Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

A place where you can let us see your finished instruments in all their glory.

Moderators: kiwigeo, Jeremy D

Post Reply
Michael Thames

Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:35 am

Here are some photos of my guitars, lately I've been building them with a tornavoz, with some very good results. I recently completed one with a CF tornavoz and was hands down the best guitar I've ever made. Most all of my future guitars will feature this. I'm in the process of making a steel string guitar for Michael Chapdelaine, with this device..... it seems basses on most steel string guitars have a lot to be desired this might help some.

Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:37 am

Oh dear, I see I didn't upload the photos correctly........ help?

Dave
Myrtle
Posts: 77
Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2008 7:16 pm

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Dave » Thu Apr 11, 2013 4:22 am

Michael Thames wrote:Oh dear, I see I didn't upload the photos correctly........ help?
Hi Michael

the images wont show as you have two lots of image tags e.g.
Imagehttp://i1192.photobucket.com/albums/aa3 ... 62ec.jpg[b][/img][/img][/b]

if you just use the img button and insert the link between the two tags it will work e.g.

http://i1192.photobucket.com/albums/aa3 ... 5a62ec.jpg

here's the link inside the Image

All the best
Dave

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 5:24 am

Thanks Dave, I thought I did that, but Photobucket has different links for different purposes maybe I didn't insert the right link. I try it again.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 5:32 am

I'll try it agian.

Image

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 5:49 am

OK it worked! thanks Dave.

Image
Brass tronavoz
Image
Brass tornavoz
Image

Image
13 string Dresden guitar

Image
One piece top

Image

Image
A maple brass tornavoz

Image
CF tornavoz

Image
Brazilian rosewood tornavoz

Image
A one piece top from a well split billet

Image
Dresden 13 string guitar tuned in D minor

Image

User avatar
Nick
Blackwood
Posts: 3641
Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 11:20 am
Location: Christchurch, New Zealand
Contact:

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Nick » Thu Apr 11, 2013 6:04 am

Some impressive and pretty guitars there Michael, thanks for sharing. Are your Tornavoz made to exact Torres specifications or is it something (the height) you play around with or 'tune' to best match each guitar?
I've visited your site, by the way, and I love the tone of your Dresdens. :cl
"Jesus Loves You."
Nice to hear in church but not in a Mexican prison.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:25 am

Nick, thanks a lot, Just had a look at your website as well....... not to shabby I must say, I like your rosette ideas, I will be calling on your expertise in the near future.

nnickusa
Blackwood
Posts: 902
Joined: Sat Feb 04, 2012 4:07 pm
Location: Brunswick Heads, NSW

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by nnickusa » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:42 am

nice work, all round. It's easy to see you're already good at this. I look forward to picking your brain as time goes on..... :cl
I wish I was half the man my dog thinks I am....

Cheers,
Nick

https://www.facebook.com/pages/DMI-hand ... 744?ref=hl

User avatar
steve roberts
Blackwood
Posts: 154
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: coffs harbour

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by steve roberts » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:06 am

Hi Michael
Some very impressive work stunning guitars.Look forward to seeing some more of your creations
Regards Steve

User avatar
EricDownunder
Blackwood
Posts: 170
Joined: Wed Apr 18, 2012 12:59 pm
Location: East Kurrajong, NSW

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by EricDownunder » Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:51 am

Fantastic looking instruments, I was talking to the wife onle a couple of weeks ago about putting something in the sound hole like a tube, now I know what it's called a tornavoz! Could you elaborate and let us know what they do, for example do they increase volume or alter tone etc. I am very interested in this. Thanks again for posting the pics
Keep Smiling,
Eric Smith

User avatar
Tod Gilding
Blackwood
Posts: 838
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2011 7:32 pm
Location: South West Rocks NSW

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Tod Gilding » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:10 pm

Very Nice Work Impressive :cl

Just another Tornavoz question ...Does the material it is made from have a bearing on the tone ?
Tod



Music is everyone's posession. It's only publishers who think that people own it.
John Lennon

User avatar
P Bill
Blackwood
Posts: 521
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 8:31 am
Location: Cedar Vale, Qld Australia

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by P Bill » Thu Apr 11, 2013 4:51 pm

Welcome to the forum Michael. You've probably heard it all before.. ..Wow!
"Were you drying your nails or waving me good bye?" Tom Waits

Bill

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 6:36 pm

Tod Gilding wrote:Very Nice Work Impressive :cl

Just another Tornavoz question ...Does the material it is made from have a bearing on the tone ?
Thanks Tod and Eric, Yes, the material the tornavoz is made from has a profound effect on the tone. I've made them from paper mache, brass, and Carbon fibre. My friend Gary Stewart who bought the first Tornavoz guitar I made, noticed a slight metallic ring in the tone, he then place a pencil with the eraser head in the soundhole and dampened the tornavoz and told me the metallic ringing disappeared.

