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Hot times ahead!

6/25/2012

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It’s that time of year again. As we revel in the hot summer weather and some of us enjoy playing our guitars outside it's important to be aware of the risks. I’m not just talking about using sunscreen to protect our bodies – guitars don’t take kindly to direct sunlight either. In the winter, humidity is generally a good thing for guitars but in the summer, when combined with direct sunlight it can make some very bad things happen to our guitars. It just makes sense if you think about it: how do you loosen glue if you want to separate two pieces of wood, or if you want to remove old wallpaper? By applying a combination of heat and moisture! Acoustic guitars are basically held together by glue so you can see where I’m going with this.

I’ve written in this space before about the joys of playing outside, sitting on a porch on a warm summer evening, softly playing a tune. Or hanging with friends around a campfire in the woods or on a beach, playing a Buffet tune or two. So I’m not saying you should avoid playing outside – far from it. I think changing your regular playing environment can be downright inspirational. I experienced that myself a few years ago at a friend’s cabin next to a stream up in the Poconos when we played music outside for two long and wonderful evenings.

If you have a “beater” guitar that you don’t care a whole about and isn’t worth much you certainly shouldn’t be afraid to expose it to the outdoor world. But I’m thinking of your prized #1 instrument, the one you saved up for and might even think of as your “guitar of a lifetime.” If you want to play that one outdoors here are a few basic guidelines.

First and foremost, never, ever leave your guitar in a locked car or trunk for any length of time, even if it’s in its case (which of course it should be). The extreme heat inside parked cars in the summer is well documented and should be avoided to the point that you must think long and hard about bringing it at all if it’s likely the guitar will have to remain in the car. If you do find yourself in this situation, give the guitar an hour or so to acclimate inside its closed case when you bring it back inside, especially if you’re going into a space that is air conditioned. This is really the reverse of the process you’d use in the winter when the guitar must go from a cold environment to a warm one. Wood needs a chance to expand and contract slowly. Otherwise, finish cracks or worse can and usually will happen.

Another bad thing – and I’m talking from personal experience now – is to leave a guitar on a stand in direct sunlight inside a house, now matter how comfortable or “normal” the temperature may be inside. This is slightly more subtle but just as damaging over the long term and is particularly harmful to guitars with dark bodies such as rosewood, which will absorb the heat very easily. Some years ago I had a very nice Martin HD-28 that I’d used for gigging with a few bands over the years and I was very careful to avoid hitting it on things like microphone stands or have it fall over on stage (man, I hate when I see that happen!). But at home I kept it in a stand near a big bay window, the idea being I could easily grab it and play when inspiration struck. That didn’t happen a whole lot, sad to say, but the guitar sat there all one summer and in the fall I noticed in horror that the top seam was opening up! I picked up the guitar and even though it was probably in the low 60s outside, the rosewood back that was facing the window was actually quite warm to the touch. Lesson learned. The hard way.

These days we do have available some very nice guitars made partially or in total of laminates or man-made materials that are supposed to be impervious to all but the most extreme weather situations. I’m particularly fond of the Taylor GS Mini, which has high pressure laminate sides and back and a wood top. Those guitars play and sound amazingly good and I’m pretty sure you could paddle a canoe with one without ill effects. Not really, but you get what I mean. One of my students bought a quite expensive travel guitar made of graphite, which he uses on his large sailboat. It is advertised in boating magazines for just that purpose and while it doesn’t sound quite as good as the GS Mini I’m sure it can take just about anything Mother Nature throws at it.

All I’m saying here is – use your head! Guitars made of wood are made to withstand a fair amount of variation in temperature and humidity but not in the extreme. Play your guitar outside to your heart’s content. It feels good and may inspire some very good music. Just don’t let it bake. And it’s probably a good idea to keep it in its case inside no matter how much you want to see it and appreciate the beauty of an acoustic guitar.

Enjoy the summer; it will be gone before we know it. Just remember that your guitar has no interest whatsoever in getting a nice tan!

Peace & good music,
Gene

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Dreadnaught vs Grand Concert vs 000

6/19/2012

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Over the past few months I’ve received quite a few inquiries about the differences between dreadnaught and grand concert size guitars. I wrote about the basic differences in the most common acoustic guitar sizes a while back but I want to revisit this as it relates to these two sizes (plus one other), which are arguably the most common and popular sizes sold today.

First off, I applaud anyone who asks this question because it means they are doing some research to find which guitar size would suit them best. Often, beginners will opt for a dreadnaught because this is by far the most common size available at a wide range of price points. Why is this? Simply because a dread is just plain louder than a smaller guitar, in most cases. And because of this even an inexpensive all-laminate bodied dread can sound OK to the uninitiated. That’s fine, if volume is a buyer’s only concern. But there are other very important factors to consider.

The most basic one is: how big is the person playing that guitar? I’ve seen more than a few cases when a fairly small boned woman or a youngster really struggled to play a dreadnaught-size guitar because it was difficult to hold the guitar comfortably and reach around it to play. A while back I had a student who was so overweight that she could not hold the body of her jumbo size guitar close enough to play comfortably and unfortunately that led to her giving up the effort. That is the exception, obviously, but all I’m saying is that your body type, which must include the size of your hand and the length of your fingers must be considered when buying a guitar.

