Overtone Grommets

[FrDNicholas]

When I put in "grommets" in the search window, I get today's posts and then a bunch of other posts that don't seem to address the questions I have about them. What should I put in for a search to get these past posts?

[Marty Jacobson]

String Silencers.

[Jackgaryk]

If you have high frequency hearing loss like me, they make no difference!!

I'm in the same boat Mickey, high frequency hearing loss. Don't really make a difference to me but I like the way they look.

[Timbofood]

I'm in the same boat Mickey, high frequency hearing loss. Don't really make a difference to me but I like the way they look.

Yep, forty years with a banjo playing tenor singer has had no positive effect on my left ear, thats for sure!

[Petrus]

You forgot the armrest and the soundhole humidifier.

And of course the capo.

[Petrus]

When I put in "grommets" in the search window, I get today's posts and then a bunch of other posts that don't seem to address the questions I have about them. What should I put in for a search to get these past posts?

"Little sound donut thingie"

[Ray(T)]

Ping the strings between the bridge and tailpiece and if they ring some form of damping, beit with a piece of felt, a strip of leather or a set of grommets will stop this. Whether you'll hear the difference is something only you will know. The advantage of the grommets is that, if you're prone to breaking strings, you can spend many happy hours groping around the floor looking for them!

[Kowboy]

I mistakenly bought grommets from an auto parts store. They were way too rigid / stiff and pushed the strings apart. I bit the bullet and went to EBAY. I bought like 4 sets for around $3 a set of four. They were much softer. My mandolin came from the builder with them installed. A set seems to last me about 3 months before the strings start to cut into them. I recall it is just the E strings so a complete change of grommets is not necessary. I wouldn't use the generic auto / electrical supply ones. I personally like the looks of them on the mandolin.

[Mickey King]

http://www.radioshack.com/radioshack...ommets&start=1

[Pete Braccio]

The Wood Nymph does not have to sit directly perpendicular to the strings to work. If it is too wide for your mandolin, simply put it on at an angle.

[Gary Leonard]

Never liked the wood nymph, it looks bulky and rather ugly on such nice looking instruments.

http://www.radioshack.com/radioshack...ommets&start=1

As a tip for those journeying to Radio Shack, each bag has a variety of sizes. Both bags of mine had only 7 small grommets each, glad I decided to get two bags so I could supply both my instruments.

[mandroid]

i've managed to adapt the tailpiece itself to stop the ringing of the string length past the bridge .

Yea get a Big bag since they disappear when a string breaks ,
weaving a piece of anything amongst the strings there dampens them..

[MysTiK PiKn]

Cool like the dawg. And way too easy.

I saw a pix of David 'Dawg' Grisman with a tiny strip of scrap leather twixt the strings. I was already using same thing so I felt quite comfortable with that. It's the down home solution for those who prefer to just pik.

I like the idea of stuffing a scrap of leather into the tailpiece. Thanx much for that one.

But I really like that Harley pix; and, of course, the message that comes with. I think some folks missed it.

[Grommet]

Bump (gotta love it!)

[terzinator]

Weber makes the Nymph which does the same thing. It is pretty handsome too.

I bought one of those, drawn in by its handsomeness.

But, while elegant, I think it's an over-engineered solution to a problem that pleads for simplicity. Plus, like someone said above -- and to which I agree -- my Collings MT doesn't really need it.

Come to think of it, perhaps I'll put it up on the classifieds.

[Mike Barber]

Regarding putting something between the nut and tuners: In my case it wasn't a buzz. I guess it was harmonics or overtones or something. But I could hear a faint ring if I jammed on it just right. It wasn't a big deal but I did put a piece of leather there and it went away.

[tkdboyd]

I have needed felt in everyone of my bowlback mandolins, and a mixture of felt and grommets on my A and F mandolins. It looks like Chris Acquavella use the rubber grommets on his very nice Brian Dean German bowlback mandolin.

[Eldon Dennis]

I can't find the previous post, but three or four years ago a post was on the Cafe that gave the following information about the source of the small grommets at a more reasonable cost.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#push-in-grommets/=wgqqw9

The part #was 9600K17 and a package of 100 cost $3.96 plus shipping.

I purchased a package soon after seeing the link and even found the O-rings for the James tail piece.

I now have several life times of string dampers! But I don't worry about loosing one when a string breaks or when one gets away under the furniture while changing strings.

[Toni Schula]

I suggest an easy test whether dampening is needed:

• Mute all the strings with your fretting hand.
• Strum the muted strings.
• Do you hear some high pitch ringing?
• Do the same thing but now immediatly mute the strings between the bridge and the tailpiece.
• Is the high pitch ringing gone?
• If yes you can get improvements by placing a nymph, elve, fairy, gremlin or grommet there

You can do the same with the strings between the nut and the tuner's post.

Problem is that this ringing is not overtones. The string length between bridge and tailpiece and between the nut and the post is totally different and independent from that of the fretted or open string. So this ringing is not harmonic with the intended pitch and can impair the sound even if it is weaker.

[onassis]

Problem is that this ringing is not overtones. The string length between bridge and tailpiece and between the nut and the post is totally different and independent from that of the fretted or open string. So this ringing is not harmonic with the intended pitch and can impair the sound even if it is weaker.

I think you've hit on the problem. Non-sympathetic overtones, maybe? Unsympathetic? In Milk Carton Kids video on another thread, one player even goes so far as to tie a rag or bandanna behind the capo. I'm assuming it's to deaden unwanted overtones.

I'm in the leather strip camp, one at the tailpiece, one above the nut. Don't know how much they help, but I can't imagine they hurt. My main problem now is that, right as my mandolin has achieved a tone that i really love, the strings seem to be dying.

*sigh*

Nothing ever lasts.

[FrDNicholas]

Does it make a difference how close to the bridge or the end of the mandolin the grommets are placed? I see different set-ups on different mandolins. Some have the A string closer to the bridge and others have the grommets closer to the bridge on other strings. Is it individual to the mandolin or is there a rule of thumb? (Interesting expression; I wonder what the origin of "rule of thumb" is?)

[Bertram Henze]

I wonder what the origin of "rule of thumb" is?

I guess this comes from a provisional method of taking a bearing or measuring an angle with the thumb on your outstretched arm: inaccurate, but good enough for a practical purpose.



Oh, and the rule of thumb for those grommets says: don't brush them with your hand while playing and have them look aesthetically pleasing

[Timbofood]

I thought the rule of thumb was the amount of spirits in a glass, usually two thumbs in a glass of sufficient diameter that is comfortable in the hand.

[Bertram Henze]

There are many theories and legends, one of them mentioned on wikipedia:

It is often claimed that the term's etymological origin lies in a law that limited the maximum thickness of a stick with which it was permissible for a man to beat his wife

I guess everybody is entitled to his own use of body parts and creation of etymological conundrums from that.

[Spruce]

I can't find the previous post, but three or four years ago a post was on the Cafe that gave the following information about the source of the small grommets at a more reasonable cost.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#push-in-grommets/=wgqqw9

The part #was 9600K17 and a package of 100 cost $3.96 plus shipping.

So, that's the correct size for our purposes?

Here's a pack of 100 with an I.D. of 1/8"...