Archtop

Archtop

Hagstrom HJ-500 Single Cut

The archtop guitar was invented by 'Orville Gibson', founder of the 'Gibson Guitar Corporation' .An archtop guitar is a steel-stringed acoustic or semi-acoustic guitar with a full body and a distinctive arched top, whose sound is particularly popular with jazz players .Among the features of this instrument were a violin-style arched top and back, each carved from a single piece of wood.

Hagstrom HJ-550 Single Cut  

The 'f' holes of violin replaced the usual round sound hole of guitar.  These instruments have a carved arched top and back. The top or belly (and often the back) of the archtop guitar is either carved out of a block of solid wood, or heat-pressed using lamination's, and the belly normally has two f-holes, the lower of these partly covered by a scratch plate raised above the belly so as not to damp its vibration. The arching of the top and the f-holes are similar to the violin family, on which they were originally based.






reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archtop_guitar

http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/All-About--Archtop-Acoustics/1311

http://forums.allaboutjazz.com/showthread.php?t=13467