Dampers provide sustain control for the hammered dulcimer, as well as a range of different tonal effects. A dulcimer without dampers is like a piano with the sustain pedal held down - everything rings. Fitting a dulcimer with dampers allows you to stop the ringing by pressing a foot pedal to lower felt-covered bars onto the strings. The player can hold the pedal down for a muted, marimba-like tone, or use light, quick taps to clear sustain between chord changes and to accentuate phrasing, giving tunes a sophisticated, articulate sound. Once experienced, people tell us they'd never go back to playing without dampers.
Low-profile damper bars, made of hardwood with custom-fit felts, are mounted on the dulcimer using U-shaped return springs. Durable, stretch-free cords running through the soundbox connect to the included pedal. An ingenious spooling device in the pedal easily adjusts the cord length to fit any height of stand. The whole setup fits inside our instrument cases and weighs about 2 pounds.
For more details, see our Damper Use Instructions
The D45 and PD40 models are built to be "damper ready," which means all the holes are pre-drilled. The dampers can be installed by Dusty Strings when the instrument is ordered (see our options page), or easily added later by the player using this kit. Included in the damper kit are complete instructions, pre-felted damper bars, and all the necessary tools for installation in less than an hour.
Please note that these damper kits are designed specifically to fit a Dusty Strings D45 or PD40, and it is unlikely that they will work on another instrument.
