Tag: Sound Quality
How Does The finish on an Acoustic Guitar Affect the Sound of the Guitar?
by jonas on Mar.02, 2009, under Acoustic Guitar Builders
How Does The finish on an Acoustic Guitar Affect the Sound of the Guitar?
For along time I have been very curious about this subject
It has been a long time passion. So I made it my mission and went out to find out.
I have visited countless guitars shops over the years, having found myself stranded in a strange town with some time to kill and end up in the local guitar shops playing the new and old guitars right of the shelf, you know, this is what guitar lovers do!
Any way, Here is my observation regarding guitar finishes, we are talking acoustic guitars here, electrics are a different story.
Don’t these new Taylor Guitars, Gibson and Martin Guitars and so many others look mind boggling attractive, nice shiny and spiffy?
Some of them are so shiny you can use them as a mirror and comb your hair in ‘m, if you want to. Some of them almost look and feel like there is a thick coat of plastic over the guitar. Do suppose that’s really a good thing?
Be Aware! All that glitters is not Gold!
I am not bashing these companies or their finish work but I’d like to make the point of caution here; a very high end guitar from these companies most likely will have indeed less of a finish coat on them, it just makes sense. Over finishing a guitar to make it look shiny and pretty can be detrimental to the sound quality.
Well I set out to talk to many store owners and I found out that these shiny buffed instruments are what people like and pay the big bucks for.
I got to think about the motives of why these potential customers really got attracted to these guitars to begin with. Are these people buying the looks and shine of the guitar or are they buying the guitar for the sound that comes out of that thing, probably both right? Well, I find out that surprisingly and unfortunately, most people are buying it for the shiny looks, not knowing any better or not educated. Therefore to many people are not realizing that the payoff may be very possibly a lesser sound quality from the guitar.
HERE IS MY POINT:
Here’s what I did through personal experimenting. I completely stripped one of those high lacquered perfectly good guitars, and refinished it. My method of finishing an acoustic guitar, usually, is; 2 coats of vinyl sealer over the bare wood and at most 4 coats of nitrocellulose lacquer. I do experiment also with other finishes but for now this will make my point. Some of these guitar companies especially the guitars made cheaply and mass produced in Asian countries may be spraying up to ten coats perhaps more of these lacquers.
WHAT DOES THAT DO THE SOUND OF THE GUITAR?
Of course this would muffle the sound a bit! It over tightens the soundboard, the neck, and the rest of it, like the head of the guitar. Overkill in layers is preventing the guitar to move or at least restricted the energy that goes trough it to the point that the sound has a harder time to make it trough these layers.
Think about it yourself, if you were wearing jacket that was way too tight, would you feel like dancing to the music?
WHY ARE THEY DOING THAT?
Just know that the more coats you put on an acoustic guitar( it is a bit more complex than that but for now I can make the point ) the more shine you can get as a result, more on this process later. People just like shiny things! This leads to more people buying them and more business right?
YES, BUT AT WHAT PRICE? Well at least more kids are learning to play the guitar.
So what I find out with my experiment was that the guitar I refinished sounded so much louder, warmer, brighter and clearer. So my point when it comes to guitar finishing: LESS IS BETTER ! Of course, the whole guitar needs to breathe, flex and dance with the music. I was astonished when I discovered the difference.
It is argued by the classical master acoustic guitar builders in Spain that the best sounding guitar has no finish on it at all! Wow!
Here is my conclusion: It’s best to stick with limiting the amount of lacquer coats on the guitar’s surface. It’s best to coat it just enough to have a good and acceptable protection from the elements and players usage. Some woods require more coats than others. Therefore if you see a little less of a shine on a guitar, you know that the guitar builder would not sacrifice sound for shine.
There clearly is a difference, but I believe that these practices make the difference between hand built customized guitars and mass produced. As a guitar builder, it is definitely worth the trade off. To me it is all about the sound and that has no price tag. Why should we want to trade; diminishing the sound quality with finish overkill?
Another favorite quote;
“When choosing the guitar of your dreams, go for the sound! the rest is icing on the cake.”
