Major Research Project The misconception of vintage

Major Research Project
The misconception of vintage
Name: Wouter Pols
Student number: 5-ROT-503031
Course: BAP 512
College: SAE Rotterdam
Degree: Bachelor Audio Productions
Submission date: 24 April 2013
Word Count: 14,826 (excl. annexes)
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement of the BA
(Honours) in Recording Arts Degree
1
Abstract
Vintage acoustic western guitars are very popular among musicians, collectors
and investors. This research project aims at finding out whether these old
marvels of craftsmanship sound better than newer instruments and whether
vintage adds emotional and musical value.
Three research streams are explored to find answers to these questions: desk
research, personal interviews with experts and a visual and sound test with five
guitars from different periods and price ranges.
Materials, building techniques and craftsmanship determine the quality of
acoustic western guitars. Value is much more difficult to define. Several aspects
impact the value such as (again) craftsmanship and materials, originality, rarity,
brand, emotions, trends and environmental concerns. A distinction should be
made between monetary, emotional and musical value.
The desk research and the expert interviews showed much coherence in the
relevance of the above aspects. The visual and sound test yielded some
surprising results. In the blind sound test, general music lovers turned out to be
equally good as experts in identifying the guitars with the best sound. Vintage
did not add value in this test. However, the desk research and the interviews
revealed that vintage may deliver added musical value.
Our main research question ‘Is it justified that guitars become more expensive
with age?’ cannot always be answered affirmatively. The original quality, the
maintenance and use over the years of the individual guitar determine the
answer.
2
The individual quality and character of an acoustic western guitar also
determines the musical value. The hypothesis ‘Vintage adds emotional value,
not musical value’ proved not to be 100% true. The three research streams
showed that the correct statement should be: ‘Vintage always adds emotional
value and sometimes musical value.’
3
Table of contents
Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 1
Preface..................................................................................................................................................... 5
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 7
Methodology ........................................................................................................................................... 8
1. Research stream 1: desk research ..................................................................................................... 10
1.1. History of the acoustic western guitar ........................................................................................... 10
1.2. The quality of acoustic western guitars ......................................................................................... 12
1.3. The value of acoustic western guitars ............................................................................................ 15
1.4. Aspects that play a role in determining the value of acoustic western guitars ............................. 16
1.4.1. Materials and craftsmanship ............................................................................................... 16
1.4.2. Brand ................................................................................................................................... 18
1.4.3. Emotional aspects ............................................................................................................... 19
1.4.4. Skills of the guitarist ............................................................................................................ 21
1.4.5. Environmental aspects ........................................................................................................ 21
1.4.6. Trends .................................................................................................................................. 23
1.5. Relationship between quality and value ........................................................................................ 24
1.6. Do acoustic western guitars get better with age? ......................................................................... 25
1.7. Does vintage add emotional and musical value? ........................................................................... 26
1.8. Conclusions from the desk research .............................................................................................. 28
2. Research stream 2: expert interviews ............................................................................................... 30
2.1. The quality of acoustic western guitars ......................................................................................... 31
2.2. The value of acoustic western guitars ............................................................................................ 33
2.3. Aspects that play a role in determining the value of acoustic western guitars ............................. 33
2.3.1. Materials and craftsmanship ............................................................................................... 33
2.3.2. Brand ................................................................................................................................... 34
2.3.3. Emotional aspects ............................................................................................................... 35
2.3.4. Skills of the guitarist ............................................................................................................ 36
2.3.5. Environmental aspects ........................................................................................................ 37
2.3.6. Trends .................................................................................................................................. 38
2.4. Relationship between quality and value ........................................................................................ 39
2.5 Do acoustic western guitars get better with age? .......................................................................... 40
2.6. Does vintage add emotional and musical value ............................................................................. 42
2.7. Conclusions from the expert interviews ........................................................................................ 43
4
3. Research stream 3: visual and sound test ......................................................................................... 46
3.1. Description of the visual test .......................................................................................................... 47
3.2. The guitar selection and its limitations .......................................................................................... 47
3.3. Description of the sound test ......................................................................................................... 50
3.4. Results of the general panel ........................................................................................................... 51
3.4.1. Visual test ............................................................................................................................ 52
3.4.2. Sound test............................................................................................................................ 53
3.5. Results of the expert panel ............................................................................................................ 54
3.5.1. Visual test ............................................................................................................................ 55
3.5.2. Sound test............................................................................................................................ 56
3.6. Results of the focus group .............................................................................................................. 57
3.6.1. Visual test ............................................................................................................................ 57
3.6.2. Sound test............................................................................................................................ 58
3.7. Conclusions of the visual and sound test ....................................................................................... 59
3.8. Overall test conclusions.................................................................................................................. 62
Limitations ............................................................................................................................................. 63
Recommendations ................................................................................................................................ 64
Conclusions............................................................................................................................................ 65
Reference list ......................................................................................................................................... 66
Bibliography........................................................................................................................................... 68
Annex 1 – Complete experts interviews................................................................................................ 72
Annex 2 – Screen shots of webpage with guitar test ............................................................................ 99
Annex 3 – Full results visual and sound test general panel ................................................................ 102
Annex 4 – Full results visual and sound test expert panel .................................................................. 103
Annex 5 – List of sound fragments on CD ........................................................................................... 104
5
Preface
Old instruments are often presented at auctions at exorbitant prices. It is true
that some components such as rare species of woods have become scarce.
Furthermore, old craftsmen who put their heart and soul as well as many hours
of hard work into making an instrument, built beautiful guitars. However,
building techniques have evolved over the years. Current instrument makers
have tools at their disposal that their predecessors could only dream of. These
new tools enable them to build instruments with great precision. Modern guitar
builders, too, put much passion into their craft. This results in instruments that
are extremely beautiful, that sound and play well.
So, the question arises: is it true that older instruments sound better than new
instruments? If it is indeed true, then it is justified that instruments become
more expensive over time. But if it is not true, why should old instruments be so
expensive? What other factors determine the price: who built the instrument,
which brand it is, what its history is, who played it, how many copies of a
particular model are still around? People sometimes have a very strong
emotional connection with an instrument that cannot be translated into monetary
terms.
The key research question that this research project addresses is: Is it justified
that acoustic western guitars become more expensive with age? The hypothesis
to be presented and researched in this report is: Vintage adds emotional value,
not musical value.
Just to illustrate the quality/value dilemma of old instruments: A violin built by
the famous Antonio Stradivari fetched almost USD 16 million at an auction. Yet,
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in several blind listening tests1 experts could not tell the difference in sound
quality between a violin built by this famous Italian instrument builder and
excellent copies built in the 20th century.
Focus on acoustic western guitars
Being a guitar player and an admirer of beautiful instruments, the writer of this
research report was intrigued by how this works with guitars. Obviously, a choice
has to be made between acoustic and electric guitars. The focus of this research
is on acoustic guitars, as effects processors and amps can have a huge impact on
the sound of electric guitars. Acoustic guitars recorded with a microphone are
assessed purely on their own sonic qualities like violins. There are several types
of acoustic guitars. This research project was narrowed down to steel-string
western guitars, which are used most frequently in pop music and which have
the researcher’s special interest.
1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stradivarius
7
Acknowledgements
Doing this research project was both a fascinating and a challenging journey. I
owe much thanks to my lecturers at the SAE Institute in Rotterdam, who taught
me about the practical and theoretical side of audio engineering and helped me
to define the direction in which I hope to develop.
A special word of thanks is due to Matt Ogden, who kept me on track during the
past two years, and Elmer Laan, who stimulated me and gave me valuable tips in
completing this research project.
I would like to thank Philip de Koning, Tom Pearce, Ron de la Beij, Matt Ogden,
Jerry Reedijk, Gordon Todd and Chris Pastijn for sharing their expertise through
the interviews. Ron and Chris also contributed instruments to the sound test and
Chris played all the guitars in the sound test. Thanks are also due to Nicole
Damen for the final native speaker check of the text.
Last but not least, I would like to thank my parents for their support. My mother
Geertje for typing transcripts of all the interviews and my dad Wim for editing
the English text, for helping me set up the sound test and giving me access to
his network in the music business.
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Methodology
Three different research streams were followed to find an answer to the main
research question ‘Is it justified that acoustic western guitars become more
expensive with age’ and to assess whether the hypothesis ‘Vintage adds
emotional value not musical value’ is true or false:
1. Desk research
2. Interviews with experts
3. A visual and sound test
Desk research
A number of guitar books as wells as a large number of articles and web sources
were explored to provide a theoretical basis for answering the main research
question and validating the hypothesis. The number of available sources was
almost infinite. Therefore, it was necessary to narrow down the information to a
clear structure that could also be applied in the information generated by the
expert interviews.
Interviews
Books and articles carry a wealth of knowledge, but focused questions asked to
experts in one-on-one personal interviews deliver additional valuable insights. A
series of seven interviews with guitar specialists was conducted: a guitar builder,
an experienced all-round guitarist, a store-owner who caters to the beginners’
market, the manager of a store who serves the high-end market, a famous
producer and engineer and two lecturers who not only shared their enthusiastic
musical experiences but also addressed the research topic from their academic
background.
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The full interviews are presented in the annexes. The research report carries
significant findings from the interviews structured in the same manner as the
desk research has been structured.
Visual and sound test
The third research stream consisted of a test with five acoustic guitars that
differed in age, brand and price. The test consisted of two parts: a visual test
and a sonic test. Participants were first asked which guitars they thought would
sound best based on a photograph and description. Then they were asked to
rank the guitars based on five sound fragments in random order. There were two
test panels: one for general music lovers who were asked via email and
Facebook and one for experts who were approached personally, via e-mail and
via a guitar forum. At the instigation of the SAE tutors, the test was put to a
third group: a focus group consisting of lecturers and students at SAE Institute
Rotterdam.
The test aimed to explore the relationship between the quality and the value of
acoustic western guitars and the musical value of vintage guitars. Furthermore, it
was interesting to compare differences between the results of the visual test and
the sonic test. Another objective was to compare the results of the general panel,
the expert panel and the focus group.
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1. Research stream 1: desk research
To facilitate the search for answers to the main research question and for
validation of the hypothesis, this chapter has been structured in the same way as
the chapter with highlights from the expert interviews.
Before presenting the findings of the desk research, this chapter starts with a
brief history of the acoustic western guitar.
1.1. History of the acoustic western guitar
There is much scientific discussion about the earliest roots of the guitar. The
most commonly used theory was that the guitar is an evolution of the lute of the
Greek kithara. However, in the 1960s Dr. Michael Kasha2 turned the theory
around and came up with evidence that these instruments had evolved from
predecessors of the guitar. The earliest string instruments were bowl harps and
tanburs3, long-necked stringed instruments with a small egg- or pear-shaped
body, with an arched or round back, usually with a soundboard of wood or hide,
and a long, straight neck. Tomb paintings in Egypt show that these instruments
were played 3,500 to 4,000 years ago.
The word guitar stems from ‘tar’, the Sanskrit word for ‘string’. The Moors
brought the four-stringed oud to Spain. The Europeans added frets to this
instrument and called it lute. An instrument that greatly influenced the creation
of the guitar as we know it today is the vihuela de mano, an instrument with
eight to twelve strings that was introduced around the 16th century.
2
3
Dr. Michael Kasha, August 1968, ‘A New Look at The History of the Classic Guitar’, Guitar Review 30, pp.3-12.
Paul Guy, 2001, ‘A brief history of the guitar’
11
Although the predecessors differ in the form of the construction, there is a
shared pattern because these instruments are made out of a wooden body with
the use of strings.
Countries such as Spain, Italy, and England have a rich history in the
development of the stringed instruments that goes back centuries, while the
acoustic western guitar, which is the focal point of our research topic, has only a
relatively short history. Its origins are in America and its development
progressed most in the period between the 1st and 2nd World War.
In the late 1700s, the first six-string guitar introduced was what we now refer to
as the classical guitar. Famous musician and luthier Antonio Torres invented a
new bracing development of fan-strutting. It allowed the guitar to have a bigger
body size which produced a louder volume.
In the early 1800s, Christian Friedrich Martin4 emigrated from Germany to the
United States where he established himself as instrument maker. He became a
legendary guitar maker. The use of the 'X-bracing' in his guitars provided the
strength needed to facilitate future musical developments.
Traditionally, gut strings, made from animal intestines, were used and these did
not require the construction strength which steel strings demanded. The use of
steel strings on fragile guitars designed to carry gut strings led to dreadful
results. As early as 1891, specially designed components for steel strings, such
as reinforced bridges were introduced. Strength capability provided by X-bracing
contributed to making a steel string guitar.
4
www.martinguitar.com
12
In the 19th century, communication and transportation improved. This benefited
the popularity of the guitar and also ensured that building techniques and
knowledge about the instrument became more wide-spread. New musical genres
emerged like country and western music. In the 1920s, interest in steel-string
guitars increased and Martin catalogued its first steel-strung model, the 2-17. In
1931, the first dreadnought guitars were manufactured. Originally the fret board
had 12 frets, but in 1934 a 14-fret board was introduced and was adopted as the
regular pattern.
The World Wars caused materials to become scarce. Limited numbers of highquality production guitars like the pre 1935 Martin D-18 and D-24 are among the
most highly-priced collector's items today.
The modern western steel-string guitar as we know today consists of a wooden
body with steel strings. Different sizes and types of acoustic western guitars are
produced like the flat-top and the arch-top guitar.
It is remarkable to observe that the guitar models built by luthiers and
companies like Martin and Gibson in the 19th century, have largely remained
unaltered to this day.
1.2. The quality of acoustic western guitars
Most experts state that the choice of the tone wood is one of the main aspects
that determine the sound and mostly therefore the quality of acoustic guitars.
This applies particularly to the top. Spruce is the standard material for tops,
especially Sitka. It has a powerful direct tone that retains its clarity when played
forcefully. Cedar, particularly Western Red Cedar, is popular when a player is
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looking for a balanced warm sound. It is popular among finger-style players.
Mahogany has a strong punchy tone that is well suited to country blues playing.
Maple is more acoustically transparent due to its lower response rate and high
degree of internal damping. Rosewood has a high response rate and broad range
of overtones. It is an expensive and nowadays rare type of wood that produces a
rich sound.
There are other parts that play a role in determining the sound and quality of an
acoustic western guitar such as the finger board, for which hardwoods or
rosewood produce a good sustain. The tuning heads should enable accurate and
stable tuning. The nut (the slotted piece of bone or synthetic material at the end
of the neck) and the bridge also play a part as well as the finish, which can affect
how a guitar vibrates.
The size and shape of an acoustic guitar have a big effect on the volume. Its lowend response and high-end clarity in particular, are in direct correlation to its
body size and its overall internal dimensions. Bigger guitars, like the Jumbos
made by Gibson, produce more volume and heavier low notes. Smaller guitars
will usually have a lower volume, clear highs and good balance and articulation.
However, there are smaller types of guitars that still produce a good volume. Any
good acoustic guitar should at least be loud enough for the listener in a mediumsized room to hear it clearly.
