Amplified strings

Similar to an electric guitar, the clavinet or the electric violin employs pickups to detect the vibrations of its strings, which are then amplified electronically and projected through a loudspeaker. Pickups or microphones can be fitted to traditional string instruments, and experimented through similar pathways as the electric guitar.

How We Record acoustical instruments at Wrongtools

At Wrongtools, we love guitars and clavinets, and everything with strings.Old and new.. But we’re not content with capturing them in a sterile, clinical way. We like to run them through things. (in addition to providing the acoustical recordings).

Our team often records strings through amplifiers, old speakers, and analog tape machines to add texture, warmth, and character you can feel when you play them in Kontakt. Sometimes, we re-amp string recordings through guitar amps in large rooms, or feed them into old tape echo units to catch beautiful imperfections. Other times, we push them onto tape at different speeds, letting wow, flutter, and tape saturation become part of the sound’s DNA.

This approach gives our libraries a lived-in, organic quality, making them sit naturally in cinematic and experimental mixes. We want our strings to feel like they’ve traveled through air, circuits, and transformers before landing in your DAW—ready to inspire you with tones that aren’t just clean, but alive. And easier to mix into arrangements, and with other instruments.