subject: Reasons for the popularity of Electric Guitars [print this page] Reasons for the popularity of Electric Guitars
Electric guitars has influenced much of the music of the twentieth century and popular culture. Due to all the possibilities to get special sounds and due to the fact that is easier to learn to play it than an acoustic one, the electric guitar has become one of the most popular musical instruments nowadays not only for aficionados but for professionals as well. This guitar relies on an amplifier that used to manipulate the tone of the instrument electronically. This instrument uses what you call pickups to change the vibration of the strings into an electrical current, which is then amplified. The electrical signal that emits from the guitar may be altered electronically before it passes into the amplifier. This makes the final sound. Some of the Electric guitars may sound like an acoustic guitar with the flip of a switch.
Electric guitar does not have an hollow body and the guitar makes very little sound when you pluck the strings. When the strings are plucked an electric current is generated. This current is then sent through a wire to an amplifier. The current produced varies depending on how dense the string is and how much movement occurs. Initially the electric guitar was used only jazz music, but now it is used in many other genres of music such as rock and roll, blues, country, new-age and modern classical music.
Body of most electric guitars are typically made of wood. It is rare to find a piece of hardwood that is wide enough to create the entire guitar so it is hard to find a guitar made of one piece of wood. Most guitars are created with two pieces of wood and have a seam going down the center of the body. Maple, ash, mahogany, basswood, alder, and poplar wood are commonly used to create the body of an electric guitar. Many of the guitar bodies are made up of cheap wood such as ash glued on top of a wood such as maple. Guitars that are made in this way are called "flame tops". Some electric guitars are made of such materials as carbon composites, aluminum alloys, or a plastic material such as poly carbonate.Most of the electric guitars have solid body and do not have a sound hole. Instead of sound hole, they have "pickups". Pickups are small microphones that capture the sound of the strings and then the sound is amplified.
Playing an electric guitar is not different from playing an acoustic guitar. If you can able to play an acoustic guitar, then you can play an electric guitar. The advantage of the electric guitar is that, you don't need to press on the fret as strong as the acoustic guitar to get a clear sound. So for a beginner it is easier to play an electric guitar than the acoustic one.
