Parts of an electric guitar and acoustic unveiled; including the nut, strings, fretboard, and more. Learn all you need to know in this beginner guitar guide with guitar parts diagrams and more…
The parts of the guitar can seem like a jumble at first, but don’t worry! This guide will help you understand the parts of an electric guitar and an acoustic guitar.
We’ll break it down piece by piece and even explain the difference between a humbucker pickup and a single-coil pickup.
By the end of this journey, you’ll be a guitar part-naming pro, ready to take on your first beginner easy guitar songs!
👉🎸 Psst… If you’re serious about how to learn guitar properly, two of my books include deep dives into the different parts of a guitar. Guitar Basics for Kids is perfect for children, while Beginner Guitar Terms from A-Z is great for beginners and beyond.
Parts of an Electric Guitar
Guitars, whether they’re acoustic or electric, have a bunch of important parts that make them work.
We’re going to list out these parts for you. Some of them might have different names, but they all do the same job. Take a look:👇
- Body
- Bridge
- Frets
- Fretboard (also called fingerboard)
- Headstock
- Inlay (decorative markers on the fretboard)
- Neck
- Nut
- Pickguard (also called scratch plate)
- Pickups
- Strings
- Truss rod
- Tuning pegs (also called machine heads)
Parts Found in Electric Guitars and Electro-Acoustic Guitars:
- Pickups
- Pickup Selector Switch
- Humbucker Pickups (certain guitars)
- Single Coil Pickups (certain guitars)
- Jack Input
- Volume Knob
- Tone Knob
Parts of an Acoustic Guitar
The Parts of a Guitar Explained (Electric and Acoustic)
Body: The main wooden structure of the guitar. The body comes in various shapes (dreadnought, grand concert, parlor, etc.) and affects the sound by resonating with the string vibrations. Different woods can make a guitar sound warmer or brighter.
Bridge: The anchor point for the guitar strings at the bottom of the body. The bridge transfers the vibrations to the guitar’s body and often has adjustable saddles for fine-tuning intonation (correct note pitch at different frets).
Frets: Thin metal bars running across the guitar fretboard. Pressing a string down behind a fret shortens the vibrating length, creating higher notes. Different numbers of frets (20-24) offer more range for playing solos or complex chords.
- Fretboard (fingerboard): The flat surface on the guitar neck where you press the strings to play notes and guitar chord shapes. The guitar fretboard is typically made of rosewood, ebony, or maple.
- Headstock: The part at the top of the guitar’s neck that holds the tuning pegs. The headstock can have a distinctive design that identifies the guitar brand or model.
- Inlay: An inlay is a decorative design (typically dots, pearl shells, or custom artwork) embedded in the guitar fretboard. Inlays serve as visual markers to help you navigate the fretboard and find the right finger positions for playing notes and chords.
- Neck: The neck of a guitar is the long, thin part above the body where the strings are attached. It connects the body to the headstock and contains the fretboard.
- Nut: The nut is a small piece of material, typically bone, plastic, or graphite, at the top of the guitar neck where the strings slot in. The guitar nut precisely spaces and lifts the strings at the headstock, affecting how easy the guitar is to play as well as the tone of the guitar.
- Pickguard (scratch plate): A flat piece of plastic on the body that protects the finish from scratches caused by the pick. It can be plain or snazzy-looking and decorative.
- Strings: The set of thin metal wires stretched between the bridge and the nut. The guitar strings vibrate when plucked or strummed, creating the sound. String gauges (thickness) vary from light to heavy, affecting how your guitar plays and sounds.
- Truss rod: A truss rod is a metal rod running inside the guitar neck that allows for adjustments to its amount of bend. Tightening or loosening the truss rod adjusts the neck’s curvature, improving the playability of the guitar.
- Tuning pegs (machine heads): The knobs on the headstock used to adjust string tension. Turning them tightens or loosens the strings, raising or lowering their pitch for proper tuning.
Parts of an Electric Guitar Explained (inc. Electro Acoustic)
- Pickups: Guitar pickups are like tiny microphones inside your guitar. They listen to the vibrations of the strings and turn them into electrical signals that can be sent to an amplifier to make them louder. Various types of pickups, such as single-coil or humbucker, produce unique tones (see below).
- Pickup Selector Switch: This is like a control panel for your pickups. It lets you choose which pickup or combination of pickups you want to use, giving you different tones and sounds.
Guitar Pickups Explained
Humbucker Pickups
With their dual-coil design, humbucker pickups enrich your guitar’s sound, providing a beefy tone that cuts through the mix without any interference.
🎸 Guitars with Humbuckers: Two legendary guitars with double humbucker pickups are the Gibson Les Paul and the Gibson SG. Humbuckers give them that rich, warm rock tone that’s perfect for blues, rock, and metal music.
Angus Young from AC/DC, Slash from Guns N’ Roses, and Carlos Santana are three of the best guitarists of all time who prefer guitars with humbucker pickups.
Single Coil Pickups
Single coil pickups make guitars sound bright and sharp, with a clear, ringing tone. Single coil pickups are great for clean, sparkly chords, funky rhythms, and picking out melodies.
🎸 Guitars with Single Coils: Famous guitars with single coils include the Fender Stratocaster, which legendary guitarists such as Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix used for their bluesy rock sounds.
With their single-coils, Fender Telecasters are known for their twang, perfect for rock ‘n’ roll riffs like those played by Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones.
- Jack Input: This is where you plug your guitar cable into the guitar. It’s like the entrance for your sound to get out of the guitar and into your favorite guitar amplifier or other music studio equipment like an audio interface.
- Volume Knob: This is like the volume control on your audio sound system. You turn it up to make your guitar louder or down to make it quieter.
- Tone Knob: The tone knob on a guitar is similar to the eq settings on an amplifier or audio mixer desk. It lets you adjust the brightness or warmth of your guitar’s sound, giving you more control over your tone.
In Summary
So there you have it, the main parts of a guitar unveiled! With this knowledge under your belt, you can hit the shops and pick out your perfect beginner acoustic guitar, or sniff out the best electric guitar for your needs.
Most importantly, have fun and keep rocking!
