- Setup and tuning: Guitars are shipped with the strings attached, but not tuned. You will need to tune the guitar before you can play it. Normal guitar tuning is E, A, D, G, B, E. You can use a guitar tuner, chromatic tuner, or any other tuning method to help tune your guitar. When tuning,
do not over tighten the strings because they will break and are not
covered under any warranty. Most guitars have a truss bar adjustment.
You can adjust this to your own preference since you will receive it at
the manufacturer’s standard setting. Even if you don’t like the sound
of the guitar at first, replace the strings because that will
significantly change the sound. The strings that come on the guitar are
usually standard strings, nothing special.
- Guitar types: There are thousands of different types of guitars and strings, and the different combinations of these will give
you different types of guitar sounds. Generally, certain guitars are meant to work best with certain types of music, so unless you know a specific guitar you want, a good idea would be to get one that fits your style. Generally, larger guitars will get deeper, warmer
sounds, and smaller bodies will make more articulate, clearer sounds.
- Acoustic vs. electric: The style or design of an electric guitar will not affect the sound, this is more dependent on the strings and pickups. The sound of an acoustic
guitar varies according to the shape, size, and type of wood from
which they are made. An acoustic/electric guitar will sound like an acoustic guitar, but it will have the built-in convenience of electric pickups. Generally, larger guitars will get deeper, warmer
sounds, and smaller bodies will make more articulate, clearer sounds,
commonly used in jazz.
- Case: Most guitars do not come with cases. There are some packages that include cases, but if it is not clearly noted, there will be no case included.
- Accessories: Countless accessories exist for the guitar, but the most necessary ones are a strap, picks, tuner, extra strings, and a case.
- New Guitars: Your
new guitar will not be tuned when you receive it. When tuning, do not
over tighten the strings because they will break and are not covered
under any warranty. Most guitars have a truss bar adjustment. You can
adjust this to your own preference since you will receive it at the
standard manufacturer’s setting. Even if you don’t like the sound of
the guitar at first, replace the strings because that will significantly
change the sound. The strings that come on the guitar are usually
standard strings, nothing special.
Wood
is one of the largest determining factors of a guitar’s sound and
longevity. Specific woods used to build guitars, acoustic and electric,
are called tone woods. Tone woods have resonant properties that other
woods do not. For example, oak is a beautiful and strong wood, but it
has no resonant properties, which would not be best for guitar building.
Alder
We find that alder has the richest tone, characterized by lots of fat
low-end, well defined mid ranges and a lot of sustain. Alder is a light
wood, which makes it more comfortable for lengthy gigs. It is one of the
original woods used for solid body guitars. Although other
manufacturers use woods like poplar and basswood, they are considered
alder substitutes.
Solid Alder
Alder is a fairly light and incredibly resilient wood that is a
favorite amongst electric guitar makers. It is a close-grained wood with
a naturally light tan color. Alder is mostly used for electric guitar
bodybuilding because of its full sound, great sustain and density. It is
a porous wood that takes quite well to a variety of finishes. This
gives the guitar a richer sound because the solid wood soundboard can
vibrate more freely and thoroughly.
Spruce
Spruce is the most commonly used wood on acoustic guitar soundboards.
The soundboards on acoustics are generally made of tightly grained
spruce. Naturally yellow in color, spruce is a lightwood that has a very
high degree of resonance, so it is a perfect match for acoustic
guitars.
Solid Spruce
Solid spruce refers less to a difference in the wood than to how it is
actually cut for the guitar. Laminate spruce soundboards are built as
layers of cross-grained wood glued to each other. Solid spruce
soundboards consist of one piece of wood running all the way through.
This gives the guitar a richer sound because the solid wood soundboard
can vibrate more freely and thoroughly.
Canadian Sitka Spruce
Canadian Sitka Spruce is a harder to find, more expensive variety of
spruce. It has a light yellow color and is also used for acoustic guitar
soundboards. It gives guitars a bigger more resonant sound, flush with
crisp highs. It also improves with age more than other types of spruce.
Mahogany
Mahogany is a moderately dense and very durable wood. It is commonly
used for the backs, sides and necks of acoustic guitars. It is sometimes
used on electric guitar bodies and necks. Because it is very sonorous
and durable, mahogany is also used in banjos, resonators, ukuleles and
acoustic guitar soundboards. It is lighter than maple and specifically
provides acoustic guitars with great sustain. Mahogany also provides
great weight balance between the neck and the body of an acoustic. It is
reddish-brown in color and is incredibly strong and resonant, giving
the guitar big, beautiful tones.
