Electro-acoustic guitars work acoustically in exactly the same way as a standard acoustic guitar, meaning the main factors in their individual sound will be the size, shape and material of the body and neck. They are constructed with the same basic materials that all models use: wood, steel and very occasionally composite materials. It depends on the manufacturer and brand, but the same basic shape and production methods are used to put these finely crafted pieces together. Electro-acoustic guitars are the ideal choice for gigging musicians who want the sound of an acoustic guitar but need it to be amplified. Body shapes can be much like standard acoustic guitars, such as the box-like dreadnought, or jumbo, whilst other models such as the famous Yamaha APX or Ibanez AEG series use a smaller, thinner body, giving a feel a little more like an electric guitar. One of the leading guitarists of our time, Glen Campbell, was heavily involved with the Ovation guitar company, one of the originators of electro-acoustic guitars. Ovations models were slightly different from most others in that the back of the guitar was bowl shaped, apparently to help scoop the sound of the instrument forwards. These instruments were a huge success and Ovation are still a major brand in today's market.
The Main Advangtage of an electro-acoustic guitar is the adaptability in its preamp and the pickup which feeds it. These pickups take a few major forms.
The earliest models used a magnetic pick up in the soundhole or at the neck joint of an acoustic guitar. These pickups were essentially very similar to an electric guitars pickup. This lead to feedback problems and diminished sound quality because the complex overtones produced could not be adequately handled by such a simple device. Revised magnetic pickups are still available in single coil and humbucking forms. These more modern alternatives suffer less with feedback issues and are still the choice of many players including David Gilmour of Pink Floyd fame.
The most common pickup in low and mid price guitars however tends to be the piezo pickup. This is a form of what is known as transducer. This has been a popular way to amplify an acoustic since the technology's inception as it has one major advantage. A transducer works through vibrations in the top, meaning no feedback problems which are so prevalent when putting a mic in front of a standard acoustic. To this end, they are often fitted under the bridge saddle, where the vibration is at its strongest. This also hides the pickup effectively and allows for easy placement of a jack socket. Other transducers can fit underneath the soundboard, allowing for more changeable placement. This gives a greater choice in picking the various inherent tonal characteristics of the guitar to emphasise or play down as wanted.
It is also becoming popular to use a system comprising two or three separate pickups, either of differing types or in different areas of the guitars body to emphasise different tonal aspects. This has become more popular still as players like Preston Reed, Eric Roche and Andy Mckee have further popularised using the acoustic guitar percussively as part of a piece of music by tapping the guitar in various places. A transducer allows a pickup to be placed in or near the area to be hit. Picking the sound up clearly and consistently.
Of course with a system of more than one pickup, the pre amp fitted to the guitar will become even more important and will often give you the luxury of a full onboard EQ as well as a volume control or controls for the pickup/s in the guitar. EQ controls on an acoustic are designed primarily to stomp out feedback and give the player more control over their tone. For this reason, on a mid range guitar you will often find a "parametric" equalizer, meaning you can find a troublesome frequency and reduce it. This means you can find whereabouts the feedback is coming from and eliminate that particular frequency. This also means you can boost a particular frequency which may be helping your sound to cut through on stage.
Many Pre amps nowadays feature inbuilt tuners, allowing for silent onstage tuning under any light. These normally feature a small display and all the same features you would expect from a floor based tuner without the need to take an extra unit on stage.
A further positive is the straight connection into the console, which eliminates the need for a noise free studio or expensive microphone in which to pick up the signals clearly. This makes it an ideal solution for a home recording hobbyist through to a serious stage musician, and also makes getting a great sound much simpler for those who may not be too knowledgeable when it some to which mic etc will fit the bill best.
In order to make the electro-acoustic a usable tool for home practice there are a range of amps available specifically for the purpose, many featuring microphone inputs alongside those for guitars. This provides an all in one solution for singer/guitarists playing small gigs and practicing or may work as the guitarists monitor while the main sound is carried through the P.A speakers to the crowd.
The Main Advangtage of an electro-acoustic guitar is the adaptability in its preamp and the pickup which feeds it. These pickups take a few major forms.
The earliest models used a magnetic pick up in the soundhole or at the neck joint of an acoustic guitar. These pickups were essentially very similar to an electric guitars pickup. This lead to feedback problems and diminished sound quality because the complex overtones produced could not be adequately handled by such a simple device. Revised magnetic pickups are still available in single coil and humbucking forms. These more modern alternatives suffer less with feedback issues and are still the choice of many players including David Gilmour of Pink Floyd fame.
The most common pickup in low and mid price guitars however tends to be the piezo pickup. This is a form of what is known as transducer. This has been a popular way to amplify an acoustic since the technology's inception as it has one major advantage. A transducer works through vibrations in the top, meaning no feedback problems which are so prevalent when putting a mic in front of a standard acoustic. To this end, they are often fitted under the bridge saddle, where the vibration is at its strongest. This also hides the pickup effectively and allows for easy placement of a jack socket. Other transducers can fit underneath the soundboard, allowing for more changeable placement. This gives a greater choice in picking the various inherent tonal characteristics of the guitar to emphasise or play down as wanted.
It is also becoming popular to use a system comprising two or three separate pickups, either of differing types or in different areas of the guitars body to emphasise different tonal aspects. This has become more popular still as players like Preston Reed, Eric Roche and Andy Mckee have further popularised using the acoustic guitar percussively as part of a piece of music by tapping the guitar in various places. A transducer allows a pickup to be placed in or near the area to be hit. Picking the sound up clearly and consistently.
Of course with a system of more than one pickup, the pre amp fitted to the guitar will become even more important and will often give you the luxury of a full onboard EQ as well as a volume control or controls for the pickup/s in the guitar. EQ controls on an acoustic are designed primarily to stomp out feedback and give the player more control over their tone. For this reason, on a mid range guitar you will often find a "parametric" equalizer, meaning you can find a troublesome frequency and reduce it. This means you can find whereabouts the feedback is coming from and eliminate that particular frequency. This also means you can boost a particular frequency which may be helping your sound to cut through on stage.
Many Pre amps nowadays feature inbuilt tuners, allowing for silent onstage tuning under any light. These normally feature a small display and all the same features you would expect from a floor based tuner without the need to take an extra unit on stage.
A further positive is the straight connection into the console, which eliminates the need for a noise free studio or expensive microphone in which to pick up the signals clearly. This makes it an ideal solution for a home recording hobbyist through to a serious stage musician, and also makes getting a great sound much simpler for those who may not be too knowledgeable when it some to which mic etc will fit the bill best.
In order to make the electro-acoustic a usable tool for home practice there are a range of amps available specifically for the purpose, many featuring microphone inputs alongside those for guitars. This provides an all in one solution for singer/guitarists playing small gigs and practicing or may work as the guitarists monitor while the main sound is carried through the P.A speakers to the crowd.
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