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breaking E strings
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vibaviattigala

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June 2, 2013 - 1:03 pm
Member Since: September 3, 2012
Forum Posts: 40
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today when i play the violin i broke the E string my string set was a bit expensive string set.i was afraid this time because my teacher told me that breaking E strings means i am applying the strings too much pressure with my left hand or right hand bow .

 

so my question starts here

 

i am going to buy a good instrument about 1-2 years later

 

maby i am trying for about 3000$ strad copy

 

what would happen if the same thing happen i would have to replace expensive parts becauaue of my play what should i do?

 

this made me so depressed :(

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Picklefish
Merritt Island, Fla

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June 2, 2013 - 2:11 pm
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Ive been listening to reggae lately so here goes

"Don't worry, bout a ting, evry little ting gonna be alright!"

E strings break, it happens. I am still using a Zyex set I bought prob 6 months ago, havent broken any strings. Try using those. As far as too much pressure dunno but here is a vid of a famous guy dealing with it. You will have to change posistions on the A string for a while till you replace that E.

"Please play some wrong notes, so that we know that you are human" - said to Jascha Heifetz.

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RosinedUp

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June 2, 2013 - 2:28 pm
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I think it's doubtful that good strings break often from too much bow pressure alone.

One thing we established last night in chat is that your strings are too high above the end of the fingerboard (7 to 8 mm for the G string), because your bridge is too high.

In critiquing one of your videos, Pierre mentioned a buzz that should be dealt with.

I personally think you have a very good ear and probably a lot of raw talent, but you have not been knocking out some obvious problems that are holding you back.

I think the first thing is for someone to go over your setup and see that your instrument is in good shape for playing.  We have more than one indication that it is not.  You should be ready to spend say $50 for this if you are not willing to learn to do it yourself.

Please pardon me, but planning to play an ill-configured instrument for one or two years is approximately nuts.

And you might want to look for another teacher, since yours apparently has not attempted to correct some basic problems such as the string height and your hold.

 

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Kevin M.
Nicholson, Pa
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June 3, 2013 - 11:27 am
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You can buy just the string you need and not an entire set.

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coolpinkone
California, the place of my heart
June 3, 2013 - 6:12 pm
Member Since: January 11, 2012
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@Picklefish great video... I had no idea what was going to happen... Got my heart rate up!

 

@vibaviattigala ... Strings break.... ESP the E.... I walked over to violin and a string was broke just sitting there.  best of luck with your violin.  I think you might need to have out looked at .... Lots of useful advise here. keep up the good work.

Ugh... iPad Typos.... Sorry

Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato

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Fiddlerman
Fort Lauderdale
June 7, 2013 - 11:28 am
Member Since: September 26, 2010
Forum Posts: 16429

You can't break a string with too much pressure on either your left hand or your bow. If your teacher said that she is completely mistaken.
You can break an E string by hitting the metal part of your bow frog on the E string too hard. Avoid that if you can :-)
Expensive violins are the same as cheap ones concerning string costs and vulnerability. E strings are fairly inexpensive and I change mine far more often than any other strings.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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Fiddlestix
Michigan, USA

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June 7, 2013 - 2:15 pm
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@vibaviattigala :   We did discuss the space between your string's and fingerboard in chat the other night and as I mentioned, you need to check the "scoop" in your fingerboard. When your violin was made, it could have been set up at the correct  scoop and string spacing, but fingerboard's do warp with temperature and humidity change. Also, if the wood that the fingerboard is made from wasn't seasoned or completely dry, this can cause the fingerboard to warp, bending down closer to the top of the violin therefore increasing the space between the string's and fingerboard. It will cause a convex (hump/higher in the middle of the fingerboard) situation.

If your fingerboard is higher in the middle, it can and will cause the string's to buzz and you won't get nice clear note's, this is not uncommon. There is more of the fingerboard that is unsupported than which is supported. You only have about 5" or 12.7mm being supported / glued to the neck and about 5 1/4" -13.3mm or 5 1/2" - 14mm that is just hanging there with nothing to support it. This happened to me with my Concert Master, it was fine for a few month's and then began to bend slightly down to the fingerboard. Not a huge bend but it did affect the playability and I wasn't getting nice sharp note's, especially on the G string side because of the greater amount of string vibration on that string.

As Fiddlerman said, you won't break a string by fingering or bowing, unless you have a defective string to start with, perhap's a little nick or weak spot that is unseen and like RosinedUp said, you owe it to yourself not to suffer another 1-2 year's with it in that condition.

 

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