Jump to content

Asthmatic Rochelle


Recommended Posts

Hi,

The air valve on my Rochelle sounds like it's suffering from terminal asthma. It is quite hard to pull, not so hard to push, and makes a very audible whistle on pull.

I've had a look and all looks to be in order. The pad lifts a fair way, the hole seems a good size and there are no obstructions.

 

The hole is drilled pretty square, with quite sharp edges, and I'm wondering if the air rushing over the edges is causing the whistle.

I'm wondering whether to round the edges of the hole slightly - does this seem a good idea?

 

TIA

 

Malcolm

 

of course, plucking up the courage to dismantle it further is another story...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Hi,

The air valve on my Rochelle sounds like it's suffering from terminal asthma. It is quite hard to pull, not so hard to push, and makes a very audible whistle on pull.

 

I tried a Rochelle once, and the air valve was the same. Not exactly a whistle, but a very loud wheeze. And a lot of resistance on the pull, which slows down your playing and saps your energy. It's not just your individual instrument - the problem seems to be designed into the Rochelle.

 

Why they make the air hole so small is a mystery to me. Surely the effort of drilling one larger hole and fitting one larger pad would improve the performance of the Rochelle out of all proportion to the increase in price!

 

Cheers,

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even when listening to anglo players with good concertinas I heard the air velve "breathe". This leads me to several questions: Is that due to construction method unavoidable? Also I try to avoid the use of the air velve - with some tunes (eg tunes with predominantly F-chords) I can't compensate the pull by pushing parts. I then try to use the air button while playing a push chord and not in a quiet part. This requires a sensitive use in order to keep pressure and tone fairly constant. How do you handle it? Do all concertinas make a noice when using the air button?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even when listening to anglo players with good concertinas I heard the air velve "breathe". This leads me to several questions: Is that due to construction method unavoidable? Also I try to avoid the use of the air velve - with some tunes (eg tunes with predominantly F-chords) I can't compensate the pull by pushing parts. I then try to use the air button while playing a push chord and not in a quiet part. This requires a sensitive use in order to keep pressure and tone fairly constant. How do you handle it? Do all concertinas make a noice when using the air button?

 

Interesting replies - I find that I play across the rows more to even up the air flow, and find the accidental G on the left to be very handy indeed.

 

I have a Marcus G/D and the air valve, although audible, isn't so noisy - the Rochelle got a smile out of JK at Witney - and it's much easier to get a quick gulp at the end of a phrase. But I saw one open at their workshop, and the air valve pad is about twice the diameter.

 

At present I haven't a clue where to get a pad from, or how to fix it.

 

Malcolm

Edited by malcolmbee
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...