Topic: Feature Request: Better control over pedal noise
I know the pedal sound has been improved recently but it still sticks out as an 'unnatural' aspect of Pianoteq (to my ears, at least) - this is all the more noticeable as the rest of the modelling is absolutely fantastic now.
It seems as if the Pedal Noise parameter in the Action settings controls a number of things at once, in a not particularly intuitive fashion.
1. The sound of the pedal itself being depressed (the 'thud')
2. The energy imparted into the instrument by the pedal ('shimmer' of the strings)
3. The interaction of the strings with the damper, regardless of the pedal position
3. is especially surprising, and is easy to notice with the value turned all the way up - there is a metallic 'shuffling' sound with every key press (particularly noticeable in the Bechstein model). Bizarrely, this is present even with damper noise turned completely off. (Perhaps this is the entire pedal assembly being modeled, including the dampers? It's surprising regardless)
2. Seems to be (at a guess) just the interaction of the dampers lifting off the strings - the resonances are all in very high partials, whereas (at least in uprights), the pedal thunk itself excites the strings and produces resonance across the range. It just reinforces the weird 'overlaid sample' sense I get from the pedal thunk.
I'd love to be able to control some of these aspects separately, since I don't think I ever want noisy dampers, or for the thunk to show up in recordings, but definitely value the ability to 'ride' the pedal imparting extra energy into the tail end of held notes.
I don't mean this to seem like too much of a complaint, but rather some thoughts on things that could be even better - overall I'm delighted with Pianoteq (and the continual improvements that are made)