The Cardboard Guitar - O'Brien Guitars

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The Cardboard Guitar - O'Brien Guitars

Рет қаралды 24,623

Күн бұрын

Here is my take on the Torres paper maché guitar. I built this guitar in 7 days using cardboard for the back and sides.
www.obrienguitars.com
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Learn how to build your guitar (acoustic, classical, electric, flamenco, archtop and more!) as well as everything related to this art with my online courses. From full builds to special topics such as top voicing, finishing techniques, fretting, neck setting, rosettes, marketing, sharpening your tools, you name it. Do you want to work on other instruments besides guitars? Mandolins? Ukuleles? Violins? My colleagues and I got you covered.
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Пікірлер: 97

@barronriverguitars 8 жыл бұрын

Thanks Robbie. I keep telling clients to not worry about the tone they hope to achieve from the back and sides. I'm going to share this video with anyone that asks from now on.

@joshuaparker4004 3 ай бұрын

Air dried Brazilian cardboard, who knew. Now it will be on the list.

@likestopick6575 8 жыл бұрын

This goes to show what can happen when genius, and imagination come together ! Makes one wonder why do most manufacturers still insist on extremely rare and expensive tone woods, this guitar sounded awfully sweet to my ear ! The only unanswered question might be, longevity, how will it stand up, and I assume, would last much better in a non constant humid environment, being made of paper .

@melcrose 8 жыл бұрын

WOW! That really pops so much better than most I've heard. It's a real gem! I'll happily pay you full price of your materials for it. :)

@murrmac 8 жыл бұрын

Congratulations Robbie ...it just goes to show that you CAN actually fool all of the people all of the time ...

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

Well, it didn't take long for that guy that gives me a thumbs down on all my videos to do it again here. haha Thanks buddy!

@SianaGearz 8 жыл бұрын

+OBrienGuitars You sure Google doesn't have like an AI bot which finds good videos and thumbs them down just "for great justice" or something?

@aze216 8 жыл бұрын

Very interesting. Thanks for taking the time to build it and share the results. Very interesting hearing a real example of what Torres was saying about the backs and sides. Much appreciate your continued generosity in sharing your work with the public. kind regards.

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+aze216 Thank you for the compliment. All the best.

@rabokarabekian409 4 жыл бұрын

What Torres did not know is that the back can be tuned to increase response. Any questions could be answered by Alan Carruth. Start here: www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=Alan+Carruth+back+tuning Furthermore, there has been an immense increase in guitar technology since Torres. See here for more back and sides information: (auto-downloads a pdf) What is the Function of the Back & Sides? Trevor Gore & Alan ...

@ecalzo 8 жыл бұрын

i am really amazed.. i build cigar box guitar from 6 month now and your job it is amazing.. thanks for the hints about what's the most important parts from where it comes the sound... soundboard and not the back..

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

thank you.

@manuelgomez1768 9 ай бұрын

Gracias por compartir tu maestría y conocimiento

@Prosecute-fauci 8 жыл бұрын

gorgeous

@HBSuccess 8 жыл бұрын

Ps - it makes sense that back and sides aren't contributing all that much - they're in total body contact and are therefore dampened by the player. As long as they aren't absorbing sound they should be pretty neutral. Look at all the Ovations - and the Martin "Formica bodies". They all sound respectable.

@fernandoizelli7598 8 жыл бұрын

Robert, você é o cara! Parabéns pelo desafio de construir esse violão de papelão! (Aqui onde moro chamamos ele de 'papel paraná' :)

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Fernando Izelli Obrigado!

@CesarAllGuitar 8 жыл бұрын

Super interesting....thanks for sharing!

@jimmoulton9878 7 жыл бұрын

Just listened to one of your brazillian rosewood guitars, you make a great sounding guitar!!!!

@OBrienGuitars 7 жыл бұрын

Thank you.

8 жыл бұрын

Nagyon ügyes gratulálok!

