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What do you want in an instrument for yourself?

Posted by Uncle John on May 15, 2011 at 10:47am in Performances, How to Play, Lessons, Concerts

What do you like in an instrument?   Do you like them pretty?   Fancy?   Different?   Well worn?   Do you like pretty woods and a pretry back of the guitar?  Big or small-  does size matter?

 

I like a smaller instrument and cbs fit the bill.  Comfy.  :).   If I am chording or picking, I want low action, good  tone and volume, no buzz.....   And I like bass over treble.  

 

If I am using a slide, I like higher action, but still want to be able to finger fret.

 

I admire the pretty and fancy builds on the nation.  But I am not real pretty and I don't like to play a pretty guitar...   I do not give a tiny crap if the back is real nice or non!   It's okay if you do!  

 

In CBGs, I want the above likes, + I want it electric in a way that kind of doesn't look electric...   I like the "I'm 15 years old, I scrounged this stuff and I'm gonna build me a geetar today look."   To me, that is our heritage. 

 

What do like, Spike?

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Replies

  • Uncle John July 27, 2011 at 12:00pm
    Rafal,  I've seen you around the nation for a while and generally like what you have to say.  Same this time.  Good on ya, man.
  • Seaman Jay July 27, 2011 at 10:59am

    Size preference in general: small guitars, big basses. 

     

    What I want in a CBG for myself (I know shit 'bout CBGs, but I had plenty of stringed instruments in my hands over last 25 years and I know what I liked):

     

    Simple (like in "geometrical shapes") or classic (like in "double bass or violin") design. 

    More wood than metal.

    More oil/transparent than paint.

    More 3 than 4 than 6 strings.

    More fretless than fretted.

    More acoustic than electric.

    More wire than nylon.

    Action: possibly the lowest "good for sliding" value. If you already soaked some fretboards with your blood it isn't important anymore.

    Traces of "natural" wear are OK, don't like "trashed" and hate "trashed on purpose" look.

    "Fret" markers? Marking the "naturals" at 5th, 7th and 12th "fret" seems to be enough.

    I like good tuners. Not fancy, just responsive and stable.

    Sound: it can be banjoey on the high side, but the lowest string should sound "bassy"

    I like good woods, hard and dark, with a slight note of "I was once a tree". Not much of that in my current CBG...

     

    I gathered materials for 2, maybe 3, new "axes", but you know what is the main problem with things that are "perfect enough"? You feel no pressure to make a better one...

     

    too many frakking double quotes...

  • Uncle John July 27, 2011 at 10:19am
    I'm with you Lou.  I like even shorter scales, like 22 inch, since I am getting to be an arthritic old bastard and short scales are comfy.  Of course, the shorter the scale, the easier to mess up the intonation and basic quality.
  • LM Carreras July 27, 2011 at 9:53am

    As a new builder, I see some of the very nice looking builds on the nation and can't help to be in awe.  I am trying to develop my skills to be able to build like that. 

     

    As a player I feel at home with a fretted CBG, low action, and a shorter scale length, my last three have been 24" (parlor guitar scale).  Oh, and 3 strings all the way!  Aesthetics do not matter.  What matters to me is the sound you get out of the instrument.  Sound is what the instrument was built for, after all.  I don't have a guitar amp, so I try to build the loudest acoustic CBGs I possibly can, but also fit them with a piezo to plug in down the road.

     

     

  • Barry "Backwater Jack" Nova May 24, 2011 at 9:31am
    thanks man.reason the strings are so high of the board is not thinking before doing.its not bad though.distinctive atleast.

    Uncle John said:
    Jack, order some frets from Gitty or elsewhere and build until you have a good chording winner.  Can still be cheap.  My favorite git, the White Owl, is made from a used 2x4.  For me, my builds are not all winners, but some are!

    Barry "Backwater Jack" Nova said:
    i like them cheap.lol.but seriously i do prefer the recycled junk look.more personal i think.aslong as it plays and stays in some sort of tune then its a winner in my book.dont get me wrong i like the pro made gits but think the mish-mash made gits are more me...i would like a cigarbox guitar that i can chord on the fret board though.my Tinbox has the strings raised an inch of the fret board so its slide only...man my gits a messy piece of work.love it though.
  • Uncle John May 23, 2011 at 10:22pm
    Jack, order some frets from Gitty or elsewhere and build until you have a good chording winner.  Can still be cheap.  My favorite git, the White Owl, is made from a used 2x4.  For me, my builds are not all winners, but some are!

