ABOUT THE INVENTOR
- The WEDGEWALLS Story -
“I was born in the logging town of Chico, California in the 60s – so I guess a love for natural wood is probably in my blood” - Scott Elliott, creator of Wedgewalls.
Chico, California
A musical veteran of 30 years and a professional sound technician tells about his love for the sound of pure wood and how Wedgewalls sound absorbing wall panels came to be. If you love the sound of wood - read on.
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“I remember listening to my dad play Buck Owens and Willie Nelson records when I was a kid. He would point out how much character was in the sound of Willie’s guitar - even with that big hole worn in the front from years of pickin’.
Willie Nelson's Famous Guitar
My big sister always had a new guitar sitting in her room that she’d buy with the best of intentions, but never actually learn to play. I would strum the strings quietly and and enjoy how the different woods would bring out the different the tones in the instruments. We’d listen to John Denver and the Eagles vinyl and I’d admire the pictures on the album covers & sounds of their guitars. Wood has always fascinated me. The grain, the thickness, the density and the color – I’ve always loved the sound and look of wood!
With the exception of the mouthpiece,
The Recorder Flute is lathed
from a single piece of
solid wood.
My mom was an elementary school teacher and taught herself to play the recorder when I was very young. She explained to me how the recorder was a popular instrument in medieval times and through the baroque era. How it was lathed from a solid piece of wood – she said the perfect piece of wood was the key… that’s where it got it’s distinctive tone. She was always playing Bach and Handel on that worn-out flute. I don’t know if I ever told her how much I loved that sound!
Of course, my big brother was the rock & roller of the family – listening to Led Zeppelin and Kansas. I was introduced to the sound of solid wood and the infinite sustain those master guitar players could achieve through that heavy, thick, & hard Oak, Alder, Maple and Mahogany.
When I was in my late teens and early twenties I was playing in rock & roll bands on the road and then I played with country and MOR bands in the Nevada casinos. Of course, I went through many, many guitars, basses and drum sets. There was a lot of wood on the road!
I have an old Ibanez Les Paul that used to have a hole worn in the finish. This story hurts to tell – but here goes… The hole in the finish was worn right on the face of the guitar, right above the bridge. I did it when I was a kid from playing it so much. I was about 21 when one day I thought I’d fix it up – and learned a BIG lesson.
Black solid-body Ibanez Les Paul Electric
much like mine "used to look".
I can remember how amazed I was when I stripped the finish off that guitar and re-assembled all the hardware & electronics. The thing sounded like a completely different instrument! What happened!?!? I was shocked! I mean, All I did was strip off the finish and it sounded totally different. I learned so much from that experience! That guitar saw a lot of changes - I refinished it, I tried other paints, I even tried routing out the back a little. I fooled around with the wood on that poor guitar so many ways... In retrospect I have to humbly admit that I screwed it up pretty badly – but I did learn a lot about the intracacies in the sound of wood in the process. Please, if you own an old Les Paul – leave it alone and just play it with love – trust me.
I originally came up with the idea for Wedgewalls after I'd helped in the design and building of the 4th recording studio I was involved with. I was in the process of helping a team in lining the walls in a new production studio in Las Vegas. We were using more of that old, thick foam-rubber acoustic wedge material to deaden the sound in a vocal booth. I stood back and looked it it for the 100th time and said – how sterile! This stuff has no personality! I thought to myself -hey, there’s a reason they use wood in musical instruments instead of metal, or fiberglass, or synthetic materials. Of course... It’s because wood sounds good!
NO PERSONALITY!
I was probably about 14. We’d be working in the garage, restoring an old model “A” and he’d stop sanding on a fender when Willie would play “Georgia on my mind".
He’d just stop and say "Listen"... He wanted to share in feeling you got from the sound. He wanted to make sure that we’d listen to the words and the sound of the guitar.
1928 Ford Model A.
Personality
Personality
Personality
Personality
For years I’d seen those big, beautiful recording studios and think to myself – gosh, those lucky folks have designed a studio that’s ALIVE with the sound of wood - and not completely diffused! How envious I was that they could use all of that beautiful wood to make the room sound great all the time!
Then, years later, as I was finally building my own sound studio (as opposed to building a studio for someone else) I knew all along that my finishing touch would be building these solid-wood, oak-trimmed, multi-angled, soft absorption-backed, beautifully-stained and highly detailed wall panels to give MY OWN studio that perfect look and sound - with a personality all it’s own!
Celebratory
Beer.
I hand-made quite a number of these before I finally completed the one that perfectly represented my initial concept. They were a lot of work to make – but it was worth it - they look and sound excellent. When I put them up on my walls after I'd stained all of the other trim in the room to match – I invited some friends over to share in the joy and the sound! As one of my buddies sat cross-legged on the floor with dark beer in hand, he motioned toward the wall panels and said “Have you ever thought of selling those… they are very cool” I laughed and said no, I just want to make the room sound better and look good. But, after the beer was gone, I thought my friend actually made a good suggestion!
So here they are, Wedgewalls. Each one handmade with every angle & cut a little different for better sound dispersion. Every corner and edge is tight and neat. The finish is even and the color is rich. The Minwax Company has generously allowed me to use their name in my promotional material because they could see that I was promoting the highest quality in every piece.
Now, you too can proudly display your one-of-a-kind Wedgewalls sound absorbing panels on the walls of your home theater, your noisy office, or your home studio and know you will find the sound of true excellence you've always wanted. Wedgewalls come from a labor of love and the experience of a lifetime.
Enjoy!
Scott