The paper mache was the worse one, and I ended up just taking it out. I hear of people placing cardboard paper in the form of a tube inside the soundhole and measuring the hemholtz air mode then saying they now know everything there is to know about it's effect.

For me I would summarize it this way...... first, it lowers the air mode by about a whole step. Second, it stiffens the top around the sound hole to the point where one doesn't need a lower transverse brace, and third it imparts a pleasant metallic ring to the tone. Fourth, it eliminates most of the percussive hit or attack in the note. Fifth, as pointed out to me by David Schramm, the weight of the brass lower the top frequency.

The guitar should be designed around the use of the tornavoz by making it as light as possible. Retrofitting one in a standard modern guitar doesn't seem to have that much benefit.

Torres used these on his most famous guitars "La Leona" "La Suprema ..... Julian Arcas, Tarrega, Llobet, Pujol just to name a few, all played Torres guitars with a tornavoz. Tarrega's guitar was measured by Romanillios and had a consistent top thickness of 1 mm, the sides were typically 1 mm thick as well.

As we all know a guitar made this lightly usually has a sound of more air, than substance, but the tornavoz seems to completely eliminate the airy percussive hit.

I'm sure I'll think of more but that's it for now.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 6:45 pm

P Bill wrote:Welcome to the forum Michael. You've probably heard it all before.. ..Wow!
Thanks Bill.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 6:46 pm

steve roberts wrote:Hi Michael
Some very impressive work stunning guitars.Look forward to seeing some more of your creations
Regards Steve
Thanks, Steve.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 6:48 pm

BTW, I'm looking forward to picking all of your brains about steel string guitars, seems like a wealth of info here.

jeffhigh
Blackwood
Posts: 1536
Joined: Thu Feb 07, 2008 5:50 am
Location: Caves Beach, NSW
Contact:

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by jeffhigh » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:08 pm

Beautiful instruments Michael
Did you form the cf tornavoz yourself or is it manufactured tube?

User avatar
martintaylor
Blackwood
Posts: 288
Joined: Sun Dec 02, 2012 9:17 am
Contact:

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by martintaylor » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:26 pm

So, when WOW just isn't enough, what can we use? Michael, your work is stunning. Any idea whether a Tornavoz would benefit an acoustic Bass? I have been asked to make one and I am looking at getting all the advice I can.

Again, WOW.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:43 pm

jeffhigh wrote:Beautiful instruments Michael
Did you form the cf tornavoz yourself or is it manufactured tube?
Thanks jeff, yea the brass ones I made myself from brass sheets, and punched the design in the bottom along the lines of Torres, and dang, I feel real stupid I can't remember the gauge off hand. The CF tornavoz comes in 4 inch tubes which I cut to dimension of 3 inches deep which is just about the size of a Torres. I got them at Dragon plate.

Funny a customer sent me a CF tornavoz to put in his guitar...... I thought this will go over like a Led Zepplin, I made the guitar without alot of great expectations, and it turned out to be miles above anything I've ever made, and I don't say that lightly! The next day I left for India, and Thailand, droped his guitar off at UPS and jumped on the plane, got back a couple weeks ago and now am making all my guitars with CF tornavoz.

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:49 pm

martintaylor wrote:So, when WOW just isn't enough, what can we use? Michael, your work is stunning. Any idea whether a Tornavoz would benefit an acoustic Bass? I have been asked to make one and I am looking at getting all the advice I can.

Again, WOW.
Thanks Martin! yes, the tornavoz does AMAZING thing to the bass! here is a video of a thirteen string guitar with a paper mache tornavoz, and the basses are really good if I do say so myself. Perhaps google tornavoz there was some really good info out there a few years ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWW8G06K ... A&index=45

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVZr_T8dnbU
here is Gary Stewart playing one

Kamusur
Blackwood
Posts: 754
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 10:08 pm

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Kamusur » Fri Apr 12, 2013 5:54 am

Well done and welcome Michael, love the 13 stringer. Hope you post some build photos of your next project they'd be much appreciated that's for sure even if it is a SS.

Steve

Michael Thames

Re: Some of my Tornavoz guitars and other things

Post by Michael Thames » Sat Apr 13, 2013 2:25 am

Kamusur wrote:Well done and welcome Michael, love the 13 stringer. Hope you post some build photos of your next project they'd be much appreciated that's for sure even if it is a SS.

Steve
Thanks Steve, OK, I've made a thread about that. Perhaps in the process it will be a good opportunity to learn as I go about the finer points of Steel string construction.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 37 guests