Maple
Maple is a strong and extremely dense, heavy wood. It is excellent for
guitar necks and bodies because it can handle an inordinate amount of
string tension. Maple has a bright and crisp tone and is used on
flamenco guitars as well as some electrics. It has a wide variety of
exotic grains that show up quite well when finished. Flamed maple is a
very popular and brilliant looking exotic type of maple. “Flamed” refers
to the rippling, or curls of the grain of wood that run across the
body. Flamed maple in generally “book matched,” which means that the
body is made of two half pieces of a single cut piece of maple. This
gives the guitar even weight, look and tone throughout the body.
Nato
Nato wood, also known as Eastern Mahogany, is a reliable, strong wood
used on guitar necks. It is a value-priced wood used more for beginner
instruments. However, it still embodies all of the properties of more
commonly used mahogany.
Roundneck vs. Squareneck
Don’t
be a square, unless you are a slide player! Many of our resonator
guitars come with a roundneck or squareneck option. The roundneck is
the most common style found on most guitars. The squareneck is used
for slide playing, since the nut sits higher and the strings set a
greater distance from the fingerboard.
What is a resonator guitar?
The
history of the resonator dates back to the early 1920’s. This was an
era when the resonator was a favorite among blues musicians. Resonators
are also known as resophonic guitars and are characterized by a shaped
cone for amplification, instead of a soundboard like on an acoustic
guitar. The shaped cone is nestled underneath the bridge of the guitar.
The bridge is connected to the cone so that when the strings are hit,
the vibrations run through the saddle and then into the bridge, which
resonates the cone. The cone acts like a built-in speaker and the body
acts as a speaker cabinet. This made the resonator, a pre-cursor to the
electric amplifier, one of the loudest stringed instruments available
in its time. The sound produced by these specially shaped cones and
bodies is very bright and snappy with great sustain and a slight
attack. Resonators are still favored today by blues and country
musicians as well as a new generation of players. All of our resonators
feature excellent construction, design and plating and are known for
their distinct projection and ethereal tone.
How To: Changing Resonator StringsThe
strings on a Resonator Guitar help hold the cone in place and prevent
it from slipping. Adjusting all the strings at the same time will
misplace the cone, which will cause a buzzing sound when played. When
you do change your Resonator strings, it is best to only change one
string at a time, paying particular attention to not upsetting the cone.
ACOUSTIC GUITAR
First
and foremost, make sure to have your guitar on a stand or inside of a
case when not in use. This protects your guitar from damage from as
little as scratches to cracks and dents in your guitar. Make sure to
play with clean hands because anything on your fingers will transfer to
the fingerboard and strings. Also wiping down the strings and body
after each session with a soft cloth will remove oils and dirt. When
changing your strings, make sure to clean off the fingerboard to remove
such oils and dirt.
Temperature can affect
your guitar. Make sure not to keep it in extreme temperature, this
could lead to cracking in the wood. Humidity is another thing to watch
out for. When it is really dry, the top of a guitar could move inward
and also cause the neck to move forward. Likewise under humid
conditions the opposite could occur. Your string height will change on
your instrument.
ELECTRIC/BASS GUITAR
First
and foremost, make sure to have your guitar on a stand or inside of a
case when not in use. This protects your guitar from damage from as
little as scratches to cracks and dents in your guitar. Make sure to
play with clean hands because anything on your fingers will transfer to
the fingerboard and strings. Also wiping down the strings and body after
each session with a soft cloth will remove oils and dirt.When changing
your strings, make sure to clean off the fingerboard to remove such oils
and dirt.
Temperature can affect
your guitar. Make sure not to keep it in extreme temperature, this could
lead to cracking in the wood. Humidity is another thing to watch out
for. When it is really dry, the top of a guitar could move inward and
also cause the neck to move forward. Likewise under humid conditions
the opposite could occur. Your string height will change on your
instrument.
It is very important
you check all the hardware on your guitar regularly. Make sure switches
swing back and forth with ease. Pick ups should be dust free. Check
screws to make sure nothing is loose.
GUITARS
Humidity & How It Affects Your Instrument.
It
is important to note that your solid top acoustic guitar- like all
acoustic guitars – is made of wood and this has certain implications
with regard to environmental factors, particularily in the case of solid
wood instruments. A minimum of care and due attention to these factors
should ensure that your guitar will last a lifetime. Wood changes
according to its environment. In high humidity conditions, wood will
absorb moisture and expand, while in dry conditions it will shed
moisture and contract. Solid wood is especially vulnerable to changes in
humidity as it gains and loses moisture more quickly than laminated
wood and thus expands or contracts to a greater degree. Acoustic guitars
are typically manufactured in an environment with a neutral humidity
level of 45 to 55% relative humidity. Relative humidity or RH refers to
the amount of moisture present in the air relative to the maximum amount
of moisture the air can hold before saturation. The air’s maximum
threshold for holding moisture will increase with the temperature. This
is why when a room is artificially heated in winter time, the RH will
drop dramatically as the air’s capacity for moisture retention is
increased without an additional source of moisture being provided. In
general terms, a guitar is at it’s most stable when in an environment
that is most comfortable for humans, in other words where the RH is
between 45 and 60%.
