For along time I have been very curious about this subject. It has been a long time passion. So I made it my mission and went out to find out.
I have visited countless guitars shops over the years, having found myself stranded in a strange town with some time to kill and end up in the local guitar shops playing the new and old guitars right of the shelf, you know, this is what guitar lovers do!
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Any way, Here is my observation regarding guitar finishes, we are talking acoustic guitars here, electrics are a different story.
How Does the Finish on an Acoustic Guitar Affect the Sound of the Guitar?
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Don't these new Taylor Guitars, Gibson and Martin Guitars and so many others look mind boggling attractive, nice shiny and spiffy?
Some of them are so shiny you can use them as a mirror and comb your hair in 'm, if you want to. Some of them almost look and feel like there is a thick coat of plastic over the guitar. Do suppose that's really a good thing?
Be Aware! All that glitters is not Gold!
I am not bashing these companies or their finish work but I'd like to make the point of caution here; a very high end guitar from these companies most likely will have indeed less of a finish coat on them, it just makes sense. Over finishing a guitar to make it look shiny and pretty can be detrimental to the sound quality.
Well I set out to talk to many store owners and I found out that these shiny buffed instruments are what people like and pay the big bucks for.
I got to think about the motives of why these potential customers really got attracted to these guitars to begin with. Are these people buying the looks and shine of the guitar or are they buying the guitar for the sound that comes out of that thing, probably both right? Well, I find out that surprisingly and unfortunately, most people are buying it for the shiny looks, not knowing any better or not educated. Therefore to many people are not realizing that the payoff may be very possibly a lesser sound quality from the guitar.
HERE IS MY POINT:
Here's what I did through personal experimenting. I completely stripped one of those high lacquered perfectly good guitars, and refinished it. My method of finishing an acoustic guitar, usually, is; 2 coats of vinyl sealer over the bare wood and at most 4 coats of nitrocellulose lacquer. I do experiment also with other finishes but for now this will make my point. Some of these guitar companies especially the guitars made cheaply and mass produced in Asian countries may be spraying up to ten coats perhaps more of these lacquers.
WHAT DOES THAT DO THE SOUND OF THE GUITAR?
Of course this would muffle the sound a bit! It over tightens the soundboard, the neck, and the rest of it, like the head of the guitar. Overkill in layers is preventing the guitar to move or at least restricted the energy that goes trough it to the point that the sound has a harder time to make it trough these layers.
Think about it yourself, if you were wearing jacket that was way too tight, would you feel like dancing to the music?
WHY ARE THEY DOING THAT?
Just know that the more coats you put on an acoustic guitar it is a bit more complex than that but for now I can make the point) the more shine you can get as a result, more on this process later. People just like shiny things! This leads to more people buying them and more business right?
YES, BUT AT WHAT PRICE? Well at least more kids are learning to play the guitar.
So what I find out with my experiment was that the guitar I refinished sounded so much louder, warmer, brighter and clearer. So my point when it comes to guitar finishing: LESS IS BETTER ! Of course, the whole guitar needs to breathe, flex and dance with the music. I was astonished when I discovered the difference.
It is argued by the classical master acoustic guitar builders in Spain that the best sounding guitar has no finish on it at all! Wow!
Here is my conclusion: It's best to stick with limiting the amount of lacquer coats on the guitar's surface. It's best to coat it just enough to have a good and acceptable protection from the elements and players usage. Some woods require more coats than others. Therefore if you see a little less of a shine on a guitar, you know that the guitar builder would not sacrifice sound for shine.
There clearly is a difference, but I believe that these practices make the difference between hand built customized guitars and mass produced. As a guitar builder, it is definitely worth the trade off. To me it is all about the sound and that has no price tag. Why should we want to trade; diminishing the sound quality with finish overkill?
Another favorite quote;
"When choosing the guitar of your dreams, go for the sound! the rest is icing on the cake."
How Does the Finish on an Acoustic Guitar Affect the Sound of the Guitar?
