Martin
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Post by Martin on Dec 12, 2013 13:54:29 GMT
If you have any comment to make or questions following the recently posted interview with luthier Adrian Lucas, please use this thread to do so  |
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leoroberts
C.O.G. 
Posts: 26,144
My main instrument is: probably needing new strings
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Post by leoroberts on Dec 12, 2013 14:35:40 GMT
Great interview (and thanks to davewhite for asking simple, short questions and Adrian for giving such fulsome answers!) A question - I see that you have soundports built in to some of your instruments, but they are (or appear to be) smaller than the ones Dave uses for his instruments. Is there, do you think, and optimum size? Or is your decision cosmetic? |
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007
C.O.G.
Posts: 2,603
My main instrument is: 1965 Hagstrom H45E
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Post by 007 on Dec 12, 2013 17:16:51 GMT
I enjoyed this article very much
I had the pleasure of meeting Adrian a few years ago when he bought some mahogany wardrobe doors of me
and he brought with him a guitar he had made from old church pews. It sounded gorgeous
Bells dipped in honey.
Loved the reclaimed guitar near the top of the thread.
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ocarolan
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Post by ocarolan on Dec 13, 2013 23:39:16 GMT
Very much enjoyed reading this interview - interesting and informative text plus some superb photos and great videos. Thanks for being a "victim" Adrian, and thanks too to Dave for your interrogation skills. Keith |
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Post by ajlucas on Dec 14, 2013 17:55:52 GMT
Great interview (and thanks to davewhite for asking simple, short questions and Adrian for giving such fulsome answers!) A question - I see that you have soundports built in to some of your instruments, but they are (or appear to be) smaller than the ones Dave uses for his instruments. Is there, do you think, and optimum size? Or is your decision cosmetic? Leo, I am wary about making sound ports too big. They do affect the resonant frequency of the body as does the size of the soundhole. You can add soundport and soundhole sizes to give a total area of hole that will affect the resonant frequency so you can balance one against the other. I tend to use the smallest size I can that will do the job of giving the player a personal foldback although I think they do serve another function of relieving the air pressure in the body. I know a lot of makers use bigger ports and I've seen guitars where there is virtually no bass side to the instruments. I would liken this to having a speaker in a very open cabinet where you would lose a lot of bass end. |
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davewhite
Luthier / Guitar Maker
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Post by davewhite on Dec 14, 2013 18:35:40 GMT
although I think they do serve another function of relieving the air pressure in the body. I agree with you 100% on that Adrian - the instrument seems to "breathe" and respond better with the soundport. It's the biggest bang for your buck just putting that small hole in the side, plus you get to see inside where all of the magic happens  |
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Post by ajlucas on Dec 14, 2013 18:53:22 GMT
I enjoyed this article very much I had the pleasure of meeting Adrian a few years ago when he bought some mahogany wardrobe doors of me and he brought with him a guitar he had made from old church pews. It sounded gorgeous Bells dipped in honey. Loved the reclaimed guitar near the top of the thread. I had meant to get in touch with you 007 after I'd made a 00 guitar with that mahogany headboard you gave me. It turned out very nicely. Thankyou for that.  |
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Post by ajlucas on Dec 14, 2013 18:55:03 GMT
Very much enjoyed reading this interview - interesting and informative text plus some superb photos and great videos. Thanks for being a "victim" Adrian, and thanks too to Dave for your interrogation skills. Keith Thanks Keith. I enjoyed being a victim. Thanks to Dave from me too. |
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007
C.O.G.
Posts: 2,603
My main instrument is: 1965 Hagstrom H45E
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Post by 007 on Dec 14, 2013 18:58:36 GMT
Lovely Adrian so nice to see that something that old has a new life.
What did it sound like?
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Post by ajlucas on Dec 14, 2013 19:28:13 GMT
I was very pleased with the sound and I've heard via a friend that the owner is very pleased with it one year on.
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Post by andyhowell on Dec 21, 2013 17:02:41 GMT
Enjoyable interview. I talked about visiting Adrian for a commission last year - still haven't forgotten!
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Post by Cams on Apr 1, 2016 14:42:19 GMT
Great interview. The part about the air pressure is interesting. Any more thoughts on that as you've gained more experience with soundholes?
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Post by andyhowell on Apr 2, 2016 14:35:42 GMT
Great interview. The part about the air pressure is interesting. Any more thoughts on that as you've gained more experience with soundholes? I know there is a lot of debate about soundholes, and the size of them, but I can only give my own experience. I really like mine. It really does seem to give not only more volume but a better tone. If I record — not using headphones — the guitar while playing sounds very much like the final recording. In a familiar setting I find I don't have to wear headphones any longer. Which is nice. |
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Post by ajlucas on Apr 2, 2016 18:00:06 GMT
I was talking about this with a few people at the RMMGA gathering a couple of weeks ago. I think of a soundport as creating a'through draught", like when you open a second window in a room and the air is able to flow. With just the soundhole I don't think that much air moves in and out of the guitar as it is played. The air in the soundhole is like a plug that moves back and forth. With a soundport the air is more free to move and so there isn't as much damping on the top (and back). It's rather like the case with a speaker cabinet: in a closed back cab the air pressure will increase as the speaker cone moves in or out and so creates a resistance to the movement so that the system has a built in 'governor'. There may be an element of this with a single soundhole that is relieved when you have a soundport, freeing the top to move without fighting the air pressure. I talk about air pressure being significant because if I put my hand over the soundport(s) on my guitars when someone is playing them I can feel a lot of pressure against my palm.
I keep soundless on my guitars small - about 20-25mm diameter. Guitars with great open areas on the side seem to lack bass and can sound a bit boxy to my ears.
My take on this is pretty unscientific and unproven but it kind of makes sense to me.
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Post by andyhowell on Apr 3, 2016 9:27:49 GMT
I was talking about this with a few people at the RMMGA gathering a couple of weeks ago. I think of a soundport as creating a'through draught", like when you open a second window in a room and the air is able to flow. With just the soundhole I don't think that much air moves in and out of the guitar as it is played. The air in the soundhole is like a plug that moves back and forth. With a soundport the air is more free to move and so there isn't as much damping on the top (and back). It's rather like the case with a speaker cabinet: in a closed back cab the air pressure will increase as the speaker cone moves in or out and so creates a resistance to the movement so that the system has a built in 'governor'. There may be an element of this with a single soundhole that is relieved when you have a soundport, freeing the top to move without fighting the air pressure. I talk about air pressure being significant because if I put my hand over the soundport(s) on my guitars when someone is playing them I can feel a lot of pressure against my palm. I keep soundless on my guitars small - about 20-25mm diameter. Guitars with great open areas on the side seem to lack bass and can sound a bit boxy to my ears. My take on this is pretty unscientific and unproven but it kind of makes sense to me. I am slight fascinated, if not horrified, by some of the soundports that you see, as well as these fluted multi-ports. Your Soundports seem to do what they set out to do, i.e. give a degree of personal monitoring. |
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Jo whoever he is.