The ratio of strength to lightness is also an important factor5. The lighter and
thinner a guitar top is, the more it will vibrate when a string is plucked, and
convert vibration of that string into acoustic volume. At the same time, however,
this soundboard has to be strong enough to withstand the force of the tuned-up
5
Dave Hunter, 2011, ‘The Rough Guide to Guitar’, ISBN 9781848365858, Penguin Group
14
steel strings pulling upon it. This force represents around 175lbs of pressure on
the average flat-top. If one would make the guitar's top thick enough to
withstand this string pull on its own, the sound volume would be very low, so
luthiers (the technical name for guitar builders) use braces glued to the
underside of the top to strengthen it, which enables the use of a soundboard that
is thin enough to vibrate freely.
Matt Griffith, an American guitarist who writes acoustic guitar reviews for the
magazine Music Gear Review, mentions the importance of the bracing. “Most of
the bracing falls into to two categories: straight bracing and scalloped bracing.
Scalloped bracing gives superior resonance because the braces are shaved
down. The soundboard has to be braced to provide the strength needed to
support the tension of the strings. This means extra wood which can dampen the
sound. With scalloped bracing, there is less wood without sacrificing any
strength. Scalloped bracing was used in pre-war Martins and is still used in
higher-end instruments.”6
Last but certainly not least, the strings are vital to how a guitar will sound. If
strings are too old, much of the tone will have disappeared from them and it will
be difficult to tune the guitar. A € 5,000 guitar may still sound dull with a set of
old strings. A new set of strings anywhere between € 10 and € 25 can make a
world of difference in sound.
6
Matt Griffith, 2010, ‘Key factors that determine the sound of an acoustic guitar’,
http://www.articleyard.com/key-factors-determine-sound-acoustic-guitar, accessed April 2013
15
1.3. The value of acoustic western guitars
When taking a look at value, we first have to define what value is. The Collins
dictionary7 defines value as: “the desirability of a thing, often in respect of some
property such as usefulness or exchangeability: worth, merit or importance”. The
connotation ‘in respect of some property’ already denotes that there can be
several properties that define the value. This is certainly the case for acoustic
western guitars. Value can be interpreted in terms of monetary value. Each
guitar has a market value. In appraising that market value several factors play a
role and these will be explored in this report. In several of the articles researched
it was emphasized that the market value of a guitar is not necessarily its true
financial value. The guitar market, just like the stock market, is prone to ups and
downs and trends can have a significant impact on prices.
A guitar may have a low market value, but it can be priceless for its owner
because of his or her history with the instrument. Therefore, value can be very
personal. Emotional value is definitely an important consideration in determining
the value of a guitar.
In this chapter, a number of aspects are explored that play a role in determining
the value of an acoustic western guitar. The same aspects were researched in
the series of personal interviews in the second research stream to achieve a good
comparison between ‘theory’ and ‘practice’.
7
Collins English Dictionary, 1979, ISBN 0-00-433080-3
16
1.4. Aspects that play a role in determining the value of acoustic western
guitars
1.4.1. Materials and craftsmanship
In the discussion of quality, the materials used for making acoustic western
guitars were mentioned as the main factor. This is substantiated by Richard
Johnston8, an expert appraiser, who states that in appraising the value of an
acoustic guitar he looks for three main things:
1. The structural condition and playability
2. The originality of the components and the finish
3. What repairs have been performed and how well they have been
performed.
The overall condition of the guitar and its adjustment impact both the sound and
playability. Richard Johnston says: “The structural condition of an instrumental is
critical because it determines what repairs, if any, are needed to put it in optimal
playing condition. That includes the condition of the frets, straightness of the
neck, neck angle and string action. It is also important to use an inspection
mirror to check for loose braces and, on steel-string flattops, excessive wear to
the bridge plate. On a guitar that has had lots of use and string changes, those
innocuous little brass balls at the end of each string can wreak havoc with the
thin piece of wood glued to the underside of the top just beneath the bridge.”
The state of originality is crucial for the value of an acoustic western guitar.
According to John Levan9, who operates a vintage guitar repair business in
California, a guitar that is completely original will always be worth more than the
8
Richard Johnston, December 2010, ‘How to appraise a guitar’, Acoustic Guitar magazine
John Levan, ‘What to look for when buying a vintage guitar’,
http://www.guitarservices.com/articles/vintage_investments.asp , accessed April 2013
9
17
same guitar that has been changed or repaired. A customized guitar may look
and play better, but it will never retain its value as much as an original guitar
will. Altering the finish may dramatically reduce the price. So, it is better to have
a battered original than a pretty-looking refurbished guitar that is worth much
less.
In practice, old guitars have often been repaired or modified over the years.
Some repairs, such re-setting the neck and re-fretting the fingerboard, if
performed by a skilled technician, enhance the playability and the tone of the
guitar and may enhance its value. But quite often, untrained repairs and
modifications have been performed to acoustic guitars that may greatly
depreciate their value. The lesson to be learned is that if repairs need to be done
to vintage guitars, these should be done by a skilled luthier.
The materials may be of superb quality, but if these are not used in the hands of
skilled craftsmen, the final result will never be a great guitar. In the next part of
this chapter, the focus is on brand. Famous brands like Martin, Gibson or Taylor
have earned their reputation by building high-quality, valuable instruments over
a very long period of time. But there are also numerous luthiers who work on an
individual basis and build guitars for a small clientele who can afford to have
such a custom guitar built for them. In the series of expert interviews we feature
guitar builder Philip de Koning. He brought two acoustic steel string guitars that
he built to the interview. The materials used, the sound, the playability and the
finish of these guitars were absolutely superb and could stand comparison with
the top models of famous guitar brands. Such individually built instruments will
have tremendous value for their owners, but it is questionable what their market
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value will be. Once a famous guitarist starts to play a guitar made by such a
luthier and comments favourably on it, the value may go up considerably.
1.4.2. Brand
Many guitarists who are looking for an acoustic western guitar will look for a
particular brand. There are brands such as Fender that offers guitars in almost
any price range. There are also brands that offer guitars in lower price ranges
under a different brand name. Gibson, for instance, offers good guitars in the
lower and medium price ranges under the name Epiphone. Generally speaking,
the lower price range extends to about € 500, the medium range is roughly
between € 500 – € 1,000 and above that there is a large number of higher price
ranges extending to more than € 10,000 and even much higher for vintage
instruments.
Lower priced instruments can be of good quality. Today, most guitars are
manufactured with CNC computer-controlled routing and cutting technology.
Therefore, the dimensions are very precise. If the materials used are of a fair
quality, the manufacturing process is done properly and attention is paid to
adjustment and tuning, good instruments can be made and offered at very
reasonable prices.
But the famous brands have an added value. Gibson and Martin are the leaders
in the acoustic western guitar market. Both these companies pioneered the
development of the instrument. In 1833, Christian Friedrich Martin, a German
guitar builder, emigrated to New York and later settled in Pennsylvania, where he
founded a business that now has a world-class reputation.10 Orville H. Gibson
10
C.F. Martin Guitars, www.martinguitar.com [accessed April 2013]
19
started to make his first mandolins and guitars in 1894 and founded his company
in Michigan in 1902. It is now headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.11
Apart from the emphasis on quality, a distinct advantage of these brands is that
they have documented their guitars well. Initially, Martin only added the brand
name to its guitars, but since 1898 each Martin guitar contains a serial number
to trace back the year of origin. Gibson gave its guitars factory order numbers or
serial numbers.
Other brands like Taylor, Washburn and Gretsch have gained a reputation that
added value to their instruments.
Famous musicians have an impact on the value of a particular brand or model.
An example is Eric Clapton, who endorses Martin guitars. The company offers
several exclusive Eric Clapton signature models. Elvis Presley and the Everly
Brothers contributed greatly to the popularity of the Gibson acoustic guitars.
Scarcity of a particular model may have a huge impact on the value. A Martin D18 from before the Second World War, for instance, is far more valuable than a
Martin 0-17 from the same period. It is a matter of supply and demand and true
collectors are prepared to pay large sums for rare guitars.
1.4.3. Emotional aspects
At the beginning of this chapter, a clear distinction was made between monetary
value and emotional value. Emotional value is very personal and cannot be
expressed in money. Even a very cheap guitar can have great emotional value
for its owner. Maybe it was the first guitar he bought, or maybe it was a gift from
his parents who have since passed away. A guitar can have a strong emotional
11
Wikipedia on Gibson Guitar Corporation,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibson_Guitar_Corporation#Early_history [accessed April 2013)
20
value because its owner used it to write a hit song or to record a first album. No
academic or scientific rules can be applied here. It is all about the personal
relationship between the owner and the guitar.
Emotions also play a role in purchasing an acoustic western guitar. Perhaps the
buyer has a strong affinity with a specific brand or a model that is played by a
guitar hero. Or perhaps the buyer will go into a music shop, start playing some
guitars and chooses one based on playability, sound or gut feeling.
A study by the Italian scholar Domenico Consoli12 reveals that the purchase
decisions of customers are driven by two kinds of needs: functional needs
satisfied by product functions and emotional needs associated with the
psychological aspects of product ownership. The products must generate
emotions but also present good functionality.
Branding plays an important role in satisfying the emotional needs. Brands
supply emotional energy. In doing so, they create better relationships with
potential consumers with the ability that they have to tell stories that excite
(emotional brands) and integrate communication, quality, tradition, identity
(brand sensitivity).
These emotional aspects play a strong role in buying a vintage guitar. Such an
instrument is the product of hard work and dedication of a skilled craftsman and
it has a long history. It is a work of art and, provided it has been treated well, a
joy to play. That is an emotional value that goes far beyond the financial value of
owning stocks or bonds.
12
Consoli, D., 2009, Emotions that influence purchase decisions and their electronic processing, Annales
Universitatis Apulensis Series Oeconomica, 11(2)
21
1.4.4. Skills of the guitarist
The skills of the guitarist have big impact on how a guitar sounds. This aspect is
discussed rather extensively in the expert interviews. The paragraph in this
chapter, is, therefore, kept brief. In the literature accessed for this project,
some authors state how a great guitar player can make cheap guitars sound
good and how a beginning player can never get the maximum out of an
expensive guitar. Consequently, it is not advisable for a beginning guitarist to
immediately buy an expensive guitar as he will not be able to benefit from its full
potential.
1.4.5. Environmental aspects
In the past, many guitars were made of Brazilian rosewood, a type of wood that
is now forbidden under current environmental laws. Someone crossing the US
border with a vintage guitar should make sure that he or she has the proper
documents stating the age of the instrument. If not, the guitar owner could run
the risk of having the instrument confiscated or even of being pressed with
criminal charges. The US has a law named the Lacey Act, which stems from
1900. It prohibits the trade in wildlife, fish and plants that have been illegally
taken, transported or sold. In 2008, the Act was expanded considerably with a
broader section of plants and plant products. Guitar maker Gibson recently
settled a dispute with the US Department of Justice about two consignments of
supposedly illegal woods from Madagascar. Gibson protested fiercely claiming it
had done nothing wrong but eventually accepted a $ 300,000 fine plus a $
22
50,000 donation to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to avoid substantial
costs of further legal proceedings13.
Tonal woods are becoming scarce and guitar makers are becoming increasingly
sensitive to respond to the international environmental lobby. They are seeking
co-operation with non-governmental organizations such as the Forest
Stewardship Council (FSC) and with suppliers to deliver FSC certified woods that
can be used for the production of guitars. Martin and Taylor play a leading role in
these initiatives. Martin is steadily increasing its production of 100% FSC certified
wood guitars. On its website14 the company states that is has “developed
numerous sustainable-yield, alternative wood guitars for industry-wide
exhibitions intended to educate our consumers and provide direction for the
company and industry”. The company recognizes CITES (Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora) as “the
governing authority on endangered species and closely follows their directives.”
In an interview Dick Boak15, Martin Guitars’ director of artist and public relations,
said: “But it’s a tough sell because there is a tremendous amount of education
required. Guitarists are all tree huggers right up to the point they buy their
guitar. Then they all want Brazilian rosewood and Adirondack spruce.”
13
Kate Sheppard, 7 August 2012, ‘Gibson guitars and Feds settle in illegal wood case’, www.motherjones.com ,
http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2012/08/gibson-and-feds-settle-illegal-wood-case, [accessed
March 2013]
14
www.martinguitar.com
15
Musical Merchandise Review, October 2009, ‘The Environmental Consequences of Guitar Making: The
Present, and the Future’ http://www.mmrmagazine.com/860/articles/featured/the-environmentalconsequences-of-guitar-making-the-present-and-the-future/ [accessed March 2013]
23
1.4.6. Trends
At first glance, acoustic western guitars do not seem to be very susceptible to
trends. The design of Martin D-18 as it was built in the 1930s has hardly been
altered to this day. The same goes for old Gibson models.
However, there have certainly been technical innovations such as by Charles H.
Kaman16, an aeronautical engineer known for his pioneering work in helicopter
and aerospace design. His engineers made discoveries about the physics of
vibration and acoustics as critical factors in the design and manufacturing of
helicopter rotor blades. Being an enthusiastic guitar player, Kaman founded
Ovation guitars and came up with a revolutionary semi-parabolic body made of
Lyrachord, a material comprising interwoven layers of glass filament and bonding
resin. Country star Glen Campbell proved to be a perfect ambassador for the
Ovation guitars.
There are also trends in the use of guitars. While sales in the US of electric
guitars and basses have shown a distinct decline in recent years, the sales of
acoustic guitars went up. In 2012, the US market for acoustic guitars was larger
than the market for electric guitars, with 1,326,500 acoustic guitars sold versus
1,162,890 electric guitars17. The rise of ‘unplugged’ concerts and events, the
rapidly increased number of female guitarists and the popularity of
singer/songwriters has given a boost to the market for acoustic guitars.
It is interesting to observe that young children, boys and girls alike, are
embracing the acoustic guitar. In the past, guitars for children were often not
very good. Taylor created a new niche with the Baby Taylor, a small excellent
guitar. Not only children liked it, but also adults, partly because these small yet
16
17
http://www.ovationguitars.com/whyovation/the_history [accessed April 2013]
Source: The music trades online, http://www.musictrades.com/census.html [accessed April 2013]
24
well-sounding guitars were easy to transport. Gibson and Martin immediately
responded with similar small-sized quality guitars.
Another notable trend, which is no doubt stimulated by the scarcity of tone
woods discussed before, is the recycling of wood for building guitars.18 Discarded
mahogany church pews have proved to be great material for making guitar
necks. A special example of recycling is reuse of logs that have been at a bottom
of a river-bed for decades. In the past, redwood logs were floated across rivers
to saw-mills. Some of these logs sank to the bottom and remained there for a
long time. They did not rot as water tends to preserve tight-grained, first-growth
redwood. Moreover, some of these logs absorbed minerals from the silt at the
river bottom, changing the natural redwood to all kinds of colours.
