Stringed instrument with adjustable string tension control
A tension adjustment mechanism for a stringed musical instrument suitable for use on a tailpiece assembly comprises a pivoting member (such as a string receptor), an adjustable stop, and a lever handle engaged with the pivoting member. The pivoting member preferably has a post for securely receiving an end of a string and an elongate arm. Placement of the handle in a first position preferably causes the adjustable stop to engage and depress the elongate arm of the pivoting member, thereby increasing tension on the string. Placement of the handle in a second position preferably causes the adjustable stop to disengage the elongate arm of the pivoting member, thereby allowing the pivoting member to return to its original position, and decreasing tension on the string. A fine tuning adjustment may be included in the tailpiece assembly. The adjustable stop and/or fine tuning adjustment may comprise adjustable screws.
Latest E.L.V.H., Inc. Patents:
- Humbucking pickup and method of providing permanent magnet extending through opposing coils parallel to string orientation
- Humbucking Pickup and Method of Providing Permanent Magnet Extending Through Opposing Coils Parallel to String Orientation
- Stringed instrument with adjustable string tension control
- Stringed instrument with adjustable string tension control
- Humbucking pickup
1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention generally pertains to stringed instruments and, more specifically, to an adjustable string tension control for a stringed instrument.
2. Background
Stringed instruments, such as guitars, generally have multiple strings which are anchored at one end to a tailpiece or bridge assembly and at the other end to a number of tuning pegs. Rotation or adjustment of the tuning pegs increases the tension of the strings and thus increases the pitch produced by the strings. Typically the strings of an instrument are tuned prior to a performance or session, with the intent usually being for the strings to remain in their tuned settings for the duration of the performance or session.
Nevertheless, musicians occasionally desire to alter the tuning or tensioning of musical instrument strings during a performance or rendition in order to, for example, achieve a different range of notes, different sound qualities and feel, or various musical effects. During live performances or renditions, however, it can be difficult, cumbersome, and imprecise to use conventional tuning knobs to attempt to adjust the tuning or tension of the strings. One technique that has been developed for varying the tension of guitar strings that does not involve the guitar's tuning keys is known as a tremolo bar. A tremolo bar connects to the guitar bridge and is manipulated by the musician to increase or decrease the tension on the guitar strings (typically all of the strings simultaneously). When the musician releases the tremolo bar, the strings return to their original tensions.
Other examples of mechanisms for altering the tension of strings are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,535,670 and 5,542,330.
Conventional techniques for adjusting the tension of musical instrument strings may suffer from various drawbacks. For example, with a tremolo bar, the shift in the tension or tone of a string depends upon the amount of physical displacement of the bar, and is therefore relatively imprecise. Also, the tremolo bar generally affects all of the strings simultaneously. In various other techniques, the amount of potential change in the tension of a string may be limited. Also, the mechanism for adjusting the tension of the string may be inconvenient or difficult to use, particularly during live performances or other renditions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe invention in one aspect is generally directed to a stringed instrument with an adjustable string tension control.
In one embodiment, a tension adjustment mechanism for a stringed musical instrument comprises a pivoting member, an adjustable stop, and a handle adapted for manual actuation between a first position and a second position. The pivoting member is preferably configured to engage an end of a string (by, e.g., a post), and includes an elongate arm. Placement of the handle in the first position causes a contact member to engage and depress the elongate arm of the pivoting member, thereby increasing tension on the string, while placement of the handle in the second position causes the contact member to disengage the elongate arm of the pivoting member, thereby allowing the pivoting member to come to rest against the adjustable stop and decreasing tension on the string.
In a particular embodiment, a tailpiece (which may be a combined bridge/tailpiece) for a stringed musical instrument includes a hinged member or string receptor having a post for securing a first end of a string and an elongate lever arm mechanically engaged with the post. The hinged member or string receptor is pivotally mounted to the tailpiece (or combined bridge/tailpiece) frame. The elongate lever arm can be depressed into a cutout beneath plane of the instrument surface. A pivotable lever handle controls motion of the hinged member or string receptor by either causing a first adjustable stop (e.g., a first adjustable screw) to engage the elongate lever arm (thus depressing it), resulting in increased string tension, or else causing the first adjustable stop to disengage, thereby allowing the elongate lever arm to be raised by the natural tension of the string and allowing it to come to rest against a second adjustable stop (e.g., a second adjustable screw), resulting in decreased string tension. The first adjustable stop controls the normal playing pitch (and fine tuning), and the second adjustable stop controls the drop-down pitch.
Further embodiments, variations and enhancements are also disclosed herein.
A tailpiece 125 is anchored or otherwise attached to the body 102 of the guitar 100, and secures the opposite ends of the strings 140. A bridge 122 for engaging the strings is anchored or otherwise attached to the body 102 of the guitar 100 along the path of the strings 140. The bridge 122 may be of any conventional or other design, such as, for example, a Tune-o-matic style bridge. The bridge 122 may comprise individual adjustable saddles that can, for example, be moved forward or backward to modulate the intonation of each individual string, and moved higher or lower to adjust the height (or “action”) of the individual strings relative to the neck 105. Alternatively, the bridge 122 may comprise a single notched or grooved crossbar that can be moved forward or backward, or raised or lowered, to collectively adjust the intonation and relative height of all of the strings 140 simultaneously. In any variation, the bridge 122 may be combined with the tailpiece 125 on a single assembly or plate. The tailpiece 125 and bridge 122 may be constructed from any suitable material, but will typically be formed of a steel alloy or other metallic material.
The guitar 100 also includes one or more pickups 120 which, according to well known techniques, detect sound vibrations of the strings 140 and transform the vibrations into electrical signals which can be output for amplification and subject to various effects processing. Various tone and volume control knobs 115 regulate the sound tone and output volume of the guitar 100.
In the example of
As further illustrated in
In the present example, the extension 205 comprises a pair of sidewalls between which is positioned a rotatable cylindrical rod 221. The cylindrical rod 221 is attached to a lever handle 208 which, in the instant example, has a curved arm terminating in an enlarged finger pad 209. The cylindrical rod 221 preferably has a threaded hole bored through its midsection, through which a fine tuning screw 220 is placed. The fine tuning screw 220 serves a similar purpose to the other fine tuning screws 215, but is placed further back therefrom to provide room for a tension adjustment screw 216. The tension adjustment screw 216 in this example is lined up in generally along the same axis as the fine-tuning screws 215 for the other (non-tension-adjustable) strings 140. The tension adjustment screw 216 may, but need not, be longer than the fine-tuning screws 215 used on the non-tension-adjustable strings 140, in order to increase accessibility in certain embodiments. As will be described further herein, the tension adjustment screw 216 preferably dictates the amount by which the tension is reduced (and thus the amount by which the pitch drops) for an affected string 140.
In a preferred embodiment, tension adjustment of a string 140 is carried out by movement of the lever handle 208.
An example of operation of the string tensioning adjustment of the tailpiece assembly of
The operation illustrated in
In the particular example of operation illustrated in
Returning now to the operation illustrated in
It will be appreciated that the amount by which the tension of the string 440 is reduced can be varied by adjustment of the tension adjustment screw 216. Rotation of the tension adjustment screw 216 in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction varies the amount by which the string receptor 226 can pivot before being stopped by the tension adjustment screw 216.
In the particular embodiment the operation of which is illustrated in
It will further be appreciated that the size and shape of lever handle 208 may facilitate operation of the string tension adjustment mechanism, particularly in live performances or musical renditions. Placement of the lever handle 208 in the depressed position for “normal” operation maintains the profile of the tailpiece assembly 200 as low as possible when adjustment of the string tension is not needed or desired, since dropping the pitch of a string with the string tension adjustment mechanism is expected to be a relatively infrequent event despite that it allows increased musical creativity and flexibility. Even when the lever handle 208 is flipped into an upright or semi-upright position, it is relatively unobtrusive. The enlarged fingerpad 209 of the lever handle 208, illustrated in
Where the fine tuning and string tension adjustment means of the string tension adjustment mechanism are embodied as adjustable screws, the screws may be relatively large in size to facilitate manual adjustment, either before or during performances. Because the fine tuning and string tension adjustment screws are large and relatively accessible, they may be adjusted in “real time” during playing.
