Playing around with the width after it's been thinned to a min of 2mm has little effect on the trace. The biggest effect comes from the stock 3-4mm width being reduced to 1.5 - 2mm.

I've noticed a dramatic change in the upper frequencies when the E and A strings are allowed to embed themselves beyond that magic 1/2 diameter of the string into the maple. It almost dampens the higher freqs beyond 12K to 20K.

The bridges with a piece of bone or ebony embedded in the top surface for the E string to ride on are worth every penny of their additional cost.

The Soundpost position is a whole 'nother ballgame. It's position is so varied from instrument to instrument that there's really no set spot that works. It's a real 'trial & error' practice session. I have found that majority of the bridge to post relationships are placing the bridge at or next to the post on the tangent side closest to the treble or E string side and no more than 2-3mm forward of the post (toward the fingerboard) My 90 yr old German violin likes it about 4.5mm forward of the post. Maybe that tells me the post is in the wrong spot, I don't know yet. That's where I get the best trace.