Sound hole

A sound hole is an opening in the upper sound board of a stringed musical instrument. The sound holes can have different shapes: round in flat-top guitars, F-holes in instruments from the violin or viol families and in arched-top guitars, rosettes in lutes. Bowed Lyras have D-holes and Mandolins may have round or oval holes. A round or oval hole is usually a single one, under the strings. F-holes and D-holes are usually made in pairs placed symmetrically on both sides of the strings. Some electric guitars, such as Fender Telecaster Thinline and the majority of Gretsch guitars have one or two sound holes.

Though the purpose of sound holes is to help acoustic instruments project their sound more efficiently, the sound does not emanate solely (nor even mostly) from the location of the sound hole. The majority of sound emanates from the surface area of both sounding boards, with sound holes playing a part by allowing the sounding boards to vibrate more freely, and by allowing some of the vibrations which have been set in motion inside the instrument to travel outside the instrument.

Alternative sound hole designs

Some Ovation stringed instruments feature a unique soundhole architecture with multiple smaller soundholes that, being combined with a composite arch-top guitar body are said to produce a clear and bright sound.^{[citation needed]}

Tacoma Guitars has developed a unique "paisley" soundhole placed on the left side of the upper bout of their "Wing Series" guitars. This is a relatively low-stress area that requires less bracing to support the hole.^[1]

Holes not positioned on the top of an acoustic guitar are called soundports.They are usually supplementary to a main soundhole , and located on an instrument's side facing upward in playing position, allowing players to monitor their own sound.^[2]

Gallery

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  The f-holes on a cello, and related instruments, are located on either side of the bridge

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  Single F-Hole on a Fender Telecaster Thinline

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  Ornate sound hole on a medieval lute

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  Leaf sound hole in an Ovation Adamas guitar

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  Many acoustic guitars incorporate rosettes around the sound hole.

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  Maccaferri guitars have D or Oval shaped holes.

References

1. ^ http://www.musicianshotline.com/archive/interviews/tacoma_guitars.htm
2. ^ Shelley Parks

External links

• Stringworks U - brief explanation of the effects of sound holes, with a closeup diagram of an f-shaped soundhole

This article relating to guitars is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: String instrument stubs Guitar stubs String instrument construction Guitar parts and accessories Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes Polished Look at other dictionaries: sound-hole — «SOWND HOHL», noun. a curvilinear opening, usually in pairs, in the soundboard of stringed instruments; f hole …   Useful english dictionary sound hole — noun a hole in a soundboard (as of a violin) designed to resonate with the tones • Hypernyms: ↑hole • Part Holonyms: ↑sounding board, ↑soundboard * * * noun : an opening in the belly or soundboard in stringed musical instruments serving to… …   Useful english dictionary sound hole — /ˈsaʊnd hoʊl/ (say sownd hohl) noun a hole, usually in the shape of an f, cut in the sounding board of a violin or similar stringed instrument, with the object of increasing vibration …   sound hole — noun Date: 1611 an opening in the top surface of a stringed instrument (as a violin) to enhance vibration and resonance see violin illustration …   New Collegiate Dictionary sound hole — an opening in the soundboard of a musical stringed instrument, as a violin or lute, for increasing the soundboard s capacity for vibration. [1605 15] * * * …   Universalium sound hole — англ. [са/унд хо/ол] 1) резонансные отверстия у смычковых инструм. 2) «розетки» щипковых инструм …   Словарь иностранных музыкальных терминов sound — 1. n. & v. n. 1 a sensation caused in the ear by the vibration of the surrounding air or other medium. 2 a vibrations causing this sensation. b similar vibrations whether audible or not. 3 what is or may be heard. 4 an idea or impression conveyed …   Useful english dictionary Hole (band) — Hole The current line up performing live in March 2010. Background information Origin Los Angeles, California, United States …   Wikipedia sound — sound1 soundable, adj. /sownd/, n. 1. the sensation produced by stimulation of the organs of hearing by vibrations transmitted through the air or other medium. 2. mechanical vibrations transmitted through an elastic medium, traveling in air at a… …   Universalium Sound — /sownd/, n. The, a strait between SW Sweden and Zealand, connecting the Kattegat and the Baltic. 87 mi. (140 km) long; 3 30 mi. (5 48 km) wide. Swedish and Danish, Oresund. * * * I Mechanical disturbance that propagates as a longitudinal wave… …   Universalium 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”