Ringing my bell

[BflatBass]

I noticed something the other day while practicing and I thought I'd bring it up here to see if anyone knows the cause.

Just for reference my axe is an old King Duo Gravis Silver Sonic which has a 9.5 inch bell.

Ok, whenever I play an E (in any octave but mostly low E below the staff, not pedal) my bell continues to ring after I stop playing. Now I know that our bells ring "while" playing, but after? I haven't tried to identify the note or pitch of the ringing yet but it only happens when I play an E natural. Now I realize it must have to do with some kind of matching of harmonics and overtones/undertones and what not. But why only on E? And for those that are familiar with this phenomenon, does it change in any way with the size of the bell?

...and no I'm not smoking anything funny before I practice

[Matt K]

Yep! That happens. Most of the time I've experienced the phenomena it occurred both during and after the pitch ended. It's never bothered me and in fact horns that have done that for me have been some of the more resonant instruments I've played.

[Neo Bri]

It HAS bothered me. I got used to it but I prefer my horns not to do that. For me it sort of represents certain notes being much more resonant (G most of the time) than others, which means I end up treating those notes differently. I want the horn to be as even as possible in every way.

I've noticed my screw bells never do that. Ever.

[BflatBass]

Ok, so I'm playing my horn today and I noticed a few more things about the ringing.
If I play E natural in second position, middle of the staff, all I have to do is move the slide 1/8" one way or the other and the bell won't ring. It's extremely sensitive. And I use the Tunable app on my phone and it says that the pitch that makes the bell ring isn't in tune! It's a little flat.
Also, the bell rings (I think) when I play D in fourth just below E. Thing is, I normally wear hearing aids and I take them out when I play so when I play the D, I can't hear the ringing but I can feel it. The whole horn continues to vibrate after I stop playing and for a longer amount of time than when I play E. Probably a good 3 to 4 seconds. Interesting stuff.

[marccromme]

If you want the ringing to stop, you can try a bit of dampening material on the bell. For example an elastic rubber band wrapped around the throat of the bell. Or a small piece of plastic tube cut open and slid on the bell rim. You can try to find the best spot for a bit of dampening if you have a helper placing his finger various places on the bell to make it stop.

[Neo Bri]

If you want the ringing to stop, you can try a bit of dampening material on the bell. For example an elastic rubber band wrapped around the throat of the bell. Or a small piece of plastic tube cut open and slid on the bell rim. You can try to find the best spot for a bit of dampening if you have a helper placing his finger various places on the bell to make it stop.

Good idea. Or that gooey fruit rollup-looking stuff drummers use to damp their drum heads.

That stuff looks absolutely delicious.