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The Clarion solution for amping an acoustic.
Read the reader's tip below.
Humidity
Check
Q I am having a humidity-controlled
cabinet built for my collection of high-end acoustic guitars. Is
there a device, like a thermostat, that when connected to a humidifier-dehumidifier
can correct humidity in the lower part of the cabinet?
J. Keith Troop
Ardmoree, Oklahoma
A What you’re asking for is a humidity-sensitive
air-conditioning system, and while some such device must exist,
the real question is: Do you need it? If your display cabinet contains
lights that create heat, perhaps so. If not, before you spend a
lot of money, place a couple of hygrometers in the room where the
instruments will be kept and check the average humidity. A sealed
display cabinet will insulate your instruments to some degree and
slow down the room’s typical humidity changes.
Most guitars made in North America are built at a humidity level
of just over 40 percent, but that doesn’t mean the instruments are
in danger of becoming waterlogged at 55 percent humidity or that
they’ll dry out and crack at 35 percent. If your cabinet tends to
be too dry, the solution might be as simple as adding an inconspicuous
bowl of water that will evaporate slowly. One collector friend of
mine found that adding some house plants, and watering them enough
to keep them alive, kept his guitar room safe from the too-dry blues.
If you find that you really do need an air-conditioning system for
your guitar display that’s separate from whatever you use for the
rest of your home, you might check with museums to see what they
use for delicate antiques, especially those made of tropical hardwoods
like rosewood. Bob Taylor has written a good, commonsense guide
to protecting guitars from humidity-related ailments, so look for
that at Taylor’s Web site (www.taylorguitars.com).
––Richard Johnston
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Nylon
or Not
Q
I just purchased my first guitar, a Hohner concert classical.
My only concern is that it has three nylon strings and three steel
strings! Is this OK? Are they made like this?
Lee Bales
Norfolk, England
A Although the basses in a set of classical
strings may look like steel strings, they are not. While steel strings
have a metal wire core, nylon string basses are wound around a core
of thin synthetic strands. This process results in a string that has
much less tension (making them safe to use on fragile instruments)
and greater flexibility (allowing them to be tied onto a classical
guitar’s bridge).
––Teja Gerken
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Reader
Tip: Amp Alternative
Got any great guitar tips or discoveries that you’d like to
share? Send them to Tip Sheet, Acoustic Guitar, PO Box 767,
San Anselmo, CA 94979. If we print your tip, we’ll give you a year’s
free subscription, gift subscription, or subscription renewal. Here
is this issue’s winner, submitted by Didier Derck of Koksyde, Belgium.
Shopping for acoustic amplifiers left me thinking that they often
sounded harsh and tinny and were too expensive for something I would
need only occasionally. My solution? I plugged a six-inch Clarion
two-way car speaker into the "extension speaker output" of my Mesa
Boogie Mark I (reissue model with reverb). It sounds amazing! The
Mesa Boogie provides warmth and depth, and the Clarion offers clarity
and acoustic highs. With the Boogie’s ample gain, it even works
well with a passive piezo, such as the EMG in my flattop and the
Highlander in my resonator.
Send Questions, tips, or observations to Acoustic Guitar’s
online discussion forums at www.acousticguitar.com
or write to Dear A.G., Acoustic Guitar, PO Box 767, San Anselmo,
CA 94979-0767.
SEND QUESTIONS, tips, or observations to Acoustic Guitar’s
online discussion forums at www.acousticguitar.com
or write to Dear A.G., Acoustic Guitar, PO Box 767, San Anselmo,
CA 94979-0767.
Excerpted
from Acoustic
Guitar magazine, March 2001,
No. 99.
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