Now it is time to make a flat, tapering cut from the base to the tip, thinning out the plectrum across its width. The object is to taper the thickness of the plectrum from the base to the tip. You may not have to perform this cut for the lower bass notes, but you may wish to thin it quite a bit for the top notes. Around middle C one or two cuts will be sufficient, generally speaking.The final cut is a 45-degree bevel across the tip, cutting the plectrum to its final length. Try to avoid "snapping" the tip off with the knife, as this will usually leave a barb which will inhibit repetition and may even prevent the plectrum from escaping under the string altogether. Now you can check the length of the plectrum by inserting the jack into its guide mortice and observing how close the plectrum tip is to the string. Ideally, the tip should just project beyond the string, by about half the diameter of the string or so. Compare it to the adjacent jacks: if they work well, copy the position for the jack you have just voiced. Check the sound the jack produces and compare it against neighboring keys. If it is too loud, remove the jack and trim a sliver off one edge, as at left. Make a guillotine-like slice, burying the tip of the knife at the base of the plectrum and slicing down. Take off very little at a time. If your plectrum is the correct length and is much too loud, additional thinning of the plectrum may do the trick. If your plectrum is much too soft, try advancing the plectrum by pushing it slighty forward through the tongue mortice - very little motion is needed here to make a huge difference in volume, so be careful. If your new plectrum is slightly too soft, try leaving it alone, as it will get brighter and louder in a few days.

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Properly done, your plectrum should have the profile seen here: tapering from base to tip. A well-seated plectrum should have a slight upward incline of about 3 degrees or so. In adjustable jacks this can be arrived at by setting the top adjustment screw so that the tongue leans back slightly. Re-insert the damper so that it sits slightly about the level of the plectrum. One sixteenth-inch of a gap between the two should be about right, as you must leave room for the damper to descend to the string as the plectrum gets around the string.

Once you have installed the jack and are satisfied with the sound, check for repeatability by depressing the key and letting the key up very slowly after the string has died down completely. If the plectrum hangs on the string, there are two possible culprits: one, you have a barb on the end of your plectrum; or two, the jack's spring is too stiff against the tongue. In the first instance, using a very sharp Xacto knife, trim off the offending barb and rub the tip of the plectrum with your finger. In the second instance, adjust the spring tension. This can usually be affected by gently bending back the spring, or relieving the kink in the spring if it has one. If the jack escapes well but is slow to repeat, try rubbing the underside of the plectrum with a bit of grease from your nose. (No, don't rub the plectrum on your nose - rub your nose with your finger, and apply your finger to the plectrum!)

It is difficult to generalize about proper voicing, since each instrument has its own requirements. There are, however, some things to consider. For example, the maximum volume a string can produce is more a reflection of the instrument than it is of voicing. Leaving a heavy plectrum in hopes of getting more volume will simply produce mechanical noise from the string and wolf tones elsewhere. Keep in mind that it is the quality of sound that is important, not its specific volume. Good voicing on any instrument will yield a sound that derives the maximum effect from the harpsichord, and this means tonal color, the ability of the sound to penetrate and carry, and so on. So avoid setting your plectra so they "lift and drop" the strings; they should simply pluck the strings.