Glossary

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12 Fret Neck: A neck that joins onto the body of the guitar at the 12th fret.

12-String Guitar: A guitar with six double courses of strings instead of six single courses. Can be electric or acoustic.

14 Fret Neck: A neck that joins onto the body of the guitar at the 14th fret.

15ma: An instruction in written music indicating that you should play two octaves higher than it states on the staff. It only refers to the staff and not guitar tablature.

1st String: The thinnest and highest sounding string on a guitar. Also known as the E-string or high E-string because it is tuned to 'E' in standard tuning.

2nd String: The second thinnest and second highest sounding string on a guitar. Also known as the B-string because it is tuned to 'B' in standard tuning.

3/4-size guitar: A smaller than normal guitar with shorter strings and less space between frets.

3rd String: The third thinnest and third highest sounding string on a guitar. Also known as the G-string because it is tuned to 'G' in standard tuning.

4th String: The fourth highest sounding (4th thinnest) string on a guitar. Also known as the D-string because it is tuned to 'D' in standard tuning.

5th String: The second thickest and second lowest sounding string on a guitar. Also known as the A-string because it is tuned to 'A' in standard tuning.

6th String: The thickest and lowest sounding string on the guitar. Also known as the E-string or low E-string because it is tuned to 'E' in standard tuning.

8va: The symbol for ottava, an instruction in written music to play a note, or series of notes, an octave higher than what is written on the staff.

A

A (Ring Finger): A symbol used to represent the ring finger (annular finger) on the picking hand. It is part of the pima labelling system and is an abbreviation of the Spanish word 'Anular'.

A-String: The second thickest and second lowest sounding string on a guitar. Named so because it is tuned to 'A' in standard tuning.

Abalam: A manufacturer's term for abalone that has been cut into sheets for use as decoration.

Abalone: A type of shell that is used as fret markers on guitars. Also known as mother of pearl.

AC (Alternating Current): Electric current that periodically changes the direction in which it flows, such as from a wall outlet. Guitar amplifiers often convert AC to DC internally.

Accent: A symbol requesting that emphasis should be placed on a note to make it louder and more pronounced.

Accidental: A symbol used in standard music notation to indicate a rise or fall in pitch of one semitone. The symbol can be a sharp, flat or a natural sign.

Acoustic: Referring to sound or hearing, or a guitar that uses a hollow body to resonate sound instead of electrical amplification.

Acoustic Amplifiers: Amplifiers designed specifically for acoustic guitars and microphones, often with separate channels, XLR inputs, and feedback controls.

Acoustic Guitar: A guitar that uses a hollow body to resonate sound instead of electrical amplification.

Acoustics: The characteristics of an environment that affect its ability to transmit sound.

Acrylic: A paint that is used on guitar finishes.

Action: The distance between the strings and the fretboard, or the force required to produce a note.

Active: Refers to circuitry that alters a signal before it reaches its destination, requiring a power source. Commonly used for pickups with built-in preamps.

Active Pickups: Pickups that use electricity to boost the signal, requiring a battery.

Admittance: The reciprocal of impedance, measured in mhos.

Alder: A type of hardwood used in the manufacture of solid-bodied guitars.

Ali: The name given to Marshall amplifiers with aluminum front panels, following the plexi era.

Alnico: An alloy of aluminum, nickel, and cobalt used in vintage speakers and pickups.

Altered and Open Tunings: The result of changing the tuning of one or more strings from standard EADGBE.

Altered View: Looking at modes derived from the same scale but in the same key, to see different interval patterns.

Alternate Picking: A strict alternation between downstrokes and upstrokes, often starting on a downstroke.

American Sound: A cliché for amps using 6L6 tubes, sounding softer/warmer than British counterparts.

Amp: Short for amplifier. A device that increases the strength of the electrical signal from the guitar's pickups.

Amp Head: The amplifier base that increases the electrical signal, attached to a loudspeaker cabinet.

Amp Rack: A metal frame used to mount amplifiers for large stage performances.

Amplification: Generic term for the various forms of amplifier.

Amplifier: A device that increases the strength of the electrical signal from the guitar's pickups, producing louder sound.

Amplifier Stack: An amplifier where the signal is amplified in an amp head and sent through loudspeakers in a separate cabinet.

Analog Amplifiers: Amplifiers without digital components, typically all vintage tube or solid-state models.

