Belly bulge
A hump in the top of an acoustic guitar behind the bridge, caused by string tension pulling the soundboard upwards.
Some bulge is normal and expected on a steel-string guitar, since the top is designed to flex under tension. Excessive belly happens when the internal bracing cannot resist the load, or when the instrument has spent years in a dry environment, and it raises the action and reduces the break angle over the saddle. Treatment ranges from a humidity and brace repair to installing a bridge plate reinforcement, depending on how much the top has moved.
Example: An acoustic guitar whose top visibly domes behind the bridge, raising the action, has developed a belly bulge.
See also
Related
- PageSoundboard
- PageBridge
- PageHumidity
- PageAction gauge
- PageAged finish
- PageBack bow
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley