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Electric Guitars - The Basics
The electric guitar is a familiar sight to us all, but if you are just starting out on your guitar playing journey there are some basic pieces of knowledge that you need to learn to make the relationship with your electric guitar an easier and more enjoyable one right from the beginning. Turn your guitar to face you with its bottom on the floor and its neck pointing at the ceiling. We'll start from the top...
Headstock - The flat extension at the top of the neck is called the "headstock", "peghead" or simply the "head". The purpose of the headstock is to locate the tuning mechanisms for the instrument (see Tuners below). Another function of the headstock is to provide string tension over the nut (see Nut below). To create this tension the headstock is usually splayed backwards slightly, away from the strings. The same tension-creating profile is sometimes achieved by "stepping back" the headstock at the neck joint. Either way this makes the joint between the head and the neck particularly vulnerable to impact damage, so always take care when playing or handling the instrument to avoid knocking the headstock. The headstock usually allows access to the truss rod (see Truss Rod below), the access hole for which is often concealed under a triangular plate on the headstock.
Tuners - Most electric guitars have individual covered or sealed tuners which are often called "machine heads". When the tuning knob is twisted the motion is exaggerated via a worm-gear mechanism which turns a capstan on the face of the headstock to which the appropriate string is attached. This increases or decreases the tension on the string causing it to increase or decrease in pitch when played. Some twelve-string electric guitars have two slots cut in the headstock across which the capstans rest. The tuners are then mounted on the edge of the headstock rather than the back.
Nut - The nut is the slotted string guide which is to be found between the headstock and the neck, normally made from white, cream or black plastic but sometimes made from metal, bone or even ivory. The function of the nut is crucial to the quality and playability of the finished instrument. The nut represents the top limit of the strings' available vibrating length, it sets the string spacing for the instrument and greatly affects the action, that is the height of the strings above the fretboard (see Fretboard below).
Some guitars have a "zero-fret" (see Frets below), in which case the nut simply provides string spacing and tension over the zero-fret which itself sets the action and length of the string.Neck - The neck together with the fretboard will largely dictate the playing relationship you have with the instrument as it is here that most of the fiddly, creative stuff gets done. The neck of a modern electric guitar is usually slim and very fast to play, although some models have a traditionally chunkier feel. Neck profiles are a matter of acquired taste, but slimmer is generally better for the beginner or the player with smaller hands. The electric guitar has a longer playable neck-length than an acoustic because an electric guitar doesn't need a large soundbox body to create the sound. Twenty-one or twenty-two frets is usual with some models sporting twenty-four frets (24 frets cover two full octaves per string).
The neck is either a set (or through) neck, which means it is fixed into the body of the guitar and is not removable, or it is a bolt-on neck. A fixed neck is better at preserving the exact tone of string vibrations and the heel formed by the join of neck and body can be made rounded, smooth and more comfortable. A bolt-on neck makes maintenance easier and neck replacement possible, it also affords the possibility of adjusting the neck angle if necessary. The heel, the join where the neck is attached to the body, is generally less comfortable under the hand than on a fixed neck guitar. Most necks are maple or mahogany but other woods and materials have been used.Truss Rod - The neck is stabilised by the addition of a truss rod. This takes the form of a rod of metal that is set into the neck before the fretboard is applied. In most modern electric guitars this is adjustable using the correct tool from the headstock end (how to make these adjustments will be covered in another article).
Fretboard - The fretboard, sometimes know as the "fingerboard" is glued onto the flat surface on the front of the neck and presents the guitarist with the playing surface. Traditionally fretboards are made from rosewood, maple or, more rarely, ebony. Sometimes on electric guitars the fretboard will be finished in the same lacquer or varnish as the neck.
