An acoustic guitar is one of the most popular
instruments used in music. The concept of how it works is basically
when a string is plucked it vibrates the body which resonates the air
inside of the guitar and produces a larger sound. The type of strings
and the body of the guitar all have different effects on what kinds of
sounds are produced. The body of the guitar is usually a light, springy
wood such as spruce about 2.5 mm thick. The most common strings used in
acoustic guitars are nylon strings (classical) and steel strings.
On normal acoustic guitars there are six strings.
From top
to bottom the strings are E, A, D, G, B, and E that each correspond to
the
frequencies of 82.4, 110.0, 146.8, 196.0, 246.9, and 329.6
(howstuffworks). Each
frequency produces a different sound where the smaller the frequency is
the
lower the sound is. It is impossible to get the same exact sound out of
two
guitars, or even make the same sound twice from the same guitar because
the
tension in the strings are constantly changing when there are forces
from
plucking.
The strings vibrate the body which then vibrates the
air
inside of it. The body needs a relatively large surface area so it can
move the
air backwards and forwards. The air inside resonates causing the air at
the
sound hole to oscillate and producing sound. Here you can look further
into the different parts of how the guitar works: Strings, Body, and Air.
