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#1
02-14-2017, 12:26 PM
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Brave or stupid.....
I've been very, very happy with a Cordoba C9 Spruce I've had for around a year or so. I put a couple of dime sized ports in and it changed the tone and volume of the instrument substantially - also smoothed out the response "out front" and made it easier to mic.
I had a Michael Thames Brazilian/Italian here for a few months and in some ways it was more appealing (projection and warmth), but there were things about my Cordoba I liked better (wider string spacing, a little better string to string clarity) Saturday I decided to change strings (from ProArte composite normal) to the high tension version of the same - I thought I'd try this for myself as I've always used normal, just to see what the difference might be. While changing the strings, I decided to take a look at some of the bracing - while the fan braces are obviously minimal, the main cross brace just below the soundhole seemed to be quite overdone. So, with a deep breath, I slightly reduced it's mass - kind of scooped it toward the middle where the largest part of the vibrations converge. As you can see in the picture, I didn't do much, but it was basically "straight across" previously, so maybe 10-15% less at most. The result, after the strings stretched in, was exactly what I'd hoped. Appears the hard tension strings are driving the top a bit more, and the slightly less mass of the brace is allowing a little more vibration - creating a good bit more "round" tone overall. I only had one set of hard tension composites, so when I change out again, I'll go back to normal and see how much of it was that. It's always fun to experiment...especially when it turns out good...   
__________________
"One small heart, and a great big soul that's driving" 
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#3
02-14-2017, 04:45 PM
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Last couple of years or so I've been tweaking a lot of less expensive instruments (steel and nylon) and fine tuning my intuition about what works. It's been pretty fun.
__________________
"One small heart, and a great big soul that's driving"
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#5
02-14-2017, 04:52 PM
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Looks like a job well done...so I say brave.
If you did not know what you were doing then I would lean towards stupid. Then again stupid mistakes are a great teacher, so either way, brave.
__________________
David Webber Round-Body Furch D32-LM MJ Franks Lagacy OM Rainsong H-WS1000N2T Stonebridge OM33-SR DB Stonebridge D22-SRA Tacoma Papoose Voyage Air VAD-2 1980 Fender Strat A few Partscaster Strats MIC 60s Classic Vib Strat
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#6
02-14-2017, 06:01 PM
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Brave and awesome! I'm a do it yourself kind of guy.
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#8
02-15-2017, 06:52 AM
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WOW... nice job!!
I like the sound ports. I'm afraid that if I tried any of that, the guitar would end up as kindling wood.
__________________
2003 Froggy Bottom H-12 Deluxe 2019 Cordoba C-12 Cedar 2016 Godin acoustic archtop 2011 Godin Jazz model archtop
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#9
02-15-2017, 07:42 AM
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Very nice! And brave! I've done similar and it's how you learn. I actually removed the lame electronics from my Breedlove Passport N250 nylon about 5 years ago (because I hated them), and then rounded out the hole in the upper bout that they were sitting in. So it looks like I meant to put that sound hole in there all along. it definitely adds volume from the player's perspective and I like it. I rarely ever play it because I play my Cordobas ever day, but it's still a fine guitar for crossover styles. I replaced the OEM electronics with an LR Baggs Element system that sounds much better.
__________________
http://soundcloud.com/jwflamenco
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#10
02-15-2017, 08:13 AM
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I remember reading a Leo Kottke interview in Guitar Player years ago... He said that he once sawed a cutaway into a Martin guitar with a hacksaw... Fillling in the hole with a piece of plywood.
He said it was the dumbest thing he'd ever done..... However, an acquaintence of ours was playing his Martin on the beach next to a boardwalk. He laid the guitar on the sand....And someone up above dropped a full can of Coke which punched completely through the top of the guitar.... Leaving a Coke-sized second sound hole. He took the instrument home and smoothed out the edges....(very clean hole) and decided after playing that the sound was somewhat improved.....
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#11
02-15-2017, 09:21 AM
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And that coke can - falls into the harsh but effective method!!
__________________
"One small heart, and a great big soul that's driving"
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#12
02-15-2017, 09:32 AM
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Quote:
__________________
"One small heart, and a great big soul that's driving"
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#13
02-15-2017, 02:55 PM
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It's one of the two major structural braces in the Torres style fan design. It's not generally considered important for tone. But that does look rather large and I'm sure you will be fine. I think however you are hearing the difference in strings, not only higher tension but new. Problem of course being that you changed two variables at the same time. It would be interesting to know what it would have sounded like if you kept the old strings on before and after.
How did you cut the sound ports? Looks nice and clean. Also did you just take a guess at where to put them?
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#14
02-15-2017, 03:06 PM
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The strings weren't "old" - I don't let that happen. As soon as I hear ANY change in tone, they are off. I do a starter hole with a dremel tool, then use a 1/2" reamer (ala endpin) then go to the rounded end of a C02 cartridge with sandpaper strips to create a nice bevel. I'm pretty sure it's not all strings I'm hearing - have a pretty good handle on that in my head. The whole body seems to be resonating just a bit more than 4 extra pounds of tension would create. 
__________________
"One small heart, and a great big soul that's driving"
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