1.5. Relationship between quality and value
In previous sections of this chapter, the conclusion was drawn that there are
different ways to define value. When value is perceived as market value or
monetary value, there is definitely a relationship between quality and value. The
quality of the materials used, the craftsmanship of the builders, the playability
and the general condition of the guitar certainly translate into a higher market
value.
When value is interpreted as emotional value, there is no relationship at all
between quality and value. A very cheap guitar of inferior quality may have a
high emotional value for the owner because of the personal history with the
guitar.
18
Micheletti, R., ‘Recycled tonewoods’, www.michelettiguitars.com, [accessed 01-04-2013]
25
When value is interpreted as musical value, the relationship between quality and
value is especially apparent in the lower and middle quality/price ratio segments.
In these segments, a better quality instrument translates into better playability
and more enjoyment in playing. But in the higher price ranges it becomes
increasingly difficult, especially for the average guitarist, to perceive the added
musical value. This aspect is also underlined by several experts in the expert
interviews.
1.6. Do acoustic western guitars get better with age?
The search for the answer to this question led to different opinions expressed in
the sources researched. Some experts compared vintage guitars to a great red
wine that matures and improves with age. Types of wood were used that are
sometimes no longer available or no longer allowed by law. Those old woods
have dried out over the years, which results in deeper, more resonant tones.
Other experts, however, emphasized that older guitars do not sound better by
definition. Much depends on how the guitar was played and maintained.
The truth is that astronomical prices are sometimes paid for guitars that are over
70 years old. Manufacturers have responded to this by offering special re-issue
models that are made with the same techniques as their predecessors.
Richard Johnston at Gryphon Guitars19 has performed blind listening tests in
which new re-issue guitars were compared with old originals. For most of the
listeners there was often no conclusive evidence that the old guitars sounded
distinctly better than the new ones.
19
http://gryphonstrings.com, [accessed April 2013]
26
Several experts state that guitars have to be played frequently in order to sound
good. And, the more a guitar is played, the better it will sound of the years. This
has to do with subtle changes within the structure of the wood. Research has
shown that guitar tops vibrate in patterns at different frequencies. The company
Timbre Technologies20 has developed a process in which a guitar is clamped to a
shaker table with a very powerful amplifier and a magnesium plate so that the
aging process of the guitar through being played is accelerated. The company
has performed the tests with guitars of famous players such as Eddy Van Halen
and Jackson Browne. They are positively surprised by the results and the
computer data confirm what their ears heard.
On the other hand, Richard Johnston21 performed a test with two 1983 Martin
dreadnoughts. One had been played extensively and the other had remained
untouched in its case for the greater part of its life. The two guitars sounded
nearly identical to the listeners.
Ultimately, the conclusion seems fair that guitars, provided that they were of
good quality to start with and were carefully played and maintained over the
years, may improve in sound. However, it is not by definition true that guitars
sound better as they age.
1.7. Does vintage add emotional and musical value?
First of all it is useful to define what a vintage guitar is. Wikipedia22 mentions: ‘A
vintage guitar is an older guitar usually sought after and maintained by avid
20
Wain, M, February 1997, Acoustic Guitar Magazine 50
Johnston, R., 'Why Do Guitars Sound Better as They Age?'
http://www.acguitar.com/article/default.aspx?articleid=24089 [Accessed 12-01-2013]
22
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vintage_guitar [Accessed April 2013)
21
27
collectors or musicians’. There are various definitions. As a matter of fact, there
are extensive discussions on internet guitar forums about what a vintage guitar
is. Some experts claim that the term vintage should refer especially to guitars
from the 1920s to the 1970s. The most commonly used definition is that guitars
become vintage when they are over 20 years old. This is also the definition that
is used on E-bay, the site where many vintage guitars are offered for sale.
Vintage guitars may be an attractive alternative for stocks and bonds for
investors. However, the recent financial crisis has underlined that prices of
vintage guitars are also sensitive to fluctuations. The time that it was believed
that vintage guitar prices could only go up, has passed.
There are stricter standards among collectors regarding originality and there is a
more distinct division between guitars with a high value for collectors and guitars
for people who like to play an old instrument.
There will hardly be investors who buy vintage guitars to just leave them in the
case until they can sell them at an attractive profit. Vintage guitars, like
paintings, are works of art that deserve to be enjoyed. Investors in vintage
guitars are people with a passion for these beautiful instruments. So, for people
who consider vintage guitars primarily as an investment, there is also a distinct
emotional value. Most people who are looking for a vintage guitar aim to buy one
because they have dreamt about owning and playing such a special instrument.
For them, the emotional value is tremendous.
As also discussed in the previous sections of this chapter, vintage guitars may
add a clear musical value. We discovered that this is not true by definition. Much
depends on how the guitar has been treated over the years. If it was kept in
unfavourable conditions, which caused distortion of the neck or if it was battered
28
and neglected, it will certainly not deliver added musical value. But if a quality
guitar was kept in good condition, there is a good chance that it will sound better
as it matures. However, the sources accessed were not unanimous in their
opinion about the musical value of vintage. It is certainly an area in which more
scientific research could be useful.
1.8. Conclusions from the desk research
The tone wood used is one of the most important aspects that determine the
quality of acoustic western guitars. Different woods give different sounds and
make guitars suited to specific styles. Other materials used to make guitars also
play a role, as well as the shape of the guitar, the bracing, the strength to
lightness ratio, and last but certainly not least, the craftsmanship of the builder.
Value is more difficult to define and can relate to monetary, emotional or musical
value. Materials and craftsmanship are important again. Originality is vital;
better a battered original and that a beautifully refurbished guitar. Brand can add
value, as well as the skills of the player, and the satisfaction of emotional needs.
Trends are important too. The popularity of acoustic music has brought added
value for the acoustic guitar. Environmental aspects have an influence as well.
Guitarists are tree-huggers until they buy an acoustic guitar. Then they want
Brazilian rosewood.
Research into the relationship between quality and value has taught that this
certainly exists when guitars are considered as an investment. There is no
relationship when it comes to emotional value. A cheap guitar can have great
emotional value. The relationship between quality and musical value is especially
manifest in the lower and middle price ranges. In higher price ranges it becomes
29
increasingly difficult to clearly link quality and value.
Some guitars sound better with age, but not all. Opinions differ. It is asserted
that the more a guitar is played, the better it will sound. An interesting test was
done to accelerate the ‘playing life’ of acoustic guitars. Renowned guitarists were
enthusiastic about the results.
The desk research clearly showed that vintage always adds emotional value,
even for people for whom investment concerns are leading. Vintage sometimes
adds musical value, but not by definition. The original quality of the instrument
and how it has been kept and played have great influence on the musical value.
30
2. Research stream 2: expert interviews
A valuable way to gain insight into the research topic was to ask focused
questions to experts who could comment on the quality and value of acoustic
western guitars from various disciplines. Consequently, a series of personal
interviews was held with the following people:
1. Guitar builder Philip de Koning (interviewed on 21 January 2013)
2. Producer and engineer Tom Pearce (interviewed on 13 February 2013)
3. All-round guitarist Chris Pastijn (interviewed on 31 January 2013)
4. Lecturer and multi-instrumentalist Matt Ogden (interviewed on 21 January
2013)
5. Music store owner and musician Ron de la Bey (interviewed on 6 March
2013)
6. Guitar store manager and guitar collector Jerry Reedijk (interviewed on 7
March 2013)
7. Lecturer and singer/songwriter Gordon Todd (interviewed on 26 February
2013)
They approached the research topic from their specific angle and provided
interesting views on the relationship between the quality and value of acoustic
guitars. The full text of these seven interviews is presented in Annex 1. In this
chapter their views on specific aspects related to the research topic have been
summarized. When they are quoted only their name and not their function is
stated.
31
2.1. The quality of acoustic western guitars
In trying to assess what determines the quality of acoustic western guitars, the
concept of quality needs to be defined. “What is quality?” is rightfully a question
that Philip de Koning asks. “Is it sound quality or building quality? There are
guitars that sound great, but if you take a close look they are not very well built.
I would say a quality guitar is a guitar that is easy to play without hurting your
hands at the frets, that is easy to tune and stays in tune while you are playing
and that sounds good.”
Jerry Reedijk says that the quality depends on several factors. “The types of
wood are vital. Is it a solid top or a combination? This also goes for the neck, the
fret board, the body and the head. The tuning keys are important and so is the
bridge. Was it made of bone or plastic? In some acoustic guitars the built-in
electronics play a key role. How was the guitar built? Who built it? Was it made
in a private workshop or in a factory?
Ron de la Bey believes that the sound is the most important factor for
determining the quality of a guitar. "Furthermore, the dependability is important.
That it is not too much out of tune when you put it in the case and get it out
again after some time. How it sounds and how it plays are the things that
matter."
Definition of a good sound
So, the materials, the playability, the dependability and especially the sound of
an acoustic guitar determine its quality. But what is a good sound? Our experts
offer different definitions. Another question is whether our perception of a good
sound is always stable or whether it varies depending on our mood?
32
Ron de la Bey likes a sound with a good mix of high and low. “For me it is
important that a guitar has a nice warm sound with a good balance between
high and low, but not too bassy. I like a beautiful, clean sound with a long
sustain. It is also important that you can distinguish the notes on the individual
strings when you play a chord."
Asked about what he defines as a good sound, Tom Pearce lets the producer’s
view prevail. “I would describe a good sound as being the sound that is
appropriate for what I am doing at that time. Sometimes I end up with
something that wasn’t necessary what I thought it was going to be, but I
understand it was appropriate for that song on that session.”
He is adamant that his perception of a good sound is always stable. “From a
producer’s point of view I can never let my own mood influence what I am
listening to.”
Chris Pastijn comes up with a different point of view. His mood is definitely
decisive for how he perceives the quality of his sound. “I feel obliged to practice
at least 2-3 hours per day. But sometimes I am not in the mood for playing, but
do it anyway as I feel I need the practice. Sometimes, I have my moments in
which I think that what I do and how it sounds is dreadful.”
Matt Ogden also states that his perception of a good sound definitely depends on
his mood. “I know what I like, especially when I’m looking for a guitar, but you
have those off-days, you know, harmonically, orally and acoustically. It’s psychoacoustics.”
33
2.2. The value of acoustic western guitars
Most of the experts interviewed state that the value of an acoustic guitar is
something entirely different than its quality. “The value is very personal and
depends on the relationship that the owner has built with the guitar”, says Philip
de Koning. He summarizes some key aspects that determine the value of a guitar
and in doing so distinguishes between emotional and monetary value. “If it is his
first guitar or an instrument that he got from his dad who has since passed
away, the emotional value is tremendous. Quite often people have a very special
history with their guitars. When you look at the value it has in a shop, the
manufacturer is important. Is it a famous brand or was it built by a well-known
builder? Which types of wood were used? Another aspect is: who played it. If you
have a guitar that Eric Clapton played, its value for collectors is much higher
than a similar guitar that was not played by him.”
2.3. Aspects that play a role in determining the value of acoustic western
guitars
2.3.1. Materials and craftsmanship
Chris Pastijn believes that the type of wood is crucial for the quality of a guitar.
“The hardness plays a role, the way it is glued. For the acoustic guitar it is mainly
the body, the size of the sound hole and the woods used. The neck is also
essential and so is the fingerboard for the sustain of your tone.” He has a passion
for older instruments that were hand-made. “Especially in the more expensive
classical guitars the builders really put their heart into these instruments. That
must translate into a better tone and better playability. But also new guitars can
sound, feel and play great.”
34
Philip de Koning finds it hard to say whether guitars in the past were built better
than nowadays. “If you go way back to the early 1900s, the guitar builders had
much more basic hand tools. The quality of those tools was much less than that
of the sophisticated tools that are available to current builders. Nevertheless,
those craftsmen in the past made beautiful instruments with these basic tools. If
you look at the quality of guitar building today, you see big differences. There
are great custom builders and mediocre custom builders. I have a Gibson that
comes from the custom shop. But if I look closely I see building errors in it.
Nevertheless, it gets a sticker from the custom shop and up goes its price, while
I would not send it out with these errors in it.”
Ron de la Bey also detects flaws in the workmanship. The guitars that he sells in
his store are in the lower price ranges. All these guitars are made in factories
and Ron thoroughly inspects them on arrival. “There may be irregularities in the
finish such as a sharp edge or a scratch. I think that such problems occur less
with hand-built guitars. The quality check of such instruments is usually more
elaborate.”
2.3.2. Brand
Jerry Reedijk says that for many customers at Max Guitars brand is the decisive
factor in selecting a guitar. “There are people who come in here and hardly look
at the name on the guitar head. They buy a guitar because they just like how it
sounds and plays even if they do not know the brand. But, generally speaking,
people come in with the thought: I want to buy a Gibson, Fender, Taylor or
Martin. We do not want to get that idea out of their head, but we want to show
them all the possibilities.”
35
Tom Pearce is someone who is not guided by a preference for a particular brand.
After having played several acoustic guitars in a shop, he bought a relatively
inexpensive Takamine. “It was about 400 pounds, but it just felt nice and
sounded gorgeous. I was not looking at the name on the neck, I was looking for
a guitar that sounded nice and felt like me. This is something about acoustic
instruments that I can’t explain. I think all guitarists have a tone in them that’s
theirs. Finding an instrument that matches your personal idea of what you think
your tone is, is important.”
Chris Pastijn is conscious of the price consequences of a famous brand. “When
you are buying a Fender, Gibson, Martin or Taylor guitar, you pay part of the
price for the brand name. Depending on the model and how expensive you go,
that will easily be a few hundred euros. I don’t know if this adds value. During
workshops in stores I have seen famous guitarists pick up a cheap guitar and the
sound was absolutely fabulous. You think: I want that guitar. But then you forget
how good the player actually is. So, what is value?”
Ron de la Bey also believes that brand names play a role, "but", he says, "there
is a relationship between brand and financial value and that is not just the name.
The famous brands use high-quality materials and these result in added value,
which also translates into market value."
2.3.3. Emotional aspects
Music is emotion, so obviously emotional aspects play a role in determining the
value of an acoustic western guitar. This value can often not be translated into
market value and is very personal.
Matt Ogden tells a beautiful story to illustrate this. “My mother in Liverpool has a
guitar that’s never played by anyone because it sounds horrible. It is a good–
36
looking guitar, but its sound is awful. Yet, it will never be sold or moved because
it is the first one she learned to play on. There is a heavy sentimental value
about it, because I remember as a kid, being the same height of this guitar,
walking around it and wondering what it was.”
Ron de la Bey agrees that emotional value plays a distinct role, but he places it
into a relative perspective. "Emotional value relates to things like how long you
have a particular guitar, where you took it and what you did with it. But a guitar
has a maximum market value and this emotional value just can't be expressed in
monetary terms. Professional guitarists often regard their guitar as a tool that
they need for their job. It is like a carpenter who needs a good hammer. When it
is broken, he needs to buy a new one. Famous guitarists often have the luck that
they get their instruments for free from the manufacturer they endorse.”
