Editing Guitar (section)

==Construction==
{{multiple image
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#[[#Headstock|Headstock]]
#[[#Nut|Nut]]
#[[Machine head]]s (or pegheads, tuning keys, tuning machines, tuners)
#[[#Frets|Frets]]
#[[#Truss rod|Truss rod]] cover
#[[#Inlays|Inlays]]
#[[#Neck|Neck]]
#[[#Neck joint or "heel"|Heel&nbsp;(acoustic)]] Neckjoint (electric); [[Cutaway (guitar)|Cutaway (electric)]]
#[[#Body (acoustic guitar)|Body]]
#[[#Pickups|Pickups]]
#[[#Electronics|Electronics]]
#[[#Bridge|Bridge]]
#[[#Pickguard|Pickguard]]
#Back
#[[Sound board (music)|Soundboard]] (top)
#Body sides (ribs)
#[[Sound hole]], with [[Rosette (design)|Rosette]] inlay
#[[#Strings|Strings]]
#[[Saddle (guitar)|Saddle]]
#[[#Fretboard|Fretboard]] (or Fingerboard)
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}}

===Handedness===
{{See also|List of musicians who play left-handed}}
Modern guitars can be constructed to suit both left- and right-handed players. Typically the dominant hand is used to pluck or strum the strings. This is similar to the [[violin]] family of instruments where the dominant hand controls the bow. Left-handed players usually play a mirror image instrument manufactured especially for left-handed players.<ref name="leftyfretz">{{cite web |title=What is the Difference Between a Left and Right Handed Guitar? |url=https://leftyfretz.com/right-left-handed-guitar-difference/ |website=leftyfretz.com |access-date=February 25, 2021 |date=January 20, 2020}}</ref> There are other options, some unorthodox, including learn to play a right-handed guitar as if the player is right-handed or playing an unmodified right-handed guitar reversed. Guitarist [[Jimi Hendrix]] played a right-handed guitar strung in reverse (the treble strings and bass strings reversed).<ref name="shapirogleb">{{cite book |last1=Shapiro |first1=Harry |last2=Glebbeeck |first2=Caesar |title=Jimi Hendrix Electric Gypsy |date=1990 |publisher=St. Martin's Griffin |location=New York |isbn=0-312-13062-7 |page=38 |edition=1st |url=https://archive.org/details/jimihendrixelect00shap/page/38/mode/2up |access-date=February 25, 2021}}</ref> The problem with doing this is that it reverses the guitar's saddle angle.<ref name="leftyfretz"/> The saddle is the strip of material on top of the bridge where the strings rest. It is normally slanted slightly, making the bass strings longer than the treble strings.<ref name="leftyfretz"/> In part, the reason for this is the difference in the thickness of the strings.<ref name="stackexch">{{cite web |title=Why is my guitar's saddle at an angle? |url=https://music.stackexchange.com/questions/1567/why-is-my-guitars-saddle-at-an-angle |website=music.stackexchange.com |publisher=Stack Exchange Network |access-date=February 25, 2021}}</ref> Physical properties of the thicker bass strings require them to be slightly longer than the treble strings to correct [[intonation (music)|intonation]].<ref name="stackexch"/> Reversing the strings, therefore, reverses the orientation of the saddle, adversely affecting intonation.

===Components===
====Head====
{{Main|Headstock}}
{{See also|Nut (string instrument)}}
[[File:steinberger bass.jpg|left|thumb|85px|An alternate [[Steinberger|''headless'']] Steinberger bass guitar.]]
The headstock is located at the end of the guitar neck farthest from the body. It is fitted with machine heads that adjust the tension of the strings, which in turn affects the pitch. The traditional tuner layout is "3+3", in which each side of the headstock has three tuners (such as on [[Gibson Les Paul]]s). In this layout, the headstocks are commonly symmetrical. Many guitars feature other layouts, including six-in-line tuners (featured on [[Fender Stratocaster]]s) or even "4+2" (e.g. Ernie Ball Music Man). Some guitars (such as [[Steinberger]]s) do not have headstocks at all, in which case the tuning machines are located elsewhere, either on the body or the bridge.