Here are the basic dimensions of three of the most popular size guitars:


(the lower bout is the wider section of the guitar body where the bridge is located)

Dreadnaught: Body length: 20”, lower bout width: 15 5/8”, body depth: 4 7/8”

Grand Concert: Length: 19 ½”, lower bout width: 15”, body depth: 4 5/8”

Auditorium or 000:  Length: 19 5/8”, lower bout width: 15”, depth: 4 1/8”

I found these dimensions on the Martin and Taylor web sites and from maker to maker you may find some slight differences but I believe those are pretty accurate numbers, generally. There are also larger (Jumbo) and smaller (00, 0, Parlor) guitars of course. But as I said, these represent the most common and popular sizes.

So here we go. These are my opinions only and you can find exceptions to what I’m about to say but after owning over 50 guitars and playing at least four times that number I think you can depend on this information.

Dreadnaughts:

Advantages: More volume and often more sustain and resonance than the smaller bodied guitars. A very wide selection from dozens of manufacturers at all price levels.

Disadvantages: Can be difficult to hold for smaller people or very large people. Often better suited for strumming compared to finger-style playing due to more pronounced, sometimes overwhelming bass end sound.

Grand Concerts:

Advantages: Usually quite comfortable to hold and reach around to play. Usually a nice, even response from low to high strings. Preferred by many accomplished finger style players.

Disadvantages:  Less volume than a dread, making an unamplified model less able to “keep up” with other instruments in a band. Fewer choices when selecting a new or used instrument.

000 or Auditorium size:

Advantages: A nice compromise between the previous two sizes, able to hold its own in a band and still respond nicely to either finger style or strumming. A few more choices from various manufacturers, compared to Grand Concert. Comfortable to hold and play for most people.

Disadvantages:  Still not as much punch as a dreadnaught and if volume is the primary concern, may not have enough power to be heard as well as a dread in a band. Body size may still be too big for very small framed people.

As I said, you could most likely find opposing views of all this. There are certainly dreads that sound great when finger picked and grand concerts that are loud and punchy. But those are the exceptions.

I hope this information helps if you’re considering buying your first guitar or upgrading from your present instrument. If possible, at least hold and compare a couple sizes before making a decision. Even if you can’t play at all it should be fairly obvious which body size suits you.

Peace & good music,

Gene

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Responsible attitudes, responsible actions

6/11/2012

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 One of the things that has always intrigued and drawn me to acoustic guitars versus electrics (with the exception of carved hollow bodies) is that acoustics are real living, breathing things. No two pieces of wood are exactly alike so in spite of the guitar maker’s best efforts, even two instruments that appear to be identical in every way will each have their own unique characteristics. Certain types of wood can be generally categorized in terms of tonal tendencies – rosewood is almost always more resonant and complex sounding that mahogany but mahogany tends to have more even and balanced sound, top to bottom. But again, every piece of wood is different in ways subtle and more obvious so how I just described those two primary tone woods can definitely be argued. Which is why many of we guitar geeks are afflicted with a long-term case of GAS (Guitar Acquisition Syndrome)!

Unfortunately, in the very near future it is likely that guitar makers will no longer be able to continue using those and other desirable tone woods due to over harvesting and habitat degradation. East Indian rosewood is rapidly disappearing and the highly sought after Brazilian variety has long been illegal to export. The same thing happened to rosewood from Madagascar, and it is now against the law to either enter or leave the U.S. with a guitar made of that wood. Mahogany is becoming very scarce and makers have turned to a similar wood called Sapele but many guitar aficionados claim that Sapele is inferior in both sound and looks. True or not, the reality is that the most desirable woods will continue to skyrocket in price and more species will disappear from the marketplace either by attrition or by governments protecting what is left of what their countries possess.

One of the latest shortages is being seen in ebony, perhaps the most desirable wood for fingerboards due its jet-black beauty, denseness for the transmitting of string vibration and its ability to hold frets securely. However, Bob Taylor, owner of Taylor Guitars is doing something about that. Here is a very recent video of Bob explaining the situation and his response: Bob Taylor talks about ebony.

Other companies are addressing the worldwide depletion of rare species of wood, too. Martin Guitars offer their sustainable wood series and these guitars look and sound great. Here is one example. Time will tell whether they will ever have the same panache as Martins made of rosewood or mahogany but kudos to Martin for making a committed effort to address the problem to a certain degree.

As with most things, what it comes down to is the Almighty Dollar. As long as guitarists are willing to spend astronomical prices for guitars made of rare and endangered species of wood I’m afraid the cycle will continue. I don’t deny lusting after those types of instruments but as a practical matter, I can’t foresee a day when I’ll be able to afford one so for me at least, the moral dilemma is purely academic. I’m not proud of my lust however.

The next ten years will surely see some huge changes in the acoustic guitar industry. Here’s to hoping the next generation of guitar players will demonstrate more restraint and compromise than mine. Because that is the right thing to do.

Peace & good music,

Gene  

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