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Making my biscuit tin CBG sound better

Hi, when I was building a series of CBG's using these commemorative biscuit tins, I thought the important meaningful part of the tin was the lid as it carried the message. I also wanted the guitars to sound better that they did as a complete tin, so this it what I did.

I built a box that is the guitar body, complete with a wooden top. The tin lid fits over this [as it did the tin] and has minimal contact with the wood top so does not influence the sound....[much].

The bridge goes through the tin lid without touching it and sits on the wood top beneath.

The tone is a lot more pleasing acoustically and a whole lot more enjoyable when amplified, it does not have that overly bright piezo tone.

Enjoy Taff

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Permalink Reply by darryl kernaghan on November 20, 2017 at 6:53pm

I like that idea Taff, i have one that sounds a bit harsh i might re visit

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Permalink Reply by Timothy Hunter on November 20, 2017 at 9:44pm

nice, very nice....

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Permalink Reply by jawbone on November 21, 2017 at 2:15am

Hey Taffy - did you wire your piezos in series??

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Permalink Reply by Kigar on November 21, 2017 at 6:37am

Very cool idea! When I first read it I was thinking it was wood box and just the tin for the lid, then realized you had wood under the lid too. With out the wood on top would it still sound mostly "tinny"?

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Permalink Reply by Taffy Evans on November 21, 2017 at 11:04am

Hi, the sound could have been further improved I feel by locating the bridge closer to the sweet spot on the top, and using a wooden bridge with flat contact on the top. Scale length and the picture on the lid governed the final layout.
I think pickups wired parallel. Taff

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Permalink Reply by jawbone on November 21, 2017 at 4:32pm

Hey Taffy - (I wanted to nickname my Grandson David, "Taffy", but his mother would have none of it !!! So, Punkin it became)
Anyway, maybe try series, it really seems to calm them down - I don't understand all the in's and out's of it - but series cuts the impedence in half and takes out some of the harshness.

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Permalink Reply by Taffy Evans on November 21, 2017 at 5:30pm

Hi Jawbone, these pickups sound awesome when played though my small Vox amp and Blues Screamer pedal. If you was not looking you would swear it was a Humbucker. And that's without a pre amp.

The low impedance pickups I have fitted in the past normally use a preamp, EMG active pickups for instance, I don't have room for that. Thanks for the suggestion tho.

Cheers Taff

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Permalink Reply by jawbone on November 28, 2017 at 5:00pm

Someone help !! Please - Did I get this backwards...

Does series make the piezos harsher and parallel calms them down some???

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Permalink Reply by darryl kernaghan on November 28, 2017 at 7:52pm

generally yes Grandpa, you need them in parallel

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Permalink Reply by jawbone on November 30, 2017 at 2:59am

Thanx for getting me back on track - it's been a long time since I used piezos - I've been wiring my speakers in series to bump up impedence so at my advanced age !!.....well.....what was I saying..... never mind....

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Permalink Reply by Titch the Clown on November 21, 2017 at 6:27pm

Looks great. I hope that finger jointed pine doesn't let go on you. You should be pretty right as it looks about 4 or 5 mm thick. I like the idea even if I do wonder why.

Why not I guess.

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Permalink Reply by Taffy Evans on November 21, 2017 at 7:25pm

Thanks Titch, I staggered the joints when gluing the boards togethe, so they ain't going nowhere. They were my fence paylings for fifteen years prior.
Yes top is a bit thick but I found it works well with this size box with minimal bracing.
Wonder why? Better tone from the pickups whilst getting a biscuit tin look.
Taff