Snow is gone and now we have normal temps, unless the norm for this time of year is changing. Maybe the winters are going to come later, which they have the past few years, and will drag on into the spring more. I hope not.

Well, I have not been able to sit and give my new set up a go and make adjustments yet. Bummer. I was thinking, when I received the circular foam pads for under the violin, that I might have to use both under the violin. Double it up. I bought one for my violin and one for my viola, so maybe double it up. 

I liked the feel of not having the shoulder rest, for the short time I tried it a couple of days ago, but it did seem a little too flat. I like the feel of the left arm and hand fingers stretching. But, it did seem like I needed a little more height. We will see when I am able to actually sit and play. Who knows, I might end up back at square one. 

Not interested in the thick foam thingies. Too much foam.

I got tired of the shoulder rests always falling off, and nine of them gave me any support or whatever where I really wanted it. Not saying this because this is Fiddlerman's forum, but the Fiddlerman shoulder rest was the best fit. The Kun was a close second, but not quite as good for me as the Fiddlerman one. But, neither was exactly right. 

When I did take violin lessons, my instructor said she does not help with set up, she is no longer teaching. But, since she was my first connection with an instructor for violin, I figured that was the norm. So, I really do not know how it is to sit, exactly, or how much support the shoulder rest is to give, exactly. These foam pads are not expensive, so it is worth a shot. 

Please no videos or links about set up. I have seen enough of them. They do not help me at all, and end out with me buying even more shoulder and chin rests.

We have had snow in early May, here, but that is rare. I am hoping we don't have a snowy Mother's Day, May 11. 

I really want to work n Raglan Road, but I have a headache. Not sure it would be a good idea, or helpful. My pad screen brightness is turned down. 

The last time I did play, I was still loving the bows..

@Gordon Shumway She wasn't very good. But, she was the only violin teacher I could find around here. Decided it wasn't worth the money. My cello teacher was excellent.

So, when I have the finger sitting in  the gap between the index finger and thumb, I should not have to grip it? The shoulder rest should be giving it stability? I always have to grip, not like hanging on for dear life, but to keep it from moving around and changing angles. 

Is there much of a curve from shoulder down to chest in the shoulder rest? It looks like a similar curve to the Kun. I have been, but have given up, looking for one more "S" shape, not the Bon Musica. It more or less hooks over the shoulder, I am , or was, looking for lift at the chest.

I did get a metronome, like @ABitRusty's, but the reddish one. Of course, I love red! 

I tried using it today. I was doing Raglan Road. I wish I could hear the bell ding a little more easily. I do have an issue with the longer notes, tied notes, etc. I loose count.

I like the pendulum. I can see it with my peripheral vision, which is an immense help. 

I am wondering, when a sheet music says, "quarter note = 96" Does that mean that played as the person who wrote or arranged the piece would have had a metronome at 96, if (s)he was using one? I did set the metronome at 96, after playing at a slower tempo, and it seemed to work, by working up to 96 from a slightly slower tempo.

I liked using it, but, I do wish I could hear the bell. I I could never end on the correct beat, and I think if I could hear the bell, it would be better. 

I will keep at it. It was my first time with the metronome.

There was a 96, .

ABitRusty said
to get the bell correct per time division you have to pull out the slide on the side of case to correct spot also.  theres numbers

  

Yes. I do that. I just cannot hear it over my violin. I wish it was louder, . 

Changed the strings. I hate doing that, too stressful. Yeo, popped the bridge. I was being so careful. I was following along with one of Fiddlerman's tutorials. Please, no videos or links. I need to do it just one way. I just hate doing this. 

I played a little, but had to keep retuning, so I stopped. They have to do what they do and settle in. 

Yep. Popped again. Right off the violin to beside it. At least it did not go flying and break like the last time. Changing strings is not on my list of fun things to do. I kept checking. Then I was almost done with the A string, but needed one more little tweak before I could use the fine tuners, and there it went. 

I used a ruler to line ir back up. I had to start over with the G and D strings because they needed to be loosened to insert the bridge again. The E string didn't matter, I had to change that anyway.