
Musicians from different parts of the world have enjoyed and liked the unique features of vintage instruments. The same thing applies to professional guitars, as they are now relying on the excellent sound and play ability of a vintage guitar.
What qualities make a vintage guitar?
Vintage guitar refers to an old guitar usually maintained and sought after by avid musicians and its collectors. The terminology indicates an old instrument based on its cosmetic appearance, tonal quality, and its historical significance.
Do vintage guitars give worth?
The vintage guitar gives a good worth to artists. Their prices increase consistently based on their limited availability. Even though you will find many up-to-date and advanced guitars in the market, vintage guitars have consistent demand in the market and people spend about a thousand dollars to purchase them. Other reasons for the demand for vintage instruments are the use of expensive materials, aged and excellent sound quality, and the involvement of unique production methods.
Why do vintage or old guitars sound better?
Vintage or old guitars produce better sound or tone, so investing in vintage guitar is beneficial. There are two major reasons behind this, they are-
Drying out of the wood
Wood has always remained in high demand based on its ability to dry out or absorb moisture depending on the underlying conditions. This is because of the wood structure, as it has gaps to absorb the water content. With time, wood automatically fills the gap and fails to retain water. The lack of moisture leads to drying out of the guitar wood to let it produce better sound.
The density of the guitar wood
The density of the guitar wood is an essential factor in producing better sound. The behavior of the guitar wood with vibration changes with time. The wood contains grains to hold sap within them. Whenever vibration in the wood occurs, it breaks the sap and makes it lose. Wooden vibrations move freely in the guitar body to create a deeper tone and better resonance.
From here, you can get the idea why vintage guitar is all time favorite of guitarists or music lovers. Now the point is how to select the right vintage guitar. Keep reading here to clear this doubt.
How to choose the right vintage guitar
Vintage guitars produce a better quality of sound but guitarists should check different things before finalizing their deal. The considerable factors include the following-
Test the instrument
Whether you go to buy a vintage or acoustic guitar of the latest model, you must try the instrument. Here, you have to look for the one that inspires you to play your favorite music repeatedly. In other words, you should search for a guitar that connects you naturally and easily.
Check the instrumental setup
Fixing a few common problems in vintage instruments stored for a long time may be challenging. In this case, you must check the setup of the instrument. To start, you must look at the neck curvature of an old guitar. The curve should be untwisted and homogeneous. However, you have to avoid re-radiating the guitar fretboard to fix its curvature, as it would lose the lacquer of the instrument.
Check the instrument’s truss rod
Limited usage of vintage guitars for many years not only affects their wooden structure but also the metallic parts. Hence, guitarists should check the truss rod adjustment of their instrument carefully before finalizing their deal.
Check each of the movable parts
Once you check the guitar neck and its truss rod, you should go ahead to check each of the instrument’s movable parts. In particular, you should check and confirm that the pins operate properly. Simultaneously, guitarists have to confirm the proper operation of saddle height cap screws and other adjustable parts associated with the proper operation.
Stay realistic in guitar configurations
Lastly, you must be realistic with the configuration of your vintage guitar. The old instruments have low action but they intend to produce a fine-tune. You will find specific parameters with their limits. Hence, you may often find vintage instruments, which produce excellent sound but possess some limitations in their configurations.
Therefore, with these essential criteria, you may find the right vintage guitars for your next performance in a band or stage.