I'm new here and don't know nuthin. As a fatter of mact I'm a horrible, impatient guitarist, otherwise known as a drummer. I'm lookin for a cool guitar to play whilst I sing odd hill music and sea chanties. Should I just go away?
Maybe I can start w/a hello and a question. Piezo or magnetic?? Why??
Thanks people, Uncle Pauly
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Welcome on board. I prefer to wind my own mags. it adds a little more to the experiment and I like to ride the lightening on most occasions! Piezos are easier to install so I would start there.My first mag was scavenged from a $30 piece of shit.
Hey, man! I'm new here too. Always wanted to build a CBG but never had the guts to try until
a few days ago. 2 to be exact I'm about 50% completed. This is a great instrument for what you wanna do I think. As far as puck ups....I'm considering making my own magnetic pickup just cuz I wanna see if I can!
Or.... build yerself a drum kit, out of cigar boxes and piezos! Same principle really....
Serious though, I agree with the rest of them - its no use trying to go away now. You will have recurring dreams about cbgs, you'll find yourself thinking about them at the most inoportune moments. Its best to surrender now, jump in with both feet and build one.
Id go piezo for a first build - you'll get that cbg twangy tone and theres no real issues amping it up (though I find it helps to turn the bass waaayyy up and the treble right down).... then progress to a mag pup. Mag pups give a much better (in my opinion) sound, and are well worth the extra hassle of fitting.
Looking forward to seeing the finished article mate!
If you're a drummer, I would guess your ultimate goal would be to go with a magnetic pickup. They will be able to give you much more amplification, and possibly more room to adjust your sound.
That said, an instrument with a piezo pickup would be easier, a good deal less expensive to make, and they sound pretty damn good, too. You could try that approach first, and see how it suits your needs and your style. It might be all you need.
More than likely, you're going to build another one (or ten) later. Why not make yourself one of each? :-)
Check out some of the videos folks here post if you wanna get a good idea of the sounds various guitars can make. I've seen some incredible players and incredible instruments here, and it's always pretty inspirational to me.
"I'm a horrible, impatient guitarist, otherwise known as a drummer."
I think that made me pee a little when I laughed.
The pup type depends one the kind of sound you want your guitar to have. If you want your cbg to sound like an amplified or mic'ed acoustic guitar, put in a piezo. If you want it to sound like some sort of electric guitar, use magnetic. Definitely pick one or the other, though, as you don't want to go for the more complicated pup configs until you get a little soldering time under your belt (if you haven't already). One of the most discouraging things in the world is to spend about and hour or two wiring up a totally killer circuit and then plug it into an amp and get jack squat.
If you're nervous about a mag pup and mounting it correctly, cutting the hole, etc, etc, just do a piezo for your first time out. Like everyone says, they're super easy. You'll get a whole slew of ideas about what you want to do after you build your first guitar anyway.
Honestly, my best advice would be to build your first three or four guitars without input from anyone. See how many problems you can solve on each build. Then start looking around for inspiration elsewhere. You'll be surprised how many ideas you though were half-baked are actually common practices.
I can't really answer your question because I have only used piezos. I'm sure the magnetic pick ups produce a better quailty sound. But piezos do good.
Uncle Pauly said:
What is the sound quality /amplification difference. Thanks Paul Doug said:
Welcome and don't go away. First build I would use a piezo, real cheap, easy to put in.
you can have both in one guitar fer some cool blending sounds,but the only problem with that might be you would have trouble putting down the guitar,don,t go away ,we are all here cause its a fun place to be and great folks to communicate with,and tons of inspiration and information from some freethinkers in the realm of outside the box. take yer time and research and you will know what yer looking fer before long.
Piezo, definitely. And, don't go away. Remember, imagination knows no limits. Speak from the soul, keep it real...who knows? you might just redefine sea chanties as we know them! Just have fun!
Replies
welcome friend....
the best,
Wichita Sam
a few days ago. 2 to be exact I'm about 50% completed. This is a great instrument for what you wanna do I think. As far as puck ups....I'm considering making my own magnetic pickup just cuz I wanna see if I can!
Serious though, I agree with the rest of them - its no use trying to go away now. You will have recurring dreams about cbgs, you'll find yourself thinking about them at the most inoportune moments. Its best to surrender now, jump in with both feet and build one.
Id go piezo for a first build - you'll get that cbg twangy tone and theres no real issues amping it up (though I find it helps to turn the bass waaayyy up and the treble right down).... then progress to a mag pup. Mag pups give a much better (in my opinion) sound, and are well worth the extra hassle of fitting.
Looking forward to seeing the finished article mate!
If you're a drummer, I would guess your ultimate goal would be to go with a magnetic pickup. They will be able to give you much more amplification, and possibly more room to adjust your sound.
That said, an instrument with a piezo pickup would be easier, a good deal less expensive to make, and they sound pretty damn good, too. You could try that approach first, and see how it suits your needs and your style. It might be all you need.
More than likely, you're going to build another one (or ten) later. Why not make yourself one of each? :-)
Check out some of the videos folks here post if you wanna get a good idea of the sounds various guitars can make. I've seen some incredible players and incredible instruments here, and it's always pretty inspirational to me.
I think that made me pee a little when I laughed.
The pup type depends one the kind of sound you want your guitar to have. If you want your cbg to sound like an amplified or mic'ed acoustic guitar, put in a piezo. If you want it to sound like some sort of electric guitar, use magnetic. Definitely pick one or the other, though, as you don't want to go for the more complicated pup configs until you get a little soldering time under your belt (if you haven't already). One of the most discouraging things in the world is to spend about and hour or two wiring up a totally killer circuit and then plug it into an amp and get jack squat.
If you're nervous about a mag pup and mounting it correctly, cutting the hole, etc, etc, just do a piezo for your first time out. Like everyone says, they're super easy. You'll get a whole slew of ideas about what you want to do after you build your first guitar anyway.
Honestly, my best advice would be to build your first three or four guitars without input from anyone. See how many problems you can solve on each build. Then start looking around for inspiration elsewhere. You'll be surprised how many ideas you though were half-baked are actually common practices.
Uncle Pauly said:
Thanks
Paul Doug said: