Building the Guitar

In the second week we built a guitar. Dr. Fletcher built most of the body and our responsibility was to calculate where the frets would be placed, cut them and glue them in place. Unlike making the Pvc pipe whistles, where the length is fixed, we only had to worry about ratios because guitar strings can be tuned based on tension. We figured out each notes’ location by relating it to a fifth above it or below it. We put two strings on the guitar. Dr. Fletcher also explained to us that the placements of frets is not the only important part to have a well tuned guitar. You must also consider the string type, and how tightly the strings are pulled. We also had to create a box with a hole in it that allowed the vibrations to spread through the box. This amplifies the sound so we can hear it clearly.