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I guess that the title says it all.
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05-24-2024 05:01 AM
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Ken Parker has a long continuing series called Archtoppery on YouTube, and his latest included that clip at the end of it. He explained his thinking and the history of that guitar, which he built solely as an experiment to learn about how to deal with nylon strings. It has undergone multiple redesigns since he first built it decades ago. He still isn't a fan, and says he knows little about nylon string guitars. He's an interesting craftsman, and seems to be very humble and willing to learn. I've learned a lot by watching his videos. Anyone interested in learning about how archtop guitars work should spend some time with Archtoppery. Much of it involves making tools and may not be of interest to all, but it's not hard to skip them if desired.
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Might be the best sounding nylon string archtop I've ever heard...but I still think my $700 Yamaha classical beats it in tone anyday.
But I love that Parker is always trying things. He's a true genius of the guitar.
This guy's a lovely player, and demonstrates what the instrument sounds like very well.
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Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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Think I may like this one even more
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOvIYSIH2_k
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Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
The bridge on that Parker seems very big (= heavy) for a nylon stringer to me.
The 2nd recording above sounds like there might be a piezo pickup in the mix.
Here's another one that has been recorded properly:
Hahl Guitars - Supreme Nylon String
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The Parker Nylonstring sounds a lot less strident than his models made for steelstrings and I have to give it to the player : his left hand technique is pretty good ! No excessive finger-noises, very accurate fingering. Since the tone depends so much on one's right hand - where we strike the string, how much force we use, the angle of our pick or nail or fingertip and the tension/action of the string - a final verdict is impossible. The best outcome could only be a guitar with a unique and singular character, clearly different from a trad. classical guitar and just as different from a "normal" acoustic archtop.
The Hahl model sounds interesting and I might even have the chance to see and play one in person later this year.
An arched top requires more energy to resonate than a flat top where the strings are directly anchored to the top and this lets the flat top guitar (steel - or nylonstring) react so delicately and immediately to the touch of the player, one of the prime aspects of a finely built guitar. To be honest : I'd much rather have an archtop that sounds warm and fat with steel strings , with good sustain and ample volume on tap than a nylon-stringed archtop that has less volume, less sustain and a reduced responsiveness. My personal nylonstring guitar (a HANIKA custom-shop model with a lattice-braced top) is responsive, has a strong fundamental with balanced overtones, a very comfortable neck size and shape and ticks all the boxes for me as a true cross-over guitar. The price was attractive too , compared to a custom-made guitar from an individual luthier.....
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I'd be very curious to know your experiences with the Hahl!
An arched top requires more energy to resonate than a flat top where the strings are directly anchored to the top
I checked in with Isaac of Cranmer guitars about the nylon-string instrument he's been working on. Turns out it's being strung up the first time today, so pretty soon I'll have some soundbites (and will know if I regret not having commissioned one, last year).
Hanika do make some nice sounding instruments, with a wide range of interesting wood choices for the B&S too. Judging from recordings I might even be perfectly happy with some of their traditionally-braced models (and that's coming from someone who doesn't really dig the traditional/Spanish CG sound). From what I understand you can order basically any of their models as a custom build with your choice of nutwidth and fretboard radius.
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Originally Posted by RJVB
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Parker's bridges are generally hollow. He removes most of the wood inside it to make it as light as possible, since he thinks heavy bridges affect vibration. A bridge that high that he made would almost certainly be far lighter than a standard adjustable archtop bridge. He has a video in his series that deals with bridges. AFAIK there is no pickup on the nylon-string archtop. If there were, I would have expected Parker to mention it. He's usually exhaustively thorough on these things.
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Originally Posted by gitman
Sonny S. -- Les Paul Player
Today, 04:18 AM in The Players