Guitars come in many different shapes, sizes, design and style. The world of guitars has nylon string classical guitars, steel string acoustic guitars, solid body electric guitars, hollow body guitars, etc. Each type has its own looks & style, sound and purpose. Generally speaking guitars can be put into two broad categories: acoustic guitars and electric guitars.
How a guitar works: To know how a guitar works, lets take a look at what is common on every guitar. Every acoustic guitar has basically six components – the neck with nut and a headstock, a fret board (fingerboard), tuners (also called machines), a bridge, body and last but certainly not least…..strings.
Guitar strings are long metal “wires” or can be made of nylon for classical guitars, which stretch almost the entire length of the guitar. There are six strings on a standard guitar E-A-D-G-B-E from low to high. You can read an article about guitar string construction
here. Strings generate sound by vibrating when plucked, picked ot strummed. On one end at the headstock you have the nut. On the other end the guitar’s bridge. The tension and thickness (guage) of the string determine the strings pitch or note.
How an Acoustic Guitar Works
All guitars have strings and generate sound by vibration. The sound from a bare string is barely audible. The strings vibrations have to be amplified so that they can be heard. This “amplification” prduced by the “sound box” body of the guitar. The sound box of an acoustic guitar is hollow and made of wood. There are some that are made of composite materials however. The “acoustics” of the sound box is what gives amplifies the strings and the materisl give each guitar it’s own characteristic sound..
How an Electric Guitar Works
Electric guitars electronically amplify the sound generated by the guitar strings. In place of the sound box like an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar has one or more pick-ups and other electronic components for converting the string vibration energy into electrical energy. The pickup detects the strings vibrations and converts them into electrical signals. There are many different types of pickups to accommodate different types of sounds and applications.
The electric signal then passes through a series of electronic components such as potentiometers (volume and tone controls) and the output jack mounted on the guitar. From there the signal passes through a cable and into the guitar amplifier.
There you have it. The basics of the acoustic and electric guitar. Each component of the two different types of guitar plays a part in making them unique.
My shop is located at 1 Executive Dr Unit L Toms River, NJ 08755
Please feel free to email me if you have any questions or are in need of some tech work.
- Monday: 10am - 5pm
- Tuesday: 10am - 5pm
- Wednesday: Closed
- Thursday: 10am - 5pm
- Friday: 10am - 5pm
- Saturday 10am - 2pm. (I am in every other Saturday).
I am also an Eminence, Mercury Magnetics, Mojo Musical Supply dealer.
I do all the tech work myself so you deal directly with me. I am a one man shop and my hours can vary so please contact me to confirm that I will be open.
Email me: billy@300guitars.com
Call or text me: 848-218-0362
Shipping Info for all repair work:
Please ship all repairs to: 1 Executive Dr Unit L Toms River, NJ 08755
I am currently offering all phases of guitar work which includes:
- Set-ups
- Fret dressing
- Re-fretting
- New hand cut custom bone nuts & saddles
- Electronics work
And amplifier work which includes:
- Basic maintenance
- Bias adjustment
- Repairs and restorations
- Modifications
- And more....
Testimonials:
David Nicholas - The 20watt amp is sounding fantastic! Delivered the goods at the gig and I'm finding cool tones all over the place with it. Love the cab w Emenince Tonkerlites too- perfect for my sounds! Makes the 12 string sound like a grand piano!
Peter Lacis - I had an audition for something recently that was all about Led Zeppelin I -- my custom Pennalizer BLEW THE MINDS of the guys I was playing with. They couldn't believe the sounds coming out of that amp. That album was never in my mind when I came up with the idea....so that's yet another testament to the amazing work that you do.
Scott Goldberg - I am very satisfied with the set-up, and the fast turn around. With the "lower" action it feels easier to play. I will definitely spread the word.