Proof-of-concept FXP: Custom L-mode pitches (copper strings)

In Pianoteq, when you change the string length, the pitch of the longitudinal mode changes, but none of the other parameters can be changed to further customize the string's sound profile w.r.t. its longitudinal mode. At maximum or odd lengths, the L-mode clashes with the note played, resulting in a most unpleasant dissonance that's hardly realistic nor plausible. The string model does not take into account differing copper wrap profiles and hand-winding of the strings which can significantly change the resultant L-mode. I was surprised to learn that MIDI#25 on the Rubenstein R-371 had a higher L-mode pitch (perfect 29th) than a typical concert grand which has it as a dominant 28th!

So, to test whether the idea of custom L-mode pitches was viable, I "cheated" and had two instances of Pianoteq, one of them was "highpassed" to contain just the L-mode, and another where the string lengths were set such that their L-modes were perfect 22nds and lowpassed to remove as much of the influence of the L-mode as possible. I then set up the following in REAPER:

http://i.imgur.com/2M43M5A.png

Note on the following:

- This only sounds plausible for MIDI #33 and below
- Velocity sensitivity is a bit wonky at pianissimo
- Piano was set up to also sound deeper and with more bass
- Notes must be individually edited on both presets for best results

The result was much more of a success than I had thought, and shows that the idea of custom L-mode pitches is viable in the context of obtaining new sounds or producing more faithful reproductions of your favorite piano. Feel free to make edits and improvements to this first effort, and I hope Modartt will look further in to this concept in the future.

http://www.forum-pianoteq.com/uploads.php?id=2360
http://www.forum-pianoteq.com/uploads.php?id=2362