While one or more particular examples of a string tension adjustment mechanism have been described above, various modified or altered variations of these embodiments may be constructed which nevertheless employ the same or similar principles. For example, in certain embodiments, a fine tuning adjustment means (such as fine tuning screw 220) may be omitted. In such a case, the lever-engaging structure provided by the fine tuning screw 220 would essentially revert to a mere fixed extension of the lever handle 208. Moreover, in other embodiments, other adjustable means besides screws may be used for fine tuning and/or string tension adjustment. Advantages to using screws to adjust the fine tuning and/or string tension are that they provide a continuous spectrum of adjustment positions and are fairly stable.
In other embodiments, the tension adjustment mechanism may be associated with more than one string, such that movement of the lever handle 208 results in a simultaneous change in tension of multiple strings. For example, the tailpiece assembly 200 may be constructed with another one or more pivoting string receptors, such as illustrated in
Alternatively, a tailpiece assembly may comprise multiple tension adjustment mechanisms, each with individual lever handles or other actuation mechanisms, to allow individual real-time adjustment of the tension of different strings.
In yet another alternative embodiment, the hinged string receptor (such as 226 illustrated in
In more detail, with reference first to
As further illustrated in
In the example of
According to one or more embodiments as disclosed herein, in one aspect, a hinged string receptor includes a post and an elongate lever arm pivotally mounted to tailpiece (or combined bridge/tailpiece) frame. The elongate lever arm can be depressed into a cutout beneath plane of the instrument surface. A pivotable lever handle controls motion of the hinged string receptor by either causing a first adjustable stop (e.g., a first adjustable screw) to engage the elongate lever arm (thus depressing it), resulting in increased string tension, or else causing the first adjustable stop to disengage, thereby allowing the elongate lever arm to be raised by the natural tension of the string and allowing it to come to rest against a second adjustable stop (e.g., a second adjustable screw), resulting in decreased string tension. The first adjustable stop controls the normal playing pitch (and fine tuning), and the second adjustable stop controls the drop-down pitch.
While various embodiments described herein have generally been discussed in terms of dropping down pitch by decreasing string tension, alternatively such embodiments may be viewed, and utilized, as a tension increasing mechanism, wherein the normal playing pitch is the lower pitch, and the string tension adjustment mechanism is activated to occasionally increase string tension on demand. Also, while embodiments shown herein generally are discussed with reference to guitars, the same principles may apply to other stringed instruments as well that may benefit from a string tension adjustment mechanism. Moreover, the principles and embodiments described herein are equally applicable to right-handed and left-handed guitars and other stringed instruments, with the tailpiece assembly and string tension adjustment mechanisms capable of, e.g., being constructed in mirror-image to support opposite handed guitars or other stringed instruments.
While preferred embodiments of the invention have been described herein, many variations are possible which remain within the concept and scope of the invention. Such variations would become clear to one of ordinary skill in the art after inspection of the specification and the drawings. The invention therefore is not to be restricted except within the spirit and scope of any appended claims.
Claims
1. An apparatus for adjusting the tension of at least one string of a stringed musical instrument, comprising:
- a pivoting member configured to engage an end of a string and comprising an elongate arm;
- an adjustable stop; and
- a handle adapted for manual actuation;
- wherein placement of the handle in a first position causes a contact member to engage and depress the elongate arm of the pivoting member, thereby increasing tension on the string, and wherein placement of the handle in a second position causes the contact member to disengage the elongate arm of the pivoting member, thereby allowing the pivoting member to come to rest against the adjustable stop and decreasing tension on the string.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said adjustable stop comprises an adjustable screw.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said pivoting member is affixed to a tailpiece, and wherein said tailpiece is adapted to anchor a plurality of strings of the stringed musical instrument.
