I noticed what you point out about the different needs for chanters and drones/trompettes; I have found using different kinds of cotton useful, synthetic for the chanters and natural for drones and trompettes, the former seems to have less grip, the latter, at least the one I have, is more adherent, so it is easier for me to get an equilibrium with rosin. Now I am in the process of filling the bridge notches with wood (lifting about 1mm with paper shims is not really nice) and it is quite amazing how the slightest variation in depth and position of the string in the bridge affects the sound. Really difficult to get the equilibrium for clean sound in the upper octave and full deep in the lower which does not jump up in harmonics.
When making a new dog after a trompette string change I also noticed how sensitive is this part of the instrument to changes. Sometimes the response is not sharp, and simply sanding flat a bit the dog, makes a bit difference; just some tenths of a mm maybe?.
I also wonder if other instruments are also so sensitive to such slight changes.
Regards,
Oscar.
3. Are you using too hard a rosin? I know everyone else is telling
you to move to a harder rosin, but your rosin has to be tacky enough
to really pull the heavy drone strings. Think of the difference
between bass rosin and violin rosin: what is ideal for your
chanterelles is harder than what is ideal for your low drones. You
may need to go to a rosin that is softer than what is ideal for the
melody strings in order to meet the demands of your drones.
-Arle
