Even though Blackbird sounds more like road-kill, don't be put off by the initial demonstration. If you can get past the introduction, there is quite a lot of accurate, well-presented information here. I wager most of these negative comments were made after hearing only the first 2 minutes of this 1 hour presentation, so those interested in learning something should keep watching.
I couldn't agree more. However, I would be concerned about the building skills of a highly skilled player. Each vocation requires a lifetime of study and practice, so it follows that a master builder cannot and need not be a master guitarist. After all, I thought I knew a little about how guitars worked until I listened to the rest of this presentation, so in the reverse situation, I would have made a real fool of myself. Even so, he'd have done himself a favor to have someone else play the intro!
Yes, I take your point. He excels in both disciplines. Perhaps I am over-generalizing with regard to the playing ability of luthiers. Even so, maybe we would agree that Henderson represents the exception rather than the rule.
the average luthier probably starts off learning to play then discover they love building guitars a lot more and put their minds to that. Id bet most luthiers arent very good players. And very few great players could build a decent guitar
After wondering about this myself I figured it might be intentional. It might be an humouristic way of pointing out the nescessity of the guitar making theory he's going to talk about.
the video ended up being very informative, at least to me , an electric guitar guy.. it was only the first guitar that was eighter out of tune or he as just being too hard on the strings, cause the rest sounded great
Thank You, for a quick response ! The lesson at Sherry-Brener included the hanging of the various types of exotic woods on a thread and hitting it with a physicians 'reflex' hammer and either comparing it with a tuning fork during the in-process construction and later with an electrical or digital instrument, etc.
Thought that myself, you hear that and straight away you think your tone def, tune that fkin thing before you try to say that your physics make it sound better.
Wonderful lecture- full of information and presented in a concise and easily understood style. You cleared up many points for me about guitar construction and performance, especially the critical importance of the bridge. Thanks for posting.
thank you for the talk it was so informative I really have been wanting to find more media like this about types of woods used in guitars awesome video, people remember he is not a professional guitar player he is just teaching about the properties of the woods
Yes every critiquing playing i feel they missed, how valuable this class is to aspiring luthier's he scientifically laid out an artform that many see a mystic, i can't express in words the value i have gained from this vid not even finished it and i know i will rewatch again & again. and use this info to teach my musician friends the science & woodwork that create, tone and resonance in acoustic stringed instruments. Info is even valuable for wood percussion.
Negative comments are like people (making fun of and discrediting) einstein for the way he holds his pencil and writes his 4's . How cares he just have us laws to better understand our universe. This is the final piece i needed to control what the guitar sounds like anyone can make one look like a great guitar their value is audible and i feel i can now start to control that. There is no amount of money that is too much to get this info and we get it FREE. BLESS EVERYONE WHO THIS GIVES A RICHER UNDERSTANDING OF THE ACOUSTICS OF WOOD. im off to practice and collect wood i will be back when i have invented all my dream instruments.
As others have pointed-out, the guitar playing at the beginning is excruciating - is the guitar even in tune? However, apart from that, it is an excellent and very informative video. Dominic is clearly a real enthusiast and really seems to know his stuff. He also puts it across well in a clear no-nonsense way. There's a lot of hype out there about guitar 'tone', but this video helps debunk or explain a lot of the myths. Thanks for posting - keep up the good work :-)
i think he was deliberately playing without any care for accuracy, his later little bits sounded like he knows what he's doing, it was just because the talk was about sound, rather than playing. it wasn't clear that he was making fun, but i think that was the intention.
That was excellent! I saw this after several guitar factory tour vids and now much better get the points they were making! Especially the Godin acoustic tour.
Great lecture. Obviously, this guy doesn't take himself (or his playing) too seriously. I'd enjoy a few hours of conversation (with a few pints) with this guy. Good stuff, Dom!
Most people take PLAYING music far to seriously. The forget its PLAYING egos destroy fun and the ability to learn and grow. Ive been around far to many of those. I would join you guys for beers but NO playing or fun conversation this is music and building instruments.
Was this an example of a bad sounding guitar at the beginning? I’m still watching the video so I’m not sure if he is going to touch on that but I thought it sounded bad
The info is extremely good for luthiers :) The reason the intro sounds so bad is is because it's only partly picked up by his lapel mic. If he was playing into a proper mic, it would have been more even. As far as tuning, that could be an artifact of video speed, etc. Way to many influences to cancel out in an inexpensively made video in a glossy classroom setting. Do it all over in a sound studio correctly mic'd, and most folks would not have the gripes ...
Great video Dominic. You should ignore the Trolls. Lots of useful information in a short presentation. What are you using for the finish on these guitars?
The life of a Luthier is certainly fascinating but I don't think I have the patience. I would much rather spend my time playing. Thank you to the talented people who make these wonderful instruments.
I don't think the guitar is bad. I think he's more of a hobbyist player, and more interested in building guitars. If he hired someone to demonstrate for him or tuned it (although it wasn't as out of tune as you think, he was just hitting the wrong strings a bunch of times) I think it would have sounded really good.
For Everyone its a hobby just some people get big heads when they hear 1 person play worse than them. Great contribution can tell how much you guys learned from all this info.
Terrific lecture! It was well organized and quite comprehensive. It was a great idea to get a luthier who is really on his game to present this to science-minded folks. It brought out interesting points. Thanks.
Great talk, scallop remark also very interesting learning the origins, as I have two on the go, one with a very deep cross brace profile, and yes scallops,.... Both are similar volumes, but different materials, body and necks so looking forward to the finish and how well they are. Your talks about wood initially is extremely valuable (to a lay person and surprisingly misunderstood by many) as were your description of tonal modes and the top's behavior. Shame on anyone giving you a negative wave. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Sir, your effort is to be praised. Are you familiar with soundboard crown? Tension on the topside and compression on the underside, with specific downbearing at the saddle by the strings. These are physics on pianos as well as guitars. this is a finely balanced equilibrium at different sections on the bridges to achieve desired resulting tonal projection ( usually more down pressure in the high treble section to achieve a balanced volume at the loss of sustain but a 2-inch long, thin wire needs to be as loud as the 7-foot bass string. less downbearing equals more sustain, but you give up dynamics. hope my 2 cents helps ps. the 70 kgs is lateral tension. not to be confused with downbearing. on an average piano lateral tension is about 20 tons, while downbearing is about 6 lbs. per string. ( about 225 strings per piano )
I did not build my own guitar yet, but I did convert a Spanish guitar. Now it is a flat body Spanish guitar, and it has three strat clone pickups and one piëzo pickup. My tip: buy a cheap nylon string guitar, steam the glue and open the top. Yourself. Then you have some options, you can CHANGE your guitar. A. Find cedar or spruce or any wood you like, you can replace the plywood top by solid wood. That top you can plane, make it thin at spots where that is possible. Find out yourself how that works. This is a great project, you need to rebuild a lot of guitar, bracing included. B. Move the bridge! Watch out, the frets are calculated for this scale. If you want to keep things simple, you move the bridge, and you remove the fretboard, moving it according to the bridge. You can make a longer neck, getting the bridge next to the sound hole, or you shorten the neck because bridge goes to the neck strap button. Why? Position of the bridge makes the top resonate differently, the guitar will sound totally different. And it looks funny. Though, it is a lot of work, changing the neck. A and B are seperate projects. You can combine them. Thanks for reminding me of my cigar boxes, it is time to build a cedar top. And maybe on a 12 string (nylon) guitar, maybe 8 string nylon tuned like a 4 string bass, only double strings. We'll see.
You talk about a dipole. The most efficient transfer of energy for the back would be straight out of the neck pocket. If you solely look a the back of the guitar, the back would be like a Yagi antenna. The same argument could be made for the top. I understand sound board resonance to make the sound out of the hole, but to make the back more efficient, the back of the guitar may need to be modified. Maybe Ovation did that. Never sawed one apart.
Hello thank you for the wonderful information,i was wondering if you have videos where you go through the process of making an acoustic guitar? thanks again great info!
Hi Rockin Pip, sorry but I don’t have any videos on the process of making a guitar. Given the popularity of this video, I have been contemplating expanding the content. Construction methods would be inseparable from theory. - Dominic
It's actually very common for instrument builders (Luthiers) to not be very good at actually playing the instruments. I was surprised when I first learned this but this was how it was explained to me. In any given month they could build a guitar a violin a ukulele and a banjo. All these instruments are pretty different, and it's hard to build any real proficiency when you're learning them all at the same time. It's much more efficient to master 1 or 2 of them, then learn how to translate the skills.
Mastery takes time only so many hrs they play more instruments instead of focusing on just playing one. Most guitarist cant build one, it may look right nut would sound shitty.
You forgot to mention that there is a "sound pole" under the bridge going to the back of a violin to help transfer the vibrations and strengthen the top under the bridge.
This guy was really informative and got a lot of flak for his playing and tuning . These instruments probably came directly from the atmosphere of his home; through all kinds of weather to the classroom. He explained that tuning would be off , but few of the critics here seemed to listen. As for his playing; he is a physics teacher/hobby builder. If Tommy Emanuel was playing -- the instrument would have been better displayed ; however this was not so much a performance but a physics class . Most critics here fail to realize this either . I did get a chuckle when he played the intro to Smoke on the Water on that old Aoud ( hope the spelling was right). Showing a 12th century Arabic rock group coming up with this would be a good sketch for SNL .
19:49 He clearly mixed up between Venetian and Florentine cutaway... The Venetian is actually easier to make these days because machines can bend the sides through the use of a mould. Florentine requires a bit more handy work as the sharp curve is joined by two pieces of timber and a triangular supporting block at the location of the cutaway to help stabilising the cut it requires longer sides material to join otherwise you end up with weird grain pattern. That's why only high end custom built acoustic guitars have Florentine Cutaways as a standard e.g. Ervin Somogyi, Michael Greenfield, Matt McPherson...etc
very professional presentation, well done ... ...I have to point out however that you got your Florentines and your Venetians mixed up ... the Florentine cutaway (as seen in the video) is the pointy one ...the Venetian cutaway is the one with the smooth rounded curves,
This was a really enjoyable, informative video. I think i'm almost ready to tackle my first acoustic guitar build (almost...), so this has been really helpful. Thank you for taking the time to share your expertise with the world.
It has always fascinated me when things are taken down to sheer fundamental building blocks. I loved the wood bashings. :D Seen a lot of guitars but never saw an inside of one.
Super interesting presentation, the bracing designs and techniques are fascinating. It's really tough to take it seriously when all your guitars are so far out of tune though, there's really no excuse for not tuning a guitar and a real shame we couldn't enjoy the sound of all your hard work and plethora of styles of build. Immediately it makes someone question why such as detailed, obsessive, obviously talented creator would ignore 30 seconds to put a guitar in tune? Maybe some overlays of you playing in tune over those small parts would help. It's a tiny point but a guitar maker should care about tune more or what other small points could he be missing are the thoughts that come to mind. At least I would have expected you to mention it as not doing suggests you were not aware it was out of tune or simply didn't care. Both are odd choices.
Yeah those guitars clearly just went from a hot car to a cold room, but generally there's about 10 minutes to set up a computer and move everything into the room, so I get how easy it would be to overlook. Especially while trying to prepare yourself to speak for an hour. Still should've been mentioned though, but I guess once you start the show must go on!
Cymatic patterns on the guitar top from a frequency generator is questionable... does each top act different or our we seeing Cymatics that would happen on a flat surface from the frequency itself? I would look at what vibrates the wood not patterns... I am not saying that this is fact, I am asking if that is possible.. Cymatics patterns and resonate frequentcy are two seperate phenomenon.. That is why I am curious here... Because if my thoughts are correct, the right way is not seeing a pattern but seeing the top start to float and vibrate like heck... That is the resonate frequency ... Now is happening at the same time as the pattern? I don't know but I am going to try and figure this out now.. It will bug me till I figure it out... lol... This is by no means a degradation to this great video.. Because if it was a misunderstanding, Not to many folks could figure that out...
Thanks very much, Dominic, for sharing your extensive knowledge. Very helpful for me, thinking about my next build. I have a question about vibrations of the table: I got the impression that the monopole mode pumps air in and out of the sound hole, whereas the cross- and long dipoles merely move it within the guitar body (because one side of the soundboard goes up while the other goes down, suggesting cancellation). So, as I understand, the dipoles only make sound from the soundboard, not through the soundhole and, even that from the board would cancel to some extent for the listener in front. Leaves me wondering why the fanstrutting of classic guitars is designed to increase the cross-diapole (as I understood you to say). Surely it wastes sound energy and makes them quieter? Big problem in a concert hall.
Hello, I'm in the process of converting a small (580 mm scale length steel stringed guitar) to X-brace. Do you mean it is better to remove the tops of the "hills" completely. As in the top you show braced at around 30:00, please? Thanks for the video.
I wish to commend you--this has been the most comprehensive lecture on acoustic guitar making that I have seen--I am also a guitar builder and I have found this to be the most informative lecture yet---great job! I own Logan Elite Guitars--coming soon! At the moment you cannot purchase any of my guitars I am building a collection! You Sir are amazing! I wish I had the Public relations that you do to speak to the public! Thank You so much for this video!
Yeah a bit of a flub with Blackbird but who isn't a bit nervous in front of a group of people. My sympathy for him for that. He could have edited it out but didn't... Really interesting and informative presentation. Thanks! 🤘
As an engineer and a solid body hobby builder, I found this exactly the kind of information I wanted. The whys of instrument making have always fascinated me. Obviously the epitome of guitar building is the acoustic. Never tried one because of the precision required and the tools needed to get it right. Yet I now have a better understanding of the physics of the build. This is something that takes extreme patience, like learning to play, which is why I'm not much of a player. Would be nice to see a follow-on for the solid body and ways to optimize it and the various sounds you get from different woods. Thanks and remember Leo Fender was an engineer and allegedly didn't play guitar.
@@cdreid99999 electric has none of this if you have a str8 fretboard & saddle + pickup. A shoe could sound great. acoustics takes more wood skill, acoustic/resonance/sound knowledge, . Mount strings pickup and action you got a great electric. Its gr8 to start learning fundamentals. This is a skill/craft/art. Like comparing riding the bike to the Tour de France
As one who spent a lifetime in physics and recently developed a love for guitars I really appreciated this presentation He did a great job bridging the gap between the art world and technology of guitar construction. I am not an expert in guitar construction but have a deep interest and Dominic Howman explained guitar construction using well established physical principals.
