What do you like in an instrument? Do you like them pretty? Fancy? Different? Well worn? Do you like pretty woods and a pretry back of the guitar? Big or small- does size matter?
I like a smaller instrument and cbs fit the bill. Comfy. :). If I am chording or picking, I want low action, good tone and volume, no buzz..... And I like bass over treble.
If I am using a slide, I like higher action, but still want to be able to finger fret.
I admire the pretty and fancy builds on the nation. But I am not real pretty and I don't like to play a pretty guitar... I do not give a tiny crap if the back is real nice or non! It's okay if you do!
In CBGs, I want the above likes, + I want it electric in a way that kind of doesn't look electric... I like the "I'm 15 years old, I scrounged this stuff and I'm gonna build me a geetar today look." To me, that is our heritage.
What do like, Spike?
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Many well thought out good answers.
I think all of us choose playability and sound before beauty. Some said they aspire to making beautiful instruments.
The thing that stands out is that we love cbgs.
I was trying to think how to express it and being not so tender or emotional, I was having a tough time. It must be the Finn blood in me. I think you said best what I found difficult.
It reminds me of a joke one of my friends from Norway told me. There once was an old Finn who loved his wife so much he told her so.
Uncle John said:
The thing that stands out is that we love cbgs.
I like old stuff-holey Converse,faded Levis,rusty trucks..one thing I've found with cbg's is they age quicker than normal guitars anyway, especially if they're gigged.Nevertheless I like rat builds and I am allergic to chrome..its horrid stuff! lol.
One aspect I see in a surprising amount of builds that I dont like is when the outer strings are placed too far in towards the centre of the neck-you cant reach the skinny string without the slide banging on the wood-boo! aint no use to me bro.
I like handwound pickups not feedback prone piezos (unless its only being played at home/low volumes-then piezos are just fine.
I like fretless cos they have that inaccurate slidey feel
I like fretted cos you can play more distinct notes/chords
sometimes a thrown together heap of junk sounds like magic-you can't design that in and I wouldnt believe anyone who claims they can.Its a lottery and sometimes you win and sometimes you dont.
end of the day cbg's are like kids- they all possess unique properties and try as we might to tame em are a law unto themselves-and I wouldnt have it any other way.
To make a sale, they often need to look pretty - and I like pretty.
But for a personal insturment I still enjoy the quick builds that look to have been put together from scrap and can be either fretted or fretless, and either way i like a medium action. Regardless of looks a pleasing tone is important. Havn't tried using a pup yet so I can't comment on that.
This has been on my mind lately. When I was in afghanistan I recieved 2 awsome guitars from Wichita Sam and from Diane from chicago, both are better than I can make, thing is as soon as I got home I pulled out the last cbg I made. 3 strings totally acoustic. nylon strings but a sweet action on the neck. No frets, still easy to chord since it is nylon strings. I have not put it down since I got home. The thing that makes it work for me is that it is mine. I tweaked it to make it play for me and my effort went into it. I use hand tools only and mine are primitive compared to some, but the idea that I put it all together on my own is what raises the hair on the back of my neck. I was raised poor so I never had a guitar worth bragging over until the thing that I bragged about was that I MADE IT. Anyone can buy one, if they got the cash but to make one requires a little more work and a little more love. Don't get me wrong, I also bought myself a resonater banjo from Sam as soon as I got home as well. I am also recording a new cd with Dianes banjo as we speak. I just know my own guitar will be on the cd as well. It is just that for me cbgs are a road, not a destination. Peace
matt
This has been on my mind lately. When I was in afghanistan I recieved 2 awsome guitars from Wichita Sam and from Diane from chicago, both are better than I can make, thing is as soon as I got home I pulled out the last cbg I made. 3 strings totally acoustic. nylon strings but a sweet action on the neck. No frets, still easy to chord since it is nylon strings. I have not put it down since I got home. The thing that makes it work for me is that it is mine. I tweaked it to make it play for me and my effort went into it. I use hand tools only and mine are primitive compared to some, but the idea that I put it all together on my own is what raises the hair on the back of my neck. I was raised poor so I never had a guitar worth bragging over until the thing that I bragged about was that I MADE IT. Anyone can buy one, if they got the cash but to make one requires a little more work and a little more love. Don't get me wrong, I also bought myself a resonater banjo from Sam as soon as I got home as well. I am also recording a new cd with Dianes banjo as we speak. I just know my own guitar will be on the cd as well. It is just that for me cbgs are a road, not a destination. Peace
matt
Everything. i love the look of high end pro built cbgs, but especially the home built well worn look like uncle johns white owl.
For me i want playabilty and a unique tone. although a guitar dont need to be perfect for me to make it sound good. most of my guitars are junk and ive had to work hard to get them to sound good. nedds to stay in tune though, thats prettty important
Yupper for me too on liking it all like Jeff and yeah, it has to stay in tune. It's kind of surprising to me how well my cbgs hold a tune.
Playability is huge. If it kills my fingers it doesn't play. I've used some electric strings lately. They play easy and sound pretty good.
jeff maurer said:
Everything. i love the look of high end pro built cbgs, but especially the home built well worn look like uncle johns white owl.
For me i want playabilty and a unique tone. although a guitar dont need to be perfect for me to make it sound good. most of my guitars are junk and ive had to work hard to get them to sound good. nedds to stay in tune though, thats prettty important
This is a great topic Uncle John. There are some fascinating answers.
Visually I like my own instruments to be fairly simple and clear. I like to keep the top of the box free from too much hardware, such as grommets, metal corners and control knobs and switches. I also like small simple looking heads.
Interestingly I find that I can often appreciate designs from other makers that I wouldn't want to do on my own instruments, but that's part of the joy of a site like this. Seeing the diversity of approach and sometimes the amazing imagination of some makers.
I like variety, I've built everything from one string diddley bows to full scale upright basses and everything in between. But, for my own use, I keep building 4 string fretted CBGs with low action, some kind of wound pup (probably a humbucker) and volume control... when I'm building for myself, I usually build on the top to show that it's a Cigar Box. I like bright colors and white in paper wound... but, lately I'm gravitating toward natural finish with f-holes.
The nice thing about building, is that you can build on a whim (I often build a CBG to get the sound I want for a particular song). Build, play, enjoy, and pass it along.... then build again...
the best,
Wichita Sam
You sound like me Sam, our taste kind of evolves, changes and sometimes devolves. I like the bright boxes too, the yellows reds and whites. I like to play a really bright 2 string. Don't know why. But for my mainstay 3 strings, I feel best playing a 'homely."
I guess I have tried to build at least one of things that interest me- including a nice bass that I now have no interest in playing.
And the building on a whim thing?? Yes sir. That is when I have the most fun and fun is what it' all about.
Thanks for what you've done for the troups and cbgs.
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