Pluck Out & Pick New String Materials for Your Guitar *

Abstract

In this music science fair project, you will investigate the best guitar string material for your guitar. You will first need to read about the different materials, and then select three different types of strings, all of the same tension, to test. You will then to read about harmonics and overtones and the difference between them. A plucked string has an almost harmonic spectra, meaning that when you looked at its frequency spectrum or sound spectrum, you will see a series of peaks at approximate multiples of the fundamental frequency. For example, if you pluck an A-string with a fundamental frequency around 440 Hz, then you will see a series of peaks at approximate multiples of 440 Hz; that is, at 440, 880, 1320, and 1760 Hz, etc.

In your science fair project, you will first need to decide which open string to test. You can choose any string you want, but the G-string, third from the bottom or fourth from the top, is a unique case. This string is notorious for being difficult to tune and get good intonation from on a guitar. Many researchers have found that the newer carbon materials have been an improvement for the G-string. This might be something you want to investigate. Whatever string you choose, you will first need to put a test string on your guitar in the proper placement for that string, tune it with a guitar tuner, and then make open-string recordings (pluck the string several times without putting any fingers down on the finger board). You can then process your sound recordings using any free or commercial piece of sound editing software that has a spectrum analyzer. The Bibliography provides open-source software, which has a "spectrogram mode" for visualizing frequencies, and a "plot spectrum" command for detailed frequency analysis.

As you pluck the open strings, note how each string sounds to you in your lab notebook: Is it pure? Rich? Warm? Crisp? Which sound did you like best on your guitar? Then go back and compare the spectra of the different strings to see which have the most or strongest overtones and which are the most pure.

Share your story with Science Buddies!

I Did This Project! Please log in and let us know how things went.

Bibliography

This source describes the different types and properties of classical guitar strings:

• Prisloe, T. (2002). How to Select the Best Classical Guitar Strings for Your Nylon String Guitars. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://classicalguitarbuilder.com/march_news/October_Newsletter.html

This source describes the benefits of new materials in classical guitar strings:

• Stenel, S. (n.d.). From a Guitar Maker's Notes: General Remarks on Strings for the Classical Guitar. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://www.stenzel-guitars.de/english/articles/strings_e.pdf

This source gives a general overview of classical guitar strings:

• Wikipedia Contributors. (2008, August 17). Classical guitar strings. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Classical_guitar_strings&oldid=232521736

This source discusses the difference between harmonics and overtones:

• Wikipedia Contributors. (2008, August 17). Overtones. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Overtone&oldid=244002827

This source describes what a fundamental frequency and its harmonics are:

• Wolfe, J. (2006). What is a sound spectrum? Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/sound.spectrum.html

This source describes the physics of plucked strings:

• Wolfe, J. (2006). Strings, Standing Waves, and Harmonics. Retrieved October 15, 2008, from http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/strings.html#plucked

This link provides free, "open-source" software with the capability for sound editing and frequency-spectrum analysis:

• Audacity Developer Team. (2000, May). The Free, Cross-Platform Sound Editor. Retrieved October 16, 2008, from http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

Ask an Expert

Related Links

• Science Fair Project Guide
• Other Ideas Like This
• Music Project Ideas
• My Favorites

If you like this project, you might enjoy exploring these related careers:

Materials Scientist and Engineer

What makes it possible to create high-technology objects like computers and sports gear? It's the materials inside those products. Materials scientists and engineers develop materials, like metals, ceramics, polymers, and composites, that other engineers need for their designs. Materials scientists and engineers think atomically (meaning they understand things at the nanoscale level), but they design microscopically (at the level of a microscope), and their materials are used macroscopically (at the level the eye can see). From heat shields in space, prosthetic limbs, semiconductors, and sunscreens to snowboards, race cars, hard drives, and baking dishes, materials scientists and engineers make the materials that make life better. Read more

Sound Engineering Technician

Any time you hear music at a concert, a live speech, the police sirens in a TV show, or the six o'clock news you're hearing the work of a sound engineering technician. Sound engineering technicians operate machines and equipment to record, synchronize, mix, or reproduce music, voices, or sound effects in recording studios, sporting arenas, theater productions, or movie and video productions. Read more

Physicist

Physicists have a big goal in mind—to understand the nature of the entire universe and everything in it! To reach that goal, they observe and measure natural events seen on Earth and in the universe, and then develop theories, using mathematics, to explain why those phenomena occur. Physicists take on the challenge of explaining events that happen on the grandest scale imaginable to those that happen at the level of the smallest atomic particles. Their theories are then applied to human-scale projects to bring people new technologies, like computers, lasers, and fusion energy. Read more