I'm sure the guitars are very pretty. How can a maker of guitars, with a supposed "ear" for constructing a decent instrument, be so palpably insensitive to music. Surely this is either a spoof or this maker has just committed commercial suicide.
i have ten guitars at the moment and i've owned about thirty in the last few years, my pride and joy being a '66 gibson J45, what you said about vibration going through the back to the player, and sound holes that are cut into the sides makes sense, i also have a martin OOOX1, spruce top but HPL back and sides, basically laminate, i think it's the best guitar i've ever touched, the sound is clean, the bass growls and the trebles ring, but what makes it a complete experience is that the back passes the vibration to the player, so you get to feel the guitar as well as hear it (i play fingerstyle pretty exclusively). i've been looking at (not playing) composite and carbon fiber guitars and i think the same might be true of them, mcpherson and composite acoustics guitars sound a whole lot better than some solid wood.
Why is he using the term "monopole" action? Isn't that dipole action? BTW, if you want the bridge in the center of the body, then just extend the large end of the body. Duh?
If the guitar he played is an example of his research into physics, please keep me as far a way from physics as possible. I think you could find a better sounding guitar at Walmart......
Nice lecture! 💖 Despite the comment section making me laugh, (some of the comments are great! 😂) There's definitely great info in his lecture. He explained bits I had stumbled on, and wondered about. Brought up other stuff I need to look into more.
The 'sound hole' is actually an air hole, used to prevent any standing waves that would be self-interfering by letting air escape. People that record guitars for a living know this, and do not mic the guitar at the hole, but some where else. Almost all of the sound is produced by the vibrating top, so the materials and construction of the top is essential for a specific or pleasing sound. Thanks for the video; I liked it.
"never mix men of instrument with men of harmony" is a quip from a work of fiction I read that was fixated on the number 21 (equations). Why? Dissonance. Stay on the mean.
Please edit the blackbird butchery out of this video... it's embarrassing.
***** Oh well.
it killed me aswell hahaha
Xalan yeah no doubt... that guitar sounds terrible
man - NO KIDDING !! didn't he edit this at all ??!! pretty embarrassing...
should just played each open string from lowest to highest and saved the embarrassment !!
My god, he could at least tune it.
My same initial thought, unfortunately.
It was painful to hear. Maybe this should have been entitled: "Making guitars with a tone deaf guitar builder".
I don't think it's the guitar that was out of tune...
My sediments exactly and I do believe this guy may have a mathematical mind for building a guitar however if he can’t tune it his presentation is mute
Simply awful
I am a Physics teacher and found this video very useful !!! Many thanks !
Blackbird falling down a flight of stairs
Made me snarf yo
blackbird with a broken back got thrown out of a 5th floor window in an atempt to make the thing fly.....
Hé tried at least
The guitar sounds horrible. Maybe the guy is tone deaf? Also the strings are rattling on the frets.
I'm crying laughing with my family now bahaha
Even though Blackbird sounds more like road-kill, don't be put off by the initial demonstration. If you can get past the introduction, there is quite a lot of accurate, well-presented information here. I wager most of these negative comments were made after hearing only the first 2 minutes of this 1 hour presentation, so those interested in learning something should keep watching.
I couldn't agree more. However, I would be concerned about the building skills of a highly skilled player. Each vocation requires a lifetime of study and practice, so it follows that a master builder cannot and need not be a master guitarist. After all, I thought I knew a little about how guitars worked until I listened to the rest of this presentation, so in the reverse situation, I would have made a real fool of myself. Even so, he'd have done himself a favor to have someone else play the intro!
Christopher Rude
Christopher Rude Does the name Wayne Henderson mean anything to you ?
Yes, I take your point. He excels in both disciplines. Perhaps I am over-generalizing with regard to the playing ability of luthiers. Even so, maybe we would agree that Henderson represents the exception rather than the rule.
the average luthier probably starts off learning to play then discover they love building guitars a lot more and put their minds to that. Id bet most luthiers arent very good players. And very few great players could build a decent guitar
the lecture is so amazing and not too complex for the average person be disinterested in. he really knows his craft! thanks for uploading this vid!
That's about the worst sounding guitar I've ever heard! And, he cannot play worth a damn.
I know right, that opening was cringe worthy.
After wondering about this myself I figured it might be intentional. It might be an humouristic way of pointing out the nescessity of the guitar making theory he's going to talk about.
"i guess i'll let the guitar so the talking.." *fast forward. fast forward, FAST FORWARD*
the video ended up being very informative, at least to me , an electric guitar guy.. it was only the first guitar that was eighter out of tune or he as just being too hard on the strings, cause the rest sounded great
His palm is pressed down solidly on the top of the guitar, the best way to ruin your sound...well, maybe after the lousy fretting {:\
Thank You, for a quick response ! The lesson at Sherry-Brener included the hanging of the various types of exotic woods on a thread and hitting it with a physicians 'reflex' hammer and either comparing it with a tuning fork during the in-process construction and later with an electrical or digital instrument, etc.
The first part sounded like a 3 dollar guitar without a proper setup
+ZeGypsy lol for sure
Thought that myself, you hear that and straight away you think your tone def, tune that fkin thing before you try to say that your physics make it sound better.