@butchd18 8 жыл бұрын

amazing sound

@vintagebluesmann 6 жыл бұрын

Awesome work tooo cool!!!

@nmssis 8 жыл бұрын

wow...that is so cool

@stevea5365 8 жыл бұрын

they must of used Brazilian rosewood pulp to make the cardboard... :) You realize this could open up a whole new dialog on the relative merits of recycled cardboard vs virgin pulp, American vs European cardboard, cardboard made by hand vs factory.... anyway on a serious note, thanks for challenging the status quo - a contrarian perspective is always educational and appreciated. Cheers!

@mickymillersson4376 8 жыл бұрын

That's a really nice guitar - seen it being played in the next video you sent me. The dude who does the thumbs down seems to have gotten a friend now. Two jealous guys out there - such a same

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Michael Sleight That guy is definitely out there and now he has company! haha

@JayDS509 8 жыл бұрын

Does it sound "boxy"? ;) A very cool experiment, and makes an interesting point. In a time when our tropical woods are disappearing, there might be hope for the future with well-chosen alternate woods/materials.

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+James Strange I think it sounds fine.

@antoniomattana6706 4 жыл бұрын

Props!

@MaximilianBocek 4 жыл бұрын

Hmmm. You need an identical one with a more typical material for the sides and back, like mahogany. A "control."

@MaximilianBocek 4 жыл бұрын

... or maple, that would look pretty much the same.

@markuslebt 8 жыл бұрын

you should build a ukulele bass. i tested one in a music shop for 400 dollars. it sounded incredible. i think the company is called "kala" or something.

@osmarcastrosilvajunior7452 8 жыл бұрын

Desde garoto tenho contato com marcenaria e um certo gosto por trabalhos manuais. Ao longo do tempo guardei madeiras tais como cedro rosa, jacarandá da Bahia, imbúia e pau marfim retiradas de móveis antigos pensando em fazer um violão. Depois que assisti a alguns vídeos seus, incluindo os com a participação do Antonio Tessarin, aumentou a minha vontade de brincar com um violão feito por mim. Obrigado.

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

Legal. Vai fundo!

@fernando-inf 8 жыл бұрын

Amazing!!!

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

The skill level required to make a cardboard guitar is just as much if not more as the skill level required to build a regular guitar.

@posionknight192 5 жыл бұрын

What about building a cardboard ukulele?

@adrianroggeband1901 4 жыл бұрын

I made a cardboard guitar when I was 6 years old using rubber bands and a cereal box. Didn't sound that good though.

@davew5583 8 жыл бұрын

it's hard to tell, as you say, from a brand new unsettled guitar. But please, please keep working on this. The future of quality musical instruments depends on innovation in materials. just imagine when you can 3d print grain structures into your cardbiard, MDF etc. it's already started with that imitation ebony I forgot the name of. and you of course. it's going to be a long road.

@createdbymac 8 жыл бұрын

That guitar sounds so good I actually thought this was another April Fools joke. Happy it’s not! Haha. Thanks for another great video, Robbie. I admire your work a great deal.

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Mark Dillon Thanks Mark.

@ScottSchrimpfwi 8 жыл бұрын

please tell us you made a construction video showing how you built such a beautiful instrument....

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Scott Schrimpf no video. sorry.

@ScottSchrimpfwi 8 жыл бұрын

+OBrienGuitars guess I'll have to scour the internet on forming cardboard.

@jeana2081 7 жыл бұрын

Olá mestre OBrien. Primeiramente gostaria de dizer que sou fã do seu trabalho. Estou começando como luthier e seus vídeos ajudam muito. O som e o visual do violão de cardboard ficaram excelentes, parabéns. Qual o tipo de cola você usou para colar as partes de cardboard? A estrutura interna desse violão (leque harmônico, reengrosso etc) são iguais a de um violão todo feito em madeira?

