9 Guitars That Every Music Enthusiastic Must Know About
“Sometimes, you’ll want to give up the guitar. You’ll hate the guitar. But if you stick with it, you’re gonna be rewarded.”
– Jimi Hendrix
Global stats reveal more than 760 million guitars globally, making a massive statement in the international music market. With this, guitars have been considered as one of the primary reasons for the music industry to witness a boom in revenue generation sources.
Guitars – The soul of music
The guitar is a profoundly helpful musical instrument designed and developed by Adolph Rickenbacker and George Beauchamp. This duo created the first-ever electric guitar in 1931. Talking about its origin, the guitar was first introduced in the early 16th century in Spain. The word ‘guitar’ has been derived from the Latin word ‘Guitarra,’ which means a late-medieval instrument with four strings.
Initially, the three main types of guitar introduced were – the steel-string acoustic guitar, the classical guitar, and the Hawaiian guitar—these three types of guitars used to be played differently, producing entirely different sounds. Later on, many variants and improvements in the basic structure of the guitar were introduced. Therefore, currently, we see acoustic and electric guitars as the widely preferred guitar types in the world.
When talking about guitars, Stratocaster-style electric guitars and steel-string dreadnought guitars are something that comes to everyone’s mind. But that won’t be the case once you finish reading and exploring the list of guitars we have prepared for you. Explore and add more to your guitar knowledge.
Guitar type 1 – Electro-acoustic guitar
Electro-acoustic guitars come with an in-built pick-up which starts to produce humming sound when plugged into a PA system or amplifier. This is one of the major reasons why electro-acoustic guitars produce louder sounds than any other guitar type. If you are about to play in live concerts or among a massive audience, this is the most suitable guitar option available for you. With this, you need not put mics in front of the guitar as they are loud enough to reach a huge audience.
Guitar type 2 – Acoustic guitar
It is one of the most static and ordinary types of guitars available in the market; thus, almost everyone is familiar with it. Acoustic guitars have a hollow body that helps to amplify the sound produced by the strings. Made up of quality wood, acoustic guitars encompass different body parts, including – fretboard, bridge, tuning pads, strings, and soundhole.
Some acoustic guitars come in a symmetrical design, whereas others are in cut-away format, permitting access to higher frets efficiently. Jumbos and dreadnought acoustic guitars have the most significant bodies in all types of acoustic guitars available in the market. On the contrary, the auditorium and parlor are more articulated tone-producing guitars made for professionals like you.
Guitar type 3 – Electric guitar
Almost every electric guitar has a solid body that plays little sound until not plugged in with a socket. You can witness and feel its true potential once you plug in the guitar with an amplifier. Electric guitars come in different sizes and shapes suitable for different requirements. Some of the highly preferred types of electric guitars include – Fender Telecaster, Gibson Les Paul, Fender Stratocaster, etc.
Like ordinary acoustic guitars, most electric guitars are made up of a wooden body and have six strings producing different sounds. The only difference is the sound pitch and effortlessness in playing guitar. Those who have ample experience playing guitar often find electric guitars as a more accessible option to settle for.
Guitar type 4 – Semi-acoustic guitar
Many people often refer to this guitar type as hollow-bodied electric guitars, which hold a quality type between basic acoustic guitars and electric guitars. They aren’t as thin and compact as electric guitars and not hollow as acoustic guitars too. However, they look somewhere similar to electric guitars but do not produce as loud a sound as electric guitars do, therefore called semi-acoustic guitars.
Versatile guitarists are often seen falling for semi-acoustic guitars the most. Sometimes they help you play an acoustic-Esque sound, and other times, a cranked loud sound to seek everyone’s attention.
Guitar type 5 – Cousins of the Guitar
It may interest you to know that this guitar type is a descendant of the lute. There is a set number of instruments that sprung through the family of lute for those who don’t know. Therefore, the professionals consider it as a ‘distant cousin’ of guitars. Some of the most common musical instruments that fall under this category are – Banjo, Mandolin, and Ukulele.
Guitar type 7 – Bass guitar
Once upon a time, being a bass guitar player was a symbol of style statement and prestige, especially for those belonging to the music industry. After years of struggle, Fender came as the most successful version of guitars that worked on all the aspects of bass sound, making the guitar sound more intense and unique for the listeners.
Unlike acoustic guitars, the bass guitars come with only four strings producing thick and more prominent sounds. The bass sound can be adjusted on the bases of deep and low. Most bass guitars are solid-bodied, which makes them look similar to semi-acoustic guitars. However, a basic model of a bass guitar consists of four strings, but one can find bass guitars with five or six strings as well.
Guitar type 8 – Weird guitar
It is one of the fantastic guitar types having seven strings. Guitarists with a desire to look and sound funky often prefer this weird guitar which offers a harmonious blend of low and high strings. It produces heavy sounds, and sometimes its ultra-low pitching keeps the audience intact with it.
Conclusion
Guitars work as a fantastic musical instrument to fuel your music passion. As a result, the music market is flooded with numerous guitars and their variants. All you need is to pick the right one for you and spice up your music learning experience. If you are new to buying a guitar for yourself, consider consulting a professional guitarist for best buy.