I thought he was making a joke and a funny start by playing a crappy guitar and explaining why it was crappy.
I thought it sounded like a washtub with strings attached. Worst I've heard!
I really thought it was a joke too. Everything about it sounds terrible!
Wonderful lecture- full of information and presented in a concise and easily understood style. You cleared up many points for me about guitar construction and performance, especially the critical importance of the bridge. Thanks for posting.
thank you for the talk it was so informative I really have been wanting to find more media like this about types of woods used in guitars awesome video, people remember he is not a professional guitar player he is just teaching about the properties of the woods
Yes every critiquing playing i feel they missed, how valuable this class is to aspiring luthier's he scientifically laid out an artform that many see a mystic, i can't express in words the value i have gained from this vid not even finished it and i know i will rewatch again & again. and use this info to teach my musician friends the science & woodwork that create, tone and resonance in acoustic stringed instruments. Info is even valuable for wood percussion.
Negative comments are like people (making fun of and discrediting) einstein for the way he holds his pencil and writes his 4's . How cares he just have us laws to better understand our universe. This is the final piece i needed to control what the guitar sounds like anyone can make one look like a great guitar their value is audible and i feel i can now start to control that. There is no amount of money that is too much to get this info and we get it FREE. BLESS EVERYONE WHO THIS GIVES A RICHER UNDERSTANDING OF THE ACOUSTICS OF WOOD. im off to practice and collect wood i will be back when i have invented all my dream instruments.
As others have pointed-out, the guitar playing at the beginning is excruciating - is the guitar even in tune? However, apart from that, it is an excellent and very informative video. Dominic is clearly a real enthusiast and really seems to know his stuff. He also puts it across well in a clear no-nonsense way. There's a lot of hype out there about guitar 'tone', but this video helps debunk or explain a lot of the myths. Thanks for posting - keep up the good work :-)
i think he was deliberately playing without any care for accuracy, his later little bits sounded like he knows what he's doing, it was just because the talk was about sound, rather than playing. it wasn't clear that he was making fun, but i think that was the intention.
That was excellent! I saw this after several guitar factory tour vids and now much better get the points they were making! Especially the Godin acoustic tour.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge!! Very informative...
Stick with smoke on water
+metalheadblues maybe he should stick with playing a tambourine, that might be more in his level of talent.
Great lecture. Obviously, this guy doesn't take himself (or his playing) too seriously. I'd enjoy a few hours of conversation (with a few pints) with this guy. Good stuff, Dom!
Most people take PLAYING music far to seriously. The forget its PLAYING egos destroy fun and the ability to learn and grow. Ive been around far to many of those. I would join you guys for beers but NO playing or fun conversation this is music and building instruments.
Man, I really, really, ABSOLUTELY enjoyed watching and learning. I wish I could have a beer with ya and talk about this stuff for hours!
Was this an example of a bad sounding guitar at the beginning? I’m still watching the video so I’m not sure if he is going to touch on that but I thought it sounded bad
Glad I stuck with the video - despite the ropey start there is some very interesting information in here.
The info is extremely good for luthiers :)
The reason the intro sounds so bad is is because it's only partly picked up by his lapel mic. If he was playing into a proper mic, it would have been more even. As far as tuning, that could be an artifact of video speed, etc. Way to many influences to cancel out in an inexpensively made video in a glossy classroom setting. Do it all over in a sound studio correctly mic'd, and most folks would not have the gripes ...
Nope.
@@ed-rb4bs was going to ask if you learned anything from this awesome lecture but you already answered my question
It definitely was out of tune lol, it happens though
Thanks very much to Mr. Howman. This explains a lot and is very interesting and useful to me.
the intro cheered me up!
Brilliant. Really useful stuff. Thanks a lot!
Absolutely fantastic lecture.
I don't understand. The guitar sounds bad, so why demonstrate it?
Great video Dominic. You should ignore the Trolls. Lots of useful information in a short presentation. What are you using for the finish on these guitars?
The life of a Luthier is certainly fascinating but I don't think I have the patience. I would much rather spend my time playing. Thank you to the talented people who make these wonderful instruments.
great video, I learned a lot! thanks!
I don't think the guitar is bad. I think he's more of a hobbyist player, and more interested in building guitars. If he hired someone to demonstrate for him or tuned it (although it wasn't as out of tune as you think, he was just hitting the wrong strings a bunch of times) I think it would have sounded really good.
You can clearly hear it's awfully out of tune as well.
He's a professional luthier... he knows how to tune and set up a guitar.. but he didnt bother.......
For Everyone its a hobby just some people get big heads when they hear 1 person play worse than them. Great contribution can tell how much you guys learned from all this info.
Holy. Check out 39:13
The difference it makes when you let the back resonate is insane
Absolutely excellent! Thank you!
Terrific lecture! It was well organized and quite comprehensive. It was a great idea to get a luthier who is really on his game to present this to science-minded folks. It brought out interesting points. Thanks.
