Acoustic Guitar for Lead and Nashville Tuning

[StoneH]

I am thinking about an acoustic dedicated to lead (extra light bronze strings and maybe 18-14-12 on the treble) and occasional Nashville tuning . . . home recording only. My first thought is that a "darker" sounding guitar would be less tinny when using extra lights. I know it's been done and I don't want to reinvent the wheel. This Ibanez showed up in a Sweetwater email and started my thought process. Has anyone tried something similar?

 

[itstooloudMike]

I have my Taylor 712ce 12-fret set up like this. The key for me is the 12-fret neck joint, small body, and rosewood back/sides. It keeps the light gage strings sounding warm. With the action set low, I can play lead like I’m playing my Les Paul. I love it.

 

[StoneH]

I have my Taylor 712ce 12-fret set up like this. The key for me is the 12-fret neck joint, small body, and rosewood back/sides. It keeps the light gage strings sounding warm. With the action set low, I can play lead like I’m playing my Les Paul. I love it.

Thanks. Just what I wanted to hear. Now if I can only find a guitar that sounds like your Taylor for $400.

 

[schmee]

Coated string or flatwounds will take the brightness off.

 

[teletimetx]

Thanks. Just what I wanted to hear. Now if I can only find a guitar that sounds like your Taylor for $400.

I used an Art & Lutherie parlor size acoustic, strung Nashville style for a project. It was fine for some high end sparkle, finger picking or strum, but I don’t think I would use it for leads. Prefer a tele for that. I don’t use Nashville style string sets enough to be a definitive resource though,

This guy:

 

[Ed Driscoll]

After watching a 2016 Sweetwater video on Nashville Tuning, I went whole-hog and had them convert a Taylor Mini GS. Considering how much thinner most of the strings in a Nashville Tuning set are, you might have some issues with the nut (and maybe the truss rod) if you switch the string gauges back and forth on the same guitar.



It really does sound great when recording to pan a regular acoustic hard left or right and then pan the Nashville-tuned guitar into the opposite channel. It's a giant stereo 12-string!

 

[StoneH]

It really does sound great when recording to pan a regular acoustic hard left or right and then pan the Nashville-tuned guitar into the opposite channel. It's a giant stereo 12-string!

Just last night, I made my first 12-String recording. I doubled the guitar and panned hard left and right (zero EQ and a tiny bit of reverb). It's a little sloppy, but now I know it will work. <Edit> This is also one of the songs I had in mind when I started considering a dedicated acoustic for lead.

 

[LGOberean]

I have a Wechter Nashville parlor guitar (NV-5413E), designed and built for Nashville/high string tuning applications. The top is solid cedar, which tends to have a warmer tone than spruce. Still, it's pretty bright and jangly, but I use that. It's my approximation of a 12-string or a mandolin, and I use it for certain songs and Irish/Celtic music in general. So I think something with a cedar top could be a good choice.

 

[StoneH]

I have a Wechter Nashville parlor guitar (NV-5413E), designed and built for Nashville/high string tuning applications. The top is solid cedar, which tends to have a warmer tone than spruce. Still, it's pretty bright and jangly, but I use that. It's my approximation of a 12-string or a mandolin, and I use it for certain songs and Irish/Celtic music in general. So I think something with a cedar top could be a good choice.

Thanks for putting Wechter on my radar!

 

[LGOberean]

Thanks for putting Wechter on my radar!

The Wechter Nashville is a nice little guitar. I've actually owned two. The first I bought about a decade ago. It wasn't acoustic/electric, but fun to play. Not long after that, Sweetwater Music was having some good deals on them, and so I bought the one that was a/e, and gave the strictly acoustic one to a good friend.

I didn't know it at the time, but Abraham Wechter was putting an end to his factory production line of guitars, and went back to building just high end custom guitars. That was the reason behind Sweetwater blowing them out at good prices. So the Wechter Nashville parlor is discontinued now, but I'll bet you could find one on Reverb or the like.

Like I said, mine has the solid cedar top, rosewood b&s, cream bound body and neck, striped ebony fretboard. No cutaway, but with Fishman Presys + electronics. And it has XLR and 1/4" outputs. For your purposes of recording, one of these would work nicely.

The premise behind the Wechter Nashville just made perfect sense to me. It was designed for this tuning, so it's specs were chosen for this application. The nut is cut correctly for the string diameters. The neck is set up for relief of a tension with the lighter gauge of strings for the Nashville tuning. The top is thin and lightly braced (with less string tension, a thicker top and heavier bracing aren't necessary). All of this translates into a top that really resonates, and sound that just shimmers. Additionally, the frets were set up with the Plek pro system, so playability is great and intonation is perfect.

 

[Informal]

I am thinking about an acoustic dedicated to lead (extra light bronze strings and maybe 18-14-12 on the treble) and occasional Nashville tuning . . . home recording only. My first thought is that a "darker" sounding guitar would be less tinny when using extra lights. I know it's been done and I don't want to reinvent the wheel. This Ibanez showed up in a Sweetwater email and started my thought process. Has anyone tried something similar?

View attachment 983468

Extra light?
With a 12 on the high E?

The high E on my Taylor is a 10


Here is my man card.... Thanks for nothing!