I’m not sure I understand what you mean.
If you mean that a quality nylon string guitar can handle steel strings, that is simply not true.
My classical guitar is an Alvarez that I bought 20 years ago, not the finest guitar, but would be the classical nylon-string equivalent of a Martin. I can assure you that this fine guitar would not stand up to steel strings. The bracing is just not the same under a classical guitar top, and as others have said, there is no truss rod in the neck.
I have a beater epiphone acoustic I put nylon strings on to see exactly what it would sound like. I was having finger pain and experimenting.
It’s just not viable. It’s too heavy to resonate from nylon vibrating. Not a question of quality.
Still not sure of your point. Guitars that are built for nylon/gut strings should never have steel strings out on them. Guitars built for steel can handle nylon, but sound stoopid (that’s the technical term) ;).
scoots - you gettin’ what you need?
Nylon guitars are cheap. Quality steel-string guitars are not cheap.
What are you talking about? I’m looking at an ad for a Taylor nylon string guitar that retails for $5000. It will also be damaged if you put steel strings on it.
Your ignorance is showing.
A good friend of mine back in the day was a music major, specialty classical guitar. His Pinmetel cost roughly 5,000 or so and that was in the late 80s. Damned fine guitar, awesome tone and easy to play. Bottellis go for 10 to 20 grand and up.
There are cheap nylon string guitars just like there are cheap electrics.
Would you put bass strings on a steel string acoustic? Of course not, the guitar isn’t built for it. Same with nylon string guitars.
Slee
I spent more time than I wanted on a 2 string Applause. The goal behind an Applause was using as little wood as possible. A cross section of the neck/fingerboard would reveal an aluminum squat “T” with foam filling in the sides of the “T” to make a normal feeling neck. The frets were merely where they didn’t grind down the fingerboard. The frets were neither rounded or shaped in anyway. Up from the fingerboard, 90° angle, parallel to the fingerboard, 90° angle, back to the fingerboard. So, the frets tore my fingertips up and the black anodizing they used on the fingerboard part left my fingertips black. This was their basic budget 6 string. They may have put more care into their 12 strings.
As for putting steel strings on a guitar intended for nylon strings, it’s a very bad idea. But I find it amusing to figure out what will go wrong. Something certainly will.
Martin Dreadnaughts (D bodies) have more bass than their Concert (000-00) bodies. Or you could say their Concert bodies have a more balanced tone. I think it’s more than just the cubic volume of the body, it’s also the shape. I’ve never done a side by side comparison of a Martin D and a Gibson Jumbo with identical brand new strings.
As for nylon strings on a guitar meant for steel strings, you’d want ball end strings. It wouldn’t hurt the guitar. The 1st and 2nd strings might not fit well in the slots in the nut. And the vibrations of the mass of the strings may not transfer well to the soundboard via the bridge/saddle, so it’s not going to sound all that good, especially after the strings begin to go dead. Oh, and as with any guitar with nylon strings, they won’t hold their tune very well. And frets meant for steel strings might wear through nylon strings rather quickly.
There are 2 things that can be adjusted on an acoustic guitar: the neck bow and the string height. You do want some bow in the neck to prevent string buzzing. For a quick and dirty check of the bow, I just put capos on the 1st and 12th frets and see if I can just get a Fender medium pick between the 7th fret and the 6th string. You can lower the string height by removing the plastic part of the bridge and sanding the bottom down. Lay the sandpaper flat and rub the bottom of the bridge against it. You want the bottom to be flat. But for the OP, you want to have someone in a shop do this for you if it’s needed. It may not be. This is why you want to bring a Guitar Playing Friend with you to the store.
When my friend’s son started playing guitar, he managed to break G strings left and right. It didn’t matter if they were wound G strings on his dad’s acoustics or plain ones on an electric, he broke them. Dad favoured those heavy gauge Jim Dunlop picks. So, one day on my way over for a visit, I stopped at a music store and picked up some wound and plain G strings for him and 4 each Fender light picks and 4 each Fender mediums. I told the son he hadn’t gotten the touch yet with holding a pick, so use the lights for a while first and then move up to the mediums. That seemed to resolve that problem.
OK, I guess I have to make this clearer.
I do not and have never owned a nylon-string guitar, though I have played a few. I don’t like them because they are usually cheaply-constructed and their sound is not on a par with steel-stringed guitars. (Yes, I’m aware that sound is about more than just the strings, but that’s also a function of shoddy design/manufacturing). The nylon is more bendable for beginners, but it’s never been an issue for me. My calluses are well-developed.
I do not advocate, nor have I ever suggested, using steel strings on a nylon-string guitar. I would never play a nylon guitar anyway, or replace steel with nylon on one of my guitars.
Classical guitars are a different animal and there is a high end and low end for them just like anything else. Segovia didn’t play a cheap guitar. Do you know of any guitarist who predates or has precedence over this artist?
??? Bending nylons is more difficult than steel strings, in my experience. They don’t bend much at all.
Then you really ought to go and have a look at some well built nylon strings because they just might surprise you. Incidentally, have a listen to this before you pass too harsh a judgement on classical guitars generally. Link.
Really?
There are good and there are cheap classical guitars. And there are good and there are cheap nylon strings.
puly, I would argue they bend wrong but are pretty stretchy. I find I just find the feel really different, from strings to neck profile, and haven’t figured out how to play my way on a nylon string/classical.
But to suggest that a nylon string guitar can’t be every bit the equal of a steel string and more is a non-starter. We should get back on topic.
Let us not embark on an unruly course!
Classical guitars have a bigger neck and a flat fingerboard. It’s a different instrument and a whole other experience. The strings are slacker by far and kinder on the fingers, because they are nylon and not metal= easier to bend.
They make hybrid nylon string guitars with a radiused board and a slightly thinner profile neck. They are competitive with steel stringed models pricewise.
They’re stretchy, but don’t shift in pitch anywhere near as much. I just double checked with Google to see if it’s just me, but it seems that is the case.
Maybe that’s what feels wrong. Now I gotta try another one out.
If you push nylon strings that hard they will break long before they rise in pitch like that. It’s just the wrong use of the instrument. The closest thing to shredding on one of those might be flamenco.
couple years ago I bought a smallish–but with a cool blue color–Oscar Schmidt to have something to play while I was on vacation for $119. I have a Takamine and my Strat, but what I play all the time is that cheap Oscar Schmidt. I like that it is smaller, in that it gives the feeling that I “own” it. Sounds just fine.