JJ - thank you for the Yamaha guitar data, acoustic guitars always fall off in the highs, usually about 1,000 Hz from what I have seen.
Art said: Because of the way you have averaged them, much of your "data" show incongruous results.
Not really. I agree I have used different methods, but it always shows a huge increase in SPL. Now the lows, mids and highs may be increased by different levels for different recording setups, but they are all generally the same. They all blow a standard acoustic guitar out of the water in, just by different amounts depending on setup, not even close.
Art said: Because of the way you have averaged them, much of your "data" show incongruous results.
Not really. I agree I have used different methods, but it always shows a huge increase in SPL. Now the lows, mids and highs may be increased by different levels for different recording setups, but they are all generally the same. They all blow a standard acoustic guitar out of the water in, just by different amounts depending on setup, not even close.
Note this is a full song through the horns from an iPhone, it shows what they are capable of doing with 3" full range drivers I am using. Of course this includes a bass guitar. When I say lows go through the roof, I mean it, unbelievable what you hear.
I like a piano low range, down to the lowest key. I think the high keys an a piano above 2,000 Hz sound terrible, but this is just MY OPINION.
I am using the drivers and horns because I like their output, I really like how they increase the warm low end on a guitar. I think it is great. I do NOT hear any lose of tone on the high end, it sounds great, it sparkles, it is not "tinny". I think my guitar sounds wonderful! But this is just MY OPINION. If most people like it, chances of success are high , if not, who knows, we shall see!
I like a piano low range, down to the lowest key. I think the high keys an a piano above 2,000 Hz sound terrible, but this is just MY OPINION.
I am using the drivers and horns because I like their output, I really like how they increase the warm low end on a guitar. I think it is great. I do NOT hear any lose of tone on the high end, it sounds great, it sparkles, it is not "tinny". I think my guitar sounds wonderful! But this is just MY OPINION. If most people like it, chances of success are high , if not, who knows, we shall see!
Perhaps you need a truly portable version, that you can take "out on the road" to confirm your opinion, across a set of other players.
Unsure the mechanics of doing that, aside from the open mic or handing it to a known performer for a video'd "whatta ya think?" YT episode. Rinse and repeat. The latter would be something a real marketer with connections could handle.
I just wonder what's more impressive; a genuine reaction from someone hearing it live for the first time, or someone hearing it first on a nicely done YT recording through their laptop speakers... Certainly there's a chance someone may actually get up and put on their headphones with that, which, you have under your belt and are about to present.
I wonder if you could get something like this inside one of the free spaces? It's <$40 built, takes +12V to run. It's a start toward an integrated solution, where you could pull it out of a case, turn it on and play. Solid state guitar amp DIY kits are pretty rare -
JJ - yes agree a road worthy guitar would be great, def need to package inside the guitar, next step after YouTube, plus of course really needed for professional demos to the bigs, if that happens. 
My video is getting very positive reviews, pretty happy about that so far, have more people to send this to of course, need email addresses, text will not cut it for the long video.
Do I have time to get many guitar players opinions on the road, not a chance, maybe if I retire some day!
I do need an amp kit, but what you show is not enough power, only 14 watts (using 30 watts now), plus it is likely for an electric guitar. That said, the right idea for sure. I have looked and not finding anything small enough just yet, but I have not researched in depth. Thanks and keep it coming brother!
My video is getting very positive reviews, pretty happy about that so far, have more people to send this to of course, need email addresses, text will not cut it for the long video.Do I have time to get many guitar players opinions on the road, not a chance, maybe if I retire some day!
I do need an amp kit, but what you show is not enough power, only 14 watts (using 30 watts now), plus it is likely for an electric guitar. That said, the right idea for sure. I have looked and not finding anything small enough just yet, but I have not researched in depth. Thanks and keep it coming brother!
I think (hope) this thread is interesting and fun. We have had some lively conversations, sooo much better than boring. I like the criticism, helps me learn, and maybe others also. I repeat: "Our critics are our friends, for they show us our faults". Benjamin Franklin quote, he sure had balls!
I think about how different people perceive different sounds in their brain, based on past listening experiences, and likely on other experiences and perceptions that we don't even fully understand yet. The brain, as we all know, has some significant unknown territory, we will find most of it some day.
