classical guitar tone

"...the guitar is nothing without its sound..."
--John Taylor, Tone Production on the Classical Guitar

Some variables that affect tone:

1) the guitar itself

What type of wood? How old? Solid or laminated top? What type of bracing? Where was it assembled? By whom? Which brand?

All these count I guess. But the only way to judge a guitar is to play it. JB Music has a really nice one on display worth more than 100000php but it sounds amazing--loud and warm and responsive. Lyric had a Cordoba I tried out recently--not the famous C5 but something worth double. Not as amazing as the first one, but also not as expensive--it costs less than 40k.

Hmmm. This window shopping is giving me problems. I still want one by Tabo Derecho though. And I want to try out some of the higher-end Cebu guitars.

2) strings

Well, since the guitar simply amplifies the "signal" from its strings, good strings really count.


I had been relying for decades on D'Addario Pro Arte Normal Tension strings, but decided to try Savarez. Was a bit cautious because its higher tension might wreck my Yamaha CG-80A. So far so good. They sound a bit weaker but the tone is more nuanced. Or maybe I just got a little bit better since I last changed strings.

3) bridge nut material

It might be my imagination but ever since Sir Arie Hipolito replaced my plastic bridge nut with one of bone, my guitar has never sounded the same. I guess there's a reason why people believe that bone is the best material to transfer a string's vibrations to the guitar body.

4) nail shape

Sir Ruben Reyes taught me gow to file my nails with two grades of sandpaper.

But then I read Christopher Parkening's guitar Method and used a file instead, with some sandpaper for fine tuning.

The right shape gives the guitar a warmer, fuller sound and greater volume. Plus it's very easy to play with correctly-filed nails.

5) attack, hand position, string choice

A thicker string creates a smoother tone.

The higher you are on the fretboard, the warmer the tone.

Knuckles lined up parallel to the strings creates more definition/clarity.

Knuckles at an angle produces a warm sound.



When I get this, and can play my pieces perfectly, maybe I'll deserve a new guitar.