Andante: A moderately slow tempo, approximately 70-80 bpm.

Anode: The current-collecting element of an electron tube, also called the plate.

Anti-Nodes: Points on the strings that dampen sound when touched, opposite of nodes where harmonics are produced.

Anular: The Spanish term for ring finger on the picking hand, abbreviated 'a' in pima system.

Apoyando: A classical guitar technique where a picking hand finger plucks a string and rests on the adjacent string.

Archtop: A guitar body with a curved top, typically acoustic or semi-acoustic.

Arpeggiated Chord: A chord where notes are played by rolling the thumb or plectrum across the strings.

Arpeggio: A broken chord played evenly low to high and back, or when individual notes of a chord are played separately.

Arrangement: The setting of an original or standard tune for a solo instrument or group.

Artificial Harmonics: Harmonics produced while fretting a note, typically by touching the string twelve frets higher.

Ash: A type of hardwood used in solid-bodied guitars.

Ashtray: A metal plate used to cover the bridge on vintage Fender Telecaster guitars.

Attack: The initial response of a note, opposite of sag; related to treble and sparkle.

Attenuator: A passive device that reduces signal voltage or power, often used to lower volume while maintaining overdrive.

Augmentation Dot: Increases the duration of a note by half.

Augmented: A perfect interval increased by a semitone.

Augmented Chord: A major triad with a sharpened fifth.

Axe: Slang for guitar.

B

B+: The high voltage supply in a tube amplifier.

B-String: The second thinnest and second highest sounding string, tuned to 'B'.

Back Bias: A method of obtaining negative bias voltage using a resistor or zener diode in the rectifier center tap.

Backlash: A flaw in machineheads where the string-post does not turn immediately in response to the tuner.

Backline: Musical equipment for live playing, like amplifiers and cables.

Backplate: A thin plate covering control cavities on the body's reverse side.

Baffle: The front panel of a speaker onto which components are mounted.

Ball-End: The metal stopper on guitar strings that anchors to the bridge.

Bandurria: A pear-shaped instrument with steel strings used in Spanish folk music.

Banjo Tuners: Tuners on the reverse side of the headstock.

Bar: A unit of time in music, commonly four beats, represented by a vertical line in notation.

Bar Pickup: A pickup using one polepiece per coil, also called blade pickup.

Barre Chord: Placing the index finger over multiple strings to form a chord, movable shapes.

Bass: Short for bass guitar, or sounds of lower frequency.

Bass Amps: Amplifiers designed for bass guitars, often with limiters and compression.

Bass Clef: Also known as F clef, used for lower ranges; guitars use treble clef.

Bass Guitar: A guitar typically with four strings tuned an octave lower.

Bass Note: The lowest note in a chord.

Bass Pickup: Another term for neck pickup.

Beat: A unit of time determined by tempo, or the underlying rhythm.

Beats Per Minute (BPM): Measurement of tempo; most music is 60-220 bpm.

Bend: Bending the string sideways to raise pitch by half to full tone or more.

Bending: Performing a bend or series of bends.

Bias: The negative voltage on a tube's grid or idle current when no signal is present. Proper level for optimal tube operation.

Biasing: Setting the idle current in output tubes; preamp tubes use cathode biasing.

Bigsby: A vibrato system; term also for similar systems.

Binding: Flexible material strengthening where soundboard and back meet sides on acoustic guitars.

Blackface: Term for older Fenders with black control panels; transitioned to silverface post-CBS.

Blade Pickup: A pickup with one polepiece per coil.

Bleeding: Unintentional overlap of notes or sound leakage into other inputs.

Block Markers: Fret markers as quadrilateral shapes instead of circles.

Blues: Music of African/American origin, often slow and sad; base for rock and roll.

Blues Curl: A quarter-tone bend in blues, increasing pitch by half a semitone.

Bobbin: Component of a pickup around which the coil is wrapped.

Body: The main section of the guitar where neck and bridge attach; hollow in acoustics for resonance.

Body Pack: Device with electronics for wireless signal transmission.

Bolt-On Neck: Neck secured to body by screws and metal plate.

Book Matching: Process for soundboard and back, splitting one billet into symmetrical slices.

Bottleneck: Finger piece slid along strings for slide effects.

Bound: Containing binding.

Bout: Section of acoustic guitar body; waist divides into upper and lower bouts.

