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Subject: Re: Oh say, can't you see... ( 17 of 22 )
Posted by FingerSoup


Well, not mikes as such... Pickups are different from microphones. Most electric guitars have pickups with "poles" that pick up the vibration of the strings on the guitar. Accoustic-Electric guitars usually have a hybrid of electric guitar pickups and standard microphones. accoustic guitars usually have no pickups, and must therefore be miked externally.

There are many types of pickups, including: Single coil, Humbuckers, "Lipstick" pickups,and piezo pickups. All are based upon concepts of a microphone, but do not necessarily work as such. Try takling to the pickups of a Fender Stratocaster. You probably won't hear yourself unless your voice vibrates the strings.

And feedback on an elecrtic guitar is caused by harmonic frequencies from the amplifier, reverberating off the strings again. Thus feedback changes pitch compared to the note originally played. As the strings vibrate with the amp's frequencies, the sound sustains for the same general reason a microphone gives off feedback: The delay from amp to microphone causes a sound loop. The method of sound looping, on the other hand is different. You can stop feedback on a guitar by muting the strings. You cannot stop feedback on a microphone unless you move further away from the speaker, or turn the volume down.

I'm probably wrong on the physics in one way or another, but that is my understanding from playing guitar.




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