Modifying/Customizing Your Guitars

[Wade Hampton]

Mandobart wrote:

Originally Posted by Mandobart

How many people customize/modify your guitar with: adding/changing pickups; adding, removing or changing the pickguard; changing tuners; adding a strap button; adding an arm rest; reprofiling the neck; or similar?

Yep, I'm definitely guilty of most of those, the main omission being that I've never had a neck reprofiled on a factory-made guitar. However, when Scott Baxendale built a Triple O for me, he made the neck much thicker & bulkier than I had specified. So I sent it back to him and he carved it down just enough to where it's perfect.

Originally Posted by Mandobart

I know many won't do anything that may reduce future resale value, and ANY modification could reduce that value.

As a general rule, none of the guitars that I've been willing to modify has been so rare that I would reduce its value. There have been some guitars I've left untouched and "un-modified," but those have been instruments that I've obtained at a good price as trading stock.

Those that I've gotten for use in performance, though, I'm not shy about altering slightly. Vintage instruments are an entirely different ballgame, so far as I'm concerned. I wouldn't touch those.

Originally Posted by Mandobart

For my part I've added passive pickups to all my instruments. I've deglossed the neck on most. I've added strap buttons to the neck heel whenever they don't come with one. I've added arm rests to most. I've added pickguards to two instruments that required some drilling. In each case these mods have led to greater enjoyment of playing the instrument, so I don't regret any of them. I don't currently have plans to sell any of these.

Which makes perfect sense to me.

Okay, here I'll list the modifications that I've routinely made and intend to keep making on other guitars that I might acquire, in descending order from frequent to seldom.


1. John Pearse Armrests. Ever since John sent me one of his armrest prototypes in late 1988, I've been putting the Pearse armrests on all of my flattop guitars.

The only exceptions have been an archtop guitar that I owned for a while and the resonator guitars that have passed through my hands. Both of those work in a different mechanical way than flattop guitars, so I didn't see any point.

But with flattop guitars the armrests make a huge difference in the sound because by raising the player's arm off the top, they allow the guitar's top to vibrate to its fullest extent. There is more bass and lower midrange response, and just a fuller sound overall.

So that's my most common modification. I might be hesitant to put the armrests on all my guitars if they really were on there permanently, but I've developed a way to carefully remove them and reuse them, with no damage to either the guitar or the armrest. Some of the armrests I own have been on as many as three guitars.

As noted above, these haven't been vintage instruments, but modern guitars. I wouldn't put a John Pearse armrest on a collector's item.


2. Strap buttons. I put Schaller strap-locking tuner buttons on all of my guitars, both on the heel of the neck and on the tailblock. If there's a pickup already installed and the guitar has one of those loathsome endpin jacks on it, I'll convert the endpin jack to a flush-mounted jack and center the Schaller button between the jack and the top.

It's not as visually appealing as having the strap button centered, but it works perfectly well for the purpose.



3. Tuners. My next most common modification is to put good Gotoh tuners on guitars if the tuners that came on the instrument are mediocre or just flat out bad.

While I love the sealed gear versions of the Gotoh 510 tuners, the less expensive Gotoh tuners seem to work very precisely and accurately at a lower price point. So I will use both, and which variety will depend on what I already have stashed in my parts box or what I can order. So I'll either use Gotoh 510's or the Gotoh SG301, SG360 or SG381.

For example, the SG301 tuners are a direct drop in replacements for Grover Rotomatics.


4. Tuner buttons. Most of the tuners I have on my instruments are sealed gear tuners, and as a rule I'll put contrasting wood or high quality machined plastic aftermarket tuner buttons on them. This accomplishes two things for me:

a. It cuts a significant amount of weight on the headstock when the stock metal buttons are replaced by much lighter wood or plastic;

and

b. It dresses up the appearance of the guitar a little bit, in my opinion.



5. Electronics. As a rule, any guitar I buy with the intent of using in performance gets a pickup installed. These tend to be either LR Baggs or K&K pickups.

The K&K Pure Mini bridgeplate pickup is the least invasive of any of the pickups I have found, and since I'm no longer playing in bars, it works just fine. The LR Baggs pickups seem to do better in loud venues, so the guitars that I take along to any gig where I think I'll have to operate at a louder volume level are the ones with Baggs electronics installed.


6. Pickguards. Changing out stock pickguards for something nicer is way, way, WAY down on my list of modifications that I'm likely to make. But occasionally I'll end up with a nice pickguard somehow, usually in trades for something else where the other party has offered a nice TorTis or celluloid pickguard to sweeten the deal.

For a while in the late 1990's and early 2000's I was getting a lot of Larrivée and Tacoma guitars through here, and I disliked the pebble grain clear pickguards both of those companies were putting on their satin finish guitars at the time. So I routinely changed out those pickguards for Martin style pickguards instead.