BPM: See Beats Per Minute. Braces: Strips of wood inside acoustic guitars for support.

Bridge Rectifier: Four rectifiers in a square for full-wave rectification without center-tap.

British Sound: Cliché for amps using EL34 tubes, sounding more robust than 6L6 variants.

Bypass Cap: Capacitor from power supply to ground, bypassing AC while passing DC; also for cathode resistors to increase gain.

C

Cabinet: Wooden enclosure housing speakers or amp chassis.

Cap: Short for capacitor.

Capacitor: Device with two plates separated by dielectric, blocking DC while passing AC.

Capacitance: The "size" of a capacitor, measured in farads (uF, nF, pF).

Capo: Mechanical barre to raise key or shorten strings. 2 Cathode: Current-generating element in tubes, emitting electrons when heated.

Cathode Biasing: Bias generated by voltage drop across cathode resistor.

Channel: Separate circuit in amp for different sounds; counted by volume/gain knobs.

Chassis: Metal box enclosing amplifier parts.

Chimey: Balanced tone with just enough sparkle, often with single-coil pickups.

Choke: Inductor used as power supply filter.

Chord: Three or more notes sounded simultaneously.

Chorus: Portion of song repeated, or an effect similar to vibrato with reverb, sounding watery.

Chunky: Firm, tight bass notes delivered cleanly; requires punch from amp.

Class A Amps: Tube amp circuit with warm, dynamic sound and creamy distortion; high tube wear.

Class

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A1: Class A where grid current does not flow.

A2: Class A where grid current flows for some portion.

AB: Plate current flows >180 but <360 degrees, higher efficiency than Class A.

AB1: Class AB without grid current.

AB2: Class AB with grid current for some portion.

B: Plate current flows at 180 degrees, high efficiency but more distortion.

B Amps: Tube amp circuit that stays clean longer, ideal for multi-channel.

B1: Class B without grid current.

B2: Class B with grid current for some portion.

C: Tubes off most of the time, high power but not common in guitars.

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Clean: Undistorted sound, often with clear highs and clean bass.

Closed Voicing: Chord notes arranged as close together as possible.

Combo: Amplifier with built-in speaker.

Common Cathode: Standard tube circuit with cathode connected to ground.

Common Grid: Tube stage with grid connected to ground.

Common Plate: Tube stage with plate connected to ground, often a cathode follower.

Concertina Phase Splitter: Single-tube phase inverter with in-phase from cathode, out-of-phase from plate.

Condenser: Old term for capacitor.

Control Grid: Wire mesh in tubes controlling electron flow.

Coupling Capacitors: Capacitors between stages blocking DC while passing AC signal.

Covering: Material wrapping the cabinet.

CPS: Old term for cycles per second, now Hz.

Cranked: Turning volume beyond sweet spot.

Crossover Distortion: Distortion in push-pull amps during transition between sides.

Crunch: Sound just passing from clean to distorted, great for riffs or blues.

Cutaway: Concave area in upper bout for easier high fret access.

D

DC (Direct Current): Electricity flowing in one direction, like from a battery; used internally in amps.

Digital Amps: Amplifiers with digital components for effects or modeling.

Distortion: Dirty or distorted sound, natural in tubes from clipping or created in solid-state.

Dropped-D Tuning: Lowering the sixth string (E) by a whole tone.

E

Edgy: Tone with high sparkle, like trebly fuzz.

FX-Loop: Output and input for effects after preamp, like modulation or reverb.

Finger Picks: Banjo-style picks for steel-string fingerstyle.

Fingerstyle: Playing with fingernails or fingertips, with or without picks.

Flatpick: Triangular or teardrop piece used to pluck or strum.

Footstool: Adjustable stool to raise guitar height.

Footswitch: Remote box to switch effects or channels.

Fullness: Strong bass and lower mids with good spread, often from larger cabinets.

G

Gain/Preamp/Volume Controls: Controls overdrive in pre-stage for amps with master volume.

Grille: Cloth or metal covering protecting the speaker.

Guitar Amps: Amplifiers designed for electric guitars.

H

Hammer-On: Sounding a note by hammering down with left-hand finger, often after plucking.

Harmonics: Chime-like sounds from touching string at divisions (natural) or with fretted notes (artificial).

Head Unit: Amplifier chassis in its own enclosure without speakers.

Headroom: Ability to play clean and loud without distortion; depends on power, tubes, and design.