Find out the ‘rest of the story’ at jonasguitars.com/Custom-Guitars
Tags: Acoustic Guitar, Acoustic Guitars, Gibson, Guitar Lovers, Guitar Shops, Martin Guitars, Old Guitars, Sound Of The Guitar, Sound Quality, Taylor GuitarsRelated posts
My Process for My Cherrywood Acoustic Guitar
by Sven on Feb.26, 2009, under Acoustic Guitar Builders, Handmade Acoustic Guitars
There are so many steps in building a guitar from scratch it blows me away every time I look at my work. It is a very humbling process that has to be broken into small doable pieces. This has been such a bonding experience for the two of us. He has guided me through every twist and turn.
I wanted to build a guitar from a tree that was grown in the US. There are so many woods from all over the world that are perfect for their sound quality, but I have a huge passion for things done as locally as possible. We decided that a cherry wood guitar would suit me well, so we got big block and cut out my main pieces. Once they were the right dimension we put them on the thickness sander. My back was glued from two pieces like the pages of an open book. My sides were shaped on the bending jig after been soaked and heated. I put this all together with bracing on my back to give it strength. During this time I also cut and shaped my neck.
The last few times I have focused on my top. After book matching this also, I put in my Rosette. This was one of the finest most careful wood work I have ever done. I wanted something simple yet elegant and unique. I decided I would incorporate wood into the pattern by tying it all back together with the fret board. I choose king wood for my fret board because it looks so amazing and there isn’t many local options for wood dense enough. So my Rosette would also incorporate a small piece of king wood that would flow into the rest of it. I was quite amazed at my final product. It looks so neat and has my own characteristic style.
This week I worked on making braces. This process of “voicing” my guitar is one of the most exciting. If this is done well, all my hard work will come to a beautiful finale. My dad just kept saying, “Sven think sound”, if I had the feeling and intention of unbeatable sound that is what I would get. Once my braces were cut and shaped, I glued them all on with a large jig designed specifically for this process. I bent dowels and used that tension to hold the braces in place.
It is an amazingly intuitive process. This has been one of the most challenging aspects for me. I am a really thinker and planner. With this project I have had to let go of my constraining ideas and logical thoughts to open up for feeling the entire guitar and wood that is in front of me. By using this creative technique I can tell the difference it has made. Flowing with the process and paying attention to the slightest detail, is what will make all the difference in the end.
Tags: Acoustic Guitar, Cherry Wood, Fret Board, King Wood, Sound Quality, Wood GuitarRelated posts
Jonas Guitars | Hand Built Acoustic and Bass Guitars
by jonas on Feb.25, 2009, under Acoustic Guitar Builders
Custom acoustic guitars are guitars that are customized according to the specifications of a specific guitar player. Generally, acoustic guitars are easy to handle and are popular with most guitarists. But still, people like to have guitars especially made for themselves to meet their specific comfort and usage needs.
The concept of customizing things came up with the increasing expectations of people for comfort with whatever they use. With custom made objects, you just don’t have objects in your hands, but you have your desires, expectations, taste, and desires in a simple package. Acoustic guitars can be customized according to the needs of just about any type of guitarist with relative ease, if the guitarist is willing to pay the fees.
Custom acoustic guitars are very famous in the market for the sheer reason that you can design them in whatever way you want and apart from changing the looks of your guitar, you can even change the way they sound. Each and every aspect of the guitar can be chosen on your own, including the wood used for guitars, the kind of tuning pegs used, and the shape in which it can be designed.
Usually different varieties of woods go into the making of acoustic guitars. You can choose from a variety of woods like mahogany, rosewood, cedar, cherry, ebony, walnut, maple, and so many other things. The tuning pegs can be made of silver, brass, gold, and anything that you want. The sound quality can be adjusted according to your wish and it gives you a unique feeling of being yourself when you play your custom made guitar.
Custom acoustic guitars are made in smaller numbers only for the people who want them. So, they are bound to be costlier than mass-produced ones. It is also possible to get custom made replicas of famous guitars from the past.
Acoustic Guitars provides detailed information on Acoustic Guitars, Acoustic Guitar Tabs, Left Handed Acoustic Guitars, Used Acoustic Guitars and more. Acoustic Guitars is affiliated with Used Banjos.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Damian_Sofsian
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