But while I will still swap out the pickguard if need be, it rarely happens these days.


7. Saddle and nut material. The saddle and nut material really belong higher on this list, but I don't feel like going back and changing all the numbers in what I've written so far!

But if a newly acquired guitar has plastic or some other synthetic materials for the nut and saddle, I'll typically put bone appointments in their place. Sometimes that's an improvement, sometimes it isn't. Sometimes bone makes a guitar sound harsh.

What I have found is that if bone is a bit shrill on a guitar, that Tusq is the next viable choice. If the guitar still sounds shrill with Tusq appointments, then I'll try micarta. Both Tusq and micarta are typically softer than bone, and are a bit less trebly as a result.

The one nut and saddle material that I absolutely will not use on any of my musical instruments is ivory, whether "white" (new) or fossilized. I have two reasons for that:

First, I haven't liked the sound of either kind of ivory on any instruments when I've had the opportunity to make before and after comparisons;

and

Second, I don't want to indirectly support the ivory trade. Here in Alaska we have white ivory being taken from walruses that have been poached and killed just for their tusks, and fossil ivory taken from ancient village sites in remote parts of the state. The local people who plunder those old villages and burial grounds are acting out of extreme poverty, but they destroy so much of the archeological context when looking for ivory and artifacts that they can sell.

If you think that there are no people living in Third World-style grinding poverty levels in the United States, come up to Alaska and visit some remote Alaska Native villages. It's dire.

In addition to the ivory poaching in Alaska, in Africa, of course, elephants are getting slaughtered for their tusks.

So I don't want to participate in the ivory trade at ANY level, it's that simple.


8. Bridge pins. This absolutely the last thing on my list because it's the least likely thing for me to change - usually I only change bridge pins when they break. If the factory stock bridge pins start to get distorted and gnarled, instead of replacing them what I do is turn them around so that the slotted side is turned away from the string end.

This usually gains me another six or seven years of use.

As for bridge pins affecting the sound, that's not something that I necessarily want to happen. I like plastic bridge pins because they generally don't affect the tone of the guitar.

The only aftermarket bridge pins that I've been around that undeniably change the tone of the guitar are brass bridge pins, which affect the sound by adding quite a bit of extra mass to the bridge. I've read plenty of posts written by people who've used them claiming that brass bridge pins have increased the treble response on their guitars, but that's not what actually happens: there's an increase in perceived treble response, but what the brass pins do is stifle some of the bass and midrange. Putting that extra weight onto the bridge keeps it from vibrating to its fullest extent.

So it sounds "brighter" because there's been a diminishment of the bass and lower midrange.

As for the many other aftermarket bridge pin materials, the changes they might make to the sound are going to be subtle, not obvious. I reserve judgement on those because some good players with good ears have told me that they can, in fact, hear a difference.

Frankly, though, I tend to avoid exchanging the factory stock bridge pins for aftermarket pins because I like the original sound the guitar had when I bought it, and I don't want the sound changed other than by the natural breaking-in process.

So I replace bridge pins only when needed.

Hope that makes sense.


Wade Hampton Miller

[LakewoodM32Fan]

I've learned to be okay with pick guards. My first (M32) didn't come with one and I loved the super clean look. But Martins, SCGC and H&D came with it. I'm just afraid of the possibility of taking it off and finding a "tanline" beneath it (plus possibly marring the finish)...so they stay. But I wouldn't cry if guitars came by default without them, with the option to have it applied if you so desire (but I get that would lead to more scratches are people audition guitars).

[LakewoodM32Fan]

Mods please delete - inadvertently duplicated below while trying to correct an edit.

[LakewoodM32Fan]

I share many of your observations, Wade, but I have reached a different conclusion. If we can agree that bridge pins can (and do) change tone, but that 1) it may not always be for the "better", and 2) it can be so subtle as to not be readily audible to many, then I have no problem with people choosing to experiment.

And if they "prefer" something because it "adds highs" but in essence it actually subtracted lows and mids...well that's their personal preference so my stance is: go for it. If it brings them closer to the sound that they hear in their head and want to hear out of their guitar, then I really don't care how the pins achieve the tonal change.

To me, there is no "correct tone" for any given guitar. A luthier (or shop) does their best in choosing the woods and assembling the guitar, but there are things out of their control, like:

• How will the tone change as the wood ages?
• What string action height will the player choose (and the effect that has on tone)?
• What string composition and gauge will the player choose?

And on and on. All of this changes tone. And they do it by adding to some frequencies, and subtracting from others. So if someone wants to do the same thing via a bridge pin and is happy with the result, more power to them.