Frets - In Western music only certain tones and musical intervals are considered pleasing. We call these tones "notes" and all our music is based for the most part upon scales made up from these notes. Frets are strips of wire set horizontally in the fretboard at the correct intervals to produce these notes. The player presses a string down onto the playing surface of the fretboard slightly behind the desired fret (never press down onto the fret itself). This causes the string to be stopped by the fretwire. Once the string is played by the other hand, the fret determines the length of the string allowed to vibrate which in turn dictates the tone or note that the string produces. This can be altered subtly for effect by the player bending the string along the fret or adding vibrato with the fretting finger.
Frets are set in slots in the fretboard and usually present a rounded polished profile to the player. But many different profiles of fret exist, from thin to jumbo, rounded to flat profile, fitted to suit the guitar and the style of playing at which it is targeted. The ends of the fretwire are always carefully finished to prevent snagging on the hand.Fret Markers - To make it easier for the player to judge their position when moving about the fretboard most electric guitars have fret markers. The traditional dot markers are placed in the centre of the fretboard at the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 15th and 17th fret with a pair of dots identifying the octave at the 12th fret. There are many variations on the shape of marker, but they are always on the same frets. Even when no markers are visible on the face of the fretboard it is customary to retain them on the top binding of the neck where they are clearly visible to the player.
Body - The body of a solid electric guitar needs to provide a stable platform for the hardware, neck and electronics, the material from which it is made needs to be dense enough to resonate in a satisfactory way, but beyond that the shape and finish really doesn't matter in acoustic terms. That's why we have the bewildering array of electric guitar designs available on the market today. The shapes that survive do so because they are comfortable and pleasing to play, or they become so fashionable that we forgive their shortcomings.
Electric guitar bodies are normally made out of alder, ash, maple or mahogany. Each of these woods lend their characteristics to the finished tone, which can also be affected by the size and thickness of the body together with many other construction variables.Pickups - The pickups are magnetic devices that "pick up" the vibration of the metal strings. The pickups must be under the strings to do this (except in rare examples where "piezo" pickups are placed in the bridge). There can be up to four pickups on some models but the usual compliment is two or three. There are two types of pickup generally available, single-coil or humbucker (which has two magnets and coils). The single-coil is generally better for clean, treble response, the humbucker generally delivers a heavier, more powerful sound. The pickup is an expensive component and the best pickups will mostly be found on the more expensive guitars.
Controls - There will always be a volume control which is normally accompanied by a tone control. On two-pickup guitars there may be a volume and tone for each pickup. Some more expensive models may feature active tone controls that require battery power. If there is more than one pickup there'll be a pickup selector switch to choose which pickup or combination of pickups is operating at any given time. Finally the output jack for a standard guitar lead is either on the front of the body or on the lower edge.
Pickguard - The pickguard is sometimes called the "scratchplate" and the design usually complements the design of the body. On some instruments the pickguard covers almost the entire face of the guitar but the bit that does the "guarding" is directly below the strings. The purpose of the pickguard is to protect the finish on the guitar from scratches caused by the players pick or "plectrum". Some models have dispensed with pickguards altogether (as in the example in the photograph above).
Bridge - The bridge on an electric guitar is sometimes a two-piece affair, where a separate tailpiece anchors the strings before they travel across the bridge, or a one-piece affair, where the tailpiece is incorporated in the bridge or where through-body stringing means the strings are "stopped" in ferrules at the back of the body and a separate tailpiece is not required. Some complete bridge assemblies are adjustable for height but in most designs the adjustment for height and intonation is made individually on the saddles.
Saddle - Most electric guitars have an individual saddle for each string which has screw adjustments for the height and the length of the string. The height sets the strings "action" and determines how easily the string can be fretted along the fretboard. The length of the string sets the intonation of the string and determines how well the guitar plays in tune along the length of the neck (usually illustrated by checking for a true octave on the 12th fret).
Strap Buttons - As the electric guitar is usually played in performance in a standing position the size and location of the strap buttons is important. One is always on the bottom edge of the guitar, the other is usually on the top edge of the body above the neck or on the back of the body at the heel.
So now you know the anatomy of the Electric Guitar.
The Man in the Jar (The guitar world's equivalent of Dr Nick Riviera).
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