Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

MetalManiac

MetalManiac

Li'l Junior Member
it might could be called "tone dead". It ain't a cheap guit fiddle neither. Its just like a block of cement- no resonance whatsoever. Is this guitar worthless, or good for a certain style, i.e., high gain Plexi brown sound or something ? Its actually a Hard Northern Ash Maple neck tremolo equipped Superstrat with a EVH 78 pickup in the bridge. It's so non resonant I can't even get it to feedback like a good Strat. Not terrible sounding with a 6505 type SHO type amp- not too too bright or nothing, and plays really well.

EDIT- I guess with all the cheap tone dead guitars posted here I shouldn't obsess about it. Some of you probably get usable high gain tones out of your crap.
 
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Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Christopher Caruana said:
Meh...id still play it. Your setup might suck maybe??
Click to expand...
d
same setup on all my guitars. Either the action lays flat or close to flat on the fretboard, or I ditch it quick, although this particular guitar has a bit higher action, which should actually help tone, but it doesn't.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Probably make a great MIDI guitar, stick a Roland GK2 on it.

(non-resonant body should be helpful for the MIDI tracking).
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Dedicated slide guitar, maybe? Or just sell it to somebody who doesn't care about liveliness- there are players that don't like a live feel in an axe.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Guitars with no resonance or sustain are great for punk, ska, reggae, some 60's pop and certain vintage Motown R&B Stax tunes.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

"Plays really well" is something to consider. If it's comfortable, the tone dead quality might not be a dealbreaker, because as other folks pointed out there, there can be uses for tone dead guitars.

Tone dead guitars are perfect candidates for high output pickups or active pickups, i.e., pickups that have really dominant sounds of their own vs. working with resonance of woods. The 78 is probably too low output to overcome the tone deadness. Maybe try something like an 85 or 81 or Invader or Tone Zone.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

I'm totally curious to hear this guitar. With every guitar before & after I purchase, I spend a lot of time playing with it unplugged.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Actives is the first thing I can think off.

Sent from my SM-J200G using Tapatalk
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Jerry try gluing the neck in. If its a cheapie it might be a good test to see if it improves anything.

Let me know if you need guidance. aioooooooooooooooooooooooo
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

MetalManiac said:
it might could be called "tone dead". It ain't a cheap guit fiddle neither. Its just like a block of cement- no resonance whatsoever. Is this guitar worthless, or good for a certain style, i.e., high gain Plexi brown sound or something ? Its actually a Hard Northern Ash Maple neck tremolo equipped Superstrat with a EVH 78 pickup in the bridge. It's so non resonant I can't even get it to feedback like a good Strat. Not terrible sounding with a 6505 type SHO type amp- not too too bright or nothing, and plays really well.

EDIT- I guess with all the cheap tone dead guitars posted here I shouldn't obsess about it. Some of you probably get usable high gain tones out of your crap.
Click to expand...

some pics might help. A broken/loose/misplaced truss rod might kill your tone. A low quality bridge might kill your tone. A loose/poor neck joint might kill your tone. Poorly cut saddles or nut might kill your tone. etc.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

MetalManiac said:
it might could be called "tone dead". It ain't a cheap guit fiddle neither. Its just like a block of cement- no resonance whatsoever. Is this guitar worthless, or good for a certain style, i.e., high gain Plexi brown sound or something ? Its actually a Hard Northern Ash Maple neck tremolo equipped Superstrat with a EVH 78 pickup in the bridge. It's so non resonant I can't even get it to feedback like a good Strat. Not terrible sounding with a 6505 type SHO type amp- not too too bright or nothing, and plays really well.

EDIT- I guess with all the cheap tone dead guitars posted here I shouldn't obsess about it. Some of you probably get usable high gain tones out of your crap.
Click to expand...

some dudes take a guitar like this, raise the action way up and play slide on it. Sammy Hagar talked about a guitar like this once and thats what he did.
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

What is the body wood? If it's a solid tonewood and not "laminated tonewood", you might have a plank that needs weight-relieving.

Is it acoustically dead? Sounds like playing rubber bands almost? Or is it just when plugged in? If it's only when plugged in, it could be the pickup is too close to the strings, killing their oscillation. Sometimes when you set for low action, the pickup is the problem because the cavity it's in is not deep enough.

What brand are the bridge and nut? Affordable hardware is affordable for a reason, and it ain't just the labor.
Are the bridge posts in the wood or in inserts in the wood? If inserts, were the holes tight when they went in or did they have to be filled with toothpicks and glue? Are the posts really wobbly in the inserts?
Was this a top-mount-Kahler-to-Floyd-style conversion? Was it converted to Floyd from any other type of bridge, including 6-screw Fender v-trem?

Are the heel and pocket smooth and flat with no feelable ridges or humps? Can you use either one to write a check on without it looking like a 94-year-old's squiggly writing?

Does the neck heel fit tight in the pocket without the bolts in?
 
Re: Any use for a Non resonant guitar?

Deadened nonresonant guitar + emg81 = fantastic super-tight metal tone (IMO)
My rgt is exactly that, although I wouldn't say it's unplugged tone is bad at all, just doesn't have much internal echo/sustain.
It has the heaviest lower-midrange "thunk" of my small collection.
 
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