Size of Soundbox and Loudness
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
Some thoughts, and some caveats. I come at this as a guitar maker. I’m just in the process of putting a tung oil finish on my first dulcimer.
Having established that, I think that appreciably changing the volume of a dulcimer would be very difficult.
A guitar’s volume is a function of its responsiveness. A small guitar can be every bit as loud as a large one. Responsiveness is determined by stiffness and density of the top, and the stiffness of the bracing.
Stiffness and density? That’s why guitar makers use softwoods like sitka spruce and red cedar. The greatest stiffness with the least weight.
So I’d suggest that the first thing you do is sub out the traditional North American hardwood top for a good, stiff softwood.
But you still have this monstrously large brace running the length of the instrument. The fretboard. And make no mistake. It is a brace. Can the depth be lessened? A lot? I don’t know, I’m still learning about how the instrument works.
But one thing that immediately strikes me. Both the nut and the bridge are over the respective end blocks. They’d do a much better job of activating the top if they were actually on the top, as opposed to being supported by a couple of hunks of hardwood. Would it be sacrilege to move both of them a few mm closer to one another?
Anyway, those are just a few thoughts, and worth exactly what you paid for them :-). Happy to listen to any arguments, cause as I said, I’m new at this.
Steve
denvirguitars.com