2.3.4. Skills of the guitarist
There is one aspect that all experts interviewed agree on: the skills of the player
are vitally important for how a guitar sounds. This impacts the perception of its
value.
Matt Ogden believes the skills of the guitar player are immensely important.
“Knowing how to treat an instrument, how to hold it, how to play it, is the key to
good technique and good technique is the key to getting a good sound out of an
instrument regardless of its quality. So, if the instrument has some inherent high
qualities, it takes somebody who understands that instrument, who knows how
to play it properly and handle it properly to bring that out good sound.”
Philip de Koning states that the person who plays a guitar makes a big difference
in how it sounds. “I think if you would give Eddy Van Halen a very cheap guitar,
it would still sound like an Eddy Van Halen guitar. You wouldn’t get that sound
37
out of the guitar. It’s just his way of playing. A good guitarist will be able to still
get a decent sound out of a bad guitar, but on the other hand a good guitar will
never sound great if played by a bad player. That is a shame for us guitar
builders.”
Chris Pastijn mentions Eric Clapton as player who can bring the best out of a
guitar. “In his early days he set the tone when it came to technique. Today, we
you will find numerous players in their early twenties who have exceeded the
technical level at which he plays. However, the feel, the use of the tone and the
timing of Eric Clapton are unsurpassed.”
“We have people coming into our store who buy a guitar of € 5,000 to maybe €
8,000”, says Jerry Reedijk. “These guitars will always sound good. But the other
day the guitar player from Waylon’s band came here and he plucked a cheap
acoustic guitar from the wall. The sound he got out of it was just amazing. So,
the materials will help, but 50% has to come from the fingers.”
2.3.5. Environmental aspects
As determined before, the types of wood play an important part in determining
the quality and also the value of guitars. In the past, types of wood were used
which have meanwhile been banned for import because of strict international
environmental laws.
According to Jerry Reedijk environmental aspects have an impact on the value of
guitars. “If you look at the building process of say 50 years ago and now, then it
is fair to say that the current building techniques are far more advanced. But 50
years ago you did not have Forest Stewardship Council marks. Builders just
picked a beautiful piece of wood and governments did not prohibit cutting those
trees. That is a major factor why people tend to look for guitars from the 1950s
38
and 1960s. Moreover, the wood has taken a long time to dry and the drier the
wood, the better the sound. Old wood resonates more.”
Philip de Koning is someone who always questions what is obvious. “Through the
years, you see that different types of wood are used for building guitars, mainly
because some older species are on the ‘forbidden’ list and may no longer be
imported. Does this imply that current types of wood are worse than the ones
they used in the past or were the types we use now not in their backyard a
hundred years ago?” He states that beautiful guitars from excellent materials are
still being built today.
2.3.6. Trends
The fashion industry is all about recognizing and responding to trends. How is
this with acoustic guitars? Ron de la Bey says that trends play a role. He sees
that in his Maranatha Christian Music Store. "We have many young customers
who are just starting out. They probably saw a beautiful black guitar being
played on TV and then they start looking for such a model. But we are too small
to respond to all kinds of trends. The range of guitars we carry has to be rather
standard.”
Jerry Reedijk admits that the company he works for is closely monitoring what
customers want. “But we do not always follow trends. If we do not believe in a
product, we will not sell it. We are quite selective in that.” Jerry explains that
trends are usually brand-related. “One year a particular brand may be hot, and
then the next year it may be another brand. A trend that has lasted for a few
years now, is the ‘relic’ look, especially for electric guitars. About six years ago,
everybody wanted a clean-looking guitar in beautiful bright colours. Now people
want new guitars, but with a vintage look.”
39
2.4. Relationship between quality and value
Almost all the experts interviewed say that there is no distinct relationship
between the quality and the value of an acoustic guitar, expect perhaps in the
lower price ranges.
“If you buy a € 50 guitar from a mail order company, I feel it will be of inferior
quality compared to a € 300 euro guitar from a quality music store”, says Philip
de Koning. “But if you come to the price range of over € 1,000, I think that it will
mainly be the brand name that determines the value. Take, for instance, Gibson
and Epiphone. They come from the same factory where Gibson is the A brand
and Epiphone the B brand. Gibson is much more expensive, but in my opinion
the quality is almost equal. In fact, Epiphone is sometimes even better.”
Jerry Reedijk has a similar experience. “There is a brand called Eastman. They
offer guitars at prices from € 500 to € 1,500 and these guitars sound better than
the basic line of the top brands. An Eastman 320 sounds better than a Taylor
110 even though the Taylor is more expensive. If you go above € 2,000 you will
certainly have a good guitar that was well built and attuned, with the right
specifications. But in the segment between a starter’s guitar and € 1,000 you
really have to feel, play and listen. Often in the factories, only little attention is
paid to adjusting and tuning the guitar.”
Chris Pastijn also believes that there is no distinct relationship between quality
and value. “My opinion is that if you buy a guitar in the price range of € 700 to €
800, you will buy a guitar that plays pleasantly. It will enable you to still play a
chord on the 5th or 10th fret without it sounding out of tune. A very expensive
40
concert guitar of € 10,000 will not sound so much better than a € 5,000 guitar
and that € 5,000 guitar will not sound so much better than an instrument of €
3,000. You can go on with this until the level of the € 700 to € 800 which I
mentioned. Below that, the quality becomes questionable.”
Gordon Todd sees value more in an aesthetic perspective. “I can see an
argument for saying that a guitar is more valuable because it consists of better
materials and because it has been better produced. However, the reality is that
the market determines what the value of something is. You can have the same
guitar, but if it was owned by someone famous, it’s going to cost you more, even
if the quality is the same. Value is a strange thing because is it partly a market
thing.”
2.5 Do acoustic western guitars get better with age?
Collectors often pay substantial amounts for old guitars, but do these older
guitars actually sound better than new instruments? Tom Pearce thinks that old
instruments do not necessarily sound better than new ones. “Some Martins tend
to age well”, he says. “A D45 will always just get better. It’s different for the
Gibsons. I have played some nice J200s, but also some real dogs. Again, it is
down to this individual character of an instrument. Some instruments age well
and some just don’t. If you compare a Gibson from the 1930s with a modern
acoustic guitar, it doesn’t actually sound that great, but it does sound like what it
is supposed to sound like, which is a Gibson from the 1930s. And it does have
that tone you can’t match anywhere else.”
Matt Ogden, too, cannot say that instruments generally get to sound better with
age? “But I know that many cellos and other classical instruments have been
proven to sound better with age. So, the same must be true for guitars. But I
41
think that it depends on the original model. For instance, you couldn’t have an
instrument with a really flat, horrible sound and no response to begin with and
then expect it to improve in sound quality over time. That is not going to
happen. But if it is a good instrument to begin with and if real craftsmanship
went into its creation, then there is every chance that with age comes this
vintage quality. Maybe this also has to do with psycho-acoustic aspects, whereby
we attach a certain value to this vintage sound. But generally speaking, I don’t
think categorically that age equals a better sound.”
Gordon Todd believes that sometimes age can add quality. “You don’t get that if
the guitar sat in the box for 20 years, but you get it if the guitar has been played
regularly and adapted to its surroundings. But I would not say that by definition
old guitars sound better than newer ones. You could draw an analogy with
vintage cars. You might want to have a real classic car and then drive it and
discover that it actually doesn’t drive as well as something that is just off the
factory.”
Though Jerry Reedijk says that old hand-made guitars from the 1950s and 1960s
will often sound better than newer instruments, this doesn’t mean to say that
older instruments are always better. “People pay fortunes for guitars from the
50, 60s and 70s, but especially in the 1970s there was a considerable recession
in the United States. So, they tried to build guitars as low-cost as possible by
using cheaper parts. Therefore, older guitars are not better by definition.
However, a lot of the old hand-made instruments are really good. In the past,
the philosophy was: how can we make guitars that sound better than those of
our competitor, whereas now the thought is: how can we make good guitars, but
at the lowest possible cost.”
42
2.6. Does vintage add emotional and musical value
‘Vintage adds emotional value, not musical value’ is the hypothesis of this
research project. When the experts interviewed are asked to give a ‘true’ or
‘false’ reaction, most of them hesitate. Tom Pearce, for instance, who is quite
strong in his opinions, finds it hard to give a definite answer. “It is true that
vintage adds emotional value. In terms of whether vintage adds musical value, I
would say that I can’t see musical value as being one thing. Let’s take a 1930s
Gibson that I mentioned before. There is an emotional value when you pick it up.
There is a certain feel to it. But whether it actually adds musical value would
depend on what you are doing with it. There are certain pieces that I would like
to use such a Gibson for, not because it has emotional value, but because I want
the piece to sound a certain way.”
Emotional value does not play a big role for Chris Pastijn in his guitar selection.
“I can understand that a guitar has a distinct emotional value if it is a family
heirloom or if someone who is your idol played it. But it does not really count for
me.” Nevertheless, he agrees to the hypothesis that vintage adds emotional
value, not musical value. “There are certainly very good old instruments. The
craftsmanship of the old builders brings added value. But wood is a natural
product that warps. If it has been properly maintained it may be a joy to play,
but it may also be possible that the quality of the instrument deteriorated over
the years. So, the quality may vary.”
From the perspective of a guitar builder, Philip de Koning supports the statement
that vintage adds emotional value, not musical value. “When I have built a
guitar, you can hear the sound change. In the beginning I can almost cry and
43
wonder why I spent so much time on it. That starts to change after a few days.
In about half a year that transition process is complete. After that, the sound
quality no longer increases. I don’t believe that 30 or 50-year old guitars sound
better than newer ones. People say they do, but I don’t agree. I think you would
not be able to tell the difference in a blind sound test.”
Gordon Todd also tends to agree with the hypothesis. “With guitars I think the
value is in the history of the instrument and in how it has been used, played and
enjoyed by someone.” He adds that the value of vintage isn’t necessarily in the
sound. “Unless you are going to record something straight, the sound of a guitar
is going be processed somehow. It is going to be equalized, levelled and possibly
compressed slightly to fit the track. Sound can be manipulated. You can make a
bad guitar sound pretty decent. You can make a really good guitar sound even
better, of course, but it’s not so much about the sound as about the emotional
value of vintage. Think of a vintage record, I would much rather have an original
first pressing of a classic album than the same album on CD. But surely the CD
would sound better quality-wise, but that’s not the issue. It is the object. And a
beautiful vintage guitar is a thing of beauty. It is not a mass produced item that
you can buy online or at the local music store.”
2.7. Conclusions from the expert interviews
The quality of an acoustic guitar is determined by several factors. The materials
used, especially the types of wood, are important, the playability of the guitar,
also on the higher frets, the dependability (does the guitar stay in tune, also
after having been in the case for a long time) and, of course, the sound is vital.
The perception of a good sound is quite personal and also depends on the
44
player’s mood. But on the whole, a ‘warm’ sound with a good balance of high and
low tones and a good sustain, is perceived as a good sound.
According to most of the experts interviewed value is not related to quality.
Guitars in the lowest price range probably form and exception to this, but above
a price level of about € 700 it becomes increasingly difficult to discern how well
guitars play and sound. This makes it hard to classify them in terms of value. A
clear distinction needs to be made between emotional value and monetary value.
A cheap, battered guitar may have tremendous emotional value for its owner
because of its history. Therefore, emotional value is very personal and cannot be
expressed in monetary terms. Financially, a guitar has a certain market value
based on several criteria such as the materials used, the craftsmanship with
which it was made and the brand. Brand is a special aspect. A famous brand
name translates into a higher price, but it also true that famous brands use
better materials and apply better building techniques. The skill of a player is very
important. An excellent player can make a cheap guitar sound great, while a very
moderate player will never get the maximum out of a very expensive guitar.
Environmental aspects may play a role, as certain types of wood that were used
in the past are now prohibited. This impacts the value because there is a great
demand for guitars from the 1950s and 1960s, which drives up the price. But,
building techniques have become much more sophisticated and good alternatives
for the types of wood used are available, so it is questionable if newer
instruments are of inferior quality compared to old instruments. There are also
intangible elements that determine the value of a guitar such as its history. If a
famous guitarist played it, its value will be higher than a similar guitar without
such a history. Trends also play a role though the old models of famous brands
such a Gibson and Martin remain in production and remain popular.
45
Most experts seem to agree that older instruments do not necessarily sound
better than newer ones. The sound depends on the individual instrument and
how the guitar was preserved. If an old high-quality instrument has been played
intensively and kept carefully, it will have an added value, also in sound. But a
moderate instrument will not sound better over time and a good instrument can
be ruined if not treated properly.
The hypothesis of the research is: vintage adds emotional value, not musical
value. Several experts found it difficult to give a definite reaction to this
statement, though most tend to agree. The interviews show that vintage always
adds emotional value. An old instrument carries a history; it is a thing of beauty
to be treated with respect. As stated in the previous paragraphs, a vintage guitar
that was a great guitar to begin with and that has been played and treated
carefully over time can have a clear musical value. But, as several experts
remarked, not by definition. It really depends on the individual instrument in
question.
46
3. Research stream 3: visual and sound test
One can write and talk at length about music, but music is mostly about
listening. Therefore, an essential third research stream was a guitar test that
consisted of a visual part and a sonic part. The test could be accessed through an
internet link: http://www.wimpols.nl/wimpols.php/gitaartest. The test was placed
on a special non-public page on my father’s website. Responses were received
via internet through links of a survey created at www.surveymonkey.com.
Screen shots of the web page with the test set-up are presented in Annex 2.
There were two test panels:
1. General panel consisting of music lovers, but with no specific interest in
acoustic guitars. They were invited by sending e-mails to family, friends
and acquaintances and via Facebook.
2. Expert panel consisting of guitarists, guitar collectors, music store owners,
guitar builders and collectors. They were either invited personally, via
targeted mails and via a post on www.acousticguitarforum.com This forum
not only generated several international respondents, but also quite a
number of reactions, some encouraging and some critical about the test.
These two different panels were chosen to find out if their results would differ
significantly and whether experts would be able to make a better distinction of
the sound quality of the acoustic guitars than the general music lovers.
At the instigation of the SAE tutors, a third panel was formed on 25 March 2013.
This was a focus group with lecturers and students from SAE Institute
Rotterdam. They filled in the results individually, but did the test in a similar
quiet room and thus did the sonic part under the same circumstances.
47
In total, 103 people participated in the visual and sound test. Graphs of the
results of both the visual and the sound test are presented in this report. The full
results of the general panel are presented in Annex 3 and the full results of the
expert panel are presented in Annex 4.
3.1. Description of the visual test
The visual part of the test comprised of a presentation of five acoustic guitars,
each from a different period, from a different price range and from a different
manufacturer. A photograph of each guitar was presented together with a short
description of the age, the original purchase price and the estimated current
value. The participants were asked, based on the photo and description, which
guitars they thought would be the best. They were asked to rank the guitars
from 1 for the best-sounding guitar to 5 for the worst-sounding guitar. The aim
was to see if people would give the highest ranks to the oldest or most expensive
guitars and if they would have a bias for a particular brand.
