Upgrading for the future…

[ulla_petersen]

Hi Wafflestomper! 🙂

To me it sounds as if your interest in fiddling really has been rekindled! And that you know yourself well enough to foresee that you will indeed be kicking yourself in the future if you don’t upgrade while you can.

I have no idea what level is appropriate for serious jamming where you are; I live in Denmark, Europe, and as far as I know we don’t even have jams or contest like you do in America (my experience is that Scandinavians like to gather in big groups and play together in unison, with nobody playing louder or better that anybody else) so you’ll need answers from American fiddlers on that.

So my answer is: Go for it while you can! 🙂

[Roland White]

Hi Wafflestomper, I’m a believer in playing on the best that you can afford and in some cases what you can’t afford. Music is a special experience but playing a good fiddle in my opinion is a Magical Experience. When Fiddler and Fiddle meet in that special place where you can hear the fiddle ring and the notes are just notes until you give them your personal touch and the resonance of the instrument you can feel in your bones, and your ears melt with the sweetness of tone and it feels easy to play. I don’t think you should sacrifice or compromise but get the best fiddle you can. It sounds like you have rediscovered what I call Fiddle Maddness and that you will be playing well into your later years. Might as well play on one that tickles your ears and helps you love your music even more. Best regards, Roland Forum Moderator.

[Wafflestomper]

Thanks Ulla and Roland.. thats kinda what I expected (wanted) to hear.
I know it was kind of a ridiculous question, I guess I just needed to work through it in my head, and your forum had to be the outlet 😉

The one I have is really decent, no doubt about it. But my mind keeps wandering to something “more”.
Like you said, I have “fiddle madness”, I tend to be a bit obsessive in hobbies, which can be a good or bad thing.

Lets face it, we all love toys. Part of me thinks I am just getting some kind of visceral satisfaction from getting a new toys.. and the other part says “If your eyes are wandering, maybe she’s just not right for you”.

I’m gonna say its a bit of both.

Thanks again, my voice of reason sleeps in a lot.

Now I just gotta rope some sucker into going fiddle shopping with me… Not the wife.. definately not the wife…

[Wafflestomper]

Well, I have an upgrade sitting here in the house. After painstakingly playing every fiddle in the shop, I found one that was just glorious (in my opinion anyway). I’ve seen the same maker sell ridiculously low, to ridiculously high. Which makes me feel uneasy… but I absolutely LOVE the sound, so to me it sounds like it should in the price range.

The low register was like nothing I’ve ever played on any of my instruments before. I was giggling like a little girl.

I guess my point is, I love the sound *exactly* where it is… My only gripe is that the action feels a bit high.

My great white whale in fiddling has always been double stop slide from 3rd to first position.. and also double stops using my 4th finger on the G and D…

Playing today, I feel like I could practice through it, and chalk it up to fixing my technique, but I can’t shake the feeling that its going to be an issue later, with fasters songs…. Sally Goodin’ (another white whale) would be a fine example *ugh*

I’m worried that they will want to reset the neck. I’m not sure if they would opt to flatten the bridge a touch?
Just wondering if anyone has ever had this kind of adjustment done in the past… Im worried about it changing the sound profile of the fiddle completely.

Thanks..and again sorry for the unnecessarily wordy post…yammering..and all that.

[Wafflestomper]

I didnt see the section for fiddle set up and repair. My apologies

[ulla_petersen]

Well, congratulations with your update! 🙂

[Roland White]

Hi Wafflestomper, Well thats a great story and really glad you found a fiddle you love. My experience with set up is if it already sounds really good it will only sound better if you get a expert Luthier to set it up. Small adjustments like the bridge and playability may sacrifice a bit of volume but if set up properly should as good or better. My fiddle is loud anyway so I opted for playability. My fingers are large so I had mine set up with a slightly wider string spacing and a bridge angle and height that was better for fiddle tunes and double stops. The person you bought it from may not be the best set up person, so I would only suggest that you find the best one in your area and consult with them to get the set up and sound that is best for the fiddle. You might be surprised to find that it will sound even better than it does now after they get it in perfect set up shape with bridge & sound post set up. Have fun with your new Fiddle Axe. Best regards, Roland

• This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Roland White.

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