Resohonic Basics cont.
The Body
The body of a resonator guitar may be made of wood or metal.
Each material has its own tonal characteristics. As a result,
each is found associated with specific styles of music. The
warm tone of a wood body fits very well with bluegrass and
old time gospel or folk. The metal body’s tone is more
closely associated with blues styles. Of course, these are
generalities, not absolute truisms, and a combination of body
material with bridge and cone choices create the final picture.
Resonator Designs
 |
|
Tricone
|
The combination of cones and bridge design define the largest
portion of the instrument’s tone though.
A resophonic guitar may have one or three cones. The bridge
and its contact with the cones transfer the vibration from
the strings to cones to create the unique sound. Regardless
of design, the cones act much like the speakers in a stereo.
Cones are made from aluminum, but the method of their manufacture
is a very important element. Spun cones are machined to exacting
specifications to ensure a superior tone. As a matter of fact,
striking a spun cone produces a bell-like tone. A stamped
cone is produced much like a car’s hubcap. That is, it
is mass produced on a machine and stamped out using a mold.
When a stamped cone is struck, the resulting tone is dead
by comparison. This difference alone produces a profound effect
on tone.
The single cone design often provides a louder volume than
the tri-cone. On the other hand, the tri-cone design offers
a wider palette of overtones and a fuller sound. The trade
off in the tri-cone design is some lost bass response.
 |
|
Biscuit Bridge
|
There are 3 main designs for bridges in a resophonic. The
number of cones helps determine which is used. A single-cone
design can use two different kind of bridges, the biscuit-bridge
or the single-cone spider-bridge. A tri-cone design uses a
t-shaped bridge.
Biscuit-Bridge
The biscuit-bridge cone looks like an inverted speaker cone
and is the simplest of designs. The small disc of wood that
sits in the center of the cone is the “biscuit.”
The saddle is also made of wood and is positioned in a pre-cut
slot. Because of the single contact point in the cone, these
resophonics tend to produce a strong tone but an uncomplicated
one lacking overtones. The metal-body biscuit-bridge resonators
are highly favored for delta blues players due to their loud,
cutting metallic tone.
 |
|
Spider Bridge on Single Cone
|
Spider-bridge
The single-cone spider-bridge design derives its name from
the almost spider-like shape of the bridge. The cone is W-shaped,
therefore the spider bridge contacts the cone in both the
center and along the edges. As a result, string vibration
is dispersed more evenly throughout the cone. The spider cone
is more like a typical speaker in that its concavity is reversed
forcing the sound out of the body rather than into it.
Whether a biscuit-bridge or spider bridge resonators is right
for you depends on what kind of music you play. The biscuit
bridge, single cone sound is closely associated with blues.
The tonal qualities of the spider bridge, especially used
in a wood body resonator, are most closely associated with
bluegrass.
Tri-cone Design
The Tri-cone has, as its name implies, three cones and a
T-shaped bridge. These instruments are more difficult to build,
so they tend to cost more than a single-cone model. The saddle
of the Tri-cone sits in a slot along the long leg of the T.
The shape of the bridge transfers the vibration to all three
cones. In many ways, the tri-cone design offers tonal characteristics
between the two single cone systems. The tri-cone design certainly
offers more complex tones with a rich aura of overtones. Many
slide players who straddle various styles prefer this style
of resonator for its versatility.
Whether looking at a metal or wood body, a single cone or
a tri-cone, or a roundneck or a squareneck, the rich choices
of tone and playability are limited only by your style and
tonal preferences.
Return to Page 1
|
