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Taking acoustic measurements from internal vibrations

2024-05-21T08:31:00

_Fig1 set up

Normally, acoustic measurements are taken from outside the instrument – but the internal vibrations can reveal even more. Colin Gough presents a method for listening inside the soundbox and demonstrates what it can tell us about the sound

In this article we describe how the acoustic characteristics of any hollow-bodied stringed instrument can be investigated by simply tapping the bridge with a very light hammer, and measuring the sound radiated inside, rather than outside, its hollow body…

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