3.2. The guitar selection and its limitations
In the ideal world, a selection of guitars from different brands would be
presented with two guitars of the same model: a 40- or 50-year old one or a new
one. Unfortunately, that ideal was beyond the reach for this research project.
Though this limitation restricted the scientific value of the test, some interesting
observations could nevertheless be made with a selection of five guitars that
would be accessible and that would have the following characteristics:
-
From different periods: 1970s – 1980s – 1990s until today
-
From different price ranges: € 400 - € 3,000
48
-
From different brands with both famous names such as Gibson and
Martin and a lesser known brand.
This would enable researching a number of things:
-
Do people think that older guitars will sound better and do the sonic
test results actually reveal this?
-
Do people think that more expensive guitars will sound better than
cheaper ones and what do the test results say?
-
Are the test results of the general, the expert panel and the focus
group rather similar or do they show distinct differences?
The following guitars were selected:
Guitar 1
Gibson J 50
From the year: 1975
Purchase price: € 625
Estimated current value: € 1,200
Guitar 2
Martin D18
From the late 1980s/early 1990s
Purchase price: € 820
Estimated current value: € 1,200
(guitar has a crack in the side of the
body that has been professionally repaired)
49
Guitar 3
Taylor CE312
From the year: around 2005
Purchase price: € 1,600
Estimated current value: € 1,600
Guitar 4
Gibson J 200
From the year: 2007
Purchase price: € 2,700
Estimated current value: € 2,700
Guitar 5
Cort SFX DAO
From the year: 2011
Purchase price: € 395
Estimated current value: € 395 (new in store)
50
3.3. Description of the sound test
Chris Pastijn, a very experienced guitar player and one of the experts
interviewed, played the same fragment of about 30 seconds on each of the
above guitars. The recording was made in the SAE studio in Rotterdam. The
guitars were all equipped with new strings (Elixer) and the recording was made
with the same microphones.
The fragments were presented to the participants to the test in a different order
than in the visual test. They were not informed which fragment belonged to
which guitar. They were just asked to indicate which guitar sounded best in their
opinion based on the sound fragments. They were asked to rank the guitars in
the different fragments with 1 being the best sounding guitar and 5 being the
worst sounding guitar.
The aim of this blind sonic test was to find out if the participants would actually
pick out the oldest or most expensive guitars as the best sounding guitars, if
they would be rather unanimous in their responses and if the results from the
general panel would differ from the results of the expert panel and the focus
group.
For optimal recording quality of the sound fragments, the Mid-Side setup (see
table on next page) was used, which provides a broad signal.
On the website the sound fragments were presented in wave format to ensure
the highest possible sound quality.
51
Microphone
Positioning
Purpose
Direct before sound
Getting the mid
hole of the guitar
signal. (The M of the
1
M-S signal)
sE SE3
2
Figure of 8 setting in
Getting the side of
line with the sE SE 3
the signal. (The S of
the M-S signal)
Neumann U87
3.4. Results of the general panel
A total of 52 people participated in the general panel. Based on the e-mail
addresses (which people submitted if they wanted to receive the test results
and/or the research report) some participants were from abroad, but the vast
majority came from the Netherlands.
52
3.4.1. Visual test
The results of the visual test of the general panel showed that the participants
indeed opted for the most expensive and the oldest guitars as the ones they
thought would sound best.
The ranking of what the respondents regarded as the best sounding guitar based
on photo and description was:
1. Gibson J 200
32.7%
2. Gibson J 50
25%
3. Martin D18
23.5%
4. Taylor CE312
11.5%
5. Cort SFX DAO
7.7%
While the Gibson J 200 topped the list, it was remarkable that there was also a
large group (25%) that ranked this guitar as the number four. Overall, the
Martin D18 and the Gibson J 50 scored well with considerable percentages for
first and second ranking. The Taylor CE 312 received a 3rd ranking from 36.5% of
the respondents and the lowest score was clearly for the Cort SFX DAO. The
results of the visual test are presented in the graph below.
53
3.4.2. Sound test
The respondents were invited to listen to the five sound fragments and then rank
them for the best sound. They were not told which guitar belonged to which
fragment, so they had to judge the fragments purely on what they heard.
Fragment 1 was the Gibson J 200
Fragment 2 was the Martin D18
Fragment 3 was the Gibson J50
Fragment 4 was the Cort SFX DAO
Fragment 5 was the Taylor 312 CE
The respondents of the general panel had remarkably good ears and the sound
results were rather consistent with the visual results.
54
The ranking of the best sounding guitar of the respondents from the general
panel was:
1. Gibson J 200
52.9%
2. Martin D18
20%
3. Gibson J50
16%
4. Taylor CE 312
8%
5. Cort SFX DAO
1%
As the graph shows, the Gibson J200 (guitar 1) won the sound test with an
overwhelming majority. The Martin D18 (guitar 2) scored very well too. As much
as 38% selected this as their number 2. Though the Gibson J 50 (guitar 3) is the
oldest guitar and scored well in the visual test, most respondents give it a 3rd or
4th ranking. The Taylor CE (guitar 5) came 4th even though 12% gave it a 2nd
ranking. The Cort SFX DAO (guitar 4) was at the bottom of the list.
3.5. Results of the expert panel
The expert panel counted 42 participants and comprised mainly of guitarists.
Judging by the mail addresses, the expert panel included several guitar players
from other countries than the Netherlands.
55
3.5.1. Visual test
The visual test results of the expert panel differed considerably from the results
of the general panel.
Based on photo and description, the respondents came up with the following as
their number 1 guitar:
1. and 2. Martin D18 and Gibson J 200
38.1%
3. Taylor CE312
11.9%
4. Gibson J50
7.1%
5. Cort SFZ DAO
2.4%
The Martin D18 scored remarkably well with the expert panel as also 33.3% gave
it a 2nd ranking. Obviously, Martin has a high profile among this group of
respondents. Though the Gibson J200 topped the list for 1st together with the
Martin D18, it had a relatively moderate score for 2nd and 3rd rankings. The
Gibson J50 had low score for 1st place, but a very large group of 40.5% gave it a
56
2nd ranking. The Taylor CE312 clearly came in as 4th and the Cort SFX DAO as
5th.
3.5.2. Sound test
Like the members of the general panel, the members of the expert panel
selected the Gibson J200 (guitar 1) as the winner with an overwhelming
majority.
The number one ranking by the respondents yielded the following result:
Gibson J 200
53.5%
Martin D 18
23.8%
Taylor CE312
11.9%
Cort SFX DAO
7.1%
Gibson J50
2.1%
57
The Gibson J200 (guitar 1) scored best by far. The Martin D18 (guitar 2) did very
well too, especially considering that 35.7% selected it as the number two in their
ranking. The Taylor CE312 (guitar 5) has a good score with this group as well
(31% ranks it second and 33.3% ranks it third). Only 2.1% chose the Gibson J50
(guitar 3) as number one, while 52.4% gave a third place. The Cort SFX DAO
(guitar 4) scored better than the Gibson J50 for the number one position, but
45.2% ranked it with a fifth place.
3.6. Results of the focus group
At the instigation of the SAE tutors, a special third panel was organized: a focus
group with lecturers and students of SAE. They did the visual and sound test on
an individual basis, but under similar circumstances in a quiet room. The focus
group consisted of nine people. As the Survey Monkey internet survey had
already been closed to evaluate the results, the participants of the focus group
filled in the test results on a form. The results were processed manually.
3.6.1. Visual test
Based on photo and description, the focus group came up with the following
selection as their number one guitar:
Gibson J200
44.4%
2/3. Martin D18 and Taylor CE312
22.2%
Gibson J50
11.1%
Cort SFX DAO
0
%
58
Focus group
Which guitar do you think will sound best?
Rank the guitars based on photo and description
100%
80%
5th place
60%
4th place
40%
3rd place
20%
2nd place
1st place
0%
Gibson J50
Martin
D18
Taylor
CE312
Gibson
J200
Cort SFX
DAO
The focus group ranked the Gibson J200 as the guitar they thought would sound
best. It was remarkable that in this focus group the Taylor CE312 scored well
with 44.4% who considered it to be the number two. The Martin D18 also scored
well for second and third place. Another conspicuous fact is the low score for the
vintage Gibson J50. As in the other panels, the Cort SFX DAO was at the bottom
of the list.
3.6.2. Sound test
The sound test of the focus group produced an overwhelming result as far as the
selection the best sounding guitar:
Gibson J 200
77.8%
2/3. Martin D18 and Taylor CE312
11.1%
4/5. Gibson J50 and Cort SFX DAO
0%
59
Focus group:
Which guitar sounds best to you based on the sound
fragments
100%
80%
5th place
60%
4th place
40%
3rd place
2nd place
20%
1st place
0%
Guitar 1
Guitar 2
Guitar 3
Guitar 4
Guitar 5
The sound test results of the focus group show that the Gibson J200 (guitar 1)
was by far the best sounding guitar for this group. The Martin D18 (guitar 2) and
the Taylor CE 312 (guitar 5) scored well too with identical rankings for first
(11.1%) second (33.3%) and third (also 33.3%) position for both guitars. The
Cort SFX DAO (guitar 4) had the highest score (55.6%) for 5th place, however it
scored better than the Gibson J50 (guitar 3) for third place.
3.7. Conclusions of the visual and sound test
There is a clear winner of this test: the Gibson J200. The two panels as well as
the focus group elected it as the number one in both the visual test and the
sound test. In the sound test it received the vast majority of the votes for the
number one guitar. The Gibson J200 has a very rich sound with warm lows and
that is obviously a quality that many people appreciate. Some comments from
the guitar forum indicated that it was difficult to distinguish between the other
guitars that all had much top in the sound.
60
Of course, it is interesting to compare the results of the two panels and the focus
group.
When we put the graphs of the visual test side by side, we see the following
picture:
General panel
Expert panel
Focus group
While the general panel gives the most expensive (Gibson J200) and the oldest
(Gibson J50) guitar a high ranking in the visual test, the expert panel and the
general panel are less impressed by the vintage quality of the Gibson J50. It is
striking that the Martin D18 has a high profile among the expert panel and the
focus group. Obviously, Martin enjoys a good reputation among music
professionals. It also gets a good score from the general panel. The Taylor CE
312 raises quite some expectations from the focus group, much more than from
the general panel and the expert panel. None of the three groups have much
confidence in the Cort SFX DAO.
61
The comparison of the graphs from the sound test shows the following picture:
General panel
Expert panel
Focus group
Even more than in the visual test, the Gibson J200 (guitar 1) is the obvious
winner for both the two panels and the focus group. The Martin D18 (guitar 2)
gets a good score from all the three groups of respondents. The Gibson J 50
(guitar 3) get a pretty good score from the general panel, while the expert panel
and certainly the focus group appreciate it much less. Vintage does not add
musical value for these respondents. The Cort SFX DAO (guitar 4) gets the
highest percentage of lowest scores from the two panels as well as the focus
group. Nevertheless, there are some respondents who give it a third, second or
even a first ranking. The Taylor CE312 (guitar 5) gets a varied score. The focus
group shows the biggest appreciation for this guitar.
62
3.8. Overall test conclusions
It is striking that all three groups of respondents come up with a clear winner in
both the visual and the sound test: the Gibson J200. They are also clear about
the guitar that finishes last in the visual as well as in the sound test: the Cort
SFX DAO. The results for the other guitars vary a bit, but overall are rather
consistent if we compare the outcome of the three groups of respondents. The
focus group is most outspoken in its opinions, but the comparison with the two
panels may be somewhat distorted by the fact that the focus group was much
smaller than the two panels.
The consistency of the results is remarkable. There is absolute no evidence that
experts have scored better in the sound test. As a matter of the fact, the results
of the general panel are perhaps even more balanced than those of the expert
panel and the focus group. Obviously, people, irrespective of their musical
training and experience, are able to discern sounds they appreciate more than
other sounds. This is one of the most interesting conclusions from this test.
Regarding the topic of this research project about the relationship between
quality and value, the general panel shows a distinct pattern in their ranking of
the guitars in the visual test. The most expensive and the oldest guitars get the
best scores. Vintage has an added value for this panel. This is different for the
expert panel and the focus group. It is reflected in their rather low ranking for
the Gibson J50. The results indicate that they are rather brand-driven. The
Martin D18 and the Taylor CE312 score well with this group.
The test results also prove that quality never denies itself. Respondents might
have ranked the Gibson J200 first in the visual test because it was the most
expensive of this series of five guitars. However, they did not know which guitar
63
belonged to which fragment in the sound test. Nevertheless, the Gibson J200
came out as the winner with head and shoulders.
One of objectives of the test was to find out if a well-built cheap guitar from the
Far East could stand the competition with the famous American brands and thus
prove that quality and value are unrelated. However, the Cort DAO clearly came
out as last in the test and could not stand comparison with the more expensive
guitars.
Finally, the sound test results of the almost 40-year old Gibson J50 are striking.
Overall, the general panel ranked it third after the Gibson J200 and the Martin
D18. The expert panel and the focus group ranked it fourth after the Gibson
J200, the Martin D18 and Taylor CE312. So, judging by the results of this test,
vintage only added some emotional value for the general panel. However, it
clearly did not add musical value in the sound test for the three groups of
respondents.
Limitations
The biggest limitation encountered in this research project was the selection of
the guitars for the sound test. It would have been ideal to have a new and 50year old copy of the same model for several guitars. However, such combinations
are hard to come by. Some comments on the international guitar forum about
the guitar selection in the test for this research project indicated that it was
comparing apples with oranges. There is certainly truth in these remarks, but
nevertheless the selection used enabled some interesting comparisons and
yielded some striking results.
Another limitation of the sound test related to the composition of the two panels.
64
Respondents themselves had to choose whether they belonged to the expert
panel or the general panel. A few guidelines were given on the internet page of
the sound test, but the selection could not be controlled. Nevertheless, based on
the reactions it seemed that most people made the right choice.
A difficult aspect in doing this research project was to narrow down the endless
number of internet sources about acoustic guitars into a relevant selection for
this research project. A complicating aspect was that many sources contradicted
each other and that the quantity of available reliable academic studies on the
value of acoustic western guitars was limited.
Recommendations
The emotional value of vintage guitars is beyond doubt. But no conclusive
evidence has been found that vintage guitars always have an added musical
value. More scientific research into the musical value of acoustic western guitars
is definitely to be recommended. In this respect, a larger-scale blind sound test
with new and vintage guitars of the same model would be advisable. This
research project revealed that it is difficult to define the relationship between the
quality and the value of acoustic western guitars in the higher price ranges and
to explain differences in these higher price ranges. It would be fantastic if a
method with objective criteria could be developed for explaining such price
differences and thus for valuing acoustic guitars.
65
Conclusions
Doing this research project has further boosted my interest in acoustic western
guitars. I have learned a great deal. At the same time it has become crystal clear
that I have only barely touched the surface of the subject.
