Max wrote:
So what?
There have been days when musicians have been the driving force behind the development of new instruments with new and fresh voices - because they have been eager to create fresh music with these fresh voices. When the piano was borne AFAIK only few whined "Boohooo, these don't sound like a harpsichord".
Cheers,
Max
Hi Max,
Some thoughts on the generalizations in your comments,
I wouldn't say musicians have been the driving force for musical instrument development, directly Changes in venue size have more influence, and the prevailing taste in music likewise being a contributing factor. Sometimes instrument technology changes which some composers take advantage in their music.
When the Shadows needed more powerful amps to play to larger audiences, the AC30 was born. The AC30 lead to the AC50 because the Beatles had to compete with the Jet engine DB of their audience. The Beatles played Stadiums ergo, AC100. Ritchey Blackmore played a 250W Marshall fueled by UL KT88 power amp. The Stones adopted the Ampeg SVT 400 to play to their even larger crowds. The audience and the venues increased size drove evolution of the Amp.
When the electric guitar and amplifier was born the reason was to increase its loudness to play larger halls or to compete in progressively louder bands. Country players (Steel Guitar players in the beginning and later E-guitars) adopted some form of amplification to play to larger audiences (consequently more money from the house).
In the case of Steel Guitar players, they now have Solid State 1 kilowatt amps, in this case to have the power to play loud and clean without distortion. This would be an example of a musician have an effect on design.
The Piano was invented by Cristofori in Italy circa 1698 and no musician cried as to the sound.
At this time only a few wealthy individuals (the Medici family who employed Cristofori) could afford the instrument, even some of the Cristofori Pianos among the aristocracy in Spain were converted back into harpsichords. The first sheet music published to mention the Piano by name is 1771, long after Cristofori was dead. The Harpsichord was the instrument used by the conductor in the orchestra even into the time of Haydn and Mozart.
It wasn't until music styles radically changed and the size of the halls increased in that the piano came into ascendency nearly 100 years+ after the invention which finally pushed the harpsichord into hiatus. The piano didn't become universally supreme keyboard instrument until after the rise of middle class prosperity in the 19th century when the piano became a status symbol of affluence. Previous to this time primarily the wealthy could afford pianos.
The Strad Violins survived for the reasons of tone, sound projection and the ability to retain these qualities when modified for greater volume. Of the antique Strads, only one (possibly another) have the original neck, shorter fingerboard, bridge, etc untouched from the masters hands. Jacob Stainer's instruments were more highly regarded by contemporary 18th century violin players compared to the Strad but did not respond to modification. The modern bow and Violin became popular over of its mellower Baroque brethren as music became louder in bigger halls and the style of playing changed.
The early Baroque Guitar as a 5 string double course (10 string guitar) co-existed with the Lute but as to solo and ensemble literature the Lute was the the more popular of the two. The Lute and Baroque guitar likewise were eclipsed into oblivion by the Classical Guitar (circa) 1780 and basically for the same reason change in musical taste and the requirement of louder instrument with better presence (sound projection).
Thank a long dead ex-natural (valveless) trumpet player who split his lip and took up the lute to support himself for the invention of the tuning fork. This lead to the later development of the electronic tuner.
As to Tube amps solid state, caps of all manner of construction, etc,
Guitar amps and musical markets do not drive the major players in the cap industry.
The manufactures produce for their major customers/consumers: power supplies, computer monitors, and more, just look up the suggested uses on data sheets.
If a cap can be used for audio, great, another selling point, but the current stereo market caters to transistor powered amps for computer sound systems, Ipod players, Surround Sound home Theater systems for these reasons: size, lower cost/higher profit, and building to a price point and not for sonic reasons.
When HAD used Polyester Orange drops...too much written, the main customers were HV power supplies. The Polypropylene caps are a later technical improvement, again for power supplies. No one invented the PP cap to deal with the distortion that Polyester imparts on the sound signal.
I use PP caps around the PI in amps with NFB for their speed and accuracy,, but for AC signals I find them harsher. I could compensate for this, but I continue to use polyester, paper in oil, polyester in oil, wax paper and foil so I don't have to fiddle with parameters to make PP caps to sound like amps with polyester caps which is what most musicians like.
There is a local company that produces Paper and foil caps, but not for the Musical Instruments or Hi-Fi's. Of course that market was abandoned log ago by Sprague/Vishay etc.
Quote, "So (IMO) let's hope, that the creative intelligence of us humans - or at least the one of some of us that can teach and help others - will be sufficient to find out how to build great guitars without brazilian rosewood, and great guitar amps without 418P caps and even without tubes at all. "
There is so much variance in wood (being organic), and as no to trees are similar sonically, the wood produced from them is as unique as finger prints.
Guitars have been made from Aluminum, Carbon Fiber, etc and the although these materials are superior to wood in producing consistent results, in the last analysis the end users (guitarists) usually votes with his wallet as to the cheapest material which is wood.
The musical amplifier industry has been attempting to get rid of tubes since the mid 1960's when Standel and Fender went into the market to produce artists amps (and not cheap beginner amps). Maybe it was too much too soon for Solid State, but it's 60 years later and tubes haven't gone the way of the Dodo. One reason, the Hi-Fi market still supports tubes (I've said this a lot). Another reason is the "creative intelligence of us humans" hasn't been able to produce a solid state or a digital amp that can do what a tube does naturally/inherently for a price point.
The 6L6 tube is still being produced nearly 70 years after its invention. The 12AX7 has been around for 65+. Both have outlasted many generations of discrete transistors and ICs (now obsolete) that were supposed to replace them.
I have seen some designs for Single End Class A transistor power amps that come very close to a tube as to distortion characteristics when pushed, but these won't be popular as they are 1) Low power 2) More Expensive 3) for only a little more money you can buy a tube amp that's more powerful.
Sorry for the length and Best Regards,
Steve
