Hi all, I think Bill's right in saying the noises have a whole lot to do with the "straightness" of the strings coming out of the agraffs or off the v-bar. A wide radius bend out of the front string termination (whichever) means that the speaking length string segment is *longer* than the distance between the front and rear termination (bridge). This string will straighten out slightly in the initial attack, changing pitch differently than a straighter string in the same unison, and quickly blend back in as the wire stiffness overpowers the diminishing amplitude of the string excursion imparted by the hammer blow. The noises *are* worse on a hard blow than a soft one, no? I also wonder how much the permanent bend put in a wire when it's coiled for shipment contributes to this problem. Even under 160+ pounds of tension, I doubt that the most perfectly installed string you can find is really straight. Anyway, I'd say that lessening the radius of the string bends as they come out of the agraff/v-bar and bridge is as important as leveling at the hammer strike point. Ron Nossaman
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