LP's - not as loud accoustically?

[Tommy Tourbus]

I noticed something today when I played my gibbies, LP, explorer, and V, back to back unplugged. The LP projected the least, and was the quietest of the three unplugged. Is this an inherent trait of LP's due to their thickness? Or, do I have one that just happens to be slightly 'dead'?

[WordMan]

Hmm, can't comment on LP's vs. other Gibbies, but in my experience, Fenders as a rule are much louder.

Let's be clear on one thing - loudness for an unplugged solidbody, is NOT a big deal. What matters is how a solidbody *sounds*, tone-wise, unplugged. The benefit of a solidbody that is loud acoustically is that it is *easier to evaluate the acoustic tone* - well, because it is louder. But a solidbody that is not loud acoustically can be a great guitar - but because it is not loud, you have to listen more carefully.

I am so tired of the whole "it sounds like a piano when you strum it unplugged" bulls**t. It may be loud, but is it any good? I have played guitars that I can barely hear unplugged, but sound great amplified - and then, when I go back and really work to hear what is going on, realize that the tone is there unplugged - I just needed to work harder to hear it...

[Tommy Tourbus]

Originally Posted by WordMan

Hmm, can't comment on LP's vs. other Gibbies, but in my experience, Fenders as a rule are much louder.

Let's be clear on one thing - loudness for an unplugged solidbody, is NOT a big deal. What matters is how a solidbody *sounds*, tone-wise, unplugged. The benefit of a solidbody that is loud acoustically is that it is *easier to evaluate the acoustic tone* - well, because it is louder. But a solidbody that is not loud acoustically can be a great guitar - but because it is not loud, you have to listen more carefully.

I am so tired of the whole "it sounds like a piano when you strum it unplugged" bulls**t. It may be loud, but is it any good? I have played guitars that I can barely hear unplugged, but sound great amplified - and then, when I go back and really work to hear what is going on, realize that the tone is there unplugged - I just needed to work harder to hear it...

that's a good point. My explorer and V have a simpler more straightforward sound, while the LP has more complex overtones, if that makes sense.

[Sniper-V]

My strat is louder than most of my LPs,
But,
That doesn't mean my LPs are dead...
And,
Infact they are not, but LPs are considerably darker and warmer than strats.

I think most people are really hearing the strings louder thinking the guitar is "better".

For unplugged solidbodies, I go for the feel and resonance.
That tells more of the story...

[Unburst]

LP's tend not to be so loud acoustically.

IME there is only a small correlation between acoustic and plugged in tone of an electric guitar.

[Stormy]

My R7 is very loud acoustically, might be louder than my Custom Shop Ash Strat.

[buddastrat]

My strats were always louder than my LP's. I think it has something to do with the scale length too. A bigger string and longer neck should sound bigger, no?

Also since strats are usually more resonant, the quiet guitars always seem to have the sustain. All the energy is not used up right away. LP's save and milk that string energy, so less volume acoustically. That's my theory anyhow.

I'm not really familar with V's and X's though.

[bluesjuke]

Generally speaking that is true of Les Pauls but one of mine- an R8 is very loud acoustically.
When I play unplugged late at night my wife says,
"That's too loud!".

She doesn't say that about my other electrics unplugged.

[Jef Bardsley]

Tommy T, my "best" sounding guitar, the one that sustains the longest and has so much resonance a studio engineer once came over to my amp to turn off the reverb when I wasn't using any, is too quiet to be heard over a computer fan (yes, it's an LP).

As far as judging a guitar by its acoustic sound, I'm with WordMan and Sniper-V. In fact, the sound that reaches your ear has left the strings - it won't be coming out of the amp. Like Sniper, I don't listen to an unplugged guitar, I feel it. I want to feel vibration in the upper bout, the sign of a good neck and neck joint.

[83stratman]

All of the LP Stds. I have owned have been very loud acoustically.

[scottlr]

My LP is quite loud IF I pull it off my stomach so the back is all bare. If I pull it close to me, it's not that loud.

[pickaguitar]

I just check if it is resonant...strum a big chord and feel the end of the headstock. That's been a good test in my experiences.

[mojoslide]

I notice this same basic trend. I put it partly down to the maple cap on the LP, because that certainly changes the resonant qualities compared to other guitars. Lifting the LP away from my body does amplify the acoustic tone some - maybe because it lets the Mahogany ring out more or maybe you just hear it resonate more. Who knows? I have to agree that acoustic sound shouldn't be a means of judging an electric guitar's sustain or resonance. Plug it in and see what happens. My LP sustains really well and sounds thick and loud.

[harryjmic]

Originally Posted by Stormy

My R7 is very loud acoustically, might be louder than my Custom Shop Ash Strat.

Same here, mine shakes my hand.

[sinner]

I've heard Strats described as "really semi-hollow body guitars" with all that routing under that big plastic pickguard and then there's the big trem cavity and springs adding to the "acoustic" sound.