The nut is a small strip of [[bone]], [[plastic]], [[brass]], [[corian]], [[graphite]], [[stainless steel]], or other medium-hard material, at the joint where the headstock meets the fretboard. Its grooves guide the strings onto the fretboard, giving consistent lateral string placement. It is one of the endpoints of the strings' vibrating length. It must be accurately cut, or it can contribute to tuning problems due to string slippage or string buzz. To reduce string friction in the nut, which can adversely affect tuning stability, some guitarists fit a roller nut. Some instruments use a zero fret just in front of the nut. In this case the nut is used only for lateral alignment of the strings, the string height and length being dictated by the zero fret.

====Neck====
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2020}}
{{Main|Neck (music)}}
{{See also|Fingerboard|Fret|Truss rod|Inlay (guitar)|Set-in neck|Bolt-on neck|Neck-through}}
A guitar's [[frets]], [[fretboard]], [[Machine head|tuners]], [[headstock]], and [[truss rod]], all attached to a long wooden extension, collectively constitute its [[neck (music)|neck]]. The wood used to make the fretboard usually differs from the wood in the rest of the neck. The bending stress on the neck is considerable, particularly when heavier gauge strings are used (see [[#Tuning|Tuning]]), and the ability of the neck to resist bending (see [[#Truss rod|Truss rod]]) is important to the guitar's ability to hold a constant pitch during tuning or when strings are fretted. The rigidity of the neck with respect to the body of the guitar is one determinant of a good instrument versus a poor-quality one.

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| footer = ''Triple Neck'' (Left) and ''Double Neck'' (Right) Guitars.
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The cross-section of the neck can also vary, from a gentle "C" curve to a more pronounced "V" curve. There are many different types of neck profiles available, giving the guitarist many options. Some aspects to consider in a guitar neck may be the overall width of the fretboard, scale (distance between the frets), the neck wood, the type of neck construction (for example, the neck may be glued in or bolted on), and the shape (profile) of the back of the neck. Other types of material used to make guitar necks are graphite ([[Steinberger]] guitars), aluminum ([[Kramer Guitars]], [[Travis Bean]] and [[Veleno (guitar)|Veleno guitars]]), or carbon fiber ([[Modulus Guitars]] and [[ThreeGuitars]]). [[Double neck guitars|Double neck]] electric guitars have two necks, allowing the musician to quickly switch between guitar sounds.

The neck joint or heel is the point at which the neck is either bolted or glued to the body of the guitar. Almost all acoustic steel-string guitars, with the primary exception of Taylors, have glued (otherwise known as set) necks, while electric guitars are constructed using both types. Most classical guitars have a neck and headblock carved from one piece of wood, known as a "Spanish heel". Commonly used set neck joints include [[mortise and tenon]] joints (such as those used by C. F. Martin & Co.), dovetail joints (also used by C. F. Martin on the D-28 and similar models) and Spanish heel neck joints, which are named after the shoe they resemble and commonly found in classical guitars. All three types offer stability.

Bolt-on necks, though they are historically associated with cheaper instruments, do offer greater flexibility in the guitar's set-up, and allow easier access for neck joint maintenance and repairs. Another type of neck, only available for solid-body electric guitars, is the [[neck-through-body]] construction. These are designed so that everything from the machine heads down to the bridge is located on the same piece of wood. The sides (also known as wings) of the guitar are then glued to this central piece. Some luthiers prefer this method of construction as they claim it allows better sustain of each note. Some instruments may not have a neck joint at all, having the neck and sides built as one piece and the body built around it.

