I was at the guitar store playing different guitars today and I noticed that some of the guitars have a harder string pull than others. By string pull I mean the strings require more force to move, but don't have to be moved as far to make noise. I also noticed that all the Martins I played had a hard string pull, while the Yamahas had a lighter string pull.
I absolutely love the hard string pull, it makes it a lot easier for me to play.
I currently have a Art & Lutherie guitar, which has a light string pull, similar to the Yamahas I played. My favorite guitar at the store was the Martin DXM, which had a hard string pull. I could play it flawlessly, and it had a deep tone. The store price is $619.00
So what determines how hard the string pull is?
The gauge of the strings. A thicker string has to be pulled tighter to bring it to the same pitch.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
Gauge is a big part - but so is scale length. The shorter the scale, the less 'pull' a string will have at the same pitch. A Gibson (24-3/4" scale length) will have less string tension than a Fender (25-1/2" scale length) when they're strung with identical strings.
One other factor is string composition... the tension required to bring a string to pitch depends on the mass of the string. If two strings are made of the same thing, mass is directly related to gauge - but strings aren't always made out of the same stuff. A 'normal' (80/20) bronze string has less mass than a 'phosphor' (92/8) bronze - so it takes less tension to get to the same pitch. Switching from 92/8 strings to 80/20 strings of the same gauge will reduce tension by about 2.5%.
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Takes some pretty educated fingers to distinguish a 2.5% change in tension. :P
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
Takes some pretty educated fingers to distinguish a 2.5% change in tension. :P
My fingers are pretty smart it's the brain that's lacking :D
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My fingers are pretty smart it's the brain that's lacking :D
Geez, I'm the other way round. :? My brain's still reasonably nimble, but I've got the stupidest fingers you ever met. Put them anywhere near a guitar string and they stumble about, knocking into the furniture, prodding things they shouldn't and generally upsetting the neighbours. :evil:
If only I had smarter fingers I'd be up there with Clapton by nwo. See! How hard is it to spell "now" - not hard at all - but these dumb blasted fingesr I've got can't even spel to save therselves...
How it is possible to have different scale lengths? I thought string length and distance between frets were governed by the laws of nature and had to be identical on all guitars?
The spacing between frets is relative to the scale length, just as every note is related, by frequency, to it's immediate neighbours (factor of 1.059463094)
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Yeah, my fingers aren't smart enough to tell the difference in tension between a 25.5" scale (Fender) and 24.75" scale (Gibson.)
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
My fingers can tell the difference - every time I play a Gibson, I need to look at the fretboard, or I stretch too far :)
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