batsbrew
the strat looks like you are holding a woman's body.
 
what else is there to know?
 

That is what I always thought. LP=Fat Bottom Girl. ; )

Beepster

spacey
If you ever played an unbalanced instrument you may agree that design of body is much more important...after all there as been many years of instruments with different woods and hardware to let one know that there are "safe" choices but what are they worth if you have hold the thing all the time to keep the head from hitting you in the balls or knocking your front teeth out?

In my crippliness I can appreciate the ergonomics of guitar design much more. An SG/Strat style body is far easier to wield for long periods in a sitting position than a Flying V.
 
I've always disliked how Les Pauls are weighted. Never mind all the other things I dislike about them like the fat, rigid necks. The Studio and Juniors are alright but they kind of defeat the purpose of using an LP. Might as well just go for an SG at that point.
 
Also... hi, Spacey. ;-)

Hi Beepster!
 
You hit it on the head IMO...one finding all the goods that help them enjoy making music for whatever their needs may be is the only thing that matters. It's good to me when they eliminate all the BS and go with their feelings and our feelings change all the time through the years.

spacey
Okay....look at it this way...next time you hear a recording of somebody playing a guitar, which you've never heard so you don't have a clue about what they are using, tell what guitar/shape they are playing, woods used, name the pickups they are using, name the strings, tell all the hardware such as brand of bridge, type of nut material and anything else about it that so many claim to be able to tell...amps/sims, brand of effects....etc., AFTER they know all that info....and then it all sounds so different when somebody else plays the exact same "stuff". LOL...measure what? Measure how nutty people are? Advertising folks measure them...by profits.

I can only tell from my side of the guitar and what I have to do with the results afterwards be it through the amp, board, sims or whatever. Obviously pretty much anything can be manipulated in any way these days and there are far more influential parts of the chain but for me personally I have indeed developed a preference in regards to what style axe to wield for specific purposes. A lot of it is likely psychological but I've had to deal with a lot of knock off clones over the years (because things got destroyed on stage quite frequently) so having access to the originals in studio settings or paid touring where they insisted I used branded originals then comparing that to the far inferior counterparts I did notice how certain body styles SEEMED to have similar characteristics to their more esteemed predecessors.
 
I only speak from what I felt and heard and most certainly defer to the knowledge of luthiers and audio experts (which I realize now Steve was actually asking... not distracted droogs such as myself) but I think there is something there. Everything is vibrating (right down to the strings that make up the universe if we are to believe string theory) so it only makes sense that the way something is shaped will cause it to vibrate differently sending vibrations back into the guitar strings thus making the signal picked up by the magnets be different.
 
I can also knock on the body of my guitar with the strings muted and get a signal or pluck the string group above the nut and get a signal (well away from the pickup) so that seems to indicate that the pickups can snag much more than what is happening directly above them.
 
Don't mind me though. I'm just taking a break from all the other crap I've been dealing with so I'm enjoying letting my mind wander on this topic. I truly know not the answer to the original query.
 
Cheers.

Beepster
Okay... look at it this way. Take an unplugged guitar and hit some strings. Doesn't sound like much. Now touch the headstock or any other part of the actual body of the guitar to a wall or desk or whatever. It will amplify it simply through vibration (I used to take my guitar into the crapper as a kid and butt it up against the drywall to practice as I pooped). So we have just confirmed that there are vibrations going through the body of the guitar. Whether those vibrations are going to directly affect the pickups or not would have to be answered by an electrical engineer. HOWEVER what WILL be happening at the very least is those vibrations will physical affect the vibrations of the strings themselves which WILL affect what is being picked up by the pick ups.
 
Resonance and whatnot.
 
I Want to Believe!
 

WARNING! Physics content:
 
The speed of sound in wood is ~10 greater than air.
 
Since Hz = cycles/sec and speed is ft/sec, we can get the wavelength of a frequency by dividing speed by Hz to get ft/cycle.
 
What you will find is that the wavelengths are 10 times longer, and at 2,000 Hz you get a wavelength in wood of ~6.5ft or 2m (and longer at lower frequencies).
 
So if we are talking about reflections against the edge of the body bouncing back and causing phase reinforcement or cancellation with the strings, how much difference in phase is a body with slightly different dimensions going to make? And keep in mind that the longer the wave travels, its amplitude is going to be reduced, especially at higher frequencies (with shorter wavelengths).
 
 
Again, the idea that something might make a difference does not mean that it automatically makes a meaningful difference

spacey

Beepster

spacey
If you ever played an unbalanced instrument you may agree that design of body is much more important...after all there as been many years of instruments with different woods and hardware to let one know that there are "safe" choices but what are they worth if you have hold the thing all the time to keep the head from hitting you in the balls or knocking your front teeth out?

In my crippliness I can appreciate the ergonomics of guitar design much more. An SG/Strat style body is far easier to wield for long periods in a sitting position than a Flying V.
 
I've always disliked how Les Pauls are weighted. Never mind all the other things I dislike about them like the fat, rigid necks. The Studio and Juniors are alright but they kind of defeat the purpose of using an LP. Might as well just go for an SG at that point.
 
Also... hi, Spacey. ;-)

Hi Beepster!
 
You hit it on the head IMO...one finding all the goods that help them enjoy making music for whatever their needs may be is the only thing that matters. It's good to me when they eliminate all the BS and go with their feelings and our feelings change all the time through the years.

I loved Flying V's for many years (but unfortunately never owned a real one) but that is one guitar that I think I've lost the taste for. Not just because they are extremely uncomfortable for me to play anymore but I find they have a bit of a hollow tone. Like there are certain frequencies that have been sucked right out the middle of them. It's weird. I wonder about the reverse V's and whether maybe that oddball design somehow brings some of that back in but really... I like SG's these days despite the lack of bottom end (which really should be taken up by the bass guitar anyway). If I could get my hands on an SG that was a little thicker/denser than the average offering I think it would be a nice fit.
 
But you never know with these things. For now I'm going to continue pining for that Epi Lucille model. I think that would serve my little home set up well.
 
I hope you've been well.

Yes, it makes a difference. Also the density and destiny of the wood and also the age of the wood. Like different grapes make different wines and also the aging of the wine.
 
Then come pickups to make the sound and the amp and the entire signal chain or not of the guitar.
 
Plus the comfort playing the guitar (or not)  and the neck and everything that makes up a guitar in the end or an acoustic guitar.
 
 

spacey
....but what are they worth if you have hold the thing all the time to keep the head from hitting you in the balls or knocking your front teeth out?

Are you speaking from experience?

I honestly think the body shape makes a difference.
 
I sound like carp on all of them.
 

batsbrew
the strat looks like you are holding a woman's body.
 
what else is there to know?
 

 
Which makes this one just a bit more disturbing!

spacealf
Yes, it makes a difference. Also the density and destiny of the wood and also the age of the wood. Like different grapes make different wines and also the aging of the wine.
 

 
That is true of acoustic guitars. I don't think it matters in a meaningful sense with sold-body electrics.