The [[fingerboard]], also called the fretboard, is a piece of wood embedded with metal frets that comprises the top of the neck. It is flat on classical guitars and slightly curved crosswise on acoustic and electric guitars. The curvature of the fretboard is measured by the fretboard radius, which is the radius of a hypothetical circle of which the fretboard's surface constitutes a segment. The smaller the fretboard radius, the more noticeably curved the fretboard is. Most modern guitars feature a 12" neck radius, while older guitars from the 1960s and 1970s usually feature a 6-8" neck radius. Pinching a string against a fret on the fretboard effectively shortens the vibrating length of the string, producing a higher pitch.

Fretboards are most commonly made of [[rosewood]], [[ebony]], [[maple]], and sometimes manufactured using composite materials such as HPL or resin. See the section "Neck" below for the importance of the length of the fretboard in connection to other dimensions of the guitar. The fingerboard plays an essential role in the treble tone for acoustic guitars. The quality of vibration of the fingerboard is the principal characteristic for generating the best treble tone. For that reason, ebony wood is better, but because of high use, ebony has become rare and extremely expensive. Most guitar manufacturers have adopted rosewood instead of ebony.

[[File:Sinéad O’Connor (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Sinéad O'Connor]] playing a Fender guitar with a [[Capo (musical device)|capo]] ]]

=====Frets=====
Almost all guitars have frets, which are metal strips (usually nickel alloy or stainless steel) embedded along the fretboard and located at exact points that divide the scale length in accordance with a specific mathematical formula. The exceptions include [[fretless bass]] guitars and very rare fretless guitars. Pressing a string against a fret determines the strings' vibrating length and therefore its resultant pitch. The pitch of each consecutive fret is defined at a half-step interval on the [[chromatic scale]]. Standard classical guitars have 19 frets and electric guitars between 21 and 24 frets, although guitars have been made with as many as 27 frets. Frets are laid out to accomplish an [[equal temperament|equal tempered]] division of the octave. Each set of twelve frets represents an octave. The twelfth fret divides the [[scale (string instruments)|scale length]] exactly into two halves, and the 24th fret position divides one of those halves in half again.

The [[ratio]] of the spacing of two consecutive frets is <math>\sqrt[12]{2}</math> ([[twelfth root of two]]). In practice, [[luthiers]] determine fret positions using the constant 17.817—an approximation to 1/(1-1/<math>\sqrt[12]{2}</math>). If the nth fret is a distance x from the bridge, then the distance from the (n+1)th fret to the bridge is x-(x/17.817).<ref name="Calculating Fret Positions">{{cite web |last=Mottola |first=R.M. |title=Lutherie Info—Calculating Fret Positions |url=http://www.liutaiomottola.com/formulae/fret.htm}}</ref> Frets are available in several different gauges and can be fitted according to player preference. Among these are "jumbo" frets, which have a much thicker gauge, allowing for use of a slight vibrato technique from pushing the string down harder and softer. "Scalloped" fretboards, where the wood of the fretboard itself is "scooped out" between the frets, allow a dramatic vibrato effect. Fine frets, much flatter, allow a very low [[Action (music)|string-action]], but require that other conditions, such as curvature of the neck, be well-maintained to prevent buzz.

=====Truss rod=====

The truss rod is a thin, strong metal rod that runs along the inside of the neck. It is used to correct changes to the neck's curvature caused by aging of the neck timbers, changes in humidity, or to compensate for changes in the tension of strings. The tension of the rod and neck assembly is adjusted by a hex nut or an allen-key bolt on the rod, usually located either at the headstock, sometimes under a cover, or just inside the body of the guitar underneath the fretboard and accessible through the sound hole. Some truss rods can only be accessed by removing the neck. The truss rod counteracts the immense amount of tension the strings place on the neck, bringing the neck back to a straighter position. Turning the truss rod clockwise tightens it, counteracting the tension of the strings and straightening the neck or creating a backward bow. Turning the truss rod counter-clockwise loosens it, allowing string tension to act on the neck and creating a forward bow.

