Yamaha NU1X "loud note" fix seems to cause another problem

vagfilm I don't agree.

There must be several thousand, if not ten thousands Yamaha NU1 and NU1X (plus many many Yamaha silent pianos with the same sensor) sold worldwide with the loud note issue before it was "fixed" in May 2019 with the firmware update. Although it is much more noticeable when it appears then the "muffled note issue" many engineers as well as owners didn't seem to notice it or didn't care. There a just a handful youtube videos about the loud note issue and a few of threads on pianoworld about this. In the big german clavio forum I never read about it.

When I told the dealer (a big digital piano dealer in Europe, I was talking with the boss) about the "loud note issue" that was fixed with Firmware 2.1 he didn't seem to know what I was talking about.

I think we can agree that this problem is much more subtle than a sudden loud note. I didn't even really noticed it consciously for two weeks of regular playing and practicing (1 - 2 hours everyday). And without systematic testing and Pianoteq or some other Program that can read the note On velocities I wouldn't be even 100% sure about it.

How many owners play the NU1X regularly? How many of them also play classic literature with f+ passages and not just pp - mf movie scores, minimal music or Einaudi, Yiruma, Tiessen (I don't mean this disrespectful, I like this music too)? And how many of them have access to a program to read the note on velocities of the instrument if they noticed subtle irregularity sometimes in playing? I think you also know how many pianos, even newer ones, are in awful condition, untuned, unregulated at homes because no one really plays them or cares.

I am happy that I noticed it within the 30 days of unconditional return window. I payed a good amount of money for this instrument and I really don't wanna have a months long odyssey with service technicians not able to solve the problem. And I don't want to support Yamaha for this messed up design with a missing hammer sensor, although they are aware of the shortcomings. The dealer can deal with it if he wants.

If it was the key bushings reducing the key velocity, why on earth would it result in five times in a row exactly the same note on velocity? And only effect the velocities when played in the ff range?

porco_rosso I really don't wanna have a months long odyssey with service technicians not able to solve the problem. And I don't want to support Yamaha for this messed up design.

Fully agree with both things...

porco_rosso And only effect the velocities when played in the ff range?

On this you are completely correct, and I was not thinking it through... Well... Back to the dealer it goes. One more argument for DIY hybrid pianos...

porco_rosso Hmmm.. I've spent a while now, several times, power cycling in between, different parts of the key range, different piano voices, on my NU1, not NU1X, with the loud note firmware, and cannot reproduce this!

Will try again tomorrow, but worried about hurting my fingers.

Any other NU1 or NU1X owners care to try as well and report back?

spanishbuddha OK I've had another go, fresh Sunday morning. With pedal, without pedal, legato, staccato, block chords, broken chords, scales, hanon, same note, adjacent notes, thirds, etc, but I cannot reproduce this at all. If I want a louder note, I get it every time up to my maximum arm/finger strength.

Either it's NU1X only problem, or there's another parameter to be factored in, or the instruments you tried are (batch) defective or ….?

spanishbuddha Thanks for testing! That's interesting. It may be an only NU1X issue, maybe due to some changes in the sensor?

Or it could be a batch defect. But I'm not sure about this. The NU1X at JustMusic seems much older and the action felt more worn down. It is definitely there since at least last year.

spanishbuddha Either it's NU1X only problem, or there's another parameter to be factored in, or the instruments you tried are (batch) defective or ….?

porco_rosso Or it could be a batch defect. But I'm not sure about this. The NU1X at JustMusic seems much older and the action felt more worn down. It is definitely there since at least last year.

I have the NU1 too, but as I said I did not install the anti-loud-note firmware, so I can't test it, but I can speculate.

As @porco_rosso and @vagfilm discussed and eventually agreed, there is no way that this is related with the mechanics. This must be software. Since it is not happening on @spanishbuddha instrument and (weaker argument, I know) it is not discussed anywhere but this thread in this forum, I speculate that it's something relatively new in the last iteration of the firmware. Do we know for sure the version of the firmware that's installed? Do we know when was it released? Can you find someone someone else with and older version of the firmware to look at the checksum and see if Yamaha has changed the content without changing the version number?

Wait, on this latter point I can help 😁 I have a zip file of the firmware which I downloaded on May 21st (2019) and the corresponding PRG that's inside shows an April 10 of the same year. Here are the MD5 checksums:

f212c34948b2aadff389448ffce21a87 firmware/NU1x_firmware/nu1x_v210.zip
6ff06fc16ff4f387e98e48f473e3809a firmware/NU1x_firmware/NU1XSETUP.PRG

The vendor firmware page has been updated before November 2020, according to the internet archive's records: https://web.archive.org/web/2020\*/https://usa.yamaha.com/support/updates/nu1x_firm.html
The internet archive sadly does not have the firmware binary cached (because you need to accept terms and conditions to download it), however the version "live" on Yamaha's website is identical to mine. Same story with Europe's version of Yamaha's website. Sleuthing a bit in the internet archived versions of the USA's version of the website, one reaches a roadblock: the oldest mention of the NU1x has been archived in Sept 2017 but the more details about the instrument was cached on in August 2018 and most relevant for this discussion the firmware page was not cached at all ☹️ until few minutes ago when I nudged such caching. I did not check the Europe's website, leaving that fun to you, let alone the Japanese one which might be the best shot.