Low Humidity
If
your guitar is exposed to an RH level of below 40%, the wood in your
guitar will lose moisture, contract and become brittle. This can cause
the top to become concave, the fret ends to feel sharp and the action to
lower, causing buzzing when the guitar is played. If the guitar is
stored for an extended period in a low RH environment, particularily if
this is lower than 30%, glue joints may fail, notably causing the bridge
to become unstuck from the guitar due to the top contracting. The top
itself may develop cracks in the finish and in the wood itself. If you
live in a dry area with low humidity levels, we would recommend that you
keep your guitar in its case as much as possible whenever it is not in
use. A case will insulate the instrument against changes in temperature
and humidity. If you prefer to keep the guitar out of its case, we would
recommend that you invest in a hygrometer to measure the RH level of
the room where your guitar is kept. A humidifier is another useful tool
to ensure that this RH level is kept at a safe reading of 47%. If you
are subject to travelling/touring a lot with your guitar, a hygrometer
and humidifier can be installed in the case with the guitar to keep the
RH inside the case at an acceptable level. In such an instance, the
hygrometer must be placed on the outside of the case’s inner accessories
compartment on the side closest to the guitar’s body. The humidifier
should be placed inside the accessories compartment itself.
High Humidity
Conditions
of high humidity will have a less potentially devastating effect on
your guitar, but are harder to effectively guard against. The maximum
safe RH is 65%. Beyond this level, the guitar will expand as the wood
absorbs moisture. This will manifest itself in the top and back becoming
bloated and convex. With more prolonged or extreme exposure, the
bloating will expand to the fretboard, further raising the action and
drastically diminishing both playability and sound quality. The
expansion of the wood can eventually cause the loosening of glue joints
and the undoing of back braces and the bridge. However, glue joints are
reparable and unlike with low humidity, there is little or no danger of
structural damage. If you live in a humid climate, we would recommend
that you keep your guitar in an air conditioned room during the summer
months when the RH is naturally increased. In lowering the temperature,
air conditioning also lowers the moisture saturation point of the air
and the RH with it. Avoid using a swamp cooler in an already high
humidity environment. This will only further increase the RH and will
spell problems for your guitar.
Avoid any rapid and immediate
changes in humidity level, as this will cause the most damage to your
instrument. Gradual changes, undergone with the guitar being kept in its
case as much as possible, will greatly reduce the potential for damage
being sustained by your guitar.
By sticking to these safety guidelines, you will ensure that your guitar provides you with a lifetime of joy and
inspiration!
Guitar Size Chart
| Height of the Player |
Size of Guitar |
| 3'3" to 3'9" |
1/4-Size |
| 3'10" to 4'5" |
1/2-Size |
| 4'6" to 4'11" |
3/4-Size |
| 5' or taller |
4/4-Size |
The overall length of the guitar is not a good indicator of whether
it is the correct size for the student. The only way to know the true
size of a guitar is to measure it's "scale length". The scale length of a
guitar is measured from the "bridge" of the guitar to the "nut" of the
guitar.
Guitar Scale length Chart - lengths can vary slightly
| 4/4 full size |
24.75" or 25.5" |
| 3/4 size |
22.75" |
| 1/2 size |
20.5" |
| 1/4 size |
19" |
Guitar Type Size Chart - (common overall lengths)
| Scale size |
Classical (nylon string) |
Acoustic (steel string) |
Electric |
Bass |
| 4/4 full size |
38"- 40" |
40" - 42" |
38"- 40" |
43"- 46" |
| 3/4 size |
36" |
38" |
34"- 36" |
42" |
| 1/2 size |
33" |
36" |
33" |
39" |
| 1/4 size |
31" |
32" |
31" |
36" |
The overall length of the guitar can vary widely depending on the
style and overall design of the guitar. Knowledgeable dealers will list
the size of the guitar as 4/4. 3/4, etc. and most will include the
actual scale length measurement of the instrument.
NOTE:
If a you on the border of , for example, a 3/4 and 4/4
guitar in terms of your height, it might be a good idea to get the
larger guitar. After all, why buy a smaller guitar if you know you will
soon out grow it. If you have long arms, you may also need a larger
guitar.
If you are starting out, here are the few guitars we recommend:
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