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Hey tone masters, please help me to determine if these myths about acoustic guitars are fact or fiction:

1. You can hear a difference between tone woods (mahogany, rosewood, nato, etc…)

2. A gloss top (or lack thereof) will have an audible affect on the sound.

3. A cutaway will make an acoustic guitat sound brighter.

4. There is an audbile difference between guitars made with solid woods vs. guitars made with multiple pieces of wood (laminates, split backs, split tops etc…)

5. Steel strings vs. bronze strings will affect your tone.

6. Grand auditorium and/or larger size acoustics sound louder and bassier.

7. Bone nuts and saddles will have an audible affect on the sound.

8. Acoustic guitars should not be tuned to standard tuning. The tension could possibly pull the bridge away from the top.

#1-Standard answer is 'Yes',but the reality is that some people can,some can't
#2-#5-Yes
#6-Standard answer is 'Yes',but there are variables
#7-Yes
#8-This one will go back and forth,I've seen guitars from the 30's that have been kept at standard pitch and the bridge is fine,and I've seen new ones that have the bridge pulling right out of the box.It has a lot to do with the construction and the care of the equipment.Cost of the insturment has no bearing on it at all.We recently had a $120.00 guitar that I spot clamped the bridge on and it has held fine,right now we just bought a high end acoustic that has to be disassembled and reclamped besause the glue shrank and released all over.

Ok one thing abouth constructing Acoustic guiatrs any change in the shape wld affect tone. As for tone woods yes it does make a diff. My jumbo size guitar has more volume than my arch top acoustic, and Ihave compared it to other guitars to confirm the same too and yes it has more bass ( sweet and warm) All my guitars are tuned to standard pitch, if the guitar is porley costruted or has athin top. the bridge wld pull. on a arch top again if the wood is too thin it wld create undue preassure on the soundboard.( my friends guitar suffers from this ). Also the kind of strings u use does make a lot of diff. so does hardware.

By quot;youquot;, you mean me?

1. You can hear a difference between tone woods (mahogany, rosewood, nato, etc…)

Answer: Yes

2. A gloss top (or lack thereof) will have an audible affect on the sound.

Answer: No. A thin finish sounds best, glossy or otherwise.

3. A cutaway will make an acoustic guitat sound brighter.

Answer: a guitat? Yes. As for a guitar, the smaller the interior volume of the guitar the less bass. The less bass the more the treble frequencies become apparent.

4. There is an audbile difference between guitars made with solid woods vs. guitars made with multiple pieces of wood (laminates, split backs, split tops etc…)

Answer: Laminates? Like plywood? Yes...big time! Lots of great acoustic guitars have bookmatched 2 piece backs and tops though...not a problem at all.

5. Steel strings vs. bronze strings will affect your tone.

Answer: Yes.

6. Grand auditorium and/or larger size acoustics sound louder and bassier.

Answer: Yes

7. Bone nuts and saddles will have an audible affect on the sound.

Answer: Yes...but it's subtle.

8. Acoustic guitars should not be tuned to standard tuning. The tension could possibly pull the bridge away from the top.

Answer: Tune it to standard if you want to. Don't tune it higher than standard. If you play in open tunings, tune to open D not open E...or tune to open G not open A...unless you are using very light strings.

1 for Lew.

1 with Lewguitar, well put.

1. You can hear a difference between tone woods (mahogany, rosewood, nato, etc…)

I think so - Play a Spruce top Deadnought, one with Rosewood back and Sides, and the other with mahogany and I can tell a difference. Granted construction and bracing comes into play as well. Also top woods also contribute to the audible tone

2. A gloss top (or lack thereof) will have an audible affect on the sound.

The consensus from talking to the local acoustic specialists is yes. My classical has a gloss top, but it's thinner than most gloss finishes on other acoustics these days. I would say the thickness of the finish is more important than whether or not it's gloss or semi-gloss/satin

3. A cutaway will make an acoustic guitat sound brighter.

I would say lighter than brighter. It's a tricky question and I think it has an extremely small effect on tone. But from my experience steel strings with cutaways sometimes sound a little lighter than non cutaways. Whether or not that's due to other factors I have no clue. Then again Eric Johnson claims to be able to tell a difference in sound from the brands of batteries in his pedals.

4. There is an audbile difference between guitars made with solid woods vs. guitars made with multiple pieces of wood (laminates, split backs, split tops etc…)

I pressume so ... never played a guitar made of laminates. As for the split black I haven't noticed a big difference

5. Steel strings vs. bronze strings will affect your tone.

Only used Bronze strings on standard acoustics so I'm no authority

6. Grand auditorium and/or larger size acoustics sound louder and bassier.

I've noticed a large difference between the Jumbo style and the Dreadnought style ... so it makes sense to me

7. Bone nuts and saddles will have an audible affect on the sound.

Seems to be the consensus, I've never swapped them out

8. Acoustic guitars should not be tuned to standard tuning. The tension could possibly pull the bridge away from the top.[/QUOTE]

I've seen it happen on a few, but I attribute it to improper care ... I think Lew's got some good advice

I have a question, wouldn't a bone nut only effect the sound of the open string?


Originally Posted by EdgecrusherI have a question, wouldn't a bone nut only effect the sound of the open string?
I would presume so, since the nut is out of the path when a note is fretted.

Since acoustics operate solely on the acoustical properties of wood and construction, EVERY single aspect effects the tone in some way, even the tuning pegs. It's amazing that an Esteban $30 acoustic can look very similar to a $7000 acoustic, but be worlds apart in every way. You truly get what you pay for, every step of the way, with acoustic guitars......at least up to $3000. Past that, and you're paying for a luthier's time and extra appointments.

GJ ... ever had a chance to play Breedlove acoustics? ... Very very very nice. We have a local supplier in town. If only I had the disposable income for a guitar of that quality

I go with Lew 100%. As for #2, that's what's so great about a french polish finish, you get a rich, deep gloss, but the finish is actually very thin, much thinner than laquer. FP is the ONLY way to go with a classical guitar IMO. For a steel string guitar it's not as critical.


Originally Posted by TheProphetGJ ... ever had a chance to play Breedlove acoustics? ... Very very very nice. We have a local supplier in town. If only I had the disposable income for a guitar of that quality

Funny you mention Breedlove. Even though I like my 2001 Martin D-28, I've never truly bonded with it the way I thought I would. It looks great, sounds incredible, and has it's reputation for a reason, yet there's still something inside me telling me to cash out of it, and go shopping for something equally good, but different. I looked at Breedlove, Collings, and Taylor 810's.
Whatever I get, it has to have a rosewood back and sides. I think what I'm not entirely digging on the D-28 is the ebony fretboard. I think my ears prefer rosewood fretboards. Sounds anal, but almost every guitar I've ever loved had a rosewood fretboard.

1 what Lew said..


Originally Posted by GearjoneserFunny you mention Breedlove. Even though I like my 2001 Martin D-28, I've never truly bonded with it the way I thought I would. It looks great, sounds incredible, and has it's reputation for a reason, yet there's still something inside me telling me to cash out of it, and go shopping for something equally good, but different. I looked at Breedlove, Collings, and Taylor 810's.
Whatever I get, it has to have a rosewood back and sides. I think what I'm not entirely digging on the D-28 is the ebony fretboard. I think my ears prefer rosewood fretboards. Sounds anal, but almost every guitar I've ever loved had a rosewood fretboard.

Ow ... tough call between the three (Larivee and Santa Cruz also strike me as being great guitars)