About
Drawn in ink, redrawn in light.
Bio: [TODD TO SUPPLY]
Line by line
The illustration redraws itself in light, its heaviest ink strokes before its lightest.
One colour
The only colour in the drawing.
Illustration
Todd Prater
A bio in Todd's own words: how it started, the music Todd plays, the bands and places played so far, and what the guitar means to Todd.
From string to room
An electric guitar's sound is a signal that changes shape as it travels. Here is a typical path, with what each stage does to the wave.
Illustration · a typical signal chain, not Todd's own rig
A steel string vibrating over a magnetic pickup makes a small voltage that follows its motion: one note, plus its harmonics.
The peaks of the wave are clipped flat, which adds more harmonics and grit.
The signal is repeated a moment later, each echo quieter than the last.
Many tiny reflections blur into a tail, like a note ringing in a hall.
The voltage is made strong enough to push a speaker cone, which pushes the air.
Pressure waves spread out through the air to the people listening.
Todd's own guitars, pedals and amps, if Todd would like them listed.