Great talk, scallop remark also very interesting learning the origins, as I have two on the go, one with a very deep cross brace profile, and yes scallops,.... Both are similar volumes, but different materials, body and necks so looking forward to the finish and how well they are. Your talks about wood initially is extremely valuable (to a lay person and surprisingly misunderstood by many) as were your description of tonal modes and the top's behavior. Shame on anyone giving you a negative wave. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Sir, your effort is to be praised. Are you familiar with soundboard crown? Tension on the topside and compression on the underside, with specific downbearing at the saddle by the strings. These are physics on pianos as well as guitars. this is a finely balanced equilibrium at different sections on the bridges to achieve desired resulting tonal projection ( usually more down pressure in the high treble section to achieve a balanced volume at the loss of sustain but a 2-inch long, thin wire needs to be as loud as the 7-foot bass string. less downbearing equals more sustain, but you give up dynamics. hope my 2 cents helps ps. the 70 kgs is lateral tension. not to be confused with downbearing. on an average piano lateral tension is about 20 tons, while downbearing is about 6 lbs. per string. ( about 225 strings per piano )
26:00 I had never thought of the bridge as a brace. Thats fascinating that it is made to tie together the x brace on the inside.
I did not build my own guitar yet, but I did convert a Spanish guitar. Now it is a flat body Spanish guitar, and it has three strat clone pickups and one piëzo pickup.
My tip: buy a cheap nylon string guitar, steam the glue and open the top. Yourself. Then you have some options, you can CHANGE your guitar.
A. Find cedar or spruce or any wood you like, you can replace the plywood top by solid wood. That top you can plane, make it thin at spots where that is possible. Find out yourself how that works. This is a great project, you need to rebuild a lot of guitar, bracing included.
B. Move the bridge! Watch out, the frets are calculated for this scale. If you want to keep things simple, you move the bridge, and you remove the fretboard, moving it according to the bridge. You can make a longer neck, getting the bridge next to the sound hole, or you shorten the neck because bridge goes to the neck strap button. Why? Position of the bridge makes the top resonate differently, the guitar will sound totally different. And it looks funny. Though, it is a lot of work, changing the neck.
A and B are seperate projects. You can combine them. Thanks for reminding me of my cigar boxes, it is time to build a cedar top. And maybe on a 12 string (nylon) guitar, maybe 8 string nylon tuned like a 4 string bass, only double strings. We'll see.
You talk about a dipole. The most efficient transfer of energy for the back would be straight out of the neck pocket. If you solely look a the back of the guitar, the back would be like a Yagi antenna. The same argument could be made for the top. I understand sound board resonance to make the sound out of the hole, but to make the back more efficient, the back of the guitar may need to be modified. Maybe Ovation did that. Never sawed one apart.
Hello thank you for the wonderful information,i was wondering if you have videos where you go through the process of making an acoustic guitar? thanks again great info!
Hi Rockin Pip, sorry but I don’t have any videos on the process of making a guitar. Given the popularity of this video, I have been contemplating expanding the content. Construction methods would be inseparable from theory. - Dominic
Curtin University
thank you Dominic, i appreciate your reply
@@curtinuniversity You should have tuned your guitar though. If was painfully out of tune.
at first i thought he was playing out of tune on purpose as some kind icebreaker or something
UngKristen me too, I thought he was demonstrating a crap guitar and afterwards he would play his real guitar.. not :D
It's actually very common for instrument builders (Luthiers) to not be very good at actually playing the instruments. I was surprised when I first learned this but this was how it was explained to me. In any given month they could build a guitar a violin a ukulele and a banjo. All these instruments are pretty different, and it's hard to build any real proficiency when you're learning them all at the same time. It's much more efficient to master 1 or 2 of them, then learn how to translate the skills.
Mastery takes time only so many hrs they play more instruments instead of focusing on just playing one. Most guitarist cant build one, it may look right nut would sound shitty.
You forgot to mention that there is a "sound pole" under the bridge going to the back of a violin to help transfer the vibrations and strengthen the top under the bridge.
I just learned about those earlier arent they free floating
This guy was really informative and got a lot of flak for his playing and tuning . These instruments probably came directly from the atmosphere of his home; through all kinds of weather to the classroom. He explained that tuning would be off , but few of the critics here seemed to listen. As for his playing; he is a physics teacher/hobby builder. If Tommy Emanuel was playing -- the instrument would have been better displayed ; however this was not so much a performance but a physics class . Most critics here fail to realize this either . I did get a chuckle when he played the intro to Smoke on the Water on that old Aoud ( hope the spelling was right). Showing a 12th century Arabic rock group coming up with this would be a good sketch for SNL .
