Acoustic Guitars
Acoustic Guitars > Acoustic Guitar History • Acoustic Guitars at eBay
The acoustic guitar is a popular stringed instrument which originated in
Spain. It has a flat, waisted body, a round sound hole, and a
fretted fingerboard, or "neck," along which run six strings. The
strings are fastened to tuning screws at the top of the fingerboard, and
to a bridge which is glued to the instrument's sound board or "belly" at
the other end. The strings on acoustic guitars are usually made of
steel. On classical guitars, the top three strings are usually made
of nylon or natural gut, while the lower three strings are metal.
The strings are tuned to E, A, D, G, B, and E (starting with the second E
below middle C and ending with the E above middle C).
Acoustic guitars are the instrument of choice for many country and folk music guitarists. High quality acoustic guitars generally feature solid wood construction, with spruce or cedar tops and rosewood or mahogany sides and backs. Medium quality guitars may combine solid wood tops with laminated sides and backs, while entry level instruments are often made from laminated woods. Guitar necks and fingerboards are typically constructed from stiff woods such as mahogany, ebony, and rosewood.
Guitars are designed for either right-handed or left-handed players. With a right-handed guitar, the player's right-hand fingers pluck or strum the strings while the left-hand fingers are positioned at the appropriate frets to produce the desired pitches.
How Acoustic Guitars Work
How does an acoustic guitar produce sound? Quite simply, when a
guitar player hits a guitar string, the string absorbs energy and begins
to vibrate. However, this alone is not enough to create sound waves
that can be heard. In order to be heard, the energy must come into
contact with a mass of lower density.
The guitar's hollow body enables this to happen. In a nutshell, the body of the guitar acts as a soundbox. The energy from the vibrating strings travels through the saddle and bridge over which the strings pass, and eventually to the soundbox. The soundbox amplifies the vibration of the strings, so that the sound can be heard. The guitar's volume and projection are a result of the soundbox.
How is the soundbox assembled? The front of the guitar is called the "soundboard," while the sides of the guitar are called the "ribs." There are small strips of wood that allow the front, sides, and back to be glued together, and these are called "linings." Once the pieces are glued together, the joints are hidden by "edging."
The inside of both the soundboard and the back of the guitar will have
something called "strutting" or "bracing." Basically, these are
strips of wood that are laid across the surface in a pattern. The
struts serve to strengthen the wood and prevent it from warping, but they
also allow the soundbox to vibrate and produce the best possible tone.
Tone, simply put, is what the guitar sounds like. Even high-quality guitars will differ in tone. The design of the soundbox will affect the sound characteristics of a guitar; as a result, many guitar makers, known as "luthiers," will change the design of each guitar slightly to produce varied tonal qualities.
The goal of every luthier is to ensure that their guitars have even tonal gradations, with no areas where the tone or volume changes abruptly, and no areas where there is over-accentuated harmony. Different designs mean that some types of guitars are better suited to particular styles of music. For example, Martin flat-top guitars are popular with fingerstyle guitarists because of their clarity and defined bass pattern, while Gibson flat-tops are frequently used by country musicians because of the rhythmic sounds they produce when chords are strummed.
Guitar Shape and Size
Most acoustic guitars share the same basic shape. The body looks like a figure-eight made up of an upper bout, a thin waist, and a lower bout. However, the dimensions of these three parts of the guitar will determine what it sounds like. Guitars with smaller upper bouts have enhanced treble frequencies, while guitars with larger upper bouts have enhanced bass frequencies.Acoustic guitar sizes vary as well. Flat-top, steel-string acoustic guitars come in standard, jumbo, and dreadnought sizes. Today, there are a wide variety of steel-string and nylon-string guitars available on the market. Browse this website, AcousticGuitars.us, to learn more about acoustic guitars and the people and companies that make them. For acoustic guitar photos and an overview of their origins, please see History of the Acoustic Guitar.
