| Author |
Subject |
Heather
Martley
Registered
User
(1/19/01 11:52:07 am)
Reply |
Bass
Bar Questions
My old cello, after having a seam
glued, has developed a nasty buzz under the top. The shop staff say
it may be the bass bar (blanching as they say this). Could someone
please tell me a little bit about bass bars (where and how they're
attached) and why this may be a really bad problem? Thanks very much
-
Heather
|
FrozenYankee
Registered User
(1/19/01 3:37:50 pm)
Reply |
A place
where string bass players hang out?
Under the right leg of the bridge
(as you look down) there's a spline of wood glued to the underside
of the instrument's front (running up and down).
As the
bridge vibrates back and forth, the right leg of the bridge vibrates
up and down. The bass bar causes this vibration to be coupled to a
large part of the instrument. If it's loose, it rattles and the
instrument loses a lot of its sound.
The top has to come off
and the bar re-glued. Doesn't sound like a huge job to me although
it certainly isn't trivial.
Richard
|
Todd
French 
Moderator
(1/19/01 6:56:35 pm)
Reply
 |
Re:
Bass Bar Questions
Heather,
The bassbar is made
of high quality spruce, is shaped to fit exactly to the inside top
of the instrument, and is glued in place. Some makers and factories
will glue the bassbar in with some slight tension, to give the top
more spring and supposedly more strength in tone. It is difficult to
fix a bassbar that has come loose at some area because they are
carved so exact to the top. If the bassbar is loose, the top may
have altered or warped in some way and it may be difficult to give
the bassbar another perfect fit without major repair. Hopefully it
just came loose in one area and can be easily glued back in place -
regardless, the top will be taken off and that in itself is
expensive.
Best of luck! Let us know if it works out for
you...
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