Adjusting the truss rod affects the intonation of a guitar as well as the height of the strings from the fingerboard, called the [[Action (music)|action]]. Some truss rod systems, called ''double action'' truss systems, tighten both ways, pushing the neck both forward and backward (standard truss rods can only release to a point beyond which the neck is no longer compressed and pulled backward). The artist and [[luthier]] Irving Sloane pointed out, in his book ''Steel-String Guitar Construction'', that truss rods are intended primarily to remedy concave bowing of the neck, but cannot correct a neck with "back bow" or one that has become twisted.<ref>
{{cite book
 |last= Sloane
 |first= Irving 
 |date= 1975
 |title= Steel-string Guitar Construction: Acoustic Six-string, Twelve-string, and Arched-top Guitars
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2sAXAQAAIAAJ&q=back+bow
 |location=
 |publisher=Dutton 
 |page= 45
 |isbn= 978-0-87-690172-4
}}
</ref> Classical guitars do not require truss rods, as their nylon strings exert a lower tensile force with lesser potential to cause structural problems. However, their necks are often reinforced with a strip of harder wood, such as an [[ebony]] strip that runs down the back of a [[Thuja plicata|cedar]] neck. There is no tension adjustment on this form of reinforcement.

=====Inlays=====
{{More sources needed section|date=September 2023}}
Inlays are visual elements set into the exterior surface of a guitar, both for decoration and artistic purposes and, in the case of the markings on the 3rd, 5th, 7th and 12th fret (and in higher octaves), to provide guidance to the performer about the location of frets on the instrument.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reyes |first=Daniel |date=2023-07-03 |title=What Are The Dots On A Guitar Fretboard For? (2023) |url=https://www.guitarbased.com/what-are-the-dots-on-a-guitar-fretboard-for/ |access-date=2023-09-20 |website=Guitar Based |language=en-US}}</ref> The typical locations for inlay are on the fretboard, headstock, and on acoustic guitars around the soundhole, known as the [[rosette (design)|rosette]]. Inlays range from simple plastic dots on the fretboard to intricate works of art covering the entire exterior surface of a guitar (front and back). Some guitar players have used [[LED]]s in the fretboard to produce unique lighting effects onstage. Fretboard inlays are most commonly shaped like dots, diamond shapes, parallelograms, or large blocks in between the frets.

Dots are usually inlaid into the upper edge of the fretboard in the same positions, small enough to be visible only to the player. These usually appear on the odd-numbered frets, but also on the 12th fret (the one-[[octave]] mark) instead of the 11th and 13th frets. Some older or high-end instruments have inlays made of mother of pearl, abalone, ivory, colored wood or other exotic materials and designs. Simpler inlays are often made of plastic or painted. High-end classical guitars seldom have fretboard inlays as a well-trained player is expected to know his or her way around the instrument. In addition to fretboard inlay, the headstock and soundhole surround are also frequently inlaid. The manufacturer's logo or a small design is often inlaid into the headstock. Rosette designs vary from simple concentric circles to delicate fretwork mimicking the historic rosette of lutes. Bindings that edge the finger and soundboards are sometimes inlaid. Some instruments have a filler strip running down the length and behind the neck, used for strength or to fill the cavity through which the truss rod was installed in the neck.

====Body====
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2020}}
{{Main|Sound box|Solid body|Bridge (instrument)|Pickguard}}
{{See also|Vibrato systems for guitar}}
[[File:Guitarist girl.jpg|thumb|In the guitar, the sound box is the hollowed wooden structure that constitutes the body of the instrument.]]
In acoustic guitars, string vibration is transmitted through the bridge and saddle to the body via [[Soundboard (music)|sound board]]. The sound board is typically made of tonewoods such as spruce or cedar. Timbers for tonewoods are chosen for both strength and ability to transfer mechanical energy from the strings to the air within the guitar body. Sound is further shaped by the characteristics of the guitar body's resonant cavity. In expensive instruments, the entire body is made of wood. In inexpensive instruments, the back may be made of plastic.

