 The Rhodes piano features a keyboard with a similar layout to an acoustic piano, but some models contain 73 keys instead of 88. The touch and action of the keyboard is designed to be as close to an acoustic piano as possible. Pressing a key results in a hammer striking a thin metal rod called a tine, connected to a larger "tone bar". The whole "tone generator assembly" acts as a tuning fork, the tone bar reinforcing and extending the vibrations of the tine. A pickup sits opposite the tine, picking up its vibrations and inducing an electric current in a similar manner to an electric guitar. The basic mechanical act of hitting tines does not need an external power supply and a Rhodes will make a sound even when not plugged into an amplifier, though like an unplugged electric guitar the sound will be weak.
