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Old 08-28-2007, 05:14 AM
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Ken Smith Ken Smith is offline
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Cool Arch..

Quote:
Originally Posted by Matthew Tucker View Post
OK I'll play.

As a guide to correct string placement for bowing, are there any rules of thumb for relative string heights? By this I mean, if you place a card between G and A string at the bridge, what height ABOVE the card should the D string be? Same same, if you place a card across the D and the E, what's the ideal height for the A string?

I'm aware that the height of the A and D are limited by the position of the C bouts in relation to the E and G strings. But what, for example, is too low, and therefore not enough arch?

Of course, this will vary from player to player I guess, but as I am not a trained arco player I'd like to know if there's something to shoot for when I cut a bridge.
I am pretty sure I have mentioned this in the past somewhere but it's not in my Post above as I was mainly working on spacing in that post. In either case the rule I go on is sighting it by eye. Measuring the height of the D as the center of 3 strings I go about 4-6mm height or 3/16"-1/4" as an eyeball measurement. I have drawn pencil lines and measured them but generally I just look at it. When arching a Bridge I try matching it with the String height off the end of the fingerboard with a 1-1.5mm height progression from the G to the E (G=5mm, D=6 or 6.5mm, etc depending on the curve wanted). This also greatly depends on the Fingerboard curve so it is important to know that you can only get the heights as good as your Fingerboard will allow. What you can't do is put less arch in the bridge to compensate for a flattish fingerboard. You must maintain the arch heights at the bridge for bow clearance between the strings.

The arch heights might be varied by the player, technique, spacing width, strings used, tension of the Bass, music being plated etc. or any combination of the above. French and German bow players also differ as I usually see less arch on a French bow set-up than for a German bow.

I hope my explanation is clear above. I am so picky with my bridge set-up that regardless of who cuts a bridge for me, I almost always re-cut it the way I like for that particular Bass. And yes, even the same player might want a slightly different set-up between Basses to match the desired feel for a given instrument.
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