Bright B &E Strings

[Eastbound]

higher notes seem louder to the ear when played at the same volume as lower notes. Its a fact

ideally one would compensate for this by not playing the higher notes as loud. I think players do this and some are even not fully aware that thier making these adjustments. I could see a new guitar taking some time to get used to in this respect

Silk and steel or nickel strings are known to clam down bright guitars

[jmagill]

Originally Posted by Eastbound

...ideally one would compensate for this by not playing the higher notes as loud. I think players do this and some are even not fully aware that their making these adjustments.

Eastbound is right on the money here.

Every guitar I own has slight differences in its dynamic range. The bass, mids and trebles vary slightly in prominence from one guitar to the next. I emphasize that the differences are very slight, but enough for me to notice.

When I'm playing fingerstyle, the melody is usually in the trebles, so I prefer some strength there. Sometimes the guitar gives it to me; on another guitar I may have to hit the trebles with a bit more force. Or, for a guitar with strong trebles, I may have to back off and brush the first three strings more lightly.

Likewise, the bass needs to provide a solid foundation for the mids and trebles to ring out, but if the bass is a bit heavy, I relax my thumb a bit or angle the thumbpick a bit to take some bass off.

I know each of my guitars pretty well, and I do consciously make these adjustments for each instrument to produce the correct balance I'm going for.
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