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and third ... stiffening the side

And great post to you too, David. I was actually thinking that irrespective of sides, the top and back would couple through air pressure if the back was light enough as well.

I've only built a couple of guitars as my main instrument is bandura and interestingly....my sides are anywhere from 3/8 to 1/2" thick solid (or laminated) hard maple so I imagine that the sides are quite in-active (and I don't need to use linings). I also do a very thin back that's very active and definitely makes the tone much richer and more interesting. If you mute the back the sound thins out a lot and gets much quieter so, I guess I'm in camp 3.

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Great to have you here, Andy!

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Trevor Gore, Luthier. Australian hand made acoustic guitars, classical guitars; custom guitar design and build; guitar design instruction.

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