In an acoustic instrument, the body of the guitar is a major determinant of the overall sound quality. The guitar top, or soundboard, is a finely crafted and engineered element made of [[tonewood]]s such as [[spruce]] and [[Thuja plicata|red cedar]]. This thin piece of wood, often only 2 or 3&nbsp;mm thick, is strengthened by differing types of [[Guitar bracing|internal bracing]]. Many luthiers consider the top the dominant factor in determining the sound quality. The majority of the instrument's sound is heard through the vibration of the guitar top as the energy of the vibrating strings is transferred to it. The body of an acoustic guitar has a sound hole through which sound projects. The sound hole is usually a round hole in the top of the guitar under the strings. The air inside the body vibrates as the guitar top and body is vibrated by the strings, and the response of the air cavity at different frequencies is characterized, like the rest of the guitar body, by a number of resonance modes at which it responds more strongly.

The top, back and ribs of an acoustic guitar body are very thin (1–2&nbsp;mm), so a flexible piece of wood called lining is glued into the corners where the rib meets the top and back. This interior reinforcement provides 5 to 20&nbsp;mm of solid gluing area for these corner joints. Solid linings are often used in classical guitars, while kerfed lining is most often found in steel-string acoustics. Kerfed lining is also called kerfing because it is scored, or "kerfed"(incompletely sawn through), to allow it to bend with the shape of the rib). During final construction, a small section of the outside corners is carved or routed out and filled with binding material on the outside corners and decorative strips of material next to the binding, which is called [[purfling]]. This binding serves to seal off the end grain of the top and back. Purfling can also appear on the back of an acoustic guitar, marking the edge joints of the two or three sections of the back. Binding and purfling materials are generally made of either wood or plastic.

Body size, shape and style have changed over time. 19th-century guitars, now known as salon guitars, were smaller than modern instruments. Differing patterns of internal bracing have been used over time by luthiers. Torres, Hauser, Ramirez, Fleta, and [[C. F. Martin & Company|C.&nbsp;F. Martin]] were among the most influential designers of their time. Bracing not only strengthens the top against potential collapse due to the stress exerted by the tensioned strings but also affects the resonance characteristics of the top. The back and sides are made out of a variety of timbers such as mahogany, Indian [[rosewood]] and highly regarded Brazilian rosewood (''Dalbergia nigra''). Each one is primarily chosen for their aesthetic effect and can be decorated with inlays and purfling.

Instruments with larger areas for the guitar top were introduced by Martin in an attempt to create greater volume levels. The popularity of the larger "[[C. F. Martin & Company|dreadnought]]" body size amongst acoustic performers is related to the greater sound volume produced.

Most electric guitar bodies are made of wood and include a plastic pickguard. Boards wide enough to use as a solid body are very expensive due to the worldwide depletion of hardwood stock since the 1970s, so the wood is rarely one solid piece. Most bodies are made from two pieces of wood with some of them including a seam running down the center line of the body. The most common woods used for electric guitar body construction include [[maple]], [[Tilia americana|basswood]], [[Fraxinus|ash]], [[Populus|poplar]], [[alder]], and [[mahogany]]. Many bodies consist of good-sounding, but inexpensive woods, like ash, with a "top", or thin layer of another, more attractive wood (such as maple with a natural "flame" pattern) glued to the top of the basic wood. Guitars constructed like this are often called "flame tops". The body is usually carved or routed to accept the other elements, such as the bridge, pickup, neck, and other electronic components. Most electrics have a polyurethane or [[nitrocellulose]] lacquer finish. Other alternative materials to wood are used in guitar body construction. Some of these include carbon composites, plastic material, such as polycarbonate, and aluminum alloys.

