How Does Acoustic Guitar Differ From Electric Guitar?

An Overview of Accoustic and Electric Guitars

Though the two instruments may seem quite different, there is actually only one main factor that separates acoustic and electric guitars. Body styles and the exact tones that they produce can vary greatly, but the main thing which determines whether a guitar is acoustic or electric is the type of amplification that it uses. Acoustic guitars use no external amplification as their primary means of creating a tone, while electric guitars use an amplifier as their primary means of creating tones.

Though many acoustic guitars use amplifiers to make the sounds they produce louder, they are still able to create the same notes without an amplifier simply be letting the sound echo within the body of the guitar itself. Acoustic guitars are hollow and have sound holes in them so that the sound waves produced by the strings can enter into the guitar, being amplified by bouncing back and forth within the confines of the guitar's body.

Electric guitars don't have sound holes in them, and while they can be played with no amplifier, they won't produce much of a sound for anyone who is listening. Special electronic components known as pick-ups interpret the soft sounds that are made by the vibrations of an electric guitar's strings and supply them to the amplifier so that it can reproduce the sounds at full volume. Because the sounds are being transferred electronically, a number of sounds and effects can be added at the amplifier or en route on the guitar itself.

Hybrid guitars exist, including both "acoustic electric" guitars and "semi-hollow body" electric guitars. An "acoustic electric" guitar sounds and generally looks like a standard acoustic guitar, though built-in pick-ups and an amplifier jack allows it to be played via amplifier without the need for a microphone. "Semi-hollow body" guitars are the opposite. They are primarily electric guitars, but small sound holes have been added around the pick-ups so that they can produce sounds even without an amp being plugged in. Unlike "acoustic electric" guitars where the sound quality remains pretty much the same, semi-hollow body guitars require an amp in order to fully enjoy the best sound quality from them.