Play archtops differently?

[bluemorris]

I have a swing band and recently purchased an Epiphone Emperor Regent. I'm used to playing a semi-hollow archotp Samick guitar. I think I may have a somewhat heavy right hand and I may strike the strings a little on the hard side when strumming "4 to the bar". That was okay on the semi-hollow. But I find on this Emperor Regent, i have to stroke the strings gently to get a nice sound. Otherwise, it sounds pretty awful -- all crunch and no tone.

Is that common for archtop guitars? Do I need to learn to play with a gentle touch to get that swing sound? Or is it just this guitar?

Thanks for your help,
Blue

[pinsk94]

Well it is my understanding that archtops are supposed to thrive in this area as a lot of there design are for this job. I have a heavy hand and have no problem with my Heritage. Possible issues/reasons for your problem could include:
1 The Guitar
If its bad, nothing will help. Lets not hope that is it.
2 The Action
If the action is to low, It will hurt the tone. The strings need some breathing room to vibrate. If you get the action to where it sounds good, yet the action is two high, you might want to get the frets precisely leveled by a good luthier to tighten the tolerences. I have this done to all my guitars, even if new. Turns out a lot better than factory/shop.
3 Strings
To me strings are very important on an acoustic guitar. Bad strings - bad sound. Also the guage will be important. If to light it will sound jangly. I like them heavy (13-14's). Took a little to get used to but was worth the increase in tone. You also need that tension on the soundboard to make it vibrate (sing)
4 Pick
To smooth out the sound try a thicker pick and even using the least pointy corner of your pick.

I am sure the Prof and others have some ideas as well.
Good Luck

[Professor]

bluemorris said:

....it sounds pretty awful -- all crunch and no tone.

Is that common for archtop guitars?

No, it's not. It sounds like your amp needs to be tweaked. The crunch is distortion from the amp, not the guitar.

I think the Emperor Regent is a short scale guitar (24 3/4 " scale). So, you need to use at least .011s or .012s. Make sure your action is not too low, but don't overcompensate either.

I try for a sound that's not dark, but the warm side of the guitar's acoustic tone. You can get good tones from both tubes and solid state. You can use roundwound or flatwound strings, whichever you prefer.