19:49 He clearly mixed up between Venetian and Florentine cutaway... The Venetian is actually easier to make these days because machines can bend the sides through the use of a mould. Florentine requires a bit more handy work as the sharp curve is joined by two pieces of timber and a triangular supporting block at the location of the cutaway to help stabilising the cut it requires longer sides material to join otherwise you end up with weird grain pattern. That's why only high end custom built acoustic guitars have Florentine Cutaways as a standard e.g. Ervin Somogyi, Michael Greenfield, Matt McPherson...etc
Obviously he's a professional guitar maker not a professional guitarIST! I don't understand why you are all being so pathetic with your comments
please stop the guitar from talking. it sounds very ill
Excellent and very informative! Thanks?
very professional presentation, well done ... ...I have to point out however that you got your Florentines and your Venetians mixed up ... the Florentine cutaway (as seen in the video) is the pointy one ...the Venetian cutaway is the one with the smooth rounded curves,
how about the physics of tuning your guitar
Needed to lower the action at the nut and get less tension strings.
Building a guitar is all about understanding the materials, harmonic resonance, and frequency attenuation... my 2¢.
This was a really enjoyable, informative video. I think i'm almost ready to tackle my first acoustic guitar build (almost...), so this has been really helpful. Thank you for taking the time to share your expertise with the world.
Good idea to give a throw away performance for the first minute. It gets rid of the Physics dunces immediately.
It has always fascinated me when things are taken down to sheer fundamental building blocks. I loved the wood bashings. :D Seen a lot of guitars but never saw an inside of one.
Super interesting presentation, the bracing designs and techniques are fascinating. It's really tough to take it seriously when all your guitars are so far out of tune though, there's really no excuse for not tuning a guitar and a real shame we couldn't enjoy the sound of all your hard work and plethora of styles of build. Immediately it makes someone question why such as detailed, obsessive, obviously talented creator would ignore 30 seconds to put a guitar in tune?
Maybe some overlays of you playing in tune over those small parts would help. It's a tiny point but a guitar maker should care about tune more or what other small points could he be missing are the thoughts that come to mind. At least I would have expected you to mention it as not doing suggests you were not aware it was out of tune or simply didn't care.
Both are odd choices.
Yeah those guitars clearly just went from a hot car to a cold room, but generally there's about 10 minutes to set up a computer and move everything into the room, so I get how easy it would be to overlook. Especially while trying to prepare yourself to speak for an hour.
Still should've been mentioned though, but I guess once you start the show must go on!
ur guitar sounds horrible
Cymatic patterns on the guitar top from a frequency generator is questionable... does each top act different or our we seeing Cymatics that would happen on a flat surface from the frequency itself? I would look at what vibrates the wood not patterns... I am not saying that this is fact, I am asking if that is possible.. Cymatics patterns and resonate frequentcy are two seperate phenomenon.. That is why I am curious here... Because if my thoughts are correct, the right way is not seeing a pattern but seeing the top start to float and vibrate like heck... That is the resonate frequency ... Now is happening at the same time as the pattern? I don't know but I am going to try and figure this out now.. It will bug me till I figure it out... lol... This is by no means a degradation to this great video.. Because if it was a misunderstanding, Not to many folks could figure that out...
Thanks very much, Dominic, for sharing your extensive knowledge. Very helpful for me, thinking about my next build. I have a question about vibrations of the table: I got the impression that the monopole mode pumps air in and out of the sound hole, whereas the cross- and long dipoles merely move it within the guitar body (because one side of the soundboard goes up while the other goes down, suggesting cancellation). So, as I understand, the dipoles only make sound from the soundboard, not through the soundhole and, even that from the board would cancel to some extent for the listener in front. Leaves me wondering why the fanstrutting of classic guitars is designed to increase the cross-diapole (as I understood you to say). Surely it wastes sound energy and makes them quieter? Big problem in a concert hall.
Hello, I'm in the process of converting a small (580 mm scale length steel stringed guitar) to X-brace. Do you mean it is better to remove the tops of the "hills" completely. As in the top you show braced at around 30:00, please?
Thanks for the video.
Being an engineering student, I had a design project and my topic was guitars. This video helped me a lot in an engineering sense. Thank you so much!
I wish to commend you--this has been the most comprehensive lecture on acoustic guitar making that I have seen--I am also a guitar builder and I have found this to be the most informative lecture yet---great job! I own Logan Elite Guitars--coming soon! At the moment you cannot purchase any of my guitars I am building a collection! You Sir are amazing! I wish I had the Public relations that you do to speak to the public! Thank You so much for this video!
Good stuff. Thank you.
Very informative, thank you for the upload.
You're welcome Christopher :) We are glad you like it - Brooklyn
This is the second time I've watched this, and keep learning more each time. Thanks again.
You're welcome Mike! We're glad to help :) - Brooklyn
Yeah a bit of a flub with Blackbird but who isn't a bit nervous in front of a group of people. My sympathy for him for that. He could have edited it out but didn't... Really interesting and informative presentation. Thanks! 🤘
Top stuff Dom. Sam told me to come check this out, and I'm damn glad I did.
nailed it
Very interesting stuff, very helpful- thanks
"Guess ill let the guitar donthe talking" That guitar got a speech impediment bro 🤣🤣🤣
I used sinker mahogany on the top of a small guitar and it gave the small guitar a bigger, baser sound.
