JerryAccordion
Member
I prepared one interesting poll for all users
Which accordions have strong compression (old & new models)? Survey
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Dingo40
Been here for ages!
Bugari/Sonola/I Busilacchio/Giuletti/Scandalli.
Of course, the actual age/condition of the specific example in question is everything!
Of course, the actual age/condition of the specific example in question is everything!
JerryAccordion
Member
So you can choose "Your option"
General wisdom among repairers is that accordions with (correctly seated) wooden pallets fixed to the arms with wax and soft felt + leather have better compression than the ones with metal pallets held in place on the arms with a silicone-rubber band. As a result, which accordions have better compression is more an issue of pallets than of accordion brand. Many brands always use the wooden pallets + wax construction. But some tended to make more use of metal pallets + rubber-band construction, like Hohner and Excelsior, and Russian bayan makers.
Some air leaks through bad register mechanisms (think of the pumping up and down movement instead of rotation, on older Hohner models) or through more "connections" between inside and outside, like the Hohner "metalbau" as used in the Atlantic/Imperator/Pirola models.
Another source of air leaks is the number of holes for pallets. A 5 voice accordion has more holes than a 4 voice one and therefore slightly less compression.
Don't forget also that accordion makers try to find the best compression between the key springs offering enough force to keep the pallets closed and little enough force to require very little force to press the keys. My Russian bayan for instance has good compression (despite the metal pallets + rubber bands) but requires quite a bit of force to press the keys (buttons). My worst accordion in terms of compression is the Hohner Artiste XS with 56 notes, 5 voice, plus 58 notes LM melody bass, making for 396 holes, and it has metal+rubber band pallets, and it requires little force to press the keys... Compare that to a Bugari 508/ARS/C with 46 notes, 4 voice, 55 notes melody bass, for a total of 294 holes (roughly 3/4 of the Hohner) and it has wood+wax pallets and it requires a bit more force to play... good compression as a result.
So it really depends on different aspects of the accordion, more than on the brand. Every manufacturer who wants it can make a 26 note, 40 bass, 2 voice accordion with outstanding compression. Making a 64 note 4 voice bayan with 58 notes 3 voice melody bass and good compression is much much harder.
Some air leaks through bad register mechanisms (think of the pumping up and down movement instead of rotation, on older Hohner models) or through more "connections" between inside and outside, like the Hohner "metalbau" as used in the Atlantic/Imperator/Pirola models.
Another source of air leaks is the number of holes for pallets. A 5 voice accordion has more holes than a 4 voice one and therefore slightly less compression.
Don't forget also that accordion makers try to find the best compression between the key springs offering enough force to keep the pallets closed and little enough force to require very little force to press the keys. My Russian bayan for instance has good compression (despite the metal pallets + rubber bands) but requires quite a bit of force to press the keys (buttons). My worst accordion in terms of compression is the Hohner Artiste XS with 56 notes, 5 voice, plus 58 notes LM melody bass, making for 396 holes, and it has metal+rubber band pallets, and it requires little force to press the keys... Compare that to a Bugari 508/ARS/C with 46 notes, 4 voice, 55 notes melody bass, for a total of 294 holes (roughly 3/4 of the Hohner) and it has wood+wax pallets and it requires a bit more force to play... good compression as a result.
So it really depends on different aspects of the accordion, more than on the brand. Every manufacturer who wants it can make a 26 note, 40 bass, 2 voice accordion with outstanding compression. Making a 64 note 4 voice bayan with 58 notes 3 voice melody bass and good compression is much much harder.
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