    Barry "Backwater Jack" Nova said:
    i like them cheap.lol.but seriously i do prefer the recycled junk look.more personal i think.aslong as it plays and stays in some sort of tune then its a winner in my book.dont get me wrong i like the pro made gits but think the mish-mash made gits are more me...i would like a cigarbox guitar that i can chord on the fret board though.my Tinbox has the strings raised an inch of the fret board so its slide only...man my gits a messy piece of work.love it though.
  • Wichita Sam May 23, 2011 at 9:25pm

    Matt,

     

    Just caught up with your post.  It was my pleasure to send you the "blue hound" while you were in Afghanistan and I was please that you wanted to take charge of my paintlid reso banjo when you got home.  For me part of the fun in building now is to think about all the places my CBGs have gone and all the players that are make music on them.  While some could be "wall art", all are intended as players.

     

    Put me at the front of the line when your CD is finished....

     

    the best,

     

    Wichita Sam

    Matthew Borczon said:

    This has been on my mind lately. When I was in afghanistan I recieved 2 awsome guitars from Wichita Sam and from Diane from chicago, both are better than I can make, thing is as soon as I got home I pulled out the last cbg I made. 3 strings totally acoustic. nylon strings but a sweet action on the neck. No frets, still easy to chord since it is nylon strings. I have not put it down since I got home. The thing that makes it work for me is that it is mine. I tweaked it to make it play for me and my effort went into it. I use hand tools only and mine are primitive compared to some, but the idea that I put it all together on my own is what raises the hair on the back of my neck. I was raised poor so I never had a guitar worth bragging over until the thing that I bragged about was that I MADE IT. Anyone can buy one, if they got the cash but to make one requires a little more work and a little more love. Don't get me wrong, I also bought myself a resonater banjo from Sam as soon as I got home as well. I am also recording a new cd with Dianes banjo as we speak. I just know my own guitar will be on the cd as well. It is just that for me cbgs are a road, not a destination. Peace

    matt

  • Barry "Backwater Jack" Nova May 23, 2011 at 8:40pm
    i like them cheap.lol.but seriously i do prefer the recycled junk look.more personal i think.aslong as it plays and stays in some sort of tune then its a winner in my book.dont get me wrong i like the pro made gits but think the mish-mash made gits are more me...i would like a cigarbox guitar that i can chord on the fret board though.my Tinbox has the strings raised an inch of the fret board so its slide only...man my gits a messy piece of work.love it though.
  • Uncle John May 23, 2011 at 7:26am
    I like that Bob.  And some boxes DO just want you to play a certain song or style, don't they?  And I am with you on a beefy cbg neck -arthritic hand and all.  You CAN have too much money, but it's hard to have to many cbgs or too many clamps!

    Ice Bob said:
    i like oridgialty. different tones to manipulate old crusty pickups out of junked old guitars someone exchanged for sterile name brand pickups there rock star hero played thru. i like beefy necks that dont budge no matter what strings or tunings i apply to it. and lots of sustain ring forever neck thru with heavy strings on it. i prefer single coils but piezos work well and have a tone of there own. my 3 fav pickups i have are a danelectro lipstick tube pickup an old scrap heap Japanese flat pickup and an under the saddle  acoustic bridge pickup. i prefer 4 strings but tune them some times like a 3 string (DGdd). above all else it has to function and play back at me. i love unusual looking worn old boxes. old ones are better then new ones. i like to pick it up and a old classic or a new original song comes out with out much effort. i could fill my house with cbg's and want more cause each one is a unique experience
  • Ice Bob May 22, 2011 at 6:47pm
    i like oridgialty. different tones to manipulate old crusty pickups out of junked old guitars someone exchanged for sterile name brand pickups there rock star hero played thru. i like beefy necks that dont budge no matter what strings or tunings i apply to it. and lots of sustain ring forever neck thru with heavy strings on it. i prefer single coils but piezos work well and have a tone of there own. my 3 fav pickups i have are a danelectro lipstick tube pickup an old scrap heap Japanese flat pickup and an under the saddle  acoustic bridge pickup. i prefer 4 strings but tune them some times like a 3 string (DGdd). above all else it has to function and play back at me. i love unusual looking worn old boxes. old ones are better then new ones. i like to pick it up and a old classic or a new original song comes out with out much effort. i could fill my house with cbg's and want more cause each one is a unique experience
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