blackburncustomguitars Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 Hi everybody, A customer has asked me if I could make him a semi-hollowbody or chambered guitar with nylon strings that could be "picked up" and amped through a standard guitar amp. I really don't know what to say. This is not to be an acoustic. He wants an electric with nylon Strings. Any ideas? Peace, Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert_the_damned Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 I think you could do that with the piezo bridges. you might need an onboard preamp though. I think that's about the only option you've got. can't think of any other way of detecting nylon string vibration other than with piezo's. graph tech ghost saddles look good if your customer is after a 'strat' type bridge (they do a preamp as well) hope that's some help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarGuy Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 Hi everybody, A customer has asked me if I could make him a semi-hollowbody or chambered guitar with nylon strings that could be "picked up" and amped through a standard guitar amp. I really don't know what to say. This is not to be an acoustic. He wants an electric with nylon Strings. Any ideas? Peace, Dave ← With nylon strings you would have to use piezo's under the bridge. A coil pickup only senses something with a magnetic field (steel strings). Thats really the only way I can think to do it. The problem- its going to sound more like an electro/acoustic than an electric. If thats what he's looking for then great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 If he insists on magnetic pickups, suggest using silk & steel (compound) strings. Closer to the sound of nylon, with lower tension than regular steel strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mledbetter Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 all you need is an under saddle pickup.. b-band, baggs ribbon transducer, there are a ton of em. b-band and baggs are probably your best bet. You don't want a straight thinline style piezo.. quack city.. You need something that will pick up all the nuances a bit better. so you're talkin a chambered solid body, maybe an f hole with an classical style bridge and a classical peghead. Shouldn't be too difficult. Hey no fingerboard radius to worry about either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sepultura999 Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 malmsteen had one made. took a fender, got an altered pickguard, and used some undersaddle pickup. Depending on the bridge, you could get graphtech ghost saddles, i'm told they're one of the best on the market right now, of course there are others. I do know that the graphtech makes them for about any bridge: TOM, strat, tele, and i think even floyds. Check their site out and they say what guitars can take what. -Jamie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclej Posted June 2, 2005 Report Share Posted June 2, 2005 lr baggs "double barrell" might be just what you're looking for..it combines a ribbon transducer for under the saddle and a FET condenser microphone that you could place in one of the sound chambers..comes with a end-pin jack stereo preamp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frank falbo Posted June 3, 2005 Report Share Posted June 3, 2005 You could try the guts from an electric Variax. Then you'd have the nylon string sound fed through the same simulators that the steel strings would have been fed through. It would truly be like a nylon string electric guitar. I mean it would be fake, and it would attack and sustain like nylon strings, but the algorithms would be the same. So it might produce pretty passable electric sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackburncustomguitars Posted June 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2005 Hi everybody, Thanks to all of you who replied. You've been very helpful, and I really appreciate it. DaveYou could try the guts from an electric Variax. Then you'd have the nylon string sound fed through the same simulators that the steel strings would have been fed through. It would truly be like a nylon string electric guitar. I mean it would be fake, and it would attack and sustain like nylon strings, but the algorithms would be the same. So it might produce pretty passable electric sounds. ← Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mutronboy Posted June 3, 2005 Report Share Posted June 3, 2005 (edited) Hi Dave, There's been a bunch of solidbody nylon stringers...Gibson made the Chet Atkins model.. I think Washburn and a few other Japanese companies made them.. There's also the Parker Fly nylon which may use a Fishman pickup... might be worth looking into what the Fly system is..they usually sound good.. that Baggs Double Barrel looks like a good system... I've got a regular Baggs in my Gilet 00-45...it's great Cheers, Dave Edited June 3, 2005 by mutronboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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