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| May 2005 - Sound on Sound - UK Magazine "People have been stuffing things in the soundholes of acoustic guitars to counteract feedback for almost as long as there has been electronic amplification. Usually made of solid rubber or plastic, the commercially available products do actually succeed quite well in their primary aim, but at the expense of some loss of tone and feel in the guitar. The new Lute Hole soundhole covers from The Lute Hole Company in the USA, however, offer an alternative with equally effective feedback reduction and less unwanted suppression of the instrument's voicing. Made from a choice of solid hardwoods, Lute Hole covers feature an attractive, intricate laser-cut mesh that still allows plenty of sound to pass through and yet obscures the hole sufficiently to raise the feedback threshold. Three different anti-feedback grades are available, with the cut-out pattern becoming less open in each, and we can confirm that they're very effective, having tested the Lute Holes in an amplified acoustic band situation. They slip in and out easily too without the need to slacken the strings, so you can put them in just for live performance, although we did find an unexpected benefit in the studio too. Normally you can't mike the soundhole of an acoustic guitar as the sound is far too bassy and resonant. With a Lute Hole cover in there, however, miking the sound hole becomes a useful additional option, giving more fullness than distant miking, but without the 'woofy' resonance, balanced out by some interesting high frequency detail via reflection and diffusion from the cover. They also look rather nice!" Reproduced by kind permission of Sound on Sound |
| Some of the many user reviews |
| "Dear everyone at The Lute Hole Company, I purchased one of your covers just to give it a try. I am blown away. I know it looks good, but it absolutely resolved problems I have been fighting in recording a Martin 000-28H instantly. No more boom, feedback sensitivity gone. I have clarity, can use piezo or internal mic with no problem. I play fingerstyle acoustic, plectrum acoustic in many styles. I have been playing for 40 years. I don't ever want to without one of these. It lets me play freely unafraid of feedback, distortion, extra resonance, etc. in the two places I have been haunted by it...the studio and on stage. No DI box can match the benefits...though I still think a good DI is needed. I had two people ask me where I got the cover at a gig last night and I enjoyed a night of playing mostly acoustic with perfect fit, great looks, great sound, and no feedback. I have never used a soundhole cover of any kind, and I am absolutely blown away by how much better my Martin 000-28H sounds on stage and in the studio with one of these covers installed. Biggest single thing I have ever done. I just cannot tell you how pleased I am. I just ordered 3 more. What a great product. Guitars with internal pickups should come with one." - Thanks, David Bergsma "Two years ago I was monitor engineer with a national country act. We picked up a new steel guitar player (who doubled on acoustic guitar) a week after I arrived. His previous gig was with an artist who was, somehow, endorsed by Lute Hole. I'd seen your ads in the back of guitar magazines, but had never seen the product up close. After showing me the one in his acoustic, he gave me one of the other two he owned for my guitar, which I'd brought on the bus. Frankly, I was amazed, right from the get-go. I experimented with the Lute Hole equipped guitar, using my cue wedge, at several shows. As a feedback control device it was wonderful. But more amazing was the timbre my guitar yielded when unplugged. I'd used a rubber plug previously, and while it eliminates feedback, it also sucks the life right out of an acoustic guitar. Forget about playing the guitar, unplugged, with a rubber plug installed. The Lute Hole was a very different story. In addition to reducing unwanted feedback, it diffused the air flow out my soundhole considerably, which allowed me to record with a mic pointed near or directly into the soundhole without fear of low end woof. The timbre was pleasantly balanced with the Lute Hole installed. In fact, the only time I remove it, these days, is to gain low end when playing outdoors with no amplification. Do I even need to mention how beautiful design #14, in cherry, looks against my spruce top? This is a fantastic, useful product that adds beauty to any instrument. I've suggested to friends in the Musicplayer Guitar Forum that, rather than waste money on a thinline instrument, they stick with a full bodied instrument with a Lute Hole. They'll achieve wonderful feedback rejection, from a sweeter sounding instrument, because of your product." - Thanks! Neil Bergman |
