THE MECHANICS
 

The Falbo Intension bridge design is about tension management. Every guitar maker is faced with the challenge of applying enough bracing with a thick enough top to withstand the full tension of the strings, but not so much as to restrict the vibration and projection of the guitar's top. Every luthier has their own pattern and style that creates a voice that is uniquely theirs. Even the slightest change in size and/or location of braces can have a dramatic impact on the guitar's tone. General consensus suggests that some of our favorite guitars throughout the ages have had thinner tops and/or lighter bracing. While this is not a hard, fast rule, it has produced some of the most lively instruments. As those instruments age, some crack, belly up, sink, or otherwise give way to the lifetime of string tension and torque of abundant playing. These instruments are wonderful while they last. What's even more rare, is to find an instrument lucky enough to combine a thin top, light bracing with longevity and stