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  #46  
Old 07-12-2022, 10:41 AM
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Gosh that's a beauty, Morgan!
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  #47  
Old 07-13-2022, 07:02 AM
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Gosh that's a beauty, Morgan!
Thanks for the kind words, srick!
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  #48  
Old 07-13-2022, 07:17 AM
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I've got a couple of demos of this guitar to share.

This is a 15" guitar, with 26"/25.25" scaled frets, Adirondack spruce top, Gabon ebony back and sides. The drums are honduran mahogany, the strings are Ernie Ball Paradigm mediums (.013 - .056) phosphor bronze. The guitar was only 10 days old at the time of these recordings.

Both of these were recorded with a matched pair of Lauten LA 120 microphones, with no pre or post processing - this is just the mics running into an Apogee, and then into a phone.

Here is how the drums sound in the completed guitar:


Here I'm playing a John Fahey piece, this is in Open C - CGCGCE


What I don't have - is a demo of it being played in a true percussive guitar context. I tried guys, but my chops just aren't up to it, and I didn't want to post a video of me trying to punch above my weight class as it would distract from the instrument. It has since gone to live with its new owner who happens to be somewhat local to me so a demo could happen, but I don't want to pester this truly wonderful client either.

I hope you all enjoy the demos, and of course any questions or feedback are most welcome.
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  #49  
Old 07-13-2022, 10:06 AM
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That is a beautiful and functional work of art. So many different ways to play it. What fun it would be to learn how to get all the different sounds and then put them together musically. Congratulations to you.
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  #50  
Old 07-17-2022, 09:08 PM
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What an unique guitat with unique sonic capabilities....congrats on successfully turning a vision into reality! This type of project is precisely why the solo luthier is invaluable to make a one off type of guitar that would otherwise not ever exist.
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  #51  
Old 07-18-2022, 02:14 PM
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Very cool concept and beautifully crafted. I wonder if you could tune the "Drums" like a Marimba on the next one, you might get a little more volume and tone.
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  #52  
Old 07-19-2022, 05:25 AM
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Very cool concept and beautifully crafted. I wonder if you could tune the "Drums" like a Marimba on the next one, you might get a little more volume and tone.
Tuning is what the magnets do. Changes the length of the tongue. Actually, for a marimba or xylophone would have not only different lengths for pitch, but have to be supported on both nodes, with both ends free.
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  #53  
Old 07-19-2022, 10:56 AM
KingCavalier KingCavalier is offline
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Exactly, if the drums were installed at the harmonic balance point like a Marimba you might get a more refined note. Also, they might form a symbiotic relationship with the rest of the guitar, of course that might not be a good thing. The magnets do seem to change a pitch of the note but the tone sounds muted to me.
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  #54  
Old 07-19-2022, 01:07 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NTS View Post
That is a beautiful and functional work of art. So many different ways to play it. What fun it would be to learn how to get all the different sounds and then put them together musically. Congratulations to you.
Thank you, NTS, it is a fun instrument to play, and I thoroughly enjoyed it while it was still here!

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Originally Posted by gitarro View Post
What an unique guitat with unique sonic capabilities....congrats on successfully turning a vision into reality! This type of project is precisely why the solo luthier is invaluable to make a one off type of guitar that would otherwise not ever exist.
Thanks, gitarro, I'm fortunate that I had a client willing to take the plunge with me on this one, though I probably would have done it anyway. Full disclosure - there are also a few prototypes around here that will never see the light of day, but I'm really happy with how this one worked out.