In this research report, I explored three streams that focused on the quality and
the value of acoustic western guitars. Quality is determined mostly by the
materials used and the craftsmanship of the builder. Value is much harder to
define. This report distinguished between monetary, emotional and musical value
and discussed qualities that influence the perception of value such as brand,
trends, the skills of the guitarist and environmental aspects.
The main research question was ‘Is it justified that acoustic western guitars
become more expensive with age?’ The research results indicated that this
question cannot always be answered affirmatively. Much depends on how a
vintage guitar was kept and played and on how its current general condition is.
This brings me to the hypothesis of this report: ‘Vintage adds emotional value,
not musical value’. The research results clearly indicated that vintage always
adds emotional value. This is different with musical value. In the sound test,
vintage clearly did not add musical value. The desk research results and the
expert interviews showed that vintage can have added musical value, but not by
definition. It depends on the instrument in question.
Therefore, the correct statement should be: ‘Vintage always adds emotional
value and sometimes musical value.’
66
Reference list
For the reference list and bibliography the AGPS 5 style of referencing was
applied.
Books
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Hunter, D., 2011, ‘The Rough Guide to Guitar’, Rough Guides; Original edition,
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67
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Websites
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68
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Books
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69
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71
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72
Annex 1 – Complete experts interviews
Guitar builder Philip de Koning
“A guitar is an extension of yourself”
“As an entrepreneur I have to make investment decisions involving tens
of thousands of euros. My guitar teacher can be very enthusiastic about
a new hand tool of € 100 that he bought after much consideration. He is
probably a happier person, so I am seriously considering giving up the
business and devoting my time to making guitars, which is my passion.”
Philip de Koning is one of the owners of a company that manufactures machines
for the horticultural industry. He enjoys music and as a hobby he has built a
number of acoustic guitar that look and sound great. He has developed into an
experienced guitar builder. He started out as drummer in a band, but found
drums too limiting as an instrument and switched to guitars. He owns a Martin
D28, a Martin D12 28 (the 12-string version), a Gibson ES339, a Gibson Chet
Atkins and two self-built acoustic guitars.
Amazing sustain
He built his first guitar when he was 26, just after he got married. “I had read in
the Music Maker about someone who had built his own guitar and it seemed like
a challenge to me. I started at home in the wrong way with a milling machine.
The wood was probably OK. I remember that I got a beautiful rosewood
fingerboard from a furniture maker. For the rest I used wood from a window
casing that I glued together. I did one show with that guitar. I was drummer but
they let me play one song on the guitar: the Kansas hit Dust in the wind. The
guitar was very heavy and had an amazing sustain. If you struck a string to tune
it, the tuner would remain in position for about a minute.”
Techniques instead of talent
Later on Philip wanted to seriously build his own acoustic guitar. He started with
it but did not get around to finishing it for a long time. He could not throw it
away because he was emotionally too attached and because the materials were
too costly, so he went to a professional builder who taught him the techniques.
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“He used to say: It does not take
talent to build a guitar. You need
techniques, especially for working the
wood. You cannot learn to make a
drawing or a painting: that’s a
talent... But you can learn how to
plane and polish. I could learn the
painting techniques, but I don’t have
the creativity for designing a painting.
It is a little bit similar with building
guitars. The designs are usually quite
standard; the double zero and the OM
for the acoustic models and the Telecaster and Stratocaster for the electric
guitars. It is easy to select a weird shape when building an electric guitar; for the
acoustic guitar it is not so easy. I feel that by now I master the techniques pretty
well. There are other aspects involved like what type of wood do you use? It you
want a trebly sound you have to translate that into the wood selection. It is all
very personal. If someone says: I like a bassy sound. How bassy is bassy?”
Question everything
Philip says that by nature he always questions the obvious. “I have had a lot of
discussions with my building teacher about the sound hole. He says: that’s 4
inches, the American standard. He takes that as a rule because much of the
guitar-building techniques come from the US. But I wonder why is it 4 inches and
why can’t it be 3.65 inches? Why is the bridge where it is and why did they use a
certain type of wood for it? I always want to question things and want to know
the reasoning. Through the years, you see that different types of wood are used
for building guitars, mainly because some older species are on the ‘forbidden’ list
and may no longer be imported. Does this imply that current types of wood are
worse than the ones they used in the past or were the types we use now not in
their backyard a hundred years ago? The main lesson for me is to be curious and
ask questions. I, for instance, wonder why there are no 12-string nylon string
guitars. Maybe there is an obvious reason for it, but I wouldn’t know it.”
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Sound quality or building quality
When I ask Philip what in his opinion defines the quality of a guitar, he gives an
unusual answer. “It may be a dangerous statement, but I would almost say: the
set of strings that’s on it. What is quality? Is it sound quality of building quality?
There are guitars that sound great, but if you take a closer look they are not very
well built. I would say a quality guitar is a guitar that is easy to play without
hurting your hands at the frets, that is easy to tune and stays in tune while you
are playing and that sounds good.”
Value is very personal
For Philip the quality of a guitar is something entirely different than the value of
a guitar. “The value is very personal and depends on the relationship that the
owner has developed with the guitar. If it is his first guitar or an instrument that
he got from his dad who has since passed away, the emotional value is
tremendous. Quite often people have a very special history with their guitars.
When you look at the value it has in a
shop, the manufacturer is important. Is
it a famous brand of built by a wellknown builder? Which types of wood
were used? Another aspect is: who
played it. If you have a guitar that Eric
Clapton played, its value for collectors
is much higher than a similar guitar
that was not played by him.”
Brand name determines value
Philips feels there is a certain relationship between quality and value. “If you buy
a € 50 guitar from a mail order company, I feel it will be of inferior quality
compared to a € 300 guitar from a quality music store. But if you come to the
price range of over € 1,000, I feel that it will mainly be the brand name that
determines the value. Take, for instance, Gibson and Epiphone. They come from
the same factory where Gibson is the A brand and Epiphone the B brand. Gibson
is much more expensive, but in my opinion the quality is almost equal. In fact,
Epiphone is sometimes even better.”
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Older guitars do not sound better
Philip supports the statement that vintage adds emotional value, not musical
value. “When I have built a guitar, you can hear the sound change. In the
beginning I can almost cry and I wonder why I spent so much time on it. That
starts to change after a few days. In about half a year that transition process is
complete. After that, the sound quality no longer increases. I don’t believe that
30 or 50-year old guitars sound better than newer ones. People say they do, but
I don’t agree. I think you would not be able to tell the difference in a blind sound
test.”
Player is important
The person who plays the guitar makes a big difference in how it sounds. “I think
if you would give Eddy Van Halen a very cheap guitar, it would still sound like an
Eddy Van Halen guitar. You wouldn’t get that sound out of the guitar. It’s just his
way of playing. A good guitar will always sound OK, but if the guy who plays it
can’t play, it will never be beautiful.
A good guitarist will be able to still get a decent sound out of a bad guitar, but on
the other hand a good guitar will never sound great if played by a bad player.
That is a shame for us guitar builders.”
Beautiful instruments with basic tools
Philip finds it hard to say whether guitars in the past were built better than
nowadays. “If you go way back to the early 1900s, the guitar builders had much
more basic hand tools. The quality of those tools was much less than that of the
sophisticated tools that are available to current builders. Nevertheless, those
craftsmen in the past made beautiful instruments with these basic tools. If you
look at the quality of guitar building today, you see big differences. There are
great custom builders and mediocre custom builders. I have a Gibson that comes
from the custom shop. But if I look closely I see building errors in it.
Nevertheless, it gets a sticker from the custom shop and up goes its price, while
I would not send it out with these errors in it.”
Fit personal framework
Philip’s favourite brand of guitar is Martin. “Actually there are three leading
brands for acoustic guitar. Martin is famous for its D-series. They are quite good
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and what I like about Martin is that they build guitars in a traditional way. Gibson
is, of course, famous for its big jumbos. Taylor is more for modern designs; they
are a little bit more extreme in their building methods. I would not be inclined to
buy a Taylor. These guitars sound a little bit too modern for my taste.” If Philip
would be asked by a client to build a guitar, he wouldn’t want to build one that
he wouldn’t appreciate himself. “If someone would say: I would like a 7.5 cmwide neck, I would not accept the assignment because I don’t like that. The
guitar to be built needs to fit my framework and of course there are some
variations within that framework. I would also want the guitar to have a natural
lacquer finish. You work with natural woods and these should be visible. If
someone wants a red guitar, try to find a red wood, don’t use red paint. A guitar
is a very personal instrument. It’s your mate. It stands beside your bed. In fact
it’s close to being in your bed. You have a connection with it. You can express
your emotions through it. It’s an extension of yourself.”
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Producer and engineer Tom Pearce:
“Find an instrument that matches your personal idea of what you think
your tone is”
“If I have an acoustic instrument that is really valuable and antique, I
might not necessarily play it the way I play my own Takamine. So,
actually the musical performance might be worse. I have had the
opportunity to play some truly vintage guitars and there is a certain
weariness about them. You don’t want to bend the notes too much for
fear that the frets might wear down. You don’t want to damage anything
when you play them. But I bash my Takamine because I know it can
take it and it sounds great. It’s probably me talking as a producer rather
than as a guitarist, but the sound at a particular time is what is
important to me.”
Tom Pearce is a British producer and engineer who has worked with some of the
most famous artists in the music business like George Harrison, Eric Clapton,
Jimmy Page, The Who and Elton John. He is also an enthusiastic guitarist who
picks up his instrument almost every day. In addition, he is relatively at ease
playing the keyboard and he says he can get something out of any instrument
people put into his hands. The interest in playing several instruments comes
from his work as a producer. “I want to understand what musicians do. I want to
be able to sit with a musician and say: this is what I would like to hear. When
you understand instruments and how they can sound, this helps to convey to
musicians what you are looking for. It also helps you with sampling. I am
privileged in the studio to watch some great guitar players. Then it’s cool to try
to figure it out myself at home in the evening. I also like the cross-breeding you
get in the studio when you sit down with a guitar and swop ideas with the
guitarist.”
A very individual instrument
Tom wanted to play piano, but his parents could not afford one. “One Christmas
my father threw a cheap acoustic guitar on the table and said: Okay, here you
go, it’s not a piano, but it’s an instrument. That triggered my interest in the
guitar. I love the feel I get from an acoustic guitar. It’s a very personal
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relationship. I think it’s just the way it’s played. It gives you so much variation,
so many possibilities. It is a very individual instrument.”
Tom plays a Takamine acoustic guitar. “I can’t recall the model. It is not an
expensive guitar, but it’s very all-round and sounds great in the studio.”
Furthermore, he owns a JSH dobro, a 12-string Gibson, a Fender Jazz bass and a
1968 custom Telecaster, which he is very proud of.
This Telecaster is the only guitar that survived a vindictive action of his ex-wife
who sold a number of vintage guitars while Tom was on tour. He has a strong
relationship with the Telecaster. “I have a Fender Twin that I use all the time and
that’s suited to it, but you can plug into any amp and it will just sound brilliant.
To me it’s priceless. I know that 68 Telecasters are available from around €
1,500 these days, but it’s worth ten times that amount to me.”
All guitarists have their specific tone
One of the guitars which his ex-wife also sold was an acoustic Ovation Adamas
that Tom was quite attached to. So, when he wanted to buy a new acoustic
guitar, he went looking for an Ovation again. “I wanted an Ovation, not because
I liked them acoustically, but because I like an Ovation in the studio and I liked
the Adamas. It is not the greatest acoustic guitar in the world. In those days the
Adamas were stereo with a split pick-up. This made it a fun guitar to record,
particularly when you pick with left and right on the individual strings. So I
wasn’t really going to the music store to buy a guitar specifically for the acoustic
sound of it. I started playing some Ovations, but also other brands. Then I
remembered playing a Takamine once and I picked one up and thought: this is
actually a nicely sounding guitar. And not that expensive. The one I ended up
buying was not the most expensive model they had. It was about ₤ 400, but it
just felt nice and sounded gorgeous.
I was not looking at the name on the neck, I was looking for a guitar that
sounded nice and felt like me. This is something about acoustic instruments that
I can’t explain. I think all guitarists have a tone in them that’s theirs. Finding an
instrument that matches your personal idea of what you think your tone is, is
important. I think I have found it with the Takamine.”
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An appropriate sound
Asked about what he defines as a good sound, Tom lets the producer’s view
prevail again. “I would describe a good sound as being the sound that is
appropriate for what I am doing at that time. Sometimes I end up with
something that wasn’t necessarily what I thought it was going to be, but I
understand it was appropriate for that song on that session.”
Talking about the acoustic guitar, Tom appreciates a rich overall sound. “I am
not so keen on mids. That is why I like the old Gibsons. They have that beautiful
low tone, a nice sustain on the low end. In the Hummingbirds and the J series,
the mid range isn’t that good. But they have a good low end and a good top. This
makes them good all-round guitars. On my Takamine the mids are pretty strong,
the bass is very strong while the top end is a little bit weak. But because of the
way I play it, I tend to bias a little bit to the top end. It also depends on the type
of music I play. I play a lot of English folk, which requires much finger-picking.
Again that particular guitar suits that particular style.”
Perception of good sound is always stable
While most other people interviewed for this research report say that the
perception of a good sound depends on their mood, Tom is adamant that his
perception of a good sound is always stable. “From a producer’s point of view I
can never let my own mood influence what I am listening to.”
Tom emphasizes that the skill of the player is critical for the sound. “Certainly on
acoustic guitar. You can make a great guitar sound bad, but a skilled guitarist
can make an average guitar sound brilliant. It is all about skill. It’s not restricted
to acoustic guitars. Look the way Jeff Beck plays. He doesn’t use pedals or
anything. It’s all down to the palm of his hand and his fingers. It’s the person
behind the instrument.”
Some instruments age well, others don’t
Touching on vintage guitars, Tom feels older instruments do not necessarily
sound better than newer instruments. “Some Martins tend to age well. A D45 will
always just get better. It’s different for the Gibsons. I have played some nice
J200s, but also some real dogs. Again, it is down to this individual character of
an instrument. Some instruments age well and some just don’t. If you compare a
Gibson from the 1930s with a modern acoustic guitar, it doesn’t actually sound
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that great, but it does sound like what it is supposed to sound like, which is a
Gibson from the 1930s. And it does have that tone you can’t match anywhere
else. I tend to say this mainly from the production point of view anyway. I am
actually more concerned with what a guitar sounds like than how it feels, how it
plays and what it is.”
Tom believes there is no relationship between the quality and the value of a
guitar. “Okay, in the low end of the market, you can get what you pay for. But
from the mid-range market up it is sometimes hard to distinguish between price
and quality. A guitar may cost € 2,000, but that doesn’t mean to say it is worth
that amount. If you go one step up from the low end of the market, the
difference in quality is quite big, but if you go from the middle to the higher class
the difference is less significant.”