@OBrienGuitars 7 жыл бұрын

Muito obrigado. Usei cola amarela na construção do violão. Todas as partes internas são igual a um violão normal menos o reenforço do fundo. Usei um peda;co de cedro para fixar os blocos ao fundo.

@adrianroggeband1901 4 жыл бұрын

Am I mistaken or does the guitar have an unusually clear tone?

@CMMDuque 7 жыл бұрын

Oi! Roberto, tudo bem? Parabéns pelos seus vídeos, você é uma cara legal. Acho que estes violões de papelões são apenas instrumentos como os violões populares, se estivesse ai um Rossini de madeira prensada talvez tivesse mais som ainda, nada superará a madeira e sua fascinação que nos rege. fora a sua beleza, que apenas perde para as mulheres. abraços desde Brasil.

@OBrienGuitars 7 жыл бұрын

obrigado. Realmente, a madeira acresenta para o som do instrumento. Achei o violao de papelao um pouco seco mas issto tambem pode ser por que deixei o tampo fino de mais.

@briansmith9698 4 жыл бұрын

OBrienGuitars how is it braced is bottom braced? Did you add anything to poster board like veneer? What size and length is the poster board? Can you do a video of building a guitar like that?

@OBrienGuitars 4 жыл бұрын

4 back braces with a long centerstrip notched into the blocks along the back. No veneer over the poster board. If I have time one day i will show how I built it.

@trevorv9045 8 жыл бұрын

That is just freaking cool!It does sound really good on this vid. Hmmm... wonder if you could Torrify that cardboard...??? ;)

@briansmith9698 4 жыл бұрын

OBrienGuitars how did you get the poster board to bend for sides?

@OBrienGuitars 4 жыл бұрын

I just bent it. It is very flexible.

@trentjpyt 8 жыл бұрын

Fantastic! What conclusions do you draw from it? What do you refer to @2:42 "mini ..."? Lastly what was the tune you played at the end? Thanks for sharing and the photos on IG

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Trent Conclusions: It is just as difficult to build a cardboard guitar as it is to build a regular guitar. The guitar has only had strings a few hours now but I suspect it will only get better. Based on the conclusions of Antonio Tessarin in Brazil the guitar will lack perhaps a bit of the harmonic complexity that a rosewood could offer. Other than that it plays and sounds as good as my regular guitars. The tune I attempted to play at the end (I haven't played for quite some time) is Samba de orfeo (Black Orpheus) by Luiz Bonfá.

@docscantlin 3 жыл бұрын

Duh, I accidently hit the thumbs down. Goof. Sorry! I wish I could give this 10 thumbs UP! Do you suppose this lovely sounding guitar actually benefits from the cardboard, being somewhat dampening, as opposed to the ringing of traditionally respected "tonewoods", negating the traditionally held belief of certain woods producing better, as opposed to, different instruments. This also reinforces the importance of the soundboard, not the body material, as where builders should focus most of their attention. Great myth busting experiment. Keep it up.

@thehitman06 5 жыл бұрын

It has a boxy sound , not very clear but still fine

@newinspiration2108 8 жыл бұрын

10 years air drying sounds about right! oh damn....there'll be a time where card board guitars are more prefered haha

@newinspiration2108 8 жыл бұрын

just having fun and teasing people

@newinspiration2108 8 жыл бұрын

he was just kidding about the air drying, ask yourself why would cardboard need to be air dried for 10 years when they have no water content?

@newinspiration2108 8 жыл бұрын

Robbie is also famous with his straight face joke, too

@vopt1972 8 жыл бұрын

Hi Robert. Your work is great. What about the moisture resistance and mechanical stability in time of such guitars? Do you have any idea? Thank you.

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

Antonio Tessarin in Brazil made a cardboard guitar over ten years ago and it has held up fine.

@pi3tr3 6 жыл бұрын

Hello Mr. OBrien. this is an amazing idea :). Please tell me, how does humidity affect this kind of guitar? Also, how does it behave in time, I mean tension of the strings, seasonal moisture plus temperature variation?

