Welcome to our forum. A Message To Our New and Prospective Members . Check out our Forum Rules. Lets keep this forum an enjoyable place to visit.
Check out our 2023 Group Christmas Project HERE
Log In
Register
Home
Topic RSS
(0 votes) 
Regular advisor
Regulars
Offline
There was a seam coming open on my violin and the bridge was a little too high. So I brought it into an instrument repair shop. The guy there glued the seam and refit the bridge. I love what he did, the violin is much easier to play now with the lower bridge.. but.. the tone really changed. 
My violin before, had a warm, rich sound. There were no wolf tones. Each string had an even tone, every note was even. By even, I mean.. um, all the notes sounded the same.. you know what I mean? Well, it had a very nice sound. I'll just say that.
Now my violin sounds mellow and metallic-y. Open G and E sound okay, but D or A or add any fingers and the notes sound airy. My C (on the A string) is squeaky, my G (on the E string or A in third position) just sounds awful!
Does having bridge refitted or gluing an open seam shut do that?
I did notice though, inside my violin it looks like when he glued the seam that glue ran down the inside of the violin from the end button (which is wear the seam was open) to across the label. Is that affecting the sound?
Anybody have any help on this? Thanks. 
Pro advisor
Regulars
Offline
Do you know if the sound post is in the correct position? Also you can make sure that the bridge is in the correct position by checking to see if it is even with the little notches on the inside of the f holes and by making sure the bridge is centered in the right place so your strings are even going down the finger board. I'm not sure about the glue as I'm just a beginner 
I gave you a welcome to the forum on your other post. I'm from Minnesota too...
Honorary advisor
Regulars
Offline
Mustang said:
My violin before, had a warm, rich sound. There were no wolf tones. Each string had an even tone, every note was even. By even, I mean.. um, all the notes sounded the same.. you know what I mean? Well, it had a very nice sound. I'll just say that.
Does having bridge refitted or gluing an open seam shut do that?I did notice though, inside my violin it looks like when he glued the seam that glue ran down the inside of the violin from the end button (which is wear the seam was open) to across the label. Is that affecting the sound?
Yikes! Sounds like you need to take it back, play it for the repair guy and discuss your concerns.
The tone can change after an open seam has been repaired, but it shouldn't sound so very different. Changing the bridge shouldn't affect the sound at all, but if he moved the soundpost it could explain the changes.
The glue running onto the label is pure slop, but if it's hide glue it shouldn't affect the sound - if it's some other type of glue you need to find another luthier!
Mary in Springfield, Oregon http://www.thefiddleandbanjopr.....dpress.com
Offline
Hey Mustang,
Having a new bridge cut can change the sound for sure, tremendously.
As MGN said, the soundpost is extremely important. Bridge should be almost completely straight or leaning back ever so slightly, almost nothing.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
Honorary advisor
Regulars
Offline
Was a new bridge cut, or the old one re-fit? Would re-fitting make such a huge difference? I carved on mine several times to adjust the top curve and make the feet fit more snugly, but it didn't seem to affect the sound to any appreciable degree...
Was typing faster than thinking...
Mary in Springfield, Oregon http://www.thefiddleandbanjopr.....dpress.com
Regular advisor
Regulars
Offline
The bridge is in the right place. And the old bridge was re-fit. I don't know about the sound post. I guess I should bring the violin back when I get the chance. 
Offline
It's hard to explain exactly where the post should be and even harder to see it without taking off the end-pin and looking inside from behind. I have learned to see it from the f-hole. You can get a mirror from a dentist as well to help out but it is still not that easy. However, check out this link on correct location for your sound-post.
Good luck
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
Regular advisor
Regulars
Offline
Maybe also see if you can get a second opinion from someone else there? I was going to get my bridge changed (it's warped!), but one of the employees warned me against getting it done in house because one of the shop clerks (I'm not sure if he's an actual Luthier, or just an advanced violin player.) tends to slack off if he gets bored during a job. Apparently a violin came to the store and the person doing bridges got lazy with his work and didn't do a proper job because it was "good enough." He was just telling me how good he was at doing it an hour before to boot.
Also, with the mirror, be careful that you don't scrape the sides of the f-holes. It's super easy to twitch a little and make a scuff.
1 Guest(s)
Mouse
tonyluo
ELCBK
