As a player, I have to say this first – before delving into the all the details. The Tonewood Amp makes my acoustic guitar sound amazing, and is just plain fun to use. Even after spending over fifty years with an instrument in my hands, this is a new and inspiring experience.
The Tonewood Amp is essentially a compact processor that attaches magnetically to an acoustic guitar, “organically” adding reverb and other effects to the sound by vibrating the back of the instrument. The natural sound of the unamplified guitar coming from the soundboard seamlessly blends with the effects radiating outward via the sound hole, creating a larger than life soundscape. All that’s required is some type of pickup installed in the guitar to provide signal to the device.
Being self-contained, the enhanced guitar sound can be shared with an intimate group in the living room, a small chapel or hall, or even outdoors. Where more amplification is needed, mic the guitar through the sound system – or combine the mic with a blended wet/dry signal from the Tonewood Amp’s external output connector.
Let’s explore the ins and outs of what it does, and how it can be used to enhance your worship service…
Tonewood Amp Basics
The Tonewood Amp measures about 3.5” x 6” and is less than an inch deep, including the control knobs. With three AA batteries installed to power the unit, it weighs about 12 ounces. The internal magnetic X-brace attaches to the inside of the guitar with the supplied adhesive disks, and holds the amp firmly to the back of your guitar. I find that it’s unobtrusive when I’m playing, and doesn’t get in the way when I put the instrument in a stand.
Rotary knobs are used to select effects and parameters, and the unit is turned on and off via a recessed power button. A ¼” input connects with a short cable to the guitar’s output jack, and another ¼” output will send an adjustable blend of the pickup and effects sound to an external amp or sound system. An eighth-inch “insert” connector is provided to attach the amp to an iPhone or iPad for additional effects.
On the underside of the amp, an “actuator” with a soft rubber ring functions similarly to a speaker cone to drive the thin wood of the instrument’s back. The notes from the guitar are amplified, combined with the selected effect, and fed to this “speaker” – resulting in the effect coming through the sound hole and seemingly from all around the guitar.
Effects and Controls
Three rotary control knobs are positioned along the upper edge of the amp, along with the power button. These knobs, which include push and push-and-hold functions, access all effects, parameters, and settings when used singly or in combination. So that changes to an effects setting aren’t made accidentally while playing, a knob must be rotated four “clicks” to select the next one.
The effects that can be generated through the guitar include: three reverbs – Hall, Room, and Plate; Delay with adjustable reverb; Chorus with adjustable reverb; Tremelo with rate and adjustable delay parameters; plus Leslie and Autowah effects. With the reverbs, you can dial in the predelay, high cut, and decay settings, along with the overall level of the effect. With the other effects you can adjust relevant parameters to suit the music and playing style.
Once you’ve dialed in some preferred effects settings, they can be saved into memory slots and recalled as needed. The Tonewood Amp has locations for up to five guitars, with ten memory slots for each effect.
Guitar Placement
The initial setup process for the Tonewood Amp, detailed in the manual and in a series of videos on their website, can take 20 minutes or so – at least when doing it carefully for the first time. It’s a one-time procedure, so after that you just need to attach the amp magnetically to the instrument and plug it in, and be playing in moments.
First, use a couple strips of non-harmful tape to hold the amp to the back of the guitar, so that you can set some basic levels and find the best placement on the instrument. Once located, you loosen the strings and insert the magnet assembly – which is then held in place by adhesive disks. Remove the tape and retune, set up the master gain to match the output of your guitar pickup, and dial in the two provided notch filters if necessary to attenuate feedback at resonant frequencies. Then pick a reverb or other effect, adjust the parameters to taste, and play.
Connecting to the Sound System
A common question is: Does the Tonewood Amp make the instrument louder? Well, not significantly – yet it adds considerable depth and ambience to the unamplified sound of the guitar, and one’s perception as a player or a listener is that a wider sound field is being radiated. And while the unique benefit of the Tonewood Amp is that you can play without any amplification and still have effects generated from the body of the instrument, there will be times when you need to boost the level. This is where the amp’s output section comes in handy.
You can connect directly to a combo amp or an input on the mixing console, or first go through a guitar preamp/DI (I’ve used it with the Audio Sprockets ToneDexter and LR Baggs Venue units) for greater sonic shaping. My favorite is to set it to “TWA and Amp” so that the effects still radiate from the guitar and also output to the sound system, and then set the Blend to a level that adds just the right amount of effect to the amplified signal.
Applications for Worship
For intimate worship settings where the acoustic guitar is accompanying a solo vocalist or when the group is singing together, the Tonewood Amp by itself can add life to the sound of the instrument – and lend more spaciousness to rooms with dull acoustics. When that’s not enough, a cardioid microphone aimed at a modest distance between the sound hole and the neck joint, or toward the bridge, will capture the blend of direct sound and effects coming from the guitar. Or use a miniature condenser such as the DPA 4099G on the instrument itself.
When a louder sound is needed for the praise band or for a larger congregation, go from the Tonewood Amp’s output jack directly to the mixer or via a DI, or use one of the above-mentioned guitar preamps to route the signal; they both have two separate outputs, one XLR and the other ¼”. You can also blend two channels – one from the DPA or similar mic and the other from the amp’s output. In any case, the effects sound great, and are created right at the instrument.
Final Thoughts
The Tonewood Amp is a special product, and there’s nothing else like it for acoustic guitar. Its unique quality is the ability to add beautiful effects and ambience to an unamplified instrument, yet it is also quite credible when connected to a sound system – with the reverb and other effects so closely interwoven with the sound of the guitar. I’ve used it live and plugged in, and unamplified – captured by good condenser mics – as the sole source of effects for my recent CD of instrumental pieces.
The list price is $249, and available from various retailers and directly from their site – which states a 60-day “satisfaction guarantee” return policy. Additional magnetic X-braces, so you can use the same amp on multiple instruments, are $29. The guitarists on your worship team will appreciate the versatility and sound, as well as the creative possibilities to enhance the music experience for the congregation.