For me, it's perfectly possible to like a guitar's sound tremendously out of the shop, and then I make any number of changes (string comp, gauge, bridge pins, action, different pick (which can make a huge difference). If I don't like the new sound, it's easy enough to roll back. But if it improves, I keep it. Just because I loved it in the shop doesn't mean it was perfect, or that there is no room for improvement.

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

8. Bridge pins. This absolutely the last thing on my list because it's the least likely thing for me to change - usually I only change bridge pins when they break. If the factory stock bridge pins start to get distorted and gnarled, instead of replacing them what I do is turn them around so that the slotted side is turned away from the string end.

This usually gains me another six or seven years of use.

As for bridge pins affecting the sound, that's not something that I necessarily want to happen. I like plastic bridge pins because they generally don't affect the tone of the guitar.

The only aftermarket bridge pins that I've been around that undeniably change the tone of the guitar are brass bridge pins, which affect the sound by adding quite a bit of extra mass to the bridge. I've read plenty of posts written by people who've used them claiming that brass bridge pins have increased the treble response on their guitars, but that's not what actually happens: there's an increase in perceived treble response, but what the brass pins do is stifle some of the bass and midrange. Putting that extra weight onto the bridge keeps it from vibrating to its fullest extent.

So it sounds "brighter" because there's been a diminishment of the bass and lower midrange.

As for the many other aftermarket bridge pin materials, the changes they might make to the sound are going to be subtle, not obvious. I reserve judgement on those because some good players with good ears have told me that they can, in fact, hear a difference.

Frankly, though, I tend to avoid exchanging the factory stock bridge pins for aftermarket pins because I like the original sound the guitar had when I bought it, and I don't want the sound changed other than by the natural breaking-in process.

So I replace bridge pins only when needed.

Hope that makes sense.


Wade Hampton Miller

[ataylor]

I typically have bought guitars I really like in terms of looks, feel, and sound, so I don’t change much. Bridge pins and tuning machines are all I’ve changed, unless you count the pickguard I added to my daughter’s Baby Taylor.

[MrDB]

Pickups and bone pins are the only mods I've done so far.

[Wade Hampton]

After I wrote my previous post in this thread, Lakewood wrote:

Originally Posted by LakewoodM32Fan

I share many of your observations, Wade, but I have reached a different conclusion. If we can agree that bridge pins can (and do) change tone, but that 1) it may not always be for the "better", and 2) it can be so subtle as to not be readily audible to many, then I have no problem with people choosing to experiment.

I have no problem with anyone else experimenting, either, Lakewood, and I'm sorry if I sounded so strident that anyone would get the impression that I'm somehow "anti-modification." Given the rather lengthy list of modifications that I make on a routine basis that I provided in my earlier post, it would be the height of hypocrisy if I were to claim that everyone else has avoid making modifications.

Originally Posted by LakewoodM32Fan

And if they "prefer" something because it "adds highs" but in essence it actually subtracted lows and mids...well that's their personal preference so my stance is: go for it. If it brings them closer to the sound that they hear in their head and want to hear out of their guitar, then I really don't care how the pins achieve the tonal change.

Again, no argument here. In the case of brass bridge pins the tonal change is, in fact, a subtractive process, but so what?

As for some of the other claims about bridge pin materials causing tonal changes in the guitar, let's just say that I'm agnostic on the subject, and leave it at that.

Originally Posted by LakewoodM32Fan

To me, there is no "correct tone" for any given guitar. A luthier (or shop) does their best in choosing the woods and assembling the guitar, but there are things out of their control, like:

• How will the tone change as the wood ages?
• What string action height will the player choose (and the effect that has on tone)?
• What string composition and gauge will the player choose?

And on and on. All of this changes tone. And they do it by adding to some frequencies, and subtracting from others. So if someone wants to do the same thing via a bridge pin and is happy with the result, more power to them.

I agree with all of those points, and will add to that the effect that an individual's playing style and picking hand attack will have on the sound of the instrument. That's one of the areas that's most crucial in generating tone, but because we can't see and hear each other in person, it rarely gets discussed in these discussion threads.

But the difference in two players' right hand attack playing the same guitar can be like night and day in terms of how different they can make it sound. That's why there's no cut and dried "right way" and "wrong way" on any of this stuff, because so much of it comes down to the hands of the individual player.

Originally Posted by LakewoodM32Fan

For me, it's perfectly possible to like a guitar's sound tremendously out of the shop, and then I make any number of changes (string comp, gauge, bridge pins, action, different pick (which can make a huge difference). If I don't like the new sound, it's easy enough to roll back. But if it improves, I keep it. Just because I loved it in the shop doesn't mean it was perfect, or that there is no room for improvement.

Again, fair enough. Sometimes the smallest changes can make an instrument blossom and come fully into its tone.