4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein:
- said tailpiece comprises a plurality of string receptors substantially serially aligned between a first end and a second end of said tailpiece;
- said handle is secured proximate to the first end of said tailpiece;
- said contact member is secured proximate to the second end of said tailpiece; and
- wherein said handle is mechanically engaged with said contact member via a rod extending substantially from the first end of said tailpiece to the second end of said tailpiece.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the elongate arm of said pivoting member is adapted to be depressed beneath a surface plane of the stringed musical instrument when the handle is placed in said first position.
6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said contact member comprises a fine tuning adjustment mechanism.
7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said contact member comprises an adjustable screw for fine tuning the string when the handle is placed in said first position.
8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said pivoting member comprises a post for securely receiving the end of the string, and wherein said post and the elongate arm of said pivoting member join at a fulcrum position of the pivoting member.
9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said stringed musical instrument is a guitar, and wherein said handle comprises a second elongate arm mechanically engaged with said contact member at one end and terminating in an enlarged fingerpad portion at another end, said second elongate arm of sufficient lenath to be manually actuatable without the musician interrupting play.
10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said handle has only two stationary positions, and wherein said handle is actuated by manually rotating the handle in a downward direction to place said handle in the first stationary position, and manually rotating said handle in an upward direction to place said handle in the second stationary position.
11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said handle lies substantially parallel with a primary surface plane of the musical instrument when placed in the first stationary position, and wherein said handle is upright or semi-upright with respect to the primary surface plane of said musical instrument when placed in the second stationary position.
12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:
- another one or more pivoting members each configured to engage an end of a different string of the musical instrument and each comprising an elongate arm; and
- another one or more adjustable stops, one for each of said different strings;
- wherein placement of the handle in the first position causes an increased tension on each of said different strings, and wherein placement of the handle in the second position causes decreased tension on each of said different strings with the elongate arm of each pivoting member coming to rest against each string's respective adjustable stop.
13. A tailpiece assembly for a stringed musical instrument, comprising:
- a tailpiece frame;
- a pivotable string receptor affixed to a portion of the tailpiece frame, the pivotable string receptor comprising a post to securely engage an end of a string and an elongate arm joined to said post, said pivotable string receptor having a fulcrum proximate to where said post and said elongate arm join;
- an adjustable stop affixed to said tailpiece frame; and
- a lever handle adapted for manual actuation, said lever handle mechanically joined with a contact member adapted to engage and disengage the elongate arm of said pivotable string receptor;
- wherein placement of the handle in a first position causes the contact member to engage and depress the elongate arm of said pivotable string receptor, thereby increasing tension on the string, and wherein placement of the handle in a second position causes the contact member to disengage the elongate arm of said pivotable string receptor, thereby allowing the elongate arm to come to rest against the adjustable stop and decreasing tension on the string.
14. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, wherein said adjustable stop comprises an adjustable screw rotatable through a threaded hole in said tailpiece frame.
15. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, further comprising a plurality of additional string receptors adapted to anchor a plurality of additional strings of the stringed musical instrument.
16. The tailpiece assembly of claim 15, wherein said additional string receptors are substantially serially aligned between a first end and a second end of the tailpiece assembly, and wherein said lever handle is mechanically joined to said contact member via a rod spanning across a breadth of one or more of said additional string receptors.
17. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, wherein the elongate arm of said pivotable string receptor is adapted to be depressed beneath a surface plane of the stringed musical instrument when said lever handle is placed in the first position.
18. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, wherein said contact member comprises an adjustable screw for fine tuning the string when said lever handle is placed in the first position.
19. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, wherein said lever handle comprises a second elongate arm terminating in an enlarged fingerpad portion, said second elongate arm of sufficient length to be manually acuatable without the musician interrupting play.
20. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, wherein said lever handle lies substantially flat when placed in the first position, and wherein said lever handle is upright or semi-upright when placed in the second position.
21. The tailpiece assembly of claim 13, wherein said contact member engages and disengages the elongate arm of said pivotable string receptor in a manner such that the elongate arm is continuously forcibly depressed without interruption when the contact member is applied to a top surface of the elongate arm during actuation of the lever handle in one direction, and the elongate arm continuously rises without interruption when released by the contact member during actuation of the lever handle in the opposite direction.