=====Bridge=====
The main purpose of the bridge on an acoustic guitar is to transfer the vibration from the strings to the soundboard, which vibrates the air inside of the guitar, thereby amplifying the sound produced by the strings. On all electric, acoustic and original guitars, the bridge holds the strings in place on the body. There are many varied bridge designs. There may be some mechanism for raising or lowering the bridge saddles to adjust the distance between the strings and the fretboard ([[Action (music)|action]]), or fine-tuning the intonation of the instrument. Some are spring-loaded and feature a "[[Vibrato systems for guitar|whammy bar]]", a removable arm that lets the player modulate the pitch by changing the tension on the strings. The whammy bar is sometimes also called a "tremolo bar". (The effect of rapidly changing pitch is properly called "vibrato". See [[Tremolo]] for further discussion of this term.) Some bridges also allow for alternate tunings at the touch of a button.

On almost all modern electric guitars, the bridge has saddles that are adjustable for each string so that intonation stays correct up and down the neck. If the open string is in tune, but sharp or flat when frets are pressed, the bridge saddle position can be adjusted with a screwdriver or hex key to remedy the problem. In general, flat notes are corrected by moving the saddle forward and sharp notes by moving it backward. On an instrument correctly adjusted for intonation, the actual length of each string from the nut to the bridge saddle is slightly, but measurably longer than the [[Scale length (string instruments)|scale length]] of the instrument. This additional length is called compensation, which flattens all notes a bit to compensate for the sharping of all fretted notes caused by stretching the string during fretting.

=====Saddle=====
The saddle of a guitar is the part of the bridge that physically supports the strings. It may be one piece (typically on acoustic guitars) or separate pieces, one for each string (electric guitars and basses). The saddle's basic purpose is to provide the endpoint for the string's vibration at the correct location for proper intonation, and on acoustic guitars to transfer the vibrations through the bridge into the top wood of the guitar. Saddles are typically made of plastic or bone for acoustic guitars, though synthetics and some exotic animal tooth variations (e.g. fossilized tooth, ivory, etc. ) have become popular with some players. Electric guitar saddles are typically metal, though some synthetic saddles are available.

=====Pickguard=====
The pickguard, also known as the scratch plate, is usually a piece of laminated plastic or other material that protects the finish of the top of the guitar from damage due to the use of a plectrum ("pick") or fingernails. Electric guitars sometimes mount pickups and electronics on the pickguard. It is a common feature on steel-string acoustic guitars. Some performance styles that use the guitar as a percussion instrument (tapping the top or sides between notes, etc.), such as [[flamenco]], require that a scratchplate or pickguard be fitted to nylon-string instruments.

====Strings====
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2020}}
{{See also|Classical guitar strings}}
The standard guitar has six [[strings (music)|strings]], but [[Tenor guitar|four-]], [[Seven-string guitar|seven-]], [[Eight-string guitar|eight-]], [[Nine-string guitar|nine-]], [[Ten-string guitar|ten-]], [[Eleven-string guitar|eleven-]], [[Twelve-string guitar|twelve-]], [[Thirteen-string guitar|thirteen-]] and [[doubleneck guitar|eighteen-string]] guitars are also available. Classical and flamenco guitars historically used [[Catgut|gut]] strings, but these have been superseded by polymer materials, such as nylon and [[fluorocarbon]]. Modern guitar [[strings (music)|strings]] are constructed from metal, polymers, or animal or plant product materials.  "Steel" strings may be made from alloys incorporating steel, nickel or phosphor bronze. Bass strings for both instruments are wound rather than monofilament.