Emotional and musical value
Tom Pearce is quite strong in his opinions, but when he is confronted with the
hypothesis ‘vintage adds emotional value, not musical value’, he finds it hard to
give a definite answer. “It is true that vintage adds emotional value. In terms of
whether vintage adds musical value, I would say that I can’t see music as being
one thing. Let’s go back to the 1930s Gibson that I mentioned before. There is
an emotional value when you pick it up. There is a certain feel to it. But whether
it actually adds musical value would depend on what you are doing with it. There
are certain pieces that I would like to use such a Gibson for, not because it has
emotional value, but because I want the piece to sound a certain way.”
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Guitarist Chris Pastijn:
“You need talent to sound good, but if you don’t have it and would still
like to play, enjoy”
“When you are buying a Fender, Gibson, Martin or Taylor guitar, you pay
part of the price for the brand name. Depending on the model and how
expensive you go, that will easily be a few hundred euros. I don’t know
if this adds value. During workshops in stores I have seen famous
guitarists pick up a cheap guitar and the sound was absolutely fabulous.
You think: I want that guitar. But then you forget how good the player
actually is. So, what is value?”
Chris Pastijn is an all-round and very experienced guitarist who has played in
many cover bands and rock bands. Though he specializes in electric guitar, he
also plays much acoustic guitar when he accompanies solo singers and he
regularly does session work on acoustic guitar. Chris played the five sound
fragments in the guitar test for this research project.
Dedication and discipline
Chris has great dedication and discipline. He plays at least two to three hours
each day to keep his technique up to date and further improve it where possible.
Chris’ mother play piano and organ in church and she considered it important
that all her children should learn about music. “We all had to start playing a
recorder for two years and then we were allowed to pick an instrument that we
want to play ourselves. The guitar was the obvious choice for me. I took lessons
for more than 12 years in rhythm guitar, classical and jazz. I have always had
the drive to practice all these different scales. It drove my children mad
sometimes. One time one of our sons said that I should absolutely not take my
guitar along on holiday. Then I decided I would rather stay at home alone. Call it
fanaticism, but it has taken me to the level where I am now. I also meet
keyboard players who have to put every song in C with the transpose knob;
otherwise they can’t play the song.”
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Musical dream
Chris never contemplated trying another instrument. “I am the type ‘let the
cobbler stick to his last’. I want to get everything out of the guitar at my level
and then I must not take a side-step to drums, keyboards or bass guitar.” Chris
has played in cover bands for almost all of his life and has become a master in
copying licks and sounds. “I would not know what my own identity is. My
ambitions are mainly in the rock, funky and blues style and my dream is to start
a band that plays music that I really like. The first set semi-acoustic and the
second set electric. Time will tell if I can get that project off the ground.”
Financial constraints
Over the years, Chris owned several guitars. “I once had a Gibson Les Paul with
a great action, but financial problems forced me to sell it, which I should never
have done. I have also had several Fender Stratocasters made in the USA. They
often were disappointing because they easily went out of tune. The trouble was
that if I wanted another instrument, I always had to sell the instrument I had at
the time due to financial constraints. I currently own two guitars, a Taylor for the
acoustic work and a Fender Stratocaster. I soon hope to sell the Fender and buy
a Music Man Luke 2. Steve Lukather is my favourite guitar player and he plays
one.”
Sound reinforcement
In the past five years, Chris has started to play more acoustic guitar. He joined
an acoustic trio and started looking on Google for a suitable acoustic guitar.
“Initially, I was looking in the price range of € 600 to € 700. In that segment
Ibanez of Yamaha first come to mind. But since I knew that I was going to make
some money with this trio, I thought it would be justified to select a more
expensive instrument. I ended up with the Taylor, which plays quite easily and in
terms of sound reinforcement it is one of the best. When I compare it to a Gibson
J 200, then I hear that this Gibson has a more beautiful, warmer sound. My
guitar has a thinner sound. That sound remains stable over the years. One of the
things you have to do, is to change your strings about every two months. If you
don’t do that, the sound of your guitar loses much in quality.”
His mood is definitely decisive for how he perceives the quality of his sound. “I
told you that I feel obliged to practice at least 2-3 hours per day. But sometimes
83
I am not in the mood for playing, but do it anyway as I feel I need the practice.
Then I sometimes have moments in which I think that what I do and how it
sounds is dreadful.”
Put heart into building
Chris believes that the type of wood is crucial for the quality of a guitar. “The
hardness plays a role, the way it is glued. For the acoustic guitar it is mainly the
body, the size of the sound hole and the woods that are used. The neck is also
essential and so is the fingerboard for the sustain of the tone.” He has a passion
for older instruments that were hand-made. “Especially in the more expensive
classical guitars the builders really put their hearts into it. That must translate
into a better tone and better playability. So, I believe that older guitars have a
certain added value, but I don’t know from which year this applies. But also new
guitars can sound, feel and play great. The building machines are so much more
sophisticated. I once had a Gibson Chet Atkins with nylon strings. It was a great
guitar. If you take ten of these guitars from the same factory they will all sound
a little different. The same goes for electric guitars. Why, I don’t know.”
No relation between quality and value
According to Chris, there is no distinct relationship between quality and value.
“No certainly not. My opinion is that if you buy a guitar in the price range of €
700 to € 800, you will buy a guitar that plays pleasantly. It will enable you to still
play a chord on the 5th or 10th fret without it sounding out of tune. A very
expensive concert guitar of € 10,000 will not sound much better than a € 5,000
guitar and that € 5,000 guitar will not sound so much better than an instrument
of € 3,000. You can go on with this until the level of the € 700 to € 800 which I
mentioned. Below that, the quality becomes questionable. You really need to be
lucky to buy a guitar of € 200 to €300 that will play and sound right for my
purposes.”
Enjoy what you do
The quality of the player is crucial to how an instrument sounds. “Take Eric
Clapton, for instance, says Chris. “In his early days he set the tone when it came
to technique. Today, we you will find numerous players in their early twenties
who have exceeded the technical level at which he plays. However, the feel, the
84
use of the tone and the timing of Eric Clapton is unsurpassed. Don’t put down
less skilled players. As long as they enjoy what they do, it’s okay. Don’t laugh at
them, but respect them. You need some talent, otherwise you will never get a
good sound, but if you don’t have that talent but would still like to play, go
ahead and enjoy!”
Vintage and value
Emotional value does not play a big role for Chris in his guitar selection. “I can
understand that a guitar has a distinct emotional value if it is a family heirloom
or if someone who is your idol played it. But it does not really count for me.” Still
Chris, agrees to the hypothesis that vintage adds emotional value, not musical
value. “There are certainly very good old instruments. As I said before, the
craftsmanship of the old builders added value. But wood is a natural product that
warps. If it has been properly maintained it may be a joy to play, but it may also
be possible that the quality of the instrument deteriorated over the years. So,
the quality may vary. That is also true for new guitars. The quality may
sometimes be modest, but great instruments are also being built today.”
85
Lecturer and multi-instrumentalist Matt Ogden:
“Categorically, age does not equal a better sound”
“My mother in Liverpool has a guitar that’s never played by anyone
because it sounds horrible. It is a good–looking guitar, but its sound is
awful. Yet, it will never be sold or moved because it is the first one she
learned to play on. There is a heavy sentimental value about it, because
I remember as a kid, being the same height of this guitar, walking
around it and wondering what it was.”
Matt Ogden, Head Lecturer at SAE Institute in Rotterdam, was never allowed to
play his mother’s guitar, but seeing his mother play inspired him to play guitar as
well as a host of other instruments ranging from drums, flute, all kinds of
saxophones, clarinet, bass guitar, piano, trombone and a number of percussion
instruments.
Unlike most guitarists, he is not into specific brands and models. “My favourite
guitar is Yamaha. I couldn’t tell you the model number. Over the years I have
picked up many guitars, ranging from cheap, badly sounding guitars to very
expensive models. I have never purchased a guitar specifically for myself. I
always had somebody else to do it, or somebody else was involved and helped
me choose or I just played on other people’s guitars.”
Powerful iconography
Though Matt plays and enjoys so many different instruments, the guitar has a
special place in his heart. “It is quite a diverse instrument and yet has an
iconography that is very powerful. The saxophone has a similar kind of
iconography when you consider it in the light of blues and jazz, but I think the
guitar is probably the most recognized music instrument icon in the world. It also
has a long and very interesting history, starting out with predecessor
instruments like the lute. Finally, its harmonic qualities make it unique, especially
when it is played by people who are true masters of the instrument.”
Play from the heart
Matt is a self-taught guitarist. At home, he watched his mother play and later on
he attended live performances of some great guitar players. “I have tried some
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formalized lessons with my mother, but that didn’t work, so I decided to follow
my own route by watching and hearing other people play. I did not always use
the right technique. Of course, there has to be a theoretical base, but I would
say: play from the heart. Like in any art, no matter how good you are, there will
also be people better than you, so don’t be arrogant and say: check me out. Just
enjoy where you are and do your best.”
Sound is main determining factor
When it comes to the quality of a guitar, Matt feels the types of wood used for
the fingerboard and the body are essential. “But also the playability is important.
How is the action on the strings and how good is the quality of the tuners?
Ultimately the sound that comes out it is the main determining factor.”
The value of a guitar is another aspect. “I am not very informed about this
myself,” he says. “If I pick up a cheap guitar I think I would be able to say: this
is not a € 3,000guitar. At the same time, I couldn’t tell the difference between a
€ 2,000 and a € 4,000 guitar. As an owner of many musical instruments, I would
say that it is ultimately the price and the sound quality that determine the value
of a guitar. Personally, I attach money to value quite easily. I do tend to break
things down into currency, like how much time and money I have spent on
something. I appreciate quality, but at the end of the day you still need money
to buy an instrument.
Though we started this interview with a statement about the emotional value
attached to the first guitar his mother played on, Matt finds emotional aspects
about instruments not that important.
“I would need to have a certain connection with an instrument before I buy it,
but the emotional aspects are certainly not decisive for me.”
Psycho-acoustic aspects
Does Matt think instruments get to sound better with age? “I can’t say that is
generally the case. But I know that many cellos and other classical instruments
have been proven to sound better with age. So, the same must be true for
guitars. But I think that it depends on the original model. For instance, you
couldn’t have an instrument with a really flat, horrible sound and no response to
begin with and then expect it to improve in sound quality over time. That is not
going to happen. But if it is a good instrument to begin with and if real
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craftsmanship went into its creation, then there is every chance that with age
comes this vintage quality. Maybe this also has to do with psycho-acoustic
aspects, whereby we attach a certain value to this vintage sound. The same can
be said for honky-tonk pianos. But generally speaking, I don’t think categorically
that age equals a better sound.”
Asked about his reaction to the hypothesis ‘vintage adds emotional value, not
musical value’, Matt hesitates. “I don’t know if I can fully agree with that. I see
the argument behind it, but I don’t know if I can commit to it conclusively for
100%. I guess my answer would be maybe. It’s a mixture of the two, but to
what extent I don’t know.”
Skill of guitar player is vital
One thing Matt is adamant about, is the influence of the skill of the guitar player.
“That is immensely important. Knowing how to treat an instrument, how to hold
it, how to play is the key to good technique and good technique is the key to
getting a good sound out of an instrument regardless of its quality. So, if the
instrument has some inherent high qualities, it takes somebody who understands
that instrument, who knows how to play it properly and handle it properly to
bring out that good sound.”
How would Matt describe a good sound? “Wholesome with some sustain and a
nice clean pure note. But how that is defined, I don’t know, I never thought
about that, that’s just what I like.”
Is his perception of a good sound always stable, or does it depend on his mood?
“It definitely depends on my mood. Sometimes I’ve picked up the same guitar
and put it down again because I was not feeling it at all. So, therefore, the
perception of a good sound is not stable. I know what I like, especially when I’m
looking for a guitar, but you have those off-days, you know, harmonically, orally
and acoustically. It’s psycho-acoustics again, in a different way.”
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Musician and store-owner Ron de la Bey:
“We offer guitars that deliver a decent quality at an affordable price”
"In our store the ratio between price and quality is extremely important.
If people want to buy an expensive guitar, they will go to a specialized
store where they can choose from at least 50 different models. Our focus
is on the starters' market, so we offer instruments for the beginning
guitarist. We are offering guitars that deliver a decent quality at an
affordable price. I would hate it if some would bring a guitar back to the
store because he is dissatisfied about the quality of the guitar and I
would actually have to agree with him."
Ron de la Bey is a musician who plays several instruments. In addition, he and
his wife Iris run Maranatha Christian Music Store in Bodegraven. They started it
as CD and DVD store that specializes in southern gospel music. When they
started the store, they were pioneers in the genre in the Netherlands. As
southern gospel gained in popularity, more and more competitors came on the
market. Ron and Iris broadened their product range with gifts and musical
instruments. They do not only offer guitars, but also small instruments such as
harmonicas and recorders. In addition, they have a limited supply of electronic
instruments. The clientele consists of music schools and people who are starting
to play an instrument. The store also fills a regional function for guitarists who
want to buy strings, finger picks, guitar leads and other small items. As Ron is a
true musician at heart, he makes sure that these items also have the right
quality/price ratio.
The art of leaving out
Ron is mainly a pedal steel guitarist and dobro player, but he also plays guitar
and bass guitar. He started at a very young age and took classical and jazz
guitar lessons for a number of years. For the rest, he is self-taught. Ron is a
frequently asked session player on dobro and steel guitar. "Playing is the art of
leaving out", he says. Especially when you are playing with other people, the
expression is better when you play less. It is better to play a few licks in the right
places than 100 licks in the wrong places."
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Beautiful clean sound with long sustain
Ron plays a double-neck Zumsteel pedal steel guitar and a custom-made
Crafters of Tennessee dobro. He owns a Gibson Gospel acoustic guitar from
1979, an electric Fender Lead 2 from the early 1980s and a Fender Precision
Bass from 1978. "I still have the first guitar I ever played. It was a Grutsianelli
that my parents gave me. Currently, my focus is on dobro and pedal steel. I use
the Gibson Gospel when I have to work out the chord structure of a song. It has
as slim neck, which I like and a nice sound with a good mix of high and low. For
me it is important that a guitar plays easily and that it has a nice warm sound
with a good balance between high and low, but not too bassy. I like a beautiful,
clean sound with a long sustain. It is also important that you can distinguish the
notes on the individual strings when you play a chord."
Dependability
The sound is the most important factor for determining the quality of a guitar,
according to Ron. "Furthermore, the dependability is important. That it is not too
much out of tune when you put it in the case and get it out again after some
time. How it sounds and how it plays are the things that matter."
When talking about the value of a guitar, Ron wants to make a clear distinction
between financial value and emotional value. "The types of wood used largely
determine the financial value. Things like whether the top of the body was made
of one solid piece of wood." Brand names certainly play a role, "but", says Ron,
"there is a relationship between brand and financial value and that is not just the
name. The famous brands use high quality materials and these result in added
musical value, which also translates into market value."