Shell of Professionalism
As an engineer and a solid body hobby builder, I found this exactly the kind of information I wanted. The whys of instrument making have always fascinated me. Obviously the epitome of guitar building is the acoustic. Never tried one because of the precision required and the tools needed to get it right. Yet I now have a better understanding of the physics of the build. This is something that takes extreme patience, like learning to play, which is why I'm not much of a player. Would be nice to see a follow-on for the solid body and ways to optimize it and the various sounds you get from different woods. Thanks and remember Leo Fender was an engineer and allegedly didn't play guitar.
ill build electrics all day long and have zero doubt i can make a brilliant electric. i wouldnt even attempt an acoustic
@@cdreid99999 electric has none of this if you have a str8 fretboard & saddle + pickup. A shoe could sound great. acoustics takes more wood skill, acoustic/resonance/sound knowledge, . Mount strings pickup and action you got a great electric. Its gr8 to start learning fundamentals. This is a skill/craft/art. Like comparing riding the bike to the Tour de France
As one who spent a lifetime in physics and recently developed a love for guitars I really appreciated this presentation He did a great job bridging the gap between the art world and technology of guitar construction. I am not an expert in guitar construction but have a deep interest and Dominic Howman explained guitar construction using well established physical principals.
so bridge location is the most important .. how do you determine where the bridge is located for maximum resonance
music only works on a Metaphysical level. To try to 2+2=4 it you effectively destroy music.
This isn't music. This is luthiery. Next time try to at least be aware what the subject is.
He must be the worst kind of customer...not to mention players
Good lord that opening.
horrible performance! just play something simple or unkown next time...
That wouldn't help.
really nice explanations. Thanks!
This guy must have some balls to start off a guitar related presentation by sucking to this extent on a simple tune. Respect.
That was fascinating and very informative.
I'm going to tap my back right now!
Great video, just keep your job at the university for now!
I'm sure the guitars are very pretty. How can a maker of guitars, with a supposed "ear" for constructing a decent instrument, be so palpably insensitive to music. Surely this is either a spoof or this maker has just committed commercial suicide.
So many questions answered! Great lecture! thanks you
You're welcome Michael, we're glad we can help - Brooklyn
what a fascinating lecture. Beautiful presentation.
Glad you enjoyed it!
i have ten guitars at the moment and i've owned about thirty in the last few years, my pride and joy being a '66 gibson J45, what you said about vibration going through the back to the player, and sound holes that are cut into the sides makes sense, i also have a martin OOOX1, spruce top but HPL back and sides, basically laminate, i think it's the best guitar i've ever touched, the sound is clean, the bass growls and the trebles ring, but what makes it a complete experience is that the back passes the vibration to the player, so you get to feel the guitar as well as hear it (i play fingerstyle pretty exclusively). i've been looking at (not playing) composite and carbon fiber guitars and i think the same might be true of them, mcpherson and composite acoustics guitars sound a whole lot better than some solid wood.
Why is he using the term "monopole" action? Isn't that dipole action? BTW, if you want the bridge in the center of the body, then just extend the large end of the body. Duh?
GOOD IDEAS FOR ALL STUDENTS WHO WANT TO FURTHER STUDY OF ACOUSTIC GUITAR 👏👏👏👏😀😀😀😀😀😄😄👌✌✌
If the guitar he played is an example of his research into physics, please keep me as far a way from physics as possible. I think you could find a better sounding guitar at Walmart......
What was the song he started out playing or was it something original?
It was supposed to be blackbird by the Beatles.
Aaaaaaaaah. I recently bought a 3/4 size classical. I instantly noted how loud of a treble sound it produced. Glad he was able to explain that.
Thank you Mr Lecturer, at least I would know how to choose my next guitar, and it wont be those made in cheap factories in china or Indon... etc
Nice lecture! 💖
Despite the comment section making me laugh, (some of the comments are great! 😂) There's definitely great info in his lecture. He explained bits I had stumbled on, and wondered about. Brought up other stuff I need to look into more.
The 'sound hole' is actually an air hole, used to prevent any standing waves that would be self-interfering by letting air escape. People that record guitars for a living know this, and do not mic the guitar at the hole, but some where else. Almost all of the sound is produced by the vibrating top, so the materials and construction of the top is essential for a specific or pleasing sound. Thanks for the video; I liked it.
absolutely amazing video. you explain things very well.
"never mix men of instrument with men of harmony" is a quip from a work of fiction I read that was fixated on the number 21 (equations). Why? Dissonance. Stay on the mean.
An excellent presentation! I am just learning about the construction of guitars and this has been a wealth of information for me. Thank you Dominic!
I'm still waiting for the tuning a guitar lesson or the how NOT to play Blackbird lesson. YIKES, bro!
Blackbird? I though that piece was entitled: "Dying moments of a fatally wounded pigeon"
I enjoyed this presentation very much. Thank you.
I had to stop listening after the first 10 minutes.
Fantastic lecture. Maximum information, zero bullshit. Great stuff