Kevin wrote:
KK> Carbon fiber is not exactly an inexpensive alternative...
KK> requires a pretty high level of skilled labor.
KK> Maybe in China it could be cost effective to try it, but there are
KK> other problems still, as Mark suggests ("the look of the thing") in
KK> having it accepted- that is, in being able to sell it, once it's made.
KK>
Right. Funnily enough, I figure that the carbon fibre (or some other
composite) will actually be the easy and cheap part. There is still
lots of skilled work, for example in making the soundboard work well,
what to use for ribbing, and so on.
Far and away the biggest problem will be acceptance. The early music
crowd, which includes me, will always prefer a beautiful wood instrument,
hand-crafted by a professional with love and skill. And they would look
askance at this kind of abomination, regardless of how well it played
(think of Altos and their Baroque plastic recorders, which can be
phenomenally good but they ain't wood).
Ovation are a niche player in the guitar world, as are a number of other
innovative-material manufacturers. The "trick" is to get suitable
endorsements from "known names". In this case, I figure that the best
thing would be to try and grow a completely new market, where this kind
of instrument becomes desirable. I am not convinced that is possible,
though if Mr Sting is watching ;)
.. mark
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