====Pickups and electronics====
{{more citations needed section|date=February 2021}}
{{Main|Pickup (music technology)}}
[[File:Stratocaster detail DSC06937.jpg|thumb|right|This [[Fender Stratocaster|Squier Stratocaster]] has features common to many electric guitars: multiple pickups, a [[Vibrato systems for guitar|vibrato bar]]/[[vibrato unit]], and volume and tone knobs.]]
[[Pickup (music technology)|Pickups]] are [[transducer]]s attached to a guitar that detect (or "pick up") string vibrations and convert the mechanical energy of the string into electrical energy. The resultant electrical signal can then be electronically [[amplifier|amplified]]. The most common type of pickup is [[electromagnetism|electromagnetic]] in design. These contain magnets that are within a coil, or coils, of copper wire. Such pickups are usually placed directly underneath the guitar strings. Electromagnetic pickups work on the same principles and in a similar manner to an [[electric generator]]. The vibration of the strings creates a small electric current in the coils surrounding the magnets. This signal current is carried to a [[guitar amplifier]] that drives a [[loudspeaker]].

Traditional electromagnetic pickups are either [[Single coil guitar pickup|single-coil]] or double-coil. Single-coil pickups are susceptible to noise induced by stray electromagnetic fields, usually mains-frequency (60 or 50&nbsp;hertz) hum. The introduction of the double-coil [[humbucker]] in the mid-1950s solved this problem through the use of two coils, one of which is wired in opposite polarity to cancel or "buck" stray fields.

The types and models of pickups used can greatly affect the tone of the guitar. Typically, humbuckers, which are two magnet-coil assemblies attached to each other, are traditionally associated with a heavier sound. Single-coil pickups, one magnet wrapped in copper wire, are used by guitarists seeking a brighter, twangier sound with greater dynamic range.

Modern pickups are tailored to the sound desired. A commonly applied approximation used in the selection of a pickup is that less wire (lower [[electrical impedance]]) gives a brighter sound, more wire gives a "fat" tone. Other options include specialized switching that produces coil-splitting, in/out of phase and other effects. Guitar circuits are either active, needing a battery to power their circuit, or, as in most cases, equipped with a passive circuit.

[[Fender Stratocaster]]-type guitars generally have three single-coil pickups, while most [[Gibson Les Paul]] types have humbucker pickups.

Piezoelectric, or piezo, pickups represent another class of pickup. These employ [[piezoelectricity]] to generate the musical signal and are popular in hybrid electro-acoustic guitars. A crystal is located under each string, usually in the saddle. When the string vibrates, the shape of the crystal is distorted, and the stresses associated with this change produce tiny voltages across the crystal that can be amplified and manipulated. Piezo pickups usually require a powered pre-amplifier to lift their output to match that of electromagnetic pickups. Power is typically delivered by an on-board battery.

Most pickup-equipped guitars feature onboard controls, such as volume or tone, or pickup selection. At their simplest, these consist of passive components, such as [[potentiometer]]s and [[capacitor]]s, but may also include specialized [[integrated circuit]]s or other active components requiring [[battery (electricity)|batteries]] for power, for preamplification and signal processing, or even for [[electronic tuner|electronic tuning]]. In many cases, the electronics have some sort of shielding to prevent pickup of external interference and noise.

Guitars may be shipped or retrofitted with a hexaphonic pickup, which produces a separate output for each string, usually from a discrete piezoelectric or magnetic pickup. This arrangement lets on-board or external electronics process the strings individually for modeling or [[MIDI|Musical Instrument Digital Interface]] (MIDI) conversion. [[Roland Corporation|Roland]] makes "GK" hexaphonic pickups for guitar and bass, and a line of guitar modeling and synthesis products.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The GK Pickup|url=http://www.roland.com/V-Guitar/about.html|access-date=2020-07-20|website=Roland V-Guitar|language=en}}</ref> [[Line 6 (company)|Line 6's]] hexaphonic-equipped [[Variax]] guitars use on-board electronics to model the sound after various vintage instruments, and vary pitch on individual strings.

MIDI converters use a hexaphonic guitar signal to determine pitch, duration, attack, and decay characteristics. The MIDI sends the note information to an internal or external sound bank device. The resulting sound closely mimics numerous instruments. The MIDI setup can also let the guitar be used as a game controller (i.e., Rock Band Squier) or as an instructional tool, as with the [[Fretlight]] Guitar.