I know I have some hearing loss, nothing significant yet, but not getting better of course. The good thing is listening to music through headphones and in my car as I travel is still awesome. When my wife talks to me from one or two rooms away, some frequencies are just not there. OK no jokes about that being beneficial.
I wonder about good data vs. ears that are not so good, or pretty damn good if you are young. I am sure this has been studied very heavily, just a thought. I have been trained for decades to use good data (but a different kind of engineering data than what we are discussing on this thread). Personally I think both are very important. I have seen comments from some people saying they don't need a damn chart to hear music. Seriously? Good data can be very consistent, compared to listening environments that can change radically, and affect what you are hearing. Need both, then even better, compare both!
Oh yeah, I now have 43,000 hits on this thread. It went up by 1,000 hits in one week, a new record! People like interesting conversations, I think music freaks especially, keep it coming!
I think about how different people perceive different sounds in their brain, based on past listening experiences, and likely on other experiences and perceptions that we don't even fully understand yet. The brain, as we all know, has some significant unknown territory, we will find most of it some day.
I know I have some hearing loss, nothing significant yet, but not getting better of course. The good thing is listening to music through headphones and in my car as I travel is still awesome. When my wife talks to me from one or two rooms away, some frequencies are just not there. OK no jokes about that being beneficial
.I wonder about good data vs. ears that are not so good, or pretty damn good if you are young. I am sure this has been studied very heavily, just a thought. I have been trained for decades to use good data (but a different kind of engineering data than what we are discussing on this thread). Personally I think both are very important. I have seen comments from some people saying they don't need a damn chart to hear music. Seriously? Good data can be very consistent, compared to listening environments that can change radically, and affect what you are hearing. Need both, then even better, compare both!
Oh yeah, I now have 43,000 hits on this thread. It went up by 1,000 hits in one week, a new record! People like interesting conversations, I think music freaks especially, keep it coming!
Like I said, it would be a "start" and well within anyone's "petty cash", budget. They have 3 models, I assume differing in only how the tone controls are implemented. Unsure which tone control scheme would be most appropriate for acoustic play-through. You could easily ask what their opinion is. I think they were Fender, Marshall and Baxandall, Bax being more like a HiFi tone system than what's typically in a guitar amp.
I'm pretty sure they all use the same power amplifier and would bet it's a common "Chip-Amp". The thing on the heat sink. It'd be pretty easy to get a built one, get a second kit of the same - slice off the power amp section of the second and connect it to the same driving audio signal on the built board and 12V battery power. Voila! Now you have "14W" for each speaker; just the way I think.
Would expect some fanagling anyway to get that board wedged into the spaces you have. Perhaps the power chip-amp / heat sink part would have to reside in a different space than the main board, to get it to all fit inside. Connected by individually soldered wires in a bundle or "umbilical cord".
Doing a grounds up design, board spin in the same shape as your cutout, debug would be 100X more difficult than just buying a finished product, which is mostly why I suggested it - knowing you're just "one guy on the project" and even with no guarantee of out of the box success. You're certainly in the right place to ask "how can I make this work", present the information you'd have about it. People in these parts know about the battery power too...
Last edited:
JJ - I am thinking a total custom amp, not a kit. I know it would be much more expensive, but worth a try. I can't believe the low prices on some of these amps, obviously made in China or other low cost countries, I have to wonder about the quality.
I could give an amp supplier dimensions regarding what would fit in my guitar, and would need 30 watts minimum, I don't think this would be easy to do, but of course can be done if willing to pay, what do you think?
I could give an amp supplier dimensions regarding what would fit in my guitar, and would need 30 watts minimum, I don't think this would be easy to do, but of course can be done if willing to pay, what do you think?
I think you need a good design for such. There's a zillion SS guitar amps to choose from and the one I suggested only seemed like a fairly reasonable start, to get you into the realm of pulling it out of the case, turning it on and playing it - anywhere. I'd bet some of the talented folks here would be glad to design something for you, lay out an odd shaped PCB too, for an appropriate compensation.
The only feature I'd suggest as a "must" is an integrated compressor, which would make it sound louder, supporting the whole gist of your instrument - a louder acoustic guitar. That's just a chip these days, possibly from THAT corp, what DBX became over the years.