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These days with Far East production methods getting better and better, you can
buy a quality instrument far more cheaply than ever before. However, two rules
of thumb still apply - 1) You get what you pay for and 2) Buy the best quality
instrument you can afford as it will pay off in the long run.
When
searching for an acoustic guitar, ask yourself the following questions:
" What am I going to use it for? For instance playing in a band or just
at home?
" Am I going to be strumming, finger picking or both?
"
Do I need a loud unplugged sound or not?
When choosing a steel string
acoustic guitar, the price differentiation often pays for the woods used and the
construction method. Cheaper instruments often use laminated woods (small
veneers of woods glued together) whereas more expensive ones tend to use solid
woods (a single piece). If you can afford to, go for a solid wood instrument as
the sound will be much better.
Sometimes intermediate priced guitars
have a solid wood top (where the sound hole is) and laminated back and sides.
Good cheap instruments these days can start as low as £150. If you are
using something regularly at church it is best to spend at least £400 and if you
are looking for a serious guitar that you can cherish you can get a fabulous
instrument for about £800 upwards.
If you are playing live you will need
to budget for a pick-up system rather than trying to mic the guitar. The two
best known types of systems are the under saddle (or under bridge) 'piezo'
system or the sound hole pickup. There are loads of Piezo systems out there that
produce really good sounds but need a battery operated pre-amp to get the best
results. If you are buying a guitar with a pick-up system its probably got this
lot included already. The sound hole systems have come a long way in the last 15
years. I use the most basic of the Fishman Rare Earth sound hole pickups in my
own guitar and I love it.
If you are shopping at the cheaper end beware
of very cheap guitars including pick-ups as the money will have gone into the
pick-up system rather than the construction of the guitar. Also beware of
cheaper acoustic guitars painted in your favourite colour as the paint can often
hide low grade wood construction. In fact its often said that the less finish
you have on a guitar, the more the tone of the natural wood shines through.
Woods - Assuming that you are going to buy a sold wood guitar, the type
of woods in the top, back and sides can vastly affect the tone the instrument
produces and certain woods are more suitable for certain playing styles. If you
are a flat picking guitarist (strumming) then perhaps start with an instrument
that has a spruce top and rosewood back and sides. Spruce is very light yellow
in colour and rosewood is brown with dark veins running through the length of
the wood. Spruce tends to give a brighter sound and rosewood adds depths and
volume. Classic examples of this are the Martin and Gibson '
Dreadnought' designs. If you want a brighter sound still try a maple
bodied guitar. This wood works particularly well in the large jumbo style
acoustic such as a Gibson J200 or one of the Guild models. These tend to work
well if you want to project a large even sound but is not so great for finger
picking.
Many fingerpickers prefer a cedar top, which has a reddish
colour and adds much more 'middle' to the sound. Mahogany back and sides works
well for this too. This is sometimes said to produce a more 'folky' or European
sound. If you are into this style try a Lowden or Avalon.
Many guitar
models mix and match some of these wood combinations to great effect so its
really worth trying as many different models as you can before you buy. You will
also find that tone can vary even for identical models so its worth going to a
guitar shop with lots of choice to pick the one you want.
There are
loads of other wood combinations too such as ebony, koa and ovangkol that all
give different sounds. My general advice though is to spend the money on the
quality of woods rather than the prettiness or decoration of the instrument.
Andy Chamberlain (andy@musicademy.com) is co-founder of www.Musicademy.com, a music school that produces
DVDs, online lessons and practical training in contemporary instruments both in
rock &
pop music and for worship music. Go to
the website for DVD and online instruction in worship guitar, keyboards, bass,
drums and singing.
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Article added to SearchWarp.com on Thursday, August 21, 2008 View other articles written by Andy Chamberlain(88)
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