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Guitars and humidity.

jrgtr42

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Joined
Mar 24, 2005
Messages
2,308
Has anyone else noticed a difference in their guitars with high humidity?
I'm not talking about acoustics that are, we all know, very sensitive to humidity changes, but electrics.
Not even fret sprout and such, but the sound of the guitar.
The reason I ask, we've had some really high humidity for the past week or so.
I was playing one of my guitars, it's been a couple weeks since I picked that one up, and the sound was almost muffled, like the tone pot was
most of the way down. This guitar is a bit darker than most of my others, but nothing like this.
I plugged a couple others in and they sounded almost normal. I haven't changed any settings on amp or effects.
This one has fairly new strings, there hasn't been any issues with it before this.
I suppose over time, I've had guitars that don't sound right that day for some reason but haven't figured anything out about why.
 

johnnyslim

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Joined
Oct 4, 2001
Messages
1,129
For me, I love low pressure systems and rainy days. My LP's get more slinky feeling and take on a smoother/richer tone. I might say a bit more organic tone. Whatever it is I notice it, hear it and the guitar just feels different in a good way. Some hate gigs on rainy nights but I dig them.
 

renderit

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Joined
Jan 19, 2009
Messages
10,951
If you notice a change in sound in one humid day I would suggest filling the pores and holes and putting finish on that beast.

I was not aware of any use of sponge instead of mahogany.

Just sayin'...
 

JPP-1

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Joined
Jul 11, 2006
Messages
1,336
It wouldn’t surprise me that there is some change. Anyone who has had to repeatedly tune their guitar during times of increased humidity fluctuation will understand the affect humidity can have on their guitar. It would be interesting to see if a very accurate scale could detect any weight change to a guitar during dry conditions vs humid conditions.

For awhile I wondered why guitars I played seem to sound better and less stiff the more I played them. I thought it was just my imagination but then on further consideration perhaps continuous breaking in of the nut and possibly the saddles could contribute to the increase in resonance and playability I noticed. Point being, while our imagination can certainly play tricks on us, that doesn’t discount that some actual measurable phenomena may be occurring that could actually substantiate what we think we feel and hear.
 

deytookerjaabs

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Nov 6, 2016
Messages
1,592
Guitar or not, humidity and temp affects sound wave propagation. I think it goes:

Increase Temp = Increase Velocity
Increase Humidity = Increase Velocity
Increase Density = Decrease Velocity
Wind Direction = Velocity

So, at the hair splitting level we're probably talkin' here I suppose there's some effect. Though the mind & body can be clouded by the presence of schwetty ballz.
 

Thundermtn

Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2016
Messages
548
There's a difference in mine for sure.

Enough so that I ran my relief as low as I can get for dry winter indoors playing. Once I'm outdoors with 75%+ humidity they jump from the normal .007-.008 up to around .012.

We played a show once on top of a house boat in August. No shade with 90%+ humididty. All the guitars went crazy. They react differetly though, just depends on the individual guitar how much.
 

jrgtr42

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Joined
Mar 24, 2005
Messages
2,308
If you notice a change in sound in one humid day I would suggest filling the pores and holes and putting finish on that beast.

I was not aware of any use of sponge instead of mahogany.

Just sayin'...

Lol...
It was a solid week of humidity...
My acoustics will go nuts if I leave them out for a day, but that's to be expected.
 

au_rick

Active member
Joined
Mar 18, 2010
Messages
871
Will affect strings too.
Can't remember which bio / doco it was in but John Entwistle reportedly changed his strings between soundcheck and the gig due to Roger's on-stage dehumidifier.
 

J T

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Joined
Oct 20, 2005
Messages
10,501
I have two dehumidifiers running set at fifty percent where I keep my guitars. My guitars seem happy. I get to dump buckets of water twice a day.
 

renderit

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Joined
Jan 19, 2009
Messages
10,951
I know the weather change effects my ears.

That and I believe the humidity (if really bad) will possibly dampen the speaker cones affecting the response from them.
And if the air is heavier there will be some muting.
Solid body guitar?
Strings?
REALLY?
Ain't buyin' it...
 

somebodyelseuk

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Joined
Jun 10, 2020
Messages
454
Pickups are affected by temperature change, and maybe humidity. The coil wire resistence changes, ie I had a set of Fender CS54s a few years ago that were within spec during the summer and below the low spec during winter. Magnets are said to be affected by humidity, but I think that's a long term change and not necessarily to the detriment of tone.
In terms of wood... most of it is sealed, so moisture content should be fixed, the fingerboard...? If it's oiled, should be OK.
Thing is, the 'Holy Grails' spent most of their lives adapting to the climate they're in. Dehumidifers and air con are relatively new domestic appliances, and not that common outside the US.
 
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