Like the John Pearse armrests that I use and endorse: they lift the player's arm off the top and the result is usually an instantaneous, dramatic improvement in both tone and volume.

So I'm sorry if my post seemed to come down too heavily on aftermarket bridge pin buyers. As I've often pointed out in many posts on the subject in many threads, (just not this one, yet,) any tonal impact bridge pins might make are easily reversible, as you've noted, as well.

Thanks for your thoughtful response, as it made me reread my own statements and realize that my first post in this thread was more sweeping (and, perhaps, overbearing) than I had intended.


Wade Hampton Miller

[Misifus]

All of my guitars have pickups. On some, I installed K&K pure minis, on one, the luthier built in a Highlander (his recommendation). On several, a pick up was built in, although only one has controls on the side, and that was a very inexpensive Seagull.

Only one of my instruments lacks a strap button on the heel of the neck, and that one’s an acoustic bass which would simply be too neck heavy. Those which didn’t have strap buttons, got one installed.

So, yes, I guess I do insure that my guitars suit my needs.

[Neil K Walk]

As a matter of personal preference I put bone saddles in both my factory acoustics as well as strap buttons on the treble side of the heel and ebony bridge pins because I dislike the feel of the plastic pins when I rest my licking hand on them. On one guitar I had a tuning machine fail so I put a set of medium sized Gotoh 510s on it. I also personally put a triple soundboard transducer pickup in each; a K&K Pure Western mini in my Larrivee and a JJB 330 in my Martin - which I also had to enlarge the end pin hole for to accommodate the jack. My Larrivee did not require this as they make them ready to fit an end pin jack. I also had a bone nut installed on my Larrivee as I dislike tusq. Each and every unpgrade was worth it. I only wish I could have both guitars refinished from satin to gloss but don’t mind the satin so much. I just figure that they need to be refinished anyway in order to repair damage to the polyester and nitrocellulose; I am not gentle with my guitars.

[LakewoodM32Fan]

Right back at you, Wade. I agreed with many of your excellent points, and every post of yours I've read it's very clear to me that you are an extremely thoughtful person. I don't think you were overbearing at all, I simply wanted to present my own perspective on the matter, and it seems we actually align on quite a bit, so cheers!

In fact, your comment about an individual playing style and right hand technique, in conjunction with my own experience of how wildly different picks can make your guitars sound really underscores the danger of judging guitars by YT reviews. Outside of my opinion that hearing a compressed YT video conveys maybe 50% of the experience of actually playing the instrument (not just the quality of the replayed audio, but you also don't get the tactile experience of the guitar moving the air in the room, bouncing off the walls, reverberating off your body). But more than that, and full disclosure I *love* watching these guys do reviews, but Quentin King at Music Villa, Spoon Phillips at Maurys, Tony Polecastro, Matt at Eddie's guitars...honestly they are way better players than I am, and I don't strike the strings in the same way they do. So I do enjoy watching their YT videos, especially A/B comparisons where to their credit they try to play the same between the guitars which at least controls one variable. But the sound they can make come out of that Bourgeois may bear little resemblance to what's comes out of my hands with that exact guitar.

As an aside, going back to my pick comment: in my experience there is no "universal" pick, each of my guitars seems to sound better with a different pick, and if I change string type, *another* pick may sound better. What's crazy is something I recently discovered on my Martin 00: I normally use my John Pearse Fast Turtle Mediums on it. But capo'd at the 6th fret, the tone kind of changed and I didn't like it. I also had my John Pearse buffalo horn pick, and a Primetone. None of them made a pleasing tone at that capo'd position. Since it's a fairly new guitar, I thought maybe it just didn't respond well to a capo on that fret (I only play one song at that position).

I happened to have a cheap Dunlop .60 pick laying around. For whatever reason I just picked it up and tried...the guitar sung. Iron and Wine's cover of Such Great Heights sounded fantastic! With no capo, or even capo'd at frets 1-3, the casein pick is the weapon of choice. But apparently, at capo 6...I gotta keep a Dunlop .60 in the case.

Guitars...they can be a simultaneously frustrating and exhilarating experience!

[hubcapsc]

Originally Posted by lowrider

One modification that is very popular around here that I don't understand it changing out perfectly good tuners for open gear tuners because the person thinks they look cool.

Nobody sees your tuning machines. Not the player, and not the audience. The smoothest, easiest adjusting tuners I've used are the sealed ones that come on the Martin X and Road Series. Some just have to change them out, even if it leaves them with holes to fill.

I just don't get it.

Or holes to make...

EDIT:

I was reading along and came to another thread where Wade Hampton said this
about some tuners he changed out:

add a quiet touch of understated elegance to the guitar.

So... previously I thought I changed out my tuners because the new ones look cool,
but I'm going with understated elegance from here on out ...

-Mike