Cello Question

[Vorago]

Alright, this isn't a bass, but it has to do with musical instruments, so why not?

A friend of mine plays the cello. Currently she is still renting one (since this her first year, she's doing pretty well I must admit), but she'll probably buy that cello next year. Now, I was at her house today, and I like to pluck the cello occasionally...you know, without a bow, just like you do most of the time on a DB. Works quite good, although the fifts require some thinking Anyway, I noticed that the fretboard (dunno if its called that way, since it has no frets ) was not centered with the strings. I'm trying to say that the distance between the neck (fretboard) on the left, ie between the edge of the neck and the C string was smaller then on the opposite site, between the A string and the neck. This looked extremely strange to me. I'd never buy a bass with that kind of neck. Now, is this for a purpose or something, or just wrong construction? If so, I don't believe the neck was standing like that in the beginning, so what can trigger that?

Hope my point came across, maybe this is something for the DB guys out there?

[godoze]

first, the cello is indeed a bass instrument. not fretboard but "fingerboard"


and ar eyou saying that the neck is out of alignment ?

it could very well be the the briddge if off center.
take the tension off the strings and then move the bridge left/right and see if that centers the strings.

[Vorago]

my bad about the fingerboard I am saying that on a cello, the distance between the strings and the edge of the fingerboard, looking straight at it, should be even. Now, on this cello, that distance is bigger on the right as on the left.

so picture this

a normal cello

  /| | | |\ 
 / | | | | \
/  | | | |  \

this cello

  /| | | | \
 / | | | |  \
/  | | | |   \

notice the space between the A string (right) and the edge of the neck.

See?

[FreeSpirit]

the cello's i've seen, i believe ll were equal. i think that thats not normal. but i'm not a celloist... so i don;t know. that picture just looks weird to me that you would have more fingerboard room on the A string then all the others.

[tplyons]

Seems like the bridge isn't properly aligned, probably had been knocked out of place (since they're not attached to the instrument by anything but string pressure)

My girlfriend is a cellist, I'll run the question through her. But this is my opinion as a DBer

[Vorago]

Yeah, that was my thought too, about the bridge being knocked off, but I'm not touching that thing, since I'm not a cellist, and the cello isn't mine, but I figured that a DB and a cello are quite identical to each other in terms of construction.

[Nigel Tufnel]

The bridge is off center. DO NOT REMOVE THE STRING TENSION. There is this thing in there called the sound post, and like the bridge, the only thing keeping it in place is the string tension. Either take it to a professional or move the bridge without loosening the strings.

[Floating teetH]

i agree. probably the bridge.