Acoustic Guitar Dealers
Most of the guitar shops listed below feature a good selection of acoustic guitars, ranging from popular-price beginner guitars to high-end pro quality guitars. They may also offer complete guitar packages as well as guitar cases, straps, gig bags, and other guitar accessories.- GuitarTrader
Features leading brands like Fender, Gibson, Ibanez, and Martin.
www.GuitarTrader.com - Guitar Center
Buy acoustic guitars, acoustic-electric guitars, amplifiers, and guitar effects online.
www.GuitarCenter.com - Gruhn Guitars
Vintage guitars and acoustic guitars information and resources.
www.guitars.com - Buffalo Brothers Guitars
This Carlsbad, California dealer offers new, used, and vintage stringed instruments.
www.BuffaloBrosGuitars.com - Sam Ash
This musical instrument megastore, with retail stores across the nation, features guitars, keyboards, and drums as well as brass and woodwind instruments. In addition to musical instruments and accessories, visitors can find sound and recording equipment, sheet music and videos, and music software and computers.
www.SamAsh.com - Mandolin Brothers
This well-known Staten Island, New York guitar shop features acoustic guitars, classical guitars, banjos and mandolins.
www.MandoWeb.com - Rondo Music
Family owned and operated music store features a variety of acoustic guitars as well as bluegrass and folk instruments.
www.RondoMusic.net
Acoustic Guitar Manufacturers
- Taylor Guitars
Quality guitars, accessories, and gear. Models, features, and reference data.
www.TaylorGuitars.com - Martin Guitar
A leading manufacturer of acoustic guitars and guitar kits. Established 1833.
www.MGuitar.com - Gibson Montana
Leading guitar manufacturer offering acoustics, bass guitars, custom guitars, and historic guitars.
Montana.Gibson.com - Jean Larrivee Guitars
High quality steel-string and classical guitars.
www.Larrivee.com - Godin Guitars
This Canadian guitar maker offers the Godin, Seagull, Art & Lutherie, Simon & Patrick, Norman, and LaPatrie brands.
www.GodinGuitars.com - Seagull Guitars
Features a selection of hand-crafted acoustic guitars.
www.SeagullGuitars.com - Takamine
Popular Japanese guitar brand with a wide variety of acoustics and acoustic-electrics.
www.Takamine.com - Ibanez Guitars
Affordable acoustic guitars. Artwood guitars, performance guitars, and more.
www.Ibanez.com - Fender
Well-known for their electric Stratocaster guitars, Fender also offers a variety of acoustic models.
www.Fender.com - Guild Guitars and Basses
Manufactures a wide range of acoustic and acoustic-electric guitars.
www.GuildGuitars.com - Collings Guitars
Texas-based builder of fine acoustic steel string instruments.
www.CollingsGuitars.com - Ovation Guitars
Acoustic guitars engineered for ruggedness and better tonal balance.
www.OvationGuitars.com - Epiphone Acoustics
6 string, 12 string, classical, acoustic-electric, and bluegrass guitars.
www.Epiphone.com - Washburn Guitars
Offers a diverse line of popular acoustic guitar models.
www.Washburn.com - Doolin Guitars
Features handmade double-cutaway acoustic guitars.
www.DoolinGuitars.com/ - Tacoma Guitars
Offers USA-made, fine acoustic guitars, mandolins, and basses.
www.TacomaGuitars.com - Breedlove Guitar
This Oregon guitar maker features acoustic guitars and mandolins.
www.BreedloveGuitars.com - Santa Cruz Guitar
California-based luthier offers custom handmade acoustic guitars.
www.SantaCruzGuitar.com - Huss & Dalton Guitar Company
Virginia-based makers of fine hand-crafted instruments which capture the spirit of music played in the Shenandoah Valley.
www.HussAndDalton.com
Acoustic Guitar Reviews and Resources
- Discover Guitar
Guitar workshops, classroom programs, music teacher resources, and guitar industry links.
www.DiscoverGuitar.com - Acoustic Guitar Central
Guitar reviews and advice, luthier profiles, lutherie trends, new gear and accessories, and projects!
www.AcousticGuitar.com - WholeNote Resources
This popular guitar resource features a convenient directory of guitar recordings, online music, instructional materials and musicians as well as guitar reviews, manufacturers and shopping.
www.WholeNote.com - Acoustic Guitar Information
"Acoustic Guitar: Looking, Buying, and Keeping." Help and advice for the beginner. - Premier Guitar Shows
Produces regional guitar shows and a guitar magazine, and also provides event calendars and information about other guitar shows located throughout the United States.
www.PremierGuitarShows.com
Related Guitar Sites
- Basses - bass guitars and guitar accessories.
- Electric Guitars - electric guitar makers.
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