Tone difference between Dupont and Dell'Arte bridge?

Archtop Eddy

Thanks Pinkgary for the heads-up about the lefty bridge. These are hard to find. I just bought one for a back-up! AE

Buco

I ordered one of those bridges from ebay as well. I asked the guy who makes them, out of curiosity, he said he doesn't know but that he gets them from France where he goes during summer each year. Says he'll ask next time he's there.
I'm still gonna see if Rodrigo is willing to make something for me.
I'll use the bridge from ebay to have it fitted for lower action.
When the tech was setting up the guitar I asked him not to go too low because I didn't wanna hear any buzzing but with this cheaper bridge I'll ask for low action and see what it sounds like.
That way if I get the bridge that I have more $ invested in, I'll know what height I want it at without going too low and regretting it later.
I like low action as much as anybody but string buzz bothers me.

PS Michael, replied to your PM

constantine

You might consider ebony wood. To my ears they are less bright than rosewood

Buco

I thought generally ebony will always be brighter then rosewood?

noodlenot

ebony (at least the gaboon/african one) has higher density than most rosewoods and higher internal damping, so it will tend to produce less bright (ie less trebles) bridges - all else being equal. i made a brazilian rosewood bridge for my altamira and found the difference noticeable. the original seemed like ebony, i could check.

Heretic

Funny that you ask about this. Both myself and my lead guitar player prefer the sound of ebony bridges on our instruments. Last night, he had Martin Silk and Steel strings and an ebony bridge on his Dell Arte.
Sounded quite good.

Buco

How would you describe the sound? I have been using silk and steel lately and like it a lot.

I'm not convinced that ebony would be less bright but if you heard it like that I belive it, it's probably different on each instrument. It's worth a shot, testing new bridges aren't huge investments.

I got the one from ebay and it looks decent, I'll take it in soon for fitting.

noodlenot

you don´t have to be convinced, you can convince yourself... just hold two bridges (one ebony, one rosewood - if possible brazilian, if not, Madagascar, but any will pass this test IME) and drop them from the same height: ebony : pli-buhmm; rosewood : pliiiiiiiiiiiiimmmmm !

of course, it´s not just the bridge that dictates the sound of the guitar. For instance, if the top´s too heavy a lighter bridge will prove a better solution and help responsiveness, but if the top is made from a very light wood or is too thin a tad heavier bridge could help in getting a more "meaty" sound with better dynamic range (IME). but then, higher level transients (attack) and shorter decay time could translate into higher volume and "projection"... there are all sorts of permutations and influences between these factors, i think it would be next to impossible to grasp them all. and we all hear things differently.

cheers,
miguel.

Heretic

To my ears, the ebony bridges are smokier, and darker toned than the rosewood bridges. It's a matter of degree. My recommendation is that you play what you like. They are easy enough to change should you want to.

Buco

I read random net info on this and it's pretty divided, brighter/warmer properties of the two.
To me it's intuitive that the denser material will resonate the at higher pitch, and ebony is supposed to be the denser of the two.
You two guys seem to be on the same page though and I'll take that.
Also the fingerboard on my guitar is ebony so it'd be nice aesthetically if I end up with ebony bridge.
The best part is it's easy to go back and forth.
Thanks