Quote:
Originally Posted by KingCavalier View Post
Very cool concept and beautifully crafted. I wonder if you could tune the "Drums" like a Marimba on the next one, you might get a little more volume and tone.
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Originally Posted by kkrell View Post
Tuning is what the magnets do. Changes the length of the tongue. Actually, for a marimba or xylophone would have not only different lengths for pitch, but have to be supported on both nodes, with both ends free.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KingCavalier View Post
Exactly, if the drums were installed at the harmonic balance point like a Marimba you might get a more refined note. Also, they might form a symbiotic relationship with the rest of the guitar, of course that might not be a good thing. The magnets do seem to change a pitch of the note but the tone sounds muted to me.
Lest we go too far afield here - a marimba is a completely different animal as it has individually tuned resonating chambers for each wooden bar. A marimba would not sound good at all without the resonator tubes (think wooden xylophone). I wasn't going for a bell like tone here, but rather a short attack that would provide the player with something besides the "thump" and "whack" that percussive guitarists are limited to, while also being in the same family decibel and tone-wise. Most percussive guitarists play plugged in almost exclusively, as all of the hammering on and two-handed fingerboard stuff they do tends to sound anemic otherwise. I didn't make a demo of this plugged in, but it has a K&K trinity pro in addition to the K&K helix. The trinity pro consists of an internal mic and three piezos under the bridge plate. While the piezos don't pick up the drums (only very, very faintly), the internal microphone does which gives the player some control of the mix.

I really do hope to get a proper demo, as I know what I posted leaves a lot to the imagination.
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  #55  
Old 07-23-2022, 03:57 PM
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If you followed this thread from the start - there were two guitars. The one I recently completed and a myrtle one. The myrtle one had some unsurmountable issues, and will likely be the subject of a bonfire in the near future (the rims, the top and back are fine and I will likely make a new set of rims in the future)

The next one of these is well underway at this point, and I have been lax in providing updates.

Here are the beginnings though, the rosette taking shape:







And here it is inlaid in the top, which is a very nice set of sitka spruce. There is a piece of dyed, blue veneer backing it this time. The back and sides of this one will be some nice curly Koa, and the blue goes well with the orange-yellow colors of it.

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  #56  
Old 07-24-2022, 09:04 AM
jaymarsch jaymarsch is offline
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I’m just catching up with this thread. Congratulations on bringing your ideas to life by creating such a beautiful and innovative instrument. I love that it carries both the long-standing traditions of guitars and tongue drums in a modern aesthetic. Out of curiosity, how much does the guitar weigh? I am just wondering what difference the extra material makes.
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  #57  
Old 07-24-2022, 12:10 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jaymarsch View Post
I’m just catching up with this thread. Congratulations on bringing your ideas to life by creating such a beautiful and innovative instrument. I love that it carries both the long-standing traditions of guitars and tongue drums in a modern aesthetic. Out of curiosity, how much does the guitar weigh? I am just wondering what difference the extra material makes.
Best,
Jayne
Thanks so much, Jayne! The drums themselves weighed 1 lb in total, and it also has doubled sides. I didn't weigh it before it left, but it's about 2-3 lbs heavier than it would be without the drums and doubled sides. I found it actually balances on your leg pretty well with the extra bit of weight. The next one is slightly lighter as I removed some of the extraneous drum material.
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  #58  
Old 07-31-2022, 07:57 AM
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Here are the sides, all thicknessed and laminated. These are Koa on the outside and Mahogany on the inside. I laminate them in a vacuum bag, and really get good conformity. As you can see here, they are just lying right on the mold without the need for clamps to hold them into shape.



The drums are Honduran Mahogany, here they are ready to be installed. I removed much of the frame that I had around the last set, as it really isn't needed and it helps cut down on the weight.



Yes, I know, they look....well maybe a little familiar :-/



If you have Peyronie's disease, ask your doctor if Xiaflex is right for you.

Once they are installed in the sides, it's time for the "fun" part:



The box is ready to be closed! I've installed a K&K trinity pro here, which is a combo of undersaddle piezos and an internal mic.



The billet I cut the sides from was wide enough to get the bindings from too:



A slight arm bevel, I find they really don't need to be large to be effective:



I believe this is a Mallee burl I've used in the end graft, it's a mystery really, but I like how it looks.



The neck is underway!
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