Do your guitars really sound different than each other?

[DBW]

Yes- very much so.

[stormin1155]

Yes, mine all sound quite different. Different body sizes/shapes, different woods, and I tend to play them differently. My playing style when playing a parlor is much different than when playing a dread. They all have their own character.

[fitness1]

My two steel strings couldn't be any different if they tried...

The Charis is warm and lush with a smoothness across the entire spectrum.

The Mcknight/Poling is very direct, in your face, and brighter on the high end.

They are both Koa and Spruce and relatively similar in size.

[Malcolm Kindnes]

Originally Posted by DaveG

I have a 00-28 and a 00-18 and they sound completely different from each other, which is why I've decided to keep both. And they both sound different than my 000-15 and Larrivee OM-03R. Even my girlfriend, who is not a musician, noticed the difference without me saying anything.

So I have to disagree with the statement that it's all in the players hands. Four different guitars played by the same player and four distinct sounds. And when my duo partner plays them, while the7$y don't sound like me, it's still four completely different sounds.

I didn't say it was all in the players hands, I said "mostly". What I mean is, when you hear a Doc Watson recording you can't tell whether he's playing a D18 or a Gallagher but you can tell he's Doc Watson! Someone like John Renbourn or Duck Baker is instantly recognisable by their style not by the instrument they are playing.

When I play a guitar I sound like me, when I hand that guitar to someone else it sounds different. The only thing that has changed is the player.

Of course there are some differences in sound between one guitar and another but they are very subtle differences, the big difference is in the hands of the player.

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by TBman

I don't mean the Dread vs the Parlor, I mean similar sized guitars. I'm listening to a few online that I am interested in and I realize that I am drawn to the same tone that I already have. That makes sense, but where's the sense in buying yet another guitar then?

I've noticed the same thing, that I have something of a preferred sound and response and when I've had time to play different guitars in stores I tend to gravitate to guitars around the OO to OM sizes that are responsive and have a nice treble and midrange response without overpowering bass. So, in a sense I end up shopping the same guitars I own.

Yes, I think my guitars represent that sound goal differently, and a couple are there for contrast. I perceive differences in response, sometimes quite strong differences, and the interaction with that effects the end sound I hear too. I'm not sure how much of that is all in my head, but I'll pick up a guitar to record a piece and after a pass or two at it, put in back in the case for another fairly often.

As Robin Wales noted above, I don't think listeners hear what I think I hear, and even if they do to some degree, they hardly care. Even though I do play differently on different guitars, there is the me that can't be removed.

[L50EF15]

Originally Posted by stormin1155

Yes, mine all sound quite different. Different body sizes/shapes, different woods, and I tend to play them differently. My playing style when playing a parlor is much different than when playing a dread. They all have their own character.

Different sizes here too: I have a laminate Yamaha dreadnought (EF15) a solid carved Gibson archtop (L50), and a low level Martin (000X1). I try to play jazz on all of them. If I want more bass, I play the dread. If I want even tone and fundamentals, archtop. Blend of the two? Triple-0.

[bufflehead]

None of my guitars is the same size, and only two of them have Sitka tops, so even though they all have mahogany or sapele backs they have totally different personalities.

[Watt]

I'm a little confused by your post, Barry. You have an assortment of guitars that, based on my experience, have very different tone profiles. So it would seem to be understandable that a new guitar might sound a lot like one or another of yours. But maybe I am missing something.

As for the suggestion by some that the sound is mostly in the player's hands, well, that's true in the sense that most players' technique and idiosyncrasies don't change from guitar to guitar. And the audience (if there is one), other than the guitar geeks sitting close to stage (sometimes me), listens to the player and doesn't try to detect the nuances of the guitar. Still, when I play in a small quiet room with decent accoustics, even the undiscerning can hear the difference between my three primary players, a Goodall RCJ (rosewood/adi), a Martin 00-18 Tim O'Brien, and a Vacanti archtop (carved maple and spruce).

[HogsNRoses]

I did some recording last weekend of my guitars, and found a pretty big difference between guitars in the recordings that I don’t notice unplugged.

[Oldguy64]

Do guitars sound different?
Yes, they do. In fact some guitars, like Gibson J45’s, sound different from guitar to guitar.

However, the player sounds like the player.
Ever hear Carlos Santana play, and KNOW it’s him before he’s identified?

I have a cedar over Sapele dread and a Spruce over Rosewood dread.
The often sound very similar.
I’ve even had the Spruce guitar be warmer than the Cedar.
It isn’t always the “arrow”.

[srick]

The short answer is yes - of course they all sound different. The more obvious answer is that they all sound like guitars. And, after a few moments of listening and playing, they all sound like ‘me’. Even if you handed me ‘the’ $100,000 Martin D100, it would still sound like ‘me’ playing it (FBOFW).

Over the years, I’ve likened guitars to a human chorus. Some are better in the bass range, some are better in the tenor range. Some are better with overtones, sustain and embellishment, but they all sound like humans with vocal chords. And some will be better adapted to certain styles of music than others. Same with guitars.

Rick

[ewalling]

On a side note for a moment, I thought it was interesting how, in its heyday, Ovation created another compelling reason for enthusiasts to own multiple guitars from their line through artwork. Where OMs, dreads, and what have you in the wooden box market look petty much the same within and across a range of different manufacturers, Ovation included visual panache into its line by serving up a panoply of alluring designs and colours such that their buyers would always want the latest offerings.

Sound is the principle draw, yes, but it's not the only one.

[TBman]

One of these days I'll do a recording and see if anyone can pick out which one is which. I'd like to see if I can do it too.

[Woolbury]

Mine are very different, and they each get their own type of music. As I think about future guitars, I look for a distinctly different voice. I'd love to add a resonater for example, and a cedar topped guitar for the sweeter Miss John Hurt type things I play. I don't think I'd ever seek to replicate what I have unless it was to replace it. I think I'll always live in a 5-6 guitar world.

[gfspencer]

I have four Martin dreads made out of four different kinds of wood (Brazilian, East Indian, Amazon, and Madagascar). They all sound different.