Guitar

Acoustic Guitars

I use a full phase bracing design so my guitars get more bass from the soundboard and don't need a large body. As a result of this my guitars are smaller than most guitars, but deliver a full sound.

		Unlike strumming guitars that focus on the top and bottom frequencies, my guitars are designed to have a loud balanced tone that is continuous across the whole range like a good mandolin or violin. This is a big asset for finger picking, lead playing, and studio recording. video On the right is a short scale version. (574mm) video
	My focus lately has been on my cittern guitar designs. Left is an archtop version which is basically a big mandolin. It's very articulate when playing melody over other instruments as in the recording below. The fixed bridge version on the right is much the same as my "guitar" shaped guitars and is my standard design. Scale of both is 608mm. Archtop studio lead video live video On the right is a fixed bridge version. Blackwood top Engelmann Cedar
	These smaller versions play and feel much the same but I love the size for playing around the house. They don't have less volume but rather a more mid centered bandwidth, which I find is excellent for performing through a piezo pickup as in the following live recording. Archtop live video Fixed bridge version. (right) video Scale is 574mm
	This is a fluorocarbon strung cittern guitar. I tend to play it with a lute technique which gives it a harp like sound, but I also like it for jazz pieces. This is a small scale 542mm version and is tuned up to G. The top is WR Cedar and the body is Tasmanian Eucalypt. video1 video2 video3 Full scale 644mm version All teardrop instruments use a turtle back design. (right)

Cittern Guitar info

The cittern guitar is not that different to my normal guitar. It simply has a single bout instead of a double bout guitar shape. By using full phase carbon bracing these small instrument deliver a big sound. My main reason for the design is the accessibility of the neck and the physical balance of the instrument. It needs to be played with a strap, which could be seen as a negative, but I see it as a positive because draping a guitar over your leg is a poor playing position and creates bad habits like hanging on to the neck.

The classical or fluorocarbon string version plays best at it's scale pitch, so a 542mm scale that is 3 frets shorter than a standard guitar likes to be tuned up to G which is 3 semitones higher than standard. Info for fitting fluorocarbon strings.

If you want to know more about how it works, it is worth reading my design page.

More info and specs

My guitars are currently made from Tasmanian Blackwood with WR Cedar, Blackwood or Engelmann Spruce soundboards.The cittern guitars can also be made with fiddleback Eucalypt body like the one shown above.

Fingerboards are Indian Rosewood. Radius is about 16". Bridge is Blackwood or Rosewood. The longest scale that I do is 644mm but because if the responsiveness of a light carbon braced top, I prefer 1 or 2 frets shorter

If you want to experience what a short scale guitar would feel like, simply put a capo on the first or second fret of a guitar and tune it down to standard E.

My standard string spacing at the bridge is 58mm between E strings. (about classical guitar standard)

My standard nut size is 44mm to 46mm depending on the scale etc. which is slightly wider than steel string width but not as wide as a classical. These widths are my choice for speed and accuracy but they can be altered for individual needs.

I put the strings slightly off center so that there is a bit of extra fingerboard next to the high E string on the fingerboard. This allows for more aggressive lead playing without worrying about the string slipping off the neck.

Frets on my steel string guitars are stainless steel on the neck and nickel silver over the body. The carbon string versions are all nickel silver.

I put fret markers on the side of the fingerboard and not on the front (5, 7, 12 and octaves). I have always objected to dots on the front of the fingerboard on the basis that if you can see them, you are holding the guitar badly.

I use 3mm (1/8th inch) back and sides plus and a weighted tone ring around the sound board for better projection. This means that the resulting instrument is heavy for it's size.

Pickups

The undersaddle pickups that I use are a low profile high output piezo version that I make myself. I charge $100 aud to supply and fit one. These do not have a preamp so you have to be aware of the ultra high impedance of piezo elements. Mixers often don't like this impedance but going into a foot pedal or precessor first usually fixes the problem.