Guitar as a tool
Emotional value also plays a distinct role. "It relates to things like how long you
have a particular guitar, where you took it and what you did with it. But a guitar
has a maximum market value and this emotional value just can't be expressed in
monetary terms. Professional guitarists often regard their guitar as a tool that
they need for their job. It is like a carpenter who needs a good hammer. When it
is broken, he needs to buy a new one. Famous guitarists often have the luck that
they get their instruments for free from the manufacturer they endorse."
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Age gracefully
“Vintage guitars may have added value, but”, says Ron, “not by definition. The
basic materials of which the guitar was made play a key role. If these are of
good quality and the guitar was well kept, then you may expect it to age
gracefully and increase in quality. But if these basic materials were not good, the
guitar will probably start to disintegrate a little over the years. I don’t think you
can say in all cases that vintage adds musical value.”
Product range has to be standard
Trends are important. Ron also sees that in the store. "We have many young
customers who are just starting out. They probably saw a beautiful black guitar
being played on TV and then they start looking for such a model. But we are too
small to responds to all kinds of trends. The range of guitars we carry has to be
rather standard. We do not offer exotic instruments. Of course, when someone
wants a specific guitar, we can order it.”
Quality check
The guitars that Maranatha Christian Music Store sells are all made in factories
and Ron thoroughly inspects them on arrival. “There may be irregularities in the
finish such as a sharp edge or a scratch. I think that such problems occur less
with hand-built guitars. The quality check of such instruments is usually more
elaborate. I suspect that even in the factories of Gibson and Martin, the guitars
are not fully hand-made. So, I wonder if I actually ever saw a fully hand-made
guitar. Technology is advancing. Take, for instance, the drying of the wood. In
the past, it was a natural process that took ten years. Nowadays it is done in
ovens and the whole process takes a few months.” Ron’s favourite guitar brand
is Martin, but he also likes Cort, a brand that he sells in the store. He was so kind
to let us use one the Cort guitars for the sound test.
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Max Guitars store manager Jerry Reedijk:
“Fifty years ago builders just picked a beautiful piece of wood”
“When I first started working in a music store, I had the arrogance to
think that I knew a lot about guitars, but after three years I had learnt
so much that I became convinced that I knew only very little. The
knowledge you can gain about guitars is infinite.”
Jerry Reedijk is store manager of Max Guitars in The Hague, a famous store with
an amazing collection of top-class guitars and a reputation that goes beyond the
national borders. Jerry learnt to play on his cousin’s guitar. His parents did not
want to give him one at first, fearing that it would be his 1,000th hobby and that
he would put it aside after having played it a few times. But Jerry became
infected with the guitar virus and for the past 13 years it has been his life
passion and has become his profession.
Impressive collection
Jerry has an impressive collection of guitars that includes 4 Telecasters – a Thin
Line, a 62 Custom, a 73 model and Squire Classified – a Gibson SG and SG bass,
a Gibson Les Paul, a Les Paul Special, a Les Paul Junior and a 62 Fender
Statocaster. He loves his guitars, but is not too emotionally attached to them.
He would sell them if he could make a good price for them. “I may really like a
guitar and it may play very smoothly, but I will certainly consider selling it if I
can get a good deal. I am very satisfied with the guitars I have, but there are
always better ones. If I could get my hands on an original 1959 Gibson Les Paul
or a very old and rare acoustic Gibson, that would be great.”
Quality depends on several factors
Talking about acoustic guitars, Jerry says that the quality depends on several
factors. “The types of wood are vital. Is it a solid top or a combination? This also
goes for the neck, the fret board, the body and the head. The tuning keys are
important and so is the bridge. Was it made of bone or plastic? In some acoustic
guitars, the built-in electronics play a key role. How was the guitar built? Who
built it? Was it made in a private workshop or in a factory?
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If you look at the building process of say 50 years ago and now, then it is fair to
say that the current building techniques are far more advanced. But 50 years
ago you did not have Forest Stewardship Council marks. Builders just picked a
beautiful piece of wood and governments did not prohibit cutting those trees.
That is a major factor why people tend to look for guitars from the 1950s and
1960s. Moreover, the wood has taken a long time to dry and the drier the wood,
the better the sound. Old wood resonates more.”
Different philosophy
Though Jerry said that the old hand-made guitars from the 1950s and 1960s will
often sound better than newer instruments, this doesn’t mean to say that older
instruments are always better. “People pay fortunes for guitars from the 50s, 60s
and 70s, but especially in the 1970s there was a considerable recession in the
United States. So, they tried to build guitars as low-cost as possible by using
cheaper parts. So, older guitars are not better by definition. However, a lot of the
old hand-made instruments are really good. In the past, the philosophy was:
how can we make guitars that sound better than those of our competitor,
whereas now the thought is: how can we make good guitars, but at the lowest
possible cost.”
No distinct relation between quality and value
According to Jerry, there is no distinct relation between the quality and the value
of a guitar. “There is a brand called Eastman. They offer guitars at prices from
€ 500 to € 1,500 and these guitars sound better than the basic line of the top
brands. An Eastman 320 sounds better than a Taylor 110 even though the Taylor
is more expensive. If you go above € 2,000 you will have a good guitar that was
well-built and attuned, with the right specifications. But in the segment between
a starter’s guitar and € 1,000 you really have to feel, play and listen. Often in the
factories little attention is paid to adjusting and tuning the guitar. It differs per
brand and it can also differ per season.”
The quality of the player makes a world of difference as well. “We have people
coming into our store who buy a guitar of € 5,000 to maybe € 8,000. These
guitars will always sound good. But the other day the guitar player from
Waylon’s band came here and he plucked a cheap acoustic guitar from the wall.
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The sound he got out of it was just amazing. So, the materials will help, but 50%
has to come from the fingers.”
Extensive knowledge
The first guitar store that Jerry worked for was Feedback in Rotterdam. “I came
there as a customer for an internship and was immediately hired to work there
on Saturdays. I had the arrogance to think that I knew a lot about guitars, but
after three years I had learnt so much that I became convinced that I knew only
very little. The knowledge you can gain about guitar is infinite. You can never
know it all; there is always something to learn. I worked there part-time for two
years and full-time for less than a year. Then I had other jobs for a few years.
But the music kept pulling, so I went past some music stores to see if they were
looking for people. At Max Guitars, where I was a customer, they were looking
for a store manager, because the former manager was leaving. I had two long
conversations and helped them for a few days to see if I would like them and
they would like me. Then I was hired. It is a specialized store where everybody
really loves guitars and has extensive knowledge. The average price of a guitar
there is around € 2,000. There are only a few models in the category of € 300400. The price range goes from € 1,000 up to € 40,000. I really like working
there and I get opportunities to broaden my scope, for instance with
responsibility for the orders.”
Price/quality ratios
Max Guitars currently has two stores, one in The Hague and one in Nijmegen.
Jerry thinks the company will expand further, maybe even internationally. Asked
about trends, Jerry says the company is closely monitoring what customers
want. “But we do not always follow trends. If we do not believe in a product, we
will not sell it. We are quite selective in that. Max Guitars has been around for
nine years so we really know about price/quality ratios, we know which guitars
are really good and which builders are really good.”
Trends are usually brand-related. “One year a particular brand may be hot, and
then the next year it may be another brand. A trend that has lasted for a few
years now, is the ‘relic’ look, especially for electric guitars. About six years ago,
everybody wanted a clean-looking guitar in beautiful bright colours. Now people
want new guitars, but with a vintage look.”
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Brand is decisive factor
For many customers brand is the decisive factor. “There are people who come in
here and hardly look at the name on head. They buy a guitar because they just
like how it sounds and plays even if they do not know the brand. But, generally
speaking, people come in with the thought: I want to buy a Gibson, Fender,
Taylor or Martin. We do not want to get that idea out of their head, but we want
to show them all the possibilities. The current trend may not be the best solution
for you, especially because an instrument is so personal.”
Trade in as a favour
If a customer wants to buy a new guitar and trade in his existing instrument,
Max Guitars is always willing to see if this can be arranged. “My first thought is:
can I sell it easily?”, says Jerry. The price depends on what the purchase price
was and what the current prices on E-Bay and Marktplaats are. I always ask:
what amount would you like to have for it? If the gap is too wide, then that’s
immediately clear. We are not really looking for used guitars unless we come
across something unique or something we can immediately sell at a profit. But
mostly we do it as a favour to the customer. If he first bought a € 1,000 guitar
and now wants to buy a € 2,500 guitar, the trade-in price can help to bridge the
big step to that more expensive guitar. The current market value is a key factor.
There are great guitars that I find worth € 1,000, but if they are on the internet
for € 600, then that’s what their current market value is.”
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Lecturer and singer/songwriter Gordon Todd
“The value of a guitar is in its history and in how it has been used,
played and enjoyed”
“Think of a vintage record, I would much rather have an original first
pressing of a classic album than the same album on CD. But surely the
CD would sound better quality-wise. But that’s not the issue. It is not
the sound quality, it’s the object. And a beautiful vintage guitar is a
thing of beauty.”
Gordon Todd is lecturer and a board member at the SAE Institute. He is also an
enthusiastic singer. He learnt to play guitar to accompany himself for singing
and writing songs. The focus is not on the guitar playing. When he makes a song
for a band he usually asks someone else to play the guitar part. This Scotsman is
an avid collector of instruments. “I can play them a little”, he says. “Piano,
accordion, mandolin, banjo, saxophone, drums, ukulele and violin. The violin is a
nasty instrument to play. I’m sure I could ruin the sound of a Stradivarius.”
Expressive instrument
Gordon especially likes the acoustic guitar because it is such an expressive
instrument. “If it is played well, you don’t need anything else. Like Newton
Faulkner does. He is amazing with just his voice and his guitar. He uses it
percussively as well. He kind of plays it and hits it and the combination is special.
On You Tube you will find him doing Teardrop by a massive attack in the
Paradiso lift. It is just fantastic.”
Gordon’s favourite guitar is an Aria semi-acoustic. He also has an acoustic 12string, a Yahama classic guitar and an electric Les Paul copy that he hardly every
plays.
Player determines quality
Talking about what determines the quality of a guitar, Gordon says it is the
quality of the player more than anything else. “For the guitar itself, I think
construction and playability, such as in the action of the strings on the neck, are
important aspects. A cheap guitar is just harder to play. But personally, I think
the player has much responsibility for making the quality of the product, whether
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he uses it on stage or in the studio. It is not a surprise that the better acoustic
guitars are the expensive ones. The Gibsons, the Ovations and the Taylors are
made of better materials and they have been crafted better as opposed to mass
produced products. Sometimes age can add quality. You don’t get that if the
guitar sat in the box for 20 years, but you get it if the guitar has been played
regularly and adapted to its surroundings. But I would not say that by definition
old guitars sound better than newer ones. You could draw an analogy with
vintage cars. You might want to have a real classic car and then drive it and
discover that it actually doesn’t drive as well as something that is just off the
factory.”
Market determines value
The quality of a guitar is one thing. Value is another. Gordon sees that more in
an aesthetic perspective. “I can see an argument for saying that a guitar is more
valuable because it consists of better materials and because it has been better
produced. However, the reality is that the market determines what the value of
something is. You can have the same guitar, but if it was owned by someone
famous, it’s going to cost you more, even if the quality is the same. Value is a
strange thing because is it partly a market thing. Guitars, just like cars, have
history and I think history can add to the value of something. Take the semiacoustic Gretsches, for instance. These are quite expensive guitars. But the ones
they are making at the moment are not particularly good in terms of
craftsmanship.”
Hype and value
Gordon sees no direct relationship between quality and value, “but”, he says, “I
think there is a clear relationship between hype and value. “I mentioned before
that quality depends strongly on the player. Take a very good guitarist and give
him a poor guitar. He will still get a better sound out of it than someone who is
not very good with an expensive guitar. I think it is not in the guitar itself, it is
in how it is used and lots of different other factors, technique being one of them.
Even things like strings can have a big impact on the sound the guitar, as well as
how it is played. So, I don’t think there is necessarily a direct correlation
between quality and value.”
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Emotional associations
According to Gordon, emotional aspects play a big role in determining the value
of a guitar. “Look at famous musicians. Many of them have several guitars. They
don’t have one guitar for the road and one for use at home. They have lots of
different guitars. I think like anything which is a creative endeavour, you make
associations with an instrument, whether they relate to happy or sad times. It
may be the songs you wrote with it or where you played them or how they were
received. So, I think there is absolutely a kind of value attached with the guitar
which goes beyond how it sounds. Then, it’s never really that much about how it
sounds. It’s the emotion that is conveyed by someone singing a song with a
guitar.”
Value is a strange thing
What does Gordon say about the hypothesis ‘Vintage adds emotional value, not
musical value’? “Probably, I would tend to agree with that statement. Because
what is value? The example I give is not about an instrument. It is just for
illustration. Gary Glitter was a massive star in the 1970s with his glam rock. He
appeared in numerous television programs and had sell out tours everywhere.
His value was high until it was discovered that he got up to things he shouldn’t
have done with children. You can’t even give his records away now; the value is
no longer there. So, value is a strange thing. With guitars I think the value is in
the history of the instrument and in how it has been used, played and enjoyed by
someone. If I was an auctioneer, I would emphasize the quality of the
craftsmanship and so on, but if I was a listener I would be interested in who had
actually played it. This is probably why they have so many signature edition
guitars. Imitate your heroes who play a similar guitar.”
Thing of beauty
“I would tend to say the value of vintage isn’t necessarily in the sound”, say
Gordon. “Unless you are going to record something straight, the sound of a
guitar is going be processed somehow. It is going to be equalized, levelled and
possibly compressed slightly to fit the track. Sound can be manipulated. You can
make a bad guitar sound pretty decent. You can make a really good guitar sound
even better, of course, but it’s not so much about the sound as about the
emotional value of vintage. Think of a vintage record, I would much rather have
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an original first pressing of a classic album than the same album on CD. But
surely the CD would sound better quality-wise, but that’s not the issue. It is the
object. And a beautiful vintage guitar is a thing of beauty. It is not a mass
produced item that you can buy online or at the local music store.”
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Annex 2 – Screen shots of webpage with guitar test
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101
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Annex 3 – Full results visual and sound test general panel
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Annex 4 – Full results visual and sound test expert panel
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Annex 5 – List of sound fragments on CD
The sound fragments for the blind sound test were placed on the web page:
http://www.wimpols.nl/wimpols.php/gitaartest. The fragments, played by
guitarist Chris Pastijn, were placed there in random order. The names of the
guitars were not revealed to the participants.
The sound fragments can still be accessed via the web page, but for the sake of
convenience they have also been placed on CD.
The overview of the tracks on the CD corresponds with the fragments on the web
page:
Track/Fragment 1 is the Gibson J 200
Track/Fragment 2 is the Martin D18
Track/Fragment 3 is the Gibson J50
Track/Fragment 4 is the Cort SFX DAO
Track/Fragment 5 is the Taylor 312 CE