Someone commented under my youtube video:

I have the same problem with my NU1X.

RIP I am not sure if I can follow you. 😅 I know that it's the 2.10 firmware that is installed on my NU1X.

porco_rosso delvento I am not sure if I can follow you. 😅 I know that it's the 2.10 firmware that is installed on my NU1X.

Sorry for being complicated. I just described all I did to investigate when this firmware was released and if there was an older one to find online. The tl;dr; version is no (unless you reach out to fellow hoarders like me on the other two or three forums and see if one has the v2.0 firmware and is able to test it out).

RIP Ah ok, I see.

The other NU1X owner with the same problem answered und the video.

my NU1X is form April 2021. It was a big effort for my local piano provider, but because it's the biggest store in my country, the've managed to receive the piano (even if there is/was a global production chip problem). I am sure the problem is specific tu NU1X and also N1X, but I personally would never go back to a digital piano. So even if it is no perfect, I will stau with my hybrid or buy in the future a real upright/grnd with silent system. I want to buy an audio interface an use VST files... I hope I will get rod of the NU1X's own sound problems.

So April 2021 and October 2020, would be a pretty big batch if it was only a problem specific to a batch of NU1Xs. 😅

porco_rosso although you are returning your unit, I wonder if you are able to persuade the store owner to get a response from Yamaha. I understand if you just want to move on however.

porco_rosso April 2021 and October 2020, would be a pretty big batch

That's just 7 months. It's not unheard for batches of instruments this expensive to take a year or two to get sold. And I notice that both of them are "pandemic pianos" in which the chip shortage might have played a role, perhaps with subpar parts being used in replacement of something temporarily unavailable for the chip shortage. I am just speculating and not saying how likely this could be, but it's possible.

It'd be interesting to hear from somebody who bought a NU1x in 2017-2018. Probably @MacMacMac could help put you in touch with the person who maintained a list of all instrument purchased (the famous "price paid spreadsheet" which has been recently deleted from google 🙁 I thought I had made my own copy, but apparently that was just a link and I've lost it too 😩). The maintainer for the spreadsheet could help you put you in touch with somebody who bought a NU1x in that timeframe….

spanishbuddha I understand if you just want to move on however.

Well, if @porco_rosso did not care at all, he would not be spending time making Youtube videos and discussing it here. He probably does care at least some and at least for curiosity. Well, at least that is what I think and that is what I use to guide the tone of my responses. In the "just move on" attitude, we can simply say "good thing you're still in 30-day return period, send it back and forget about it".

RIP Probably @MacMacMac could help put you in touch with the person who maintained a list of all instrument purchased (the famous "price paid spreadsheet" which has been recently deleted from google 🙁 I thought I had made my own copy, but apparently that was just a link and I've lost it too 😩). The maintainer for the spreadsheet could help you put you in touch with somebody who bought a NU1x in that timeframe….

Yes, that link to the spreadsheet is broken. So are all of the other links from that Piano World sticky thread.

I recently noticed that when I went to check email in that google account.

I don't do so very often … it's a "throwaway" email account. But when I looked I saw a long pile of messages from people requesting access to the various documents. Apparently the links were broken by what google calls "a security update". Don't ask me what that means.

Anyway, the documents are no longer accessible. But I can repost what I have if anyone is interested.

I've posted the prices paid spreadsheet HERE.

I'd like to produce a "threads" spreadsheet, like the one I did at Piano World. That was done by scraping the threads pages. Not too difficult.

I don't know how I'd do that here. This site is built on java script and this old man can't deal with that.

MacMacMac I've posted the prices paid spreadsheet HERE.

Awesome, you're the best 👍️

I've created another thread for the purpose of continuing that "tradition" here at PC, so let me comment only on the part relevant to this one.

This document is excellent for the purpose of knowing the price paid, but for the purpose of searching pre-pandemic NU1x owners, I see only one or two. I'm pretty sure the old one had earlier owners. Is that data lost?

I've updated the spreadsheet to include items that were omitted before. I found two more NU1X listings. See whether that solves your puzzle.

RIP Well, if @eddiepiano did not care at all, he would not be spending time making Youtube videos and discussing it here. He probably does care at least some and at least for curiosity. Well, at least that is what I think and that is what I use to guide the tone of my responses. In the "just move on" attitude, we can simply say "good thing you're still in 30-day return period, send it back and forget about it".

It's probably, hopefully, the language, just the words, but this seems a pretty unfriendly and unnecessary response to me, when I was just asking as courteously as I could, for eddie who has no obligations to us, to follow this up a bit further?

No doubt I missed it whilst scanning through this thread, but I don't remember reading that the sensor calibration sequence has been run on eddie's piano? Yamaha engineers do it but I think some owners know how to do it.

I have the calibration procedure and I don't see a reason not to post it here.

Another NU1X owner on PW reports they cannot reproduce it. The mystery deepens.

@porco_rosso, sorry for the obvious question but you make sure you wait until the piano boots up (around 10 seconds) before you start playing it, right?

Also, do you have bright directed light falling at the keys and if so, have you tried temporarily switching it off, using curtains, etc?