loose bass bar AND change in volume?!

[ackeim]

I play a 3 year old englehardt. last week i noticed an increase in the volume of the bass, especially in the low register. my wife and my band mates also noticed it. about the same time, i heard a buzzing on my open D string that signaled something was loose. i was convinced it was my pickup or tail piece, but last night we discovered it was my bass bar! i can reach in the F hole and stop the buzzing. it is vibrating so much that you can feel the air it pushes by putting your hand in fron t of the f-hole. here is the question. is it possible that a loose bass bar would cause this increase in volume? if so, should i bother fixing it? this bass really honks for the first time and i am enjoying it. can a luthier clamp a bass bar from the f hole or does the top have to come off? i plan on buying a new bass in the next year so i am not super excited about putting more money into this one.

[Bob Branstetter]

Originally Posted by ackeim

I play a 3 year old englehardt. last week i noticed an increase in the volume of the bass, especially in the low register. my wife and my band mates also noticed it. about the same time, i heard a buzzing on my open D string that signaled something was loose. i was convinced it was my pickup or tail piece, but last night we discovered it was my bass bar! i can reach in the F hole and stop the buzzing. it is vibrating so much that you can feel the air it pushes by putting your hand in fron t of the f-hole. here is the question. is it possible that a loose bass bar would cause this increase in volume? if so, should i bother fixing it? this bass really honks for the first time and i am enjoying it. can a luthier clamp a bass bar from the f hole or does the top have to come off? i plan on buying a new bass in the next year so i am not super excited about putting more money into this one.

The odds are highly against you being able to stop a loose bass bar rattling by putting you hand through the ff holes. Bass bars usually come loose at the ends which are far beyond you finger reach. IMO, a loose bar would not ceate an incease in sound - more likely a decrease. Unfortunately, buzzes and rattles in basses frequently can be stopped by pressing on places that have nothing to do with the real location of the problem. I would recommend a trip to your local bass luthier for a diagnosis and fix.