22. A tailpiece apparatus for a stringed musical instrument having a body portion with a top surface, comprising:
- a tailpiece frame adapted to be secured to the top surface of the body portion of the musical instrument, said tailpiece frame adapted to engage a plurality of strings;
- a hinged lever having a post for engaging a first end of a string and having a lever arm mechanically joined with the post, said lever arm adapted to be depressed below a plane of the top surface of the body portion of the musical instrument;
- an adjustable stop;
- a contact member; and
- a pivoting lever handle actuatable between a first position and a second position;
- wherein placement of the pivoting lever handle in the first position causes the contact member to engage and depress the lever arm of the hinged lever, thereby increasing tension on the string, and wherein placement of the pivoting lever handle in the second position causes the contact member to disengage the lever arm of the hinged lever, thereby decreasing tension on the string and allowing the hinged lever to pivot until coming to rest against the adjustable stop.
23. The tailpiece apparatus of claim 22, wherein said adjustable stop comprises an adjustable screw residing in a threaded hole in said tailpiece frame, said adjustable screw controlling a drop down pitch of the string.
24. The tailpiece apparatus of claim 23, wherein said contact member comprises a second adjustable screw, said second adjustable screw controlling fine tuning of the string when the pivoting lever handle is in the first position.
25. The tailpiece apparatus of claim 22, wherein said pivoting lever handle terminates in an enlarged fingerpad area.
26. An apparatus for fine tuning and for rapidly adjusting the tension of at least one string of a stringed musical instrument, comprising:
- a tailpiece frame;
- a pivoting string receptor configured to engage an end of a string and comprising an elongate arm;
- a first adjustable stop affixed to said tailpiece frame;
- a second adjustable stop adapted to engage and disengage the elongate arm of said pivoting string receptor;
- a handle adapted for rapid manual actuation, said handle mechanically engaged with said second adjustable stop;
- wherein placement of the handle in a first position causes the second adjustable stop to engage and depress the elongate arm of the pivoting string receptor, thereby increasing tension on the string, and wherein placement of the handle in a second position causes the second adjustable stop to disengage the elongate arm of the pivoting string receptor, thereby allowing the pivoting string receptor to come to rest against the first adjustable stop and decreasing tension on the string.
27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the second adjustable stop dictates a normal playing pitch for the string, and wherein the first adjustable stop dictates a drop down pitch for the string.
28. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein said first adjustable stop and said second adjustable stop each comprise an adjustable screw having a head portion substantially wider than a threaded body portion and readily accessible for direct manual adjustment, said threaded portion facing towards the surface of the musical instument.
4535670 | August 20, 1985 | Borisoff |
4686883 | August 18, 1987 | Piche et al. |
5542330 | August 6, 1996 | Borisoff |
5760321 | June 2, 1998 | Seabert |
5907114 | May 25, 1999 | Culver |
- Brochure from Hipshot Products, Inc., Jan. 2002.
- “The tone and volume controls,” The electric guitar: analysis of components, undated, 3 pages.
- “Schaller Floyd Rose Tremolo Diagram,” Guitar Body Schaller Floyd Tremolo, undated, 2 pages.
- “Schaller 456 Fine Tuning Stud Mount Bridge Diagram,” Guitar Body 456 Schaller Bridge, undated, 1 page.
- Van Halen, Eddie, “Finally . . . an easy way to drop from E down to D and back, without unclamping,” undated 2 pages.
- “Ibanez Instruction Manual,” undated, 2 pages.
Type: Grant
Filed: Feb 18, 2003
Date of Patent: Aug 23, 2005
Patent Publication Number: 20040159203
Assignee: E.L.V.H., Inc. (Burbank, CA)
Inventor: Edward Van Halen (Los Angeles, CA)
Primary Examiner: Shih-Yung Hsieh
Attorney: Irell & Manella LLP
Application Number: 10/370,351