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Heritage Owners Club

Acoustic resonance ?


jazzalicious

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I know you are asking a lot of question to research a purchase, but all the answers here are going to be subjective and even vary from guitar to guitar.

 

Like I said before when you asked about tone, the acoustic resonance will be same/similar to a 335/345.

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The wood wouldn't resonate to a very large extent , for two reasons 1) it's a laminate, not a solid wood 2) the center block inhibits the board resonating. (Although it would have more acoustic resonance than a solidbody )

 

For these reasons it gives a more "woody" tone than a regular solidbody without the feedback issues that true hollowbody guitars can have when amplified.

 

The Prospect is a good choice to get more resonance without going full hollowbody. It has a floating center block that does allow the back to resonate much more freely.

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Another point...Heritage 535 & 555 semi-hollows have solid rims. That makes them a bit less resonant acoustically, but more lively amplified.

 

One of the main reasons I became interested in Heritage Guitars was because of their history (heritage) and the experience of the builder/owners. It took a couple of years before I was able to play one of their fine guitars. But that did it. I've been a fan ever since.

 

Since you do not have a local shop that carries Heritage, your questions and caution are totally understandable. There is a wealth of knowledge available to you here on the HOC, so ask away. :icon_smile:

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In trying to key in on "hollow resonance" myself (which may not be exactly what you are talking about), I compared a few of my Heritages. I played them one after another, just acoustically, not going through an amp. In my head, I've assigned a hollow resonance rating to each one, with my H150 being 0 (as it is solid), and my prospect being 10 (the most hollow resonant one I own). With that scale, I would rate their hollow resonance as follows:

 

H150:0

Millie DC: 2.5

Blues Deluxe: 5

H555: 5

Prospect:10

 

This is the order you would expect -- the Millie is semi-solid, not semi-hollow, the Blues Deluxe and H555 have solid center blocks and the Prospect a floating center block (not attached to the back).

 

But what it reveals that would not had been obvious if I hadn't compared them side by side, is 1) How much more hollow resonance the Prospect has because of it's floating block and 2) How little the Millie has, relatively speaking.

 

I don't have a full hollow (say H575) to compare them to, but if I did, I imagine it would be the 10, and the rest would be shifted down quite a bit.

 

I was surprised / disappointed at how less hollow sounding the H555 and Blues Deluxe were, than the Prospect. If "hollow resonance" is what you're looking for, I would say do not go with a solid center block. Get a floating block Prospect, or I imagine that Heritage would make you a floating block H555 if you asked. You may even want to consider full hollow. My next guitar might be a full hollow Prospect, if I can find one with humbuckers.

 

There are other things to consider -- not being a tall person, I find Prospects favorable to H535s and H555s because of the size. I think they are much more comfortable to play. But they are not as comfortable to play as the Millie -- I wish they made Millies as semi-hollow instead of semi-solid -- that would probably be my favorite. But -- the more hollow, the more prone to feedback -- which all depends on how loud you play. I never play loud enough where that is an issue with any of them.

 

This is all highly subjective, of course. Each guitar is different, and a great guitar in it's own right -- they all sound great, and I like playing them all. It just depends on what you are looking for at the moment, and of course, your mileage may vary.

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What I mean is, do you feel the body vibrate when playing?

Not hollowbody resonance...

Have that with my 575 and 525.

 

Some guitars are quite lively and resonant when playing, others (I had a PRS hollow body that had no vibration ....dead!)

Even some solidbodies I've played you felt the body resonate...

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What I mean is, do you feel the body vibrate when playing?

 

 

One of the quirky things I do when I first pick up a new guitar is to hit the harmonics of all the strings at once, at the twelfth fret, then feel the vibrations (resonance) at the headstock and in the neck. Just gives me an idea of how lively an instrument is. My 535 is one of the (if not the) most lively (in that sense) guitars I've ever played. That liveliness is one of the reasons I bought it. I've never owned a guitar so lively and "organic." And it does sound marvelous amplified, both clean and driven with grunt. It's an absolute joy to feel that guitar in my hands and against my chest!

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