Guitar equipment & accessoriesPart 1

MUS1472Brendan Lake

1/23/13

Overview

• Types of guitars– Classical– Steel-string– Electric

• Amplifier basics– Structures– Solid state vs. tube amps

Classical/Nylon-string Guitars

• Soundboard– Cedar (orange): warmer tone– Spruce (blonde): brighter tone

• Strings– Different guitars sound good with different strings– Experiment with multiple types

• Aim for solid woods• Needs humidity control (40% is ideal)

Acoustic/steel-string guitars

• Two body types: – Dreadnaught and Jumbo

• Cutaways• Needs humidity control• Some acoustic/classicals have electric pickups

(which also have tuners built in)

Electric guitars

• Require an amplifier (you can still hear them, but barely)

• Don’t typically need humidity control• Jazz guitars have a hollow-body (or semi-hollow)

and these may require more humidity care• A heavier electric guitar or a hollow-body typically

equates to a warmer sound• The two most popular guitars are the Fender

‘Stratocaster’ and the Gibson ‘Les Paul’

Electric Guitar Pictures

Hollow-body guitar Fender Stratocaster Gibson Les Paul

Fun fact:• The top of stratocasters (and many other

guitars) with the one-sided tuning machines is a throwback to old guitars with violin-scroll shaped heads

Buying a guitar• Don’t buy a guitar online unless you’re willing to

spend an extra $75 on adjustments• Evaluate the straightness of the neck and the action

of the guitar. This will usually correspond to how easy it is to play– Avoid guitars with frets that naturally buzz

• Evaluate its ability to stay in tune• An electric pick up may be useful if you’re planning

on playing outside of your home – Don’t buy the pick-up just for the tuner. A great clip-on

tuner is $10.• Consider re-stringing it after you buy it

Amplifiers/Amps

• More watts = more volume, and all other factors (sensitivity/efficiency/clarity, etc) depend on the materials and organization of the electronics

• Amplifiers below 75 watts will typically only consist of one box unit. Higher wattage systems will often use an amp head (containing most of the electronics) coupled with one or more speaker cabinets (half-stacks and full-stacks for instance)

Amplifiers

A single-unit amplifier, a half-stack, and a fullstack

Tube Amps vs. Solid State

• Two types of amplifier: tube and solid state• Tube Amps use vacuum tubes to transmit the

sound to the speaker• Solid state amps use transistors, and

sometimes software, to transmit sound to the speaker

• Both amps generally look the same

Tube and Solid State pictures

A tube amp head and a solid-state amp head

Tube Amps

• Pros– Are generally better-sounding amps. Compared to

solid-state, they are warmer and respond to certain players in unique ways

– Clear with strong power: 20W can sound as loud as a 200W solid-state

• Cons– Tubes need replacing every year or two– Can sound thin at low volumes

Solid State• Pros– Clean, quick and accurate– Very sturdy with little or no maintenance– Usually weigh less than a tube amp

• Cons– Can sound cold or sterile– Distortion can sound too bright– Doesn’t vary in sound and respond to different

players the way tube amps do (but they can change character using various software)

Next week

• Microphones• Cables• Accessories• General maintenance

The End

Questions? Reviews?