing test at an audiologist or your g.p. and have your hearing levels charted.

Typical hearing loss for adult over-40 yr-old urban males is to lose the top half octave..
from 15khz -20khz. If you have lived in urban area, served in the military or been around loud gun or industrial noises, the high freq hearing loss can be more profound..say from 8khz to 10khz and above.

Re: Top notes on a piano


Almost certainly your hearing, I'm sorry to say.

I am a sufferer myself, and no longer get much satisfaction from the piano for that reason.

sorry..I misled you slightly (but not fundamentally). I researched a bit here. This is what I found out about piano key upper register:


Key number Frequency (Hz)
88 4186.01
87 3951.07
86 3729.31
85 3520.00
84 3322.44
83 3135.96

If you have a hearing loss to the degree that these above-listed notes aren't able to be heard, then you most likely cannot hear a woman's upper singing voice plus harmonics and/or young girl's singing plus harmonics and definitely not hear a violin.

However, if you can hear the upper voice and harmonic content of women or girls, then you probably have a piano output problem.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Upon further research I found out the following about typical hearing loss due to aging:

Long term exposure to environmental noise

"Populations of people living near airports or freeways are exposed to levels of noise typically in the 65 to 75 dbA range. If lifestyles include significant outdoor or open window conditions, these exposures over time can degrade hearing. The U.S. EPA and various states have set noise standards to protect people from these adverse health risks. The EPA has identified the level of 70 db(A) for 24-hour-exposure as the level necessary to protect the public from hearing loss (EPA, 1974).

Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) typically is centered at 4000 Hz.

Measurement of hearing loss in Decibels (db)

Moderate: between 41 and 55 dB
Moderately severe: between 56 and 70 dB
Severe: between 71 and 90 dB
Profound: 90 dB or greater

The dynamic loudness range of sounds in musical recordings generally runs between -40 db and +10 db. In person, the loudness of music can vary a bit more depending on acoustics and closeness to source. Let's say for discussion sake that this range of loudness is -55 db (whisper or page turning) to plus 18 db cymbal crash or percussion/bass drum.

The louder the noise is, the shorter the safe amount of exposure is. Normally, the safe amount of exposure is reduced by a factor 2 for every additional 3 dB. For example, the safe daily exposure amount at 85 dB is 8 hours, while the safe exposure at 91 dB(A) is only 2 hours (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 1998). Sometimes, a factor 2 per 5 dB is used.

Personal electronic audio devices, such as iPods (which can reach 115 decibels or higher), can produce powerful enough sound to cause significant Noise-Induced Hearing Loss, given that lesser intensities of even 85 dB can also cause hearing loss."

Hard of hearing

"Many people with hearing loss have better hearing in the lower frequency ranges (low tones), and cannot hear as well or at all in the higher frequencies. Some people may merely find it difficult to differentiate between words that begin with consonantal sounds such as the fricatives or sibilants, z, or th, or the plosives d, t, b, or p. They may be unable to hear thin, high-pitched or metallic noises, such as birds chirping or singing, clocks ticking, etc. Often, they are able to hear and understand men's voices better than women's."

Top notes on a piano
Well, I'm relieved to find that it probably is not my hearing.

The piano is brand-new, and I'm still learning what all the buttons and dials do. One dial is Volume, and it appears to have been turned fairly low; turning it up does produce sound from the top keys, though not a sound one would notice with, say, a full orchestral accompaniment. Also, most of the various voices obtainable do sound.

The question was rather academic, anyway, since very little is written for such high piano notes. The wind instrument settings become a bit shrill, but are definitely audible.

I think that those top-most piano notes (I'm no musician or expert - just an audiophile) are meant to add color...not so much for the notes to pick out individually.