Savart Journal

Indications of Vibratory Stress Relief in New Guitars

D.P. Hess

Abstract

This paper presents frequency response measurements from new acoustic guitars before and after a 168-hour exposure to broadband vibration. The data shows changes consistent with that observed and used to indicate effective vibratory stress relief in other applications. These changes occur around the natural frequencies of the response peaks and include increases in magnitude of the peaks and shifts in the peaks to lower frequencies. In addition to presenting this data, a goal of this paper is to increase awareness of the physical mechanisms associated with these changes by referencing and briefly describing the relevant literature.

Article Information

Article published Apr 30, 2022.
This article has been accessed 125 times since publication.

The Savart Journal is published in collaboration with the Guild of American Luthiers.

D.P. Hess
Department of Mechanical Engineering University of South Florida Tampa, Florida
United States

D.P. Hess is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of South Florida. He received his Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1991. His interests and contributions are in the areas of vibrations, tribology, acoustics, controls, and fasteners. He is a recipient of both the NSF Presidential and Career awards and numerous other grants from NSF, NASA and industry for work in these areas.