Small guitar, big sound?

[Alan Carruth]

It seems to me that a 'live' back can add about a half size to the sound. Properly done a live back enhances the bass without affecting the treble, so you can move a 000/OM about halfway toward a Dread or Jumbo that way. Most of the production guitars I've seen have backs that are too stiff, but they can often be helped by some judicious shaving of the back braces, particularly the lower ones. This will, of course, void your warranty, but it's not nearly as risky structurally as shaving top braces.

[L20A]

Originally Posted by Alan Carruth

It seems to me that a 'live' back can add about a half size to the sound. Properly done a live back enhances the bass without affecting the treble, so you can move a 000/OM about halfway toward a Dread or Jumbo that way. Most of the production guitars I've seen have backs that are too stiff, but they can often be helped by some judicious shaving of the back braces, particularly the lower ones. This will, of course, void your warranty, but it's not nearly as risky structurally as shaving top braces.

There are some guitars like a Guild D-25 that have an arched back with no braced.
How does this correspond to flat backs and back braces?

[ricfreak]

My Cargo sounds amazing for a small guitar. Bright highs with punchy bass.
Very tough too.

[jt1]

I've a battered, but beautiful 1929 Gibson Nick Lucas Special that fits the bill. Alas, I doubt that more than a dozen of these 12-fret, deep body wonders exist.

[Pitar]

Small box, small sound unless the depth is increased appropriately. The loudest guitar I ever owned was a Larrivee OO-05. I remember getting a terrible cough and that guitar, hanging on the wall with others of larger soundboxes, was the only one that echoed me with each cough. That said, while it was a cannon it had a more demure sound characteristic of a smaller guitar.

[jseth]

I've played some incredible sounding small (OO) guitars, but there seems to be a HUGE difference between inexpensive ones and the higher-end varieties...

Try to get your hands on a Goodall Parlour model; James actually builds them to a OO size, rather than a true Parlour size.

I have played only two; one was a "plain Jane" all mahogany, and it was fantastic! Pretty much exactly what one would expect from an all-mahogany OO, and then more...

The other Goodall Parlour was ancient Brazilian rosewood topped with old-growth redwood, it was SPECTACULAR! An incredible amount of tone and volume from this small guitar... really a marvel. Also, very fancy (especially for a Goodall) and VERY expensive!

But I dare say you just haven't been looking in the right neck o' the woods if you haven't found a OO that "fits" for you... unless, of course, you're looking for a dreadnought sound in a OO body. That would be a "fool's errand"...

[zombywoof]

Originally Posted by jman60

My Gibson LG-2 has a big sound for a little box, about "00" in size.

I have been playing 1940s LG-2s for many decades and still own a 1950s CF-100. I have learned to leave them home when I am going out just to sit and play with others. They are usually not going to be heard.

[TBman]

Keep an eye on the body depth. One of the reasons why I like my Seagull folk is the depth - 4.5". The other reason why I like it is the soundport I put in it. This boosted its volume quite a bit. I have a 00 size Alvarez too, which is a nifty looking little guitar and has no boxiness to its tone at all, but the Seagull's volume is so close to my larger guitars I hardly play the Alvarez. In all fairness to the Alvarez, I've been playing melodic stuff with a lot of ringing out and the Alvarez is more suited to blues.

[dneal]

I've played some incredible sounding small (OO) guitars, but there seems to be a HUGE difference between inexpensive ones and the higher-end varieties...

This.

Goodall's Parlor, a Froggy Parlor or Froggy C are all 00 sized (or a little smaller in the case of the Froggy Parlor). They don't have boomy bass like a dread (which is a good thing, IMHO), but they hit the bass E frequency with authority. My Rein 00, which isn't deep bodied, has no problem with bass frequencies. They all have big sound.

[DukeX]

Taylor Grand Auditorium. 16" lower bout, small waist, 4.625 depth. Not as small as a 000, not as big as a dread, especially at the waist.

[Shortfinger]

The Ibanez AVN2OPN is a boomer. Parlor size, 12-fret, all-hog. It’s discontinued but still available new from some online sellers.

[DHart]

For myself, I've found that the sweet spot in smaller size, which still gives me rich, full, remarkably big sound - along with a comfortable size, is the OM/000/GA size.

I’ve tried going smaller and do enjoy my 00 and Parlor size guitars, but they just don't satisfy with the fullness and tone that I appreciate and can get from my OM/000 size guitars. And, while I like the sound of dreads, as I've gotten older, they just feel overly bulky to me.

Thus, I finally figured out that the OM/000/GA size is "just right" for me, AND, I am still getting rich, full, and wonderful tone from them.

[Looburst]

Yep, the OM and 000 is about as close as anyone will ever get.

[bryantjudoman]

Martin 000-18 is a tone monster.

[DHart]

Originally Posted by bryantjudoman

Martin 000-18 is a tone monster.

I’m sure that it is! I haven’t had the fortune to play one, though. I look forward to doing that someday. (Probably will have to BUY one, one day!)

I do get gloriously satisfying tones and powerful volume from my OM-28V, though. It is certainly a tone monster. And a comfortable 000 size body. 1.75” nut. Light scalloped bracing allows the top to be driven easily by the tension of the full-length scale. Surprisingly powerful output. Deep bass. Rich overtones. Sparkling highs (I like 80/20’s on this Martin). This is my life-time keeper acoustic guitar.

Phosphor Bronze strings were on it at the time of this photo session, but 80/20s are my favorites with this: