How Acoustic Are You?

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Talk about your acoustic instruments here.

― maypang (maypang), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:06 (twenty-two years ago)

http://www.martinguitar.com/guitars/choosing/pImages/J-15_f.jpg

This is my acoustic guitar. It's a mahogany Martin J-15. I really should've bought a smaller model because I find that this one's a little too cumbersome to play. I guess it has a nice enough sound though-- kinda mellow and bassy. I don't know much about guitars though, so it might've helped to shop around a bit more than I did at the time. I'm thinking I might put it on Ebay soon so that I can buy something more suited to my style of playing. Whatever that is.

― maypang (maypang), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:06 (twenty-two years ago)

i have a tambourine and a irish drum. my dad got them for me at xmas. he said "i thought you could use them when you are djing"

― donny dorko (searchanddelete), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:09 (twenty-two years ago)

http://www.fender.com/new_repository/fender_acoustics/images/0951217021_md.jpg

My beautiful Fender Jumbo 12-string. A companion for the spare hours after work. Sounds great amplified w/chorus and delay, making beautiful drones.

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:17 (twenty-two years ago)

Well, all my drums are acoustic. The jazz kit, the rock kit, the New Orleans bass drum, the tambourine, the pandeiro, the sauce pan. I'd love to get into sampling and looping them real-time though, as hard as that might be.

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:19 (twenty-two years ago)

Do you ever utilize the cut-out part (for lack of a better term) to get at the high frets? (x-post)

― maypang (maypang), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:21 (twenty-two years ago)

I just had to buy a new acoustic 6-string, as my adored and beautiful vintage Bruno hummingbird-copy 12-string became too large for me. (I am not large, and I also have circulation problems in my shoulders/arms/etc area). My new one is cheap but it is comfortable for me to play. And I put a glow in the dark tiger sticker on it. I had to resist the urge to buy this wonderful Fender I just saw, because goddamn, I don't even play acoustic all that often, I should save up to buy the guitar I REALLY want. :(

I wanna sell the 12-string since it is basically impractical for me to play at length. I will miss it, though. It has the most lovely tone. It's just huge, and the neck is FAT.

I also have an autoharp, a recorder, and a trumpet. I kind of want to play with amplifying trumpet sounds into my 4-track but haven't done that too much.

― Blood and sparkles (bloodandsparkles), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:29 (twenty-two years ago)

i have: 2 cheap acoustic guitars (one nylon, one steel), pianola, mbira, various kids instruments (little piano etc), a melodica, harmonica, bongoes, guiro, strange looking brass horn thing, ukelele (well, its a small acoustic guitar really), large and small chinese gongs (for space clearing), fuck knows what else.

― mullygrubber (gaz), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:35 (twenty-two years ago)

i don't own any acoustic instruments save for a shaker egg. i just borrow stuff for recording. i'd quite like an acoustic of my own though, perhaps a 12-string..

― the surface noise (electricsound), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:38 (twenty-two years ago)

MayPang:
yep; as I do a lot of chord-sliding while playing (for ex. sliding a D chord formation up to the 14th fret and above), the cut-out allows quick access to the higher frets.

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:50 (twenty-two years ago)

I've been playing for 10 years now, and with a few exceptions, I still play everything in the first position so I always thought those cut-outs were kinda superfluous. I really think I need to buy a guitar book or something and learn something new.

― maypang (maypang), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 22:55 (twenty-two years ago)

There was a good book called "The Complete Guitarist" on Dorling-Kindersley (now upgraded to this one: http://uk.dk.com/Book/BookFrame/0,1007,,00.html?id=1405301899 ) which had both basic and advanced info on playing the guitar, but there's nothing like experimenting, trying new things: try drones, fiddle with open strings, the works. There's a whole world of sound in an acoustic guitar...

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 23:09 (twenty-two years ago)

http://ase.tufts.edu/tuwe/members/french-horn.gif

this here is one of my acoustic instuments

― A Nairn (moretap), Tuesday, 24 February 2004 23:21 (twenty-two years ago)

A Steinway grand piano. God's instrument, and a machine of abject beauty. I'm lucky indeed.

― Nom De Plume (Nom De Plume), Wednesday, 25 February 2004 03:20 (twenty-two years ago)

that reminds me i must get my piano back from my sister soon

― the surface noise (electricsound), Wednesday, 25 February 2004 03:24 (twenty-two years ago)

Not to hijack the thread or anything, but do certain acoustic guitar makers have a specific "sound" or does it vary with each of their models? I'm a fairly novice player (electric) and I'm thinking about getting an acoustic in a year or so when I'm a better player, and I'm wondering about this. Maypang says his Martin is "mellow and bassy." Is it safe to say most Martin's fit this description? They certainly have a legendary status and I live about 2 hours away from Nazareth, PA, so I'll likely go straight to the factory one day for a tour. Do Washburn's or Fender's have a definable "sound" to experienced ears? Or do they all pretty much sound the same and the deciding factor should be comfort and personal playability? Thanks.

― Mark M, Wednesday, 25 February 2004 03:39 (twenty-two years ago)

I have a cheap classical guitar that I'm very fond of, though I've not played much in the past few months. I also have a harmonica that I got for Christmas, that I must admit to not having tried to play much yet.

And when I received it, everyone single person at the Christmas party felt they had to try it, so I was slightly disgusted by it once I got it back, because of all the spit and fingermarks.

― Acoustein H-O (Øystein H-O), Wednesday, 25 February 2004 03:49 (twenty-two years ago)

mark, it's sort of like buying a vehicle. there are huge differences in sound and all that but more important for your first acoustic is, what are you using it for. do you need a reliable workhorse you can bang on every afternoon, that will stay in tune well and has easy action? do you need something loud that is going to project well, so you can play unmic'ed in ad hoc situations? do you want to buy a luxury item that has a particular sound? perhaps you want an electric-acoustic [to play acoustic-sounding guitar in a live band], or a nylon string [to practice classical]?

don't worry about "comfort and personal playability" because all that will change once you get used to the instrument: you grow into it. of course there is the size thing [guitars are default built for 5'10" tall men, to prevent japanese domination of this important western heritage] and the action thing but other than that comfort shouldn't be an issue.

a guitar shouldn't be a fetish object, don't get a really nice one unless you will get good mileage out of its features [like, are you going to make a record and tour? don't buy a nice acoustic: buy one to tour with, and rent or borrow a nice one for the recording]

― mig, Wednesday, 25 February 2004 17:38 (twenty-two years ago)

I have a 30 year old japanese cheapo classical guitar. It's all dented up (but not as bad as willie nelson's), but it sounds GREBT and I would never, ever get rid of it.

― anthony kyle monday (akmonday), Wednesday, 25 February 2004 18:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Thanks mig! I appreciate the advice.

― Mark M, Thursday, 26 February 2004 01:59 (twenty-two years ago)

four months pass...

i've got a shitty acoustic guitar. i've had it for a few years. it's got only three strings left on it, so i'm going to buy new ones tomorrow. i've never had any guitar instruction whatsoever, so i don't know anything about anything.

but what say you re: strings? nylon vs. steel? any brand(s) to seach/destroy?

― Ian c=====8 (orion), Monday, 28 June 2004 02:40 (twenty-one years ago)

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