Super Soprano Bracing

In my opinion the need for fan braces can be dictated by the choice of (top) wood. I have a three years old factory made tenor with a thin laminated spruce top that has only transverse braces and a bridge plate.... it has no top deformation. A family member has a thin topped, solid Tasmanian Blackwood concert of the same construction... again the top is showing no signs of deformation. I think it is even less critical for sopranos unless the top wood is very thin and/or soft, eg. thin cedar or any poorly quartersawn (limp) tone wood. Most sopranos that I have seen have no fan bracing, with a few exceptions having a single central fan-style brace. Having said that, my concert and tenor builds currently get two or three fan braces depending on the characteristics of the top. Some may also get an additional medial or lateral finger brace... don't ask for the science behind this... there is none.
 
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