Hi Al,
have you talked to Najarian about it? I've played about 4 of his ouds (including my own). Mine is 5 years old and has a little bit of a dip in it,
but I had the bracing redone near the bridge, which strengthened the top. the others were 1 year old (slight dip), 3 years old (noticeable dip), and
7 years old (really bad dip). The 7 year old oud I played had a serious crack in the face as a result of this.
I think a slight dip in the face is part of Viken's design, though I'm not sure.
For what it's worth, Najib Shaheen told me that it's not a problem unless it gets severe.
I know that in my oud, having a stronger brace put nearer to the bridge strengthened the top and improved the projection and balance of the
instrument. |