@OBrienGuitars 6 жыл бұрын

Everything in this guitar is wood except the back and sides so humidity still affects the guitar. The guitar is a couple of years old now and it has held up fine.

@matseriksson8177 8 жыл бұрын

Let me check my calendar ...

@edadpops1709 8 жыл бұрын

I'm in the springs ,would love to attend do you have a link.?? Thanks

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Edad Martin www.guitarfoundation.org/news/211716/

@bethanyhorner6813 4 жыл бұрын

Very interesting. I want to make my own and I'm trying to understand if you used corrugated cardboard (seems like it is not corrugated) and what the thickness is. I ask as I went to Joanne's and the poster board they have is quite thin relative to what you show in your hand, and the alternative I found there, foam, doesn't seem to be what you used either. So far my search online is not turning out very fruitfully either. If you can steer me in the right direction, it would be appreciated, I'd love to try this too.

@OBrienGuitars 4 жыл бұрын

This is more like matt board for picture framing. Architects use this type material for making mock ups of their projects..

@bethanyhorner6813 4 жыл бұрын

@@OBrienGuitars Thanks for that info,

@texxlakota 8 жыл бұрын

Sounds really good. Did you do layers, and if so, how did you put them together? With what type of glue?

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+texxlakota I bought the cardboard and used it the way it was. I did not glue it together in layers.

@texxlakota 8 жыл бұрын

Sounds great, for especially for what it is.

@calebbhawkins 8 жыл бұрын

What I'm wondering is can a steel string guitar be crafted like this or would the tension be too great?

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Caleb Hawkins I think it could be done.

@jvin248 8 жыл бұрын

+OBrienGuitars +1 vote on following up making a steel string guitar! Video tape the build. make the steel string top with cardboard like speaker cone material (since that is what it provides) or some other material like clear very thin plexiglass to showcase the trusses. Trusses will be deeper than normal to compensate for the regular top thickness to achieve the same finished guitar spring rate.

@michellek5789 8 жыл бұрын

I thought this was an April fools joke,lol!

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Michelle k Nope. This is for real.

@guitartec 8 жыл бұрын

Is the back braced? When you rap on it, it sounds like a loose brace.

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

It is braced and no braces are loose.

@mickymillersson4376 8 жыл бұрын

Robbie, word I'd out on the forums that this I just an April fool. Can you put em straite

@OBrienGuitars 8 жыл бұрын

+Michael Sleight Let me know which forums please.

@mickymillersson4376 8 жыл бұрын

Acoustic guitar forum I think, you can check back to the 2nd or 3rd April.

@briansmith9698 3 жыл бұрын

OBrienGuitars could I put veneer over the poster board? Is veneer actually wood? Does veneer have a tone like regular wood could I glue pieces of veneer together build a sound board? Also how do they get the plywood so thin for laminated guitars?

@OBrienGuitars 3 жыл бұрын

I think I would just use solid wood at that point. It would be too much work to laminate it all.

@charlesjohnson8841 8 жыл бұрын

I believe that cardboard is made from alder fibers. To my ear anyway..

@leoyu2142 5 жыл бұрын

Great building, but it seems lack of sustain!

@rabokarabekian409 4 жыл бұрын

Ever listened to a lattice double-top?

@gtrboy77 3 ай бұрын

You can’t really be serious about air-drying the cardboard for ten years! I can’t tell if you’re joking or serious. What if we kiln-dry it? I don’t know if that would work or if I’m the crazy one now.

@OBrienGuitars 3 ай бұрын

It was a joke.

@yoheff988 8 жыл бұрын

Try to make one out of Clinician Pizza, the secrete is to air dry it for 50 years LOL

@markuslebt 8 жыл бұрын

just admit it dough the shop dog really built that guitar, you were just lazy sitting in your chesterfield sofa in the corner with a good scotch listening to rockabilly records.