Switching between acoustic and electric

[Raj]

Last few weeks I put away my OM-28 and was enjoying getting immersed in my strat sound. A couple of days ago, I picked up my OM-28 again and wow, it feels bigger and finding it harder to play with the size and string gauge difference. Took me some time to adjust. Strat is so much easier to play, but I don't want to lose my ability to play freely on acoustic guitar. I feel like I am gravitating more towards electrics now. Even thinking of getting a D'Angelico or a Schecter PT. I am sure some of you must have faced this situation.

[donlyn]

Switching between acoustic and electric

Try to accept the truth.

They are different instruments that share playing similarities.

Generally speaking, electric instruments are easier to play.

Not all guitars are created equal.

Don
.

[Rockysdad]

Play what you enjoy [emoji6]

[LakewoodM32Fan]

Raj, it happens to me too (except it's with my Les Pauls). Sometimes that inner Jimmy Page/Slash needs to come out. I don't think I have ever moved so exclusively to electric for so long that my hands struggle with going back to acoustic, but the reverse happened when I first went primarily with the acoustic.

For so long I had primarily plunked around on my electric because my acoustic felt harder to play. Then I finally buckled down and started learning the acoustic and got better at it and quite frankly enjoy the tone more (and the lack of hassle of setting up the amp, pedal board, etc. not to mention upsetting the neighbors ). When after many months (years?) of being solely acoustic, picking up my LP again made me wonder why I had ever struggled with it at all, it played so easily now due to the hand strength I had increased while playing acoustic.

My advice to you, since you seem to be going in the opposite direction, is simply to play your acoustic for maybe a half hour a week. Just to keep the hand strength up. It will likely continue to make playing your electric easy. You don't want to make the electric your "baseline" which then puts you back where I was a few years ago in the "acoustic is much harder to play" camp.

[Skarsaune]

I've been strictly acoustic, mostly on medium stringed dreads with heavy handed bluegrass picker action heights for quite a while.

Picked up an inexpensive Tele to twang around on. Feels like a toy, holy cow. I have to really ease up. But it brings a whole different arsenal of sounds.

I'll always be primarily acoustic; electrics being (much) easier when I do play them is a fringe benefit.

[ghostnote]

If you want to be comfortable on both, you have to play both; nothing earth-shaking about that logic. There are differences, so naturally you're going to feel them. I make it a point to always play both about twice each every week. The adjustment time is minimal for me that way.

[J Patrick]

…I’ve been switching between the two since the late 1960’s….I don’t have an issue adjusting or readjusting to one or the other…I reckon that’s because I play all kinds of different guitar necks regularly from skinny and thin to fat and wide on both electrics and acoustics….the variety keeps my muscle memory sharp and I just know how to play the guitar I happen to be holding….

….sure there are some things I don’t try to play on a narrow nut and other stuff that I don’t try to play on a wide nut….but I know what guitar works best for what I want to play so that guides my choice….as always…it’s all about the reps…our hands and fingers are willing to do what we ask but we still gotta practice….

….a benefit of feeling comfortable with a wide range of neck widths and profiles is that you can enjoy playing a greater variety of instruments….

[tbirdman]

Maybe time to bring out my Fender, but every practice which is normally twice a day is spent between my HD28 or OM28 and my classical Amalio Burguet. I don't have trouble switch although the spacing is quite different.

[stephenT]

A set up on your Martin might be in order. Try to get the action similar to your Strat as possible (all caveats apply).

75% of my gigs I play electric, around the house 90% of my playing is on acoustic. My electric guitars have the same nut width as my acoustics, that and all my gtrs are set up the same way, low action w/ no neck relief. Makes it easier to switch back and forth.

[Jamolay]

I am still a beginner, but switch back and forth. Electric is better for evens when the kid is in bed and nobody wants to hear a beginner practice.

I like the sensation of momentary improvement I get from picking up the electric, and going back can be a little discouraging. But I enjoy the acoustic tone more, plus, I find the electric strings feel a little cramped together. Sometimes that is harder, especially if I am practicing fingerpicking.

My guess it that the adjustment practices like everything else and the more often you transition the closer you will get to needing hardly any adjustment. Like getting on a different size or type of bicycle or driving someone else’s car.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by ghostnote

If you want to be comfortable on both, you have to play both; nothing earth-shaking about that logic. There are differences, so naturally you're going to feel them. I make it a point to always play both about twice each every week. The adjustment time is minimal for me that way.

+1. I've been playing both for over 30 years and I've never had an issue going back and forth between the two. Best thing is that if you find you're in a rut on one on them changing to the other can be refreshing. New ideas pop up.

[Dean Riley]

I play both a lot - others have pretty much covered everything, but it takes practice to stay sharp on both.

I approach them almost like completely different instruments mentally and technique wise.

Couple tips that help me:

1) Good acoustic set up - learn how to do your own as much as you can... I don't like crazy low, but on the medium - lower end

2) Medium electric action - everyone loves low, I do too, but I found a more middle ground electric action is easier to adjust to

3) I use different pick shapes/thicknesses for electric and acoustic... it's prolly mental, but my small, thick electric picks just help me switch gears

4) play both... I know that sounds dumb, but if I play electric exclusively for a few weeks, acoustic feels hard, if I play acoustic exclusively for a few weeks, electric feels weird... even if my gigs one week are all "acoustic" I try and play 15-20 mins of electric just to keep it familiar. I find it's "easier" to pick up acoustic and play after a break then electric... maybe that's the nature of how I play and the gigs I do, but I feel like electric takes more "work" to stay in shape for. Probably just speaks to the fact that I need to push myself to be more technical on acoustic lol.

Things like scale length, nut width etc all play a part as well... but I want to be versatile and try and not "lock in" on any one spec... I play Martin dreads, gibson dreads, fender electrics, gibson electrics... even have a PRS... so scale length and nut width is all over. A well set up action/intonation is more important to me at this point then specs.

[Dean Riley]

One other thing to add... is that I love both and one thing that is super cool, is one makes the other sound better and makes me appreciate the other more... if I get acoustic fatigue and nothing sounds "good", I go jam for a day on electric and come back and it's like a ear reset... other way is true too... if I'm not feeling inspired or my tone gets old on the electric, acoustic is a great reset and helps reset my brain and appreciate electric more when I go back.

If you want an acoustic to sound/feel big, play electric unplugged for 20-30 mins and then go to an acoustic... they feel massive after that lol.

[musicman1951]

Originally Posted by ghostnote

If you want to be comfortable on both, you have to play both; nothing earth-shaking about that logic. There are differences, so naturally you're going to feel them. I make it a point to always play both about twice each every week. The adjustment time is minimal for me that way.

There is no way around this. If you want to be comfortable switching you need to practice switching as many times a week as your comfort level demands. They are obviously very similar in many ways, but I always do better thinking of them as different instruments.

[YeOldRocker]

I play both, as well. Switching between them feels natural to me, as long as I don't spend too much time on one or the other. They're very different guitars, used for (mostly) very different reasons. If they're each setup comfortably for you, for what you want them to do, you shouldn't have that much trouble switching.

I think it was your time away from the OM that made it harder to go back; neither should be neglected, unless one - for you - is more important to stay on top of than the other. My advice, again, is to play them both regularly.