Official Luthiers Forum!

Hey all,
This is purely for information's sake and because several people requested some sound files when I posted the original thread about this recently finished parlor.

The first time I built a OOO size guitar, it was because I'd never had access to, nor had heard a decently built OOO and wanted to know what it was like.

So for all of you who are curious about how a parlor guitar might sound (and maybe compared with other guitars) here are some clips. This instrument was built with a Douglas Fir Top and Mahogany Back and Sides.

I did these clips in two hours including mixdown. All clips were recorded with a Behringer 8 channel board, one AT1010 and one Shure SM81. Both mics were placed about one foot in front of the instrument with the Shure pointed at the lower bout and the AT1010 oriented at the soundhole.

The mics were mixed to equal intensities and run through the board straight into my laptop where a tiny bit of reverb was added, mainly to create a stereo field. Clips were mixed with headphones (as the family is asleep) so I don't know what they sound like through decent speakers. All clips used identical recording configuration so the volume and tone differences are as they would be perceived with no alteration.

Hopefully these will help someone who is building a smaller instrument (or wanting to hone up on their critical skills if they choose to write comments in future replies.)

I believe this would be a period piece that was written and probably played by early parlor guitars.
Last Rose of Summer on Parlor
For reference, here it is on a sitka/mahogany OOO
Last Rose of Summer on a OOO
And on a 4.5" Deep Cedar/EIR OM
Last Rose of Summer on OM

Parlor guitars gained some popularity as nice blues instruments.
Here's a blues riff on the three guitars.
Blues riff on a Parlor
Blues riff on the OOO
Blues riff on the Deep OM

The parlor would have made a fine Cowboy guitar
Here's a little country ditty

I like it for fingerstyle
Beginning of my original tune, The River

Enjoy,

Dave

Dave,

Thanks for doing this. Nice playing on your behalf by the way. It's always nice to hear the instruments we see here.

The parlour sounds good. As with all of these things it will be interesting to repeat an excercise like this as the months and years progress as the parlour matures to the level of the other guitars you played. The parlour has to my ears elements of an almost harp-like sound that comes from these little instruments and gives them great charm and intimacy and an extra tonal pallete that you can use with other instruments. It certainly works best for fingerstyle to my ears and for playing in small intinate settings - like parlours . I think there will still be a difference due to the different sizes of box but as the months progress the parlour's sound will smooth out an mature to be a lot closer to the 000 and OM sound. There's a nice note separation and clear/interesting balance to the sound.

I'm impressed and inspired to make something with the Douglas Fir set I have - still not sure what though.

_________________
Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Dave, those are great! Like Dave White said, thanks for taking the time to do it.

_________________
Mike

"The Dude abides. I don't know about you but I take comfort in that. It's good knowin' he's out there. The Dude. Takin' 'er easy for all us sinners. Shoosh." The Stranger

Well i guess i have to put parlour on the list of builds to come now.
Sounds like a great fingerstyle guitar .
Dave is right, we don't hear nearly enough of the guitars we see here, so an extra just for posting the clips.

btw, really nice playing.

Frank

_________________
Frank

Thanks guys for the kind words.

I can't wait to hear what this one will sound like in a few months. It seems that right after stringing up for the first time, the tone gets better and better each day. And this one's only been strung up for a couple weeks.

Time will tell.

Dave