Posts Tagged guitar
How to Wire Guitar Plugs to a Guitar Cable
Guitar plugs get a lot of wear and tear on the road, so musicians will find it worth knowing how to repair this common audio connection.
The connection from an electric guitar to the amplifier carries a very low level signal, which means that the connection has to be pretty good to avoid getting crackles and loss of signal on scratchy connectors. The guitar lead is often moved, which can lead to fraying cables and broken connections. Finally, musicians often just plain abuse their gear.
The Guitar Plug – a 1/4 Inch Audio Jack Plug
Almost all guitar plugs are 1/4 inch jack plugs. This venerable connector has been around for donkey’s years, and is well suited to the application. It is a big connector, which makes it reasonably robust – the metal sleeved variety can usually survive being stood on, and the large size means that the contact area is quite big, which is good for getting a decent electrical connection.
How to Wire A Guitar Cable with Two Jack Plugs
Most guitar cables are wired with mono jack plugs. Depending on where the socket is on the guitar body, it may be worth considering a right-angled plug at the guitar end. Because of the rough treatment these cables get use only metal bodied connectors – somebody is going to step on it or put a speaker cab on it.
Select the cable. There are several things to look for here
* Coaxial cable – anything else will pick up hum and interference
* decent shielding – though it is a right pain to work with braided cable offers great shielding.
* low capacitance, on the order of less that 150pF/metre
* stranded centre conductor – solid core centre conductor will fracture under typical guitar usage.
* robust enough outer jacket to cope with the rigours of use on stage
A typical cable length is about 3m (10 feet). If the cable is made too long then the capacitance of the cable may interact with the high impedance of the guitar pickup to rob the sound of high frequencies – for longer cables it is important to select low capacitance cable.
How to Fit a Guitar Plug To the Guitar Cable
This has to be done twice, one at each end of the cable. First things first – unscrew the shell of the plug, and slip this over the cable, and then the insulating sleeve that is provided with metal-bodied plugs. Fail to do this and the connector has to be unsoldered and remade. It is possible to slip the shell onto the cable from the opposite end if this is forgotten the first time, but when it comes to the final plug this has to be got right.
The next stage is to measure out the length of the cable outer jacket that has to be stripped back (see photo). It is best to measure this against the plug. The jacket can be stripped back either by carefully scoring around it using a sharp knife, being careful not to cut so deep as to nick the screen conductors, or by using a proprietary cable stripping tool.
Once the jacket has been stripped back, if the screen is braided unpick the braid – the awl of a Swiss Army Knife is a really good tool for this. The braid then needs to be pulled back, and the very ends of the strands gathered, twisted and soldered to keep them together. The claw of the plug should be splayed out so that the cable can go into it – the aim is that the outer jacket ends just after the claw, so that it is gripped by the claw rather than the conductors of the shield.
How to Solder the Guitar Plug to the Guitar Cable
The inner can then be measured to the inner tab, cut to match and about 2mm of the insulation stripped from the inner. This tends to shrink back a little when heated. With the jack connector held in a bench vice, the strands of the inner conductor can be passed through the hole in the tab, and formed into place with needle-nosed pliers. The tab can then be heated and solder applied, soldering the inner conductor to the tab.
The shield can then be made – the trick is to rotate the connector to the shield lug of the plug is uppermost, and the strands of the outer shield can then be brought over the lug and soldered (see picture). The claw needs to be reformed with pliers to grip the cable outer jacket. It only remains to inspect the connection, bring up the insulating sleeve and screw the connector barrel to the plug. Repeat at the other end and the guitar cable is now complete.
Tags: guitar, guitar cable, plugsThe Care And Maintenance Of Your Guitar Strings
Metal guitar strings are subjected to many conditions that shorten their life. The life of guitar strings can be extended with care and proper maintenance. This article will help you extend the life of your guitar strings.
Guitar strings can lose their tonal quality prematurely due to factors that include:
*Stretching
*Wear
*Corrosion
Stretching: Guitar strings naturally stretch during tuning and while playing the guitar. Over time strings slowly lose their elasticity and their tone quality. Guitar strings that are stretched no longer produce rich tone or harmonic overtones. As a result, the guitar becomes difficult to tune and the sound of the strings become dull and lifeless.
Wear: Guitar strings wear during the process of playing. This process comes from moving the metal strings against the metal frets on the fretboard. Of the two most common types of strings, wound and plain steel, wound strings are more susceptible to fret wear. Wound guitar strings tend to “flat-spot” more rapidly than plain steel strings. If left unchecked, the flat spots can create breaks in the windings of the strings. Flat spots and broken windings will decrease tonal quality and can also cause the strings to “buzz”.
Corrosion: Metal guitar strings are subject to tarnish, rust and corrosion. Metal guitar strings are also subject to the body chemistry of the individual guitar player. Individuals with higher acid levels in their pH will get less life from their guitar strings due to an accelerated rate of string corrosion.
There are several things guitar players can do to get extended life from their guitar strings. Taking the time to follow these simple steps will ensure that you get the most from your strings and reduce the cost associated with premature string failure.
*Do not over-stretch your strings during the tuning process.
*Be careful not to crimp the strings at the tuner peg when replacing the guitar strings.
*Periodically, check the condition of the guitar bridge and bridge saddle to avoid breaking a string during the replacement process.
*Monitor the condition of your guitar frets and replace any frets that develop excessive wear or sharp edges.
*Always clean your guitar strings when you finish playing the guitar.
It is impossible to say how long a new set of guitar strings should last. The life of guitar strings depend on many factors and variables. It is possible to extend the life of guitar strings through proper care and maintenance. Be sure to take the time to care for your guitar strings and you will get the longest life from each set.
When the time comes to replace the strings, choose quality replacements and change the strings carefully.
Tags: care, guitar, maintenanceElectric Guitar Basics – Overview of the Various Models and Amplifiers
Electric guitars are also never out of trend, always in fashion and have a lot to choose from. If you are worrying that you may choose something which you would regret in the end, worry no more. This article will enlighten you on various models and amplifiers out in the market.
For sure, you want a musical partner that looks stunning every time you do a performance or just plain practice. This is important because you are not just practicing. However, you are also making a career and sculpting your very own story with your musical partner.
There are actually four types of electric guitar. Choose among solid body, semi acoustic, electric acoustic and string, bridge or neck variants. Each type poses a distinct characteristic or features which makes it unique and lovable.
For the solid body type, it has no hollow internal cavity and typically made of hard wood. It does not provide accommodation for its vibration. Plus, there is no sound hole which is essential in amplifying string vibration unlike with the acoustic ones.
Semi acoustic ones are those having hollow bodies. Moreover, amplifiers or speakers are provided, making sure that you can enjoy its quality sound at its best. Mounted on its body are its electronic pickups. While you are strumming the guitar, the string and body vibration is being converted to electronic signals.
Moreover, electric acoustic does have pickups. However, you can always opt to use a microphone to have it amplified. This is for you to enjoy the sound quality. There is also an attached piezo-electric pickup. It is also responsible for converting vibration into electronic signals.
The last one, which is the string, bridge or neck variants, is a rare type and is used back in the year 1930s and 1940s as well. But it was said that it developed its popularity regionally in the United States back then. One string guitar can be most heard of.
Tags: acoustic, electric guitar, guitar