In terms of materials, the electric guitar body can be made from a wider variety laminated wood, solid woods, plastics and graphite to name a few.Īs an electric guitar’s body shape influences the guitar sound on a much lower level than an acoustic, you’ll find a number of more creative body shapes and designs.Įlectric guitar pickups read a vibrating guitar string and convert the vibration into an electrical signal that the amplifier converts into sounds. The smaller size means it’s easier to handle than an acoustic. It features multiple pickups, which enable the guitar to be plugged into an amplifier. On an electric, the body is generally smaller than an acoustic, as it doesn’t need to project sound from within itself. The body on an acoustic can be angled but is more traditionally rounded. It comprises several essential parts, including the sound hole, rosette, shoulders, binding, bridge, saddle and bridge pins. It is shaped for both aesthetic and sound projection reasons. The body of an acoustic is made of various tonewoods. The acoustic guitar’s most prominent and arguably most important part is the body, where the guitar sound is projected. However, an advantage of its more petite build is to allow greater access to the higher frets when playing big solos! Its primary purpose is, of course, to connect the neck of the guitar to the solid body. On an electric, however, the heel is often much smaller and doesn’t influence sound transfer anywhere near as much. The neck and body are made separately and joined together with tight-fitting joints. However, the ‘German’ construction is more commonplace these days, or what’s known in the USA as ‘dovetail’. This type of protruded joint is typically called a “Spanish heel neck joint.” It allows for high quality resonance and sound transfer between the guitar body and neck. Its design can heavily influence the transfer of energy from the neck to the body and, therefore, significantly impact the guitar sound.Īcoustic guitars, such as flamenco and classical guitars, often carry a heel that protrudes slightly, whereas traditional acoustics do not. The heel is usually a piece of carved wood that fits into the guitar body and connects the guitar’s body to the neck. You’ll find it behind the neck of the guitar. Whilst there are some differences in the headstock between the acoustic and electric, both perform exactly the same functionality. When the tuning peg is twisted, the cogs of the machine heads turn to wind or unwind the string around the central post, and the increased or decreased tension changes the note (and tone) that comes from the string. Plastic tuner pegs stay in tune only for a short time.įinally, graphite turning pegs are reasonably new to the world of guitars they are super lightweight and can withstand quite a lot of rough and tumble.īelow the central post is a machine head which is a cog-driven mechanism. This type of material is ok for the beginner, but plastic naturally won’t last as long as metal. Many guitars that feature plastic tuning pegs are often lower end. These materials are strong, will stand the test of time, and provide an efficient turning mechanism. The most typical metal for tuning pegs is brass, nickel or chrome. The tuning pegs on the headstock of both types of guitar are usually metal but are sometimes plastic and work by winding strings around a central tuning post, increasing or decreasing the string tension. One of the most instantly recognisable electric headstocks is the Fender Stratocaster, which carries an entirely flat headstock. However, there have been some very famous design variations in the past. The headstock on an electric g is usually smaller. An acoustic headstock is often bigger as the tuning pegs typically need more room and, as a result, have more space for audacious and intricate patterns and designs. The headstock on an electric guitar is not entirely dissimilar to that of an acoustic, but it does feature some differences. Usually, this area features the guitar brand’s name and sometimes the model too via the serial number. The headstock is usually straight, but it can be angled. The headstock can be made from many types of wood, and in turn, this can influence the brightness of the guitar’s tone. This is where your guitar strings attach to the tuning pegs, which are used to tighten or loosen the strings to tune them. The headstock is at the top of the acoustic guitar – at the end of what’s called the guitar neck.
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