Hot and Cold Bias: Bias adjustment for power tubes; hot for more distortion, cold for less, affecting tube life.

Hybrid Amp: Amplifier combining tube and transistor technology.

I

Impedance: Resistance measured in ohms; amp and speakers must match.

Interval: Distance between two notes.

Inversion: Chord with note other than root as lowest.

K

Keyboard Amplifiers: Designed for keyboards, with multiple channels and limited effects.

L

Lead Guitar: Part played by soloist in rock band.

Lead Sound: Sustain-rich distorted sound for solos or riffs.

Liquid: Chimey tone with fair sag, associated with clean tones.

M

Master Volume: Controls total output volume; allows distortion at lower levels.

Mode: Specific sound switched within a channel, e.g., clean/crunch.

Modeling Amps: Amps programming multiple sounds, often digital.

Modulate: To change keys within music.

Muddy: Smooth tone with reduced highs, making details hard to hear.

N

Natural Sounding: Flat frequency response.

Neodymium: Magnet type in speakers for lighter weight.

O

Ohms: Measure of electrical resistance.

Open Voicing: Chord notes broadly separated.

Overdrive: Control or channel increasing gain for distortion.

P

P I M A: Letters for right-hand fingers: pulgar (thumb), indice (index), medio (middle), anular (ring).

Peak Power: Wattage rating indicating max peak power.

Pentatonic Scale: Five-tone scale often used in rock.

Picking: Plucking or producing sound with fingers or pick; sometimes single-note melody.

Plectrum: Another name for flatpick.

Positions: Placement of left-hand index finger at frets.

Power Chord: Chord of root, fifth, and octave, used in rock.

Power-Amp: Final stage amplifying signal to volume; saturation creates distortion.

Power-Amp Tube: Tube amplifying audio signal to watts for sound.

Pre-Amp: First stage signal passes through after input, amplifying for power amp.

Pre-Amp Tube: Tube shaping audio wave and effects like reverb.

Presence Control: Boosts high frequencies beyond treble for crispness.

Public Address Amplifiers (PA): Designed for multiple applications with high channels and wattage.

Pull-Off: Opposite of hammer-on, plucking higher note and pulling to sound lower.

Punchy: Firm, tight bass cleanly delivered; see also chunky.

Q

Quacky: Tone like Strat in-between positions, with sparkle and firm bass.

R

Rectifier: Converts AC to DC; tube or solid-state.

Reverb: Echo effect typically from springs.

Rhythm Guitar: Rhythmic strumming backup.

RMS (Root Mean Square): Average maximum power rating.

S

Sag: Compression when amp struggles beyond sweet spot, key tube amp characteristic.

Scooped: Tone with reduced mids.

Setup: Adjustment of action for optimal playing.

Slide: Plastic or glass tube for glissando effects.

Smooth: Low sparkle, reduced highs; can be muddy to some.

Sound Controls (EQ): Treble, mid, bass; interactive on most amps.

Sparkle: Upper treble frequencies.

Speaker: Component projecting sound, typically 8-15 inches.

Speaker Efficiency: Sensitivity; output volume per input watt.

Speaker Enclosure: Cabinet with speakers or power amp.

Speaker Impedance: Resistance in ohms; must match amp.

Speaker Power: Max power handled without damage.

Spread: Even sound distribution; larger speakers have more.

Stack: Combination of speaker boxes and amp head.

Standard Tuning: EADGBE low to high.

String Winder: Swivel device for tuning keys.

Strumming: Brushing across strings rhythmically.

Sweet Spot: Breakup point where clean meets distortion.

T

Tablature or Tab: System for fretted instruments showing fret numbers on string lines.

Tone: Pitch of sound produced, or level of equalization.

Transcription: Writing a solo note-for-note from recording.

Transistor Amps: Use transistors; sound 'colder' but reliable and lighter.

Transpose: Change key by specific interval.

Tremolo: Rapid down-up picking or pami plucking; pulsating volume effect.

Triad: Three-note chord.

Tuner: Electronic device for tuning.

V

Vibrato: Vibrate by altering pitch higher and lower; pulsating pitch effect.

Voicing: Arrangement of chord notes or melody/bass placement.

W

Wattage: Power measured in watts.

Watts: SI units of power, equivalent to one joule per second, corresponding to the power in an electric circuit in which the potential difference is one volt, and the current one ampere.