For years, people have been studying the effect that the climate has on objects such as wood and metal. It is common knowledge that some objects can sometimes expand or contract, depending the temperature and humidity of the environment that they are located in. People see it every day. It is the same reason that power lines seem to sag less in the winter, and why a tight jar lid is much easier to remove when hot water is ran over it. This very same effect can be seen in guitars, particularly with their tuning. A guitarist will often find that when he or she leaves a guitar in places of varying temperatures that the guitar’s tuning is usually affected, sometimes dramatically. This can lead to an out of tune guitar when it comes time to
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Temperature is defined as the average amount of kinetic energy that an object has. When an object has a great amount of kinetic energy, then its molecules move around a lot. This can be explained by thermal energy, or heat. Heat is produced when internal energy travels from an area of relatively high temperature to an area of relatively low temperature. This internal energy is then called thermal energy. Higher temperatures are associated with higher amounts of thermal energy and thermal expansion. Thermal expansion is when an object expands or contracts due to its temperature. In essence, when the temperature of a guitar string increases, its molecules move farther apart, slightly increasing its length. When the temperature of the string decreases, its molecules move around less, so its length decreases. This expansion and contraction changes the tension on the guitar string, resulting in a change in tune as well …show more content…
There are multiple small elements that can affect a guitar’s tuning. The temperature of the strings and the humidity of the wood are two of the biggest factors that can have a significant effect on the tension placed on the strings. My experiment will test the effect that these two factors have on the tuning of a guitar. I will record the frequency that each string produces before and after it is put into each different temperature environment. A guitar that is tuned in standard tuning will have six strings (tuned E, A, D, G, B, e). Respectively, the frequencies of these notes are 8.25Hz (E), 110.0Hz, 147.0Hz (D), 196.0Hz (G), 247.0Hz, and 329.1Hz (e). These frequencies will change according to the changes in tension on the strings. I have seen a large amount of evidence of this in many similar experiments, including the observations that I have made in my years playing the guitar. The results of others all seem to follow this trend. My experiment will have the guitar in the testing environments much longer than many of the experiments I have studied, which should result in a much more drastic change in the frequencies I record. The information that I draw from this experiment will be beneficial to many instrumentalists, including those who perform and those who only play as a hobby. More people will
Temperature is defined as the average amount of kinetic energy that an object has. When an object has a great amount of kinetic energy, then its molecules move around a lot. This can be explained by thermal energy, or heat. Heat is produced when internal energy travels from an area of relatively high temperature to an area of relatively low temperature. This internal energy is then called thermal energy. Higher temperatures are associated with higher amounts of thermal energy and thermal expansion. Thermal expansion is when an object expands or contracts due to its temperature. In essence, when the temperature of a guitar string increases, its molecules move farther apart, slightly increasing its length. When the temperature of the string decreases, its molecules move around less, so its length decreases. This expansion and contraction changes the tension on the guitar string, resulting in a change in tune as well …show more content…
There are multiple small elements that can affect a guitar’s tuning. The temperature of the strings and the humidity of the wood are two of the biggest factors that can have a significant effect on the tension placed on the strings. My experiment will test the effect that these two factors have on the tuning of a guitar. I will record the frequency that each string produces before and after it is put into each different temperature environment. A guitar that is tuned in standard tuning will have six strings (tuned E, A, D, G, B, e). Respectively, the frequencies of these notes are 8.25Hz (E), 110.0Hz, 147.0Hz (D), 196.0Hz (G), 247.0Hz, and 329.1Hz (e). These frequencies will change according to the changes in tension on the strings. I have seen a large amount of evidence of this in many similar experiments, including the observations that I have made in my years playing the guitar. The results of others all seem to follow this trend. My experiment will have the guitar in the testing environments much longer than many of the experiments I have studied, which should result in a much more drastic change in the frequencies I record. The information that I draw from this experiment will be beneficial to many instrumentalists, including those who perform and those who only play as a hobby. More people will