What’s the difference between classical and steel acoustic guitars?
I’m going to be getting a guitar soon. What’s the difference between steel and and classical guitar? Do they sound different?? Which one should i get? Does it really matter?
The basic diffference is that a classical guitar is built to accomodate nylon strings, whereas a steel-string acoustic guitar is built to be strung with — you guessed it — steel strings.
Nylon strings exert far less tension on a guitar’s neck, top and body, but they also generate less volume, so a nylon-strung classical guitar is much more lightly built, of thinner, lighter woods and less bracing, to be as resonant and responsive as possible.
Steel strings exert a LOT more tension and stress on a guitar’s neck, top and body, and generate a lot more volume, so a steel string guitar is more heavily built, with a steel truss rod in the neck to prevent it from bowing, plus thicker, heavier woods, and more and heavier bracing, to withstand the higher string tension.
What this means is that you CANNOT put steel strings on a classical guitar, or nylon strings on a steel-string acoustic.
Classical guitars are mostly fingerpicked and used — you guessed it! — for classical music, or sometimes acoustic jazz. They have a warm, mellow sound, capable of a wide range of volume and tone. Steel-string acoustic guitars can be played fingerpicking style or strummed or picked with a flat pick. They’re the usual choice for acoustic folk, blues, country, bluegrass, and rock music. They have a clearer, brighter, louder tone than classical guitars.
Which one you should get depends on what kind of music you intend to play. You CAN play any style of music on either kind of guitar, but the differences in tone between them make some styles sound better on one than on the other.
Some people will tell you to start on a nylon string classical because nylon strings are a little softer and easier on your newbie fingertips than steel strings, but no matter which guitar you get, your fingertips will be sore and painful for a few weeks until you build up callouses. So you might as well start on whichever type of guitar is best for the style of music you want to play.
Edgar Cruz - Bohemian Rhapsody (classical guitar)
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They can sound different. Classical guitars are some what smaller and you pick using your fingers. With classic guitar most people play it like a piano as in both the instruments can be used to produce bass, melody and harmony. With acoustic guitar its bigger and normally uses steel strings to get a richer sound. Most people play the acoustic by strumming chords. They both sound slightly different but in the end are both guitars. The difference is its easier to play certain styles with what type of guitar you use. So if you just are looking at picking something up to strum around the camp fire go acoustic. If you want to add some intense music theory and interesting playing styles to your music classical is the way to go. But classical is in a sense harder, so the choice is yours.
References :
The basic diffference is that a classical guitar is built to accomodate nylon strings, whereas a steel-string acoustic guitar is built to be strung with — you guessed it — steel strings.
Nylon strings exert far less tension on a guitar’s neck, top and body, but they also generate less volume, so a nylon-strung classical guitar is much more lightly built, of thinner, lighter woods and less bracing, to be as resonant and responsive as possible.
Steel strings exert a LOT more tension and stress on a guitar’s neck, top and body, and generate a lot more volume, so a steel string guitar is more heavily built, with a steel truss rod in the neck to prevent it from bowing, plus thicker, heavier woods, and more and heavier bracing, to withstand the higher string tension.
What this means is that you CANNOT put steel strings on a classical guitar, or nylon strings on a steel-string acoustic.
Classical guitars are mostly fingerpicked and used — you guessed it! — for classical music, or sometimes acoustic jazz. They have a warm, mellow sound, capable of a wide range of volume and tone. Steel-string acoustic guitars can be played fingerpicking style or strummed or picked with a flat pick. They’re the usual choice for acoustic folk, blues, country, bluegrass, and rock music. They have a clearer, brighter, louder tone than classical guitars.
Which one you should get depends on what kind of music you intend to play. You CAN play any style of music on either kind of guitar, but the differences in tone between them make some styles sound better on one than on the other.
Some people will tell you to start on a nylon string classical because nylon strings are a little softer and easier on your newbie fingertips than steel strings, but no matter which guitar you get, your fingertips will be sore and painful for a few weeks until you build up callouses. So you might as well start on whichever type of guitar is best for the style of music you want to play.
References :
It depends on the style you want to play. If you are going to to learn classical or flamenco styles, go for a nylon string. If you want to play pretty much anything else, steel string is the way to go. In addition to what the first poster said, the necks on classical guitars tend to be wider, resulting on the strings being farther apart. Personally, I find them terribly irritating, and sold my last one ten years ago.
References :
If you want to learn classical or flamenco styles, go for a nylon string. If you want to play pretty much anything else, steel string is the way to go.
In classical guitars , Nylon strings are used, and in acoustic guitars steel strings are used.
Nylon stings are easy to play,, but steel strings are a bit harder to play.
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