#1
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How long does it take to cedar to open up?
Compared to other tone woods, would you say half as long, two thirds as long, or something else?
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#2
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I think you will find it more "opened up" right from the beginning and you should not expect as dramatic changes over time as you might hear from spruce.
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#3
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The answer to your question is going to depend on believing that wood 'opens' up'
It's by no means a unanimous belief as no doubt you're about to read... |
#4
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Cedar tends to have a more blooming, warm, and enveloping sound right off the get go, to my ears. A lot different than the more articulate and punchy spruces. But as for opening up, JKA makes a fair point. Is "opening up" just "settling in" or just "drying out"? Very hard to quantify.
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#5
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I have had my cedar topped guitar for 20 years and it’s never changed in tone at all. It is as brilliant and lush as the day I acquired it. I can say the same for my all mahogany guitar.
My two custom built guitars have spruce tops and went through some “settling in” over the first year of playing them. Best, Jayne |
#6
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I mean, that all depends... which cedar, specifically?
African Pencil Cedar? Alaska Cedar? Australian Red Cedar? Central American Cedar? Incense Cedar? Japanese Cedar? Lebanon Cedar? Pink Cedar? Port Orford Cedar? Red Cedar? Red Eastern Cedar? Red Southern Cedar? Red Western Cedar? Spanish Cedar? White Atlantic Cedar? White Northern Cedar?
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Be curious, not judgmental. |
#7
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Quote:
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#8
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Quote:
Seemingly out of nowhere, he picked up the guitar he'd been playing regularly for the past 14 years, and at 3:33pm on Saturday, November 17th, 2039 he strummed an open G chord and exclaimed, "Finally! This cedar guitar top has opened up!"
__________________
Be curious, not judgmental. |
#9
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Quote:
Wade Hampton Miller |
#10
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#11
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Indeed, you could.
__________________
Be curious, not judgmental. |
#12
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Quote:
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Jan |
#13
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Quote:
I can't believe I have to explain that.
__________________
Be curious, not judgmental. |
#14
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Luckily I don’t notice subtle changes in tone. Maybe it happens as the cedar darkens.
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A couple of Halcyons and a Canadian made Larrivee "Wish I had more time to hear your reasons, but I have to go get a beer." 00-28 |
#15
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I acquired my first cedar-topped guitar only recently, so I have no first-hand experience of how cedar might change over time, however, I've owned enough vintage instruments topped with spruce and other woods to become convinced that time and playing improve their sound. It only makes sense.
Instruments that are played for several decades just don't sound like new ones. Does anyone really believe that Itzhak Perlman's Stradivari violin doesn't sound any better than it did when it first came off the bench in 1714? I have no empirical proof that guitars 'open up' and until someone invents a way take a guitar back in time to compare it to itself when new, I don't think there will ever be a way to prove it. However, I think the guitar I've played for 15 years sounds better, but what I can say with certainty is that my satisfaction with its sound has absolutely improved. Perhaps that's all anyone can say conclusively about whether or not guitars 'open up'. .
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Jim Magill Director, The Swannanoa Gathering Guitars:'07 Circa OM, '09 Bashkin 00-12fret, '10 Circa 00 12-fret, '17 Buendia Jumbo, '17 Robbins R.1, '19 Doerr Legacy Select, '12 Collings 000-28H Koa. Pre-War guitars: '20 0-28, '22 00-28, '22 000-28. Mandolins: '09 Heiden Heritage F5, '08 Poe F5 , 1919 Gibson F-4, '80 Monteleone Grand Artist mandolin, '83 Monteleone GA (oval),'85 Sobell cittern. Last edited by jmagill; 04-21-2024 at 05:22 AM. |