Getting started

Position of the power supply connection on grand pianos

Power on: The first contact with your new VARIO

This section assumes that you have an instrument – upright or grand – including VARIO Digital System that is ready to play. In most cases, your dealer has already ensured that the entire instrument is in perfect condition and you have already been able to enjoy its acoustic facets. So let‘s explore the digital possibilities of your piano together – let‘s get started. 

Position of the power supply connection on upright pianos

Power supply & start up

The VARIO requires a power connection for operation. The power supply which is included in the package is connected to the rear of the piano. Please do not use any power supply other than this one. For grand pianos, you will find the appropriate socket on the bottom, about an arm‘s length behind the two VARIO control modules.

Switching on by pressing the button

Switch on the VARIO digital system by pressing the button. If the LED on the control unit lights gold after a few seconds, the system is ready. 

Activating the Silent Mode

Below the keyboard you will find a lever that you can use to activate the hammer stop bar and thus mute the acoustic instrument.

 

Front panel connectors and volume knob

The piano is silenced? Put the headphone on – it will be connected to one of the two jacks. Adjust the volume with the knob next to it. Attention: as with the acoustic instrument, the overall volume can become very loud during forte play. 

 

With a short press on the button (4 times) you can switch between four different sounds – even without an app.

Once you’ve enjoyed the first notes, you’ll certainly be looking forward to more sounds from the VARIO System: press the button once … and play sound No. 2. press it again … No. 3 and again … No. 4.

The fifth press on the button will bring back the first sound. With the VARIO App you can store any sound in the four memory slots which we call „favorites“.

 

Optimum view and operation: A Tablet on the piano‘s music desk.

Speaking of apps, let‘s connect your smartphone, better yet a tablet to the VARIO now: 

We recommend that you place the device directly on the music desk of your instrument. For upright pianos, you will find two tablet stands included with the system, which hold devices of different sizes on the music stand.

Hint: Whether you place the display vertically (portrait) or horizontally (landscape) does not matter for the VARIO App. We recommend horizontal placement for ergonomic reasons – if, on the other hand, sheet music is frequently used on your tablet, the vertical position naturally offers you more space.

Download the VARIO App (see the following sections for details) and launch it on your device. 

Standby mode

A longer press on the button switches the VARIO digital system off or puts it into a special type of standby mode: the system is almost completely shut down and only the built-in Bluetooth LE module remains accessible (for MIDI apps).

However, Bluetooth LE is designed to consume minimal power. In this mode, the VARIO digital system requires less than 0.3 watts. Thus it needs less energy per year than your smartphone if you charge it every 1 to 2 days on average.