Question

How do electric guitars work?

Diagrams are useful.

Make connections to the physics involved in the workings of the electric guitar.

Explain the physics involved.

Trace the development of the object

Answer 1

An electric guitar uses a pickup to convert the vibration of its strings into electrical impulses.

The most common guitar pickup uses the principle of Direct Electromagnetic Induction.

The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker.

Since the output of an electric guitar is an electric signal, the signal may easily be altered using electronic circuits to add "color" to the sound.

Often the signal is modified using effects such as reverb & distortion.

Physics involved:

(i) Direct Electromagnetic Induction.

Fundamental Postulate for Electromagnetic Induction:

a) set of conductors

b) magnetic field

c) relative motion between a) & b)

Conditions under which the emf potential be generated in a closed conducting loop:

* Only emf will be induced, when the closed loop cuts the magnetic field.

* An emf potential can be generated in a closed conducting loop only when the loop is carrying time varying current in it.

emf = L* di/dt*v

(ii) Amplification of Signal

Amplification is the the process of increasing the Amplitude of a weak signal to a strong signal with increased amplitude.

(iii) Reverberation

Reverberation is the collection of reflected sounds from the surfaces.