Archtop Alchemy

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About Archtop Alchemy

Welcome to Archtop Alchemy, a group for the guitar lover and aficionado. This is the place where lovers of the guitar come to share guitar stories, guitar photos, and inside information from the world of guitar function and aesthetics, lutherie talk, technical discussions, and the love of all things guitar. The primary focus of the group is to celebrate the art of the guitar, it's beauty, construction, and science, though not necessarily the musical art of playing the guitar, though all of these are welcome. I welcome all of you to share and wax lyrical on the subtleties of tone and the alchemical intricacies of what it takes to squeeze that golden tone from your guitar, the sensuality and complexity of tonewood timbres and voicings, and the visceral satisfaction that comes from holding that rare and exquisite soul-mate of a guitar.

The primary focus of this group is to celebrate the archtop guitar in all it's variations, hollowbodies, semi-hollowbodies, even solidbody archtops, and the particular complexities and challenges of building, playing, and caring for these guitars. For obvious reasons, archtops and hollowbodies fit in a class all their own, and therefore hold a special place in the hearts of those of us who depend on these as our primary weapon of choice. Although archtops are featured here, I still welcome anyone who shares a love of any type of beautiful guitar, solid, hollow, or otherwise, electric or acoustic, to share their wisdom and experience with the group. I welcome everyone to share images of their beautiful guitars as well.

Lutherie and luthier related topics are highly encouraged here. Please share your techniques, tools of the trade, experiences, and other guitar building and repair information here with the group. This is the place to discuss the subtleties of the different tonewoods, wood selection, material tonal characteristics (like strings and pickups, for example, aside from woods), and exotic woods and finishing techniques. Here also you will find discussions on the perfect marriage of guitar and amp; what the best guitar/amp combination is that works for you. Also, members and visitors can come here to read and share reviews of their personal instruments, and share information on price, value, and features with the potential guitar owner.

Welcome to Archtop Alchemy, and hope you find a brief escape from the gray gray world of coal and concrete, and lose yourself in the beauty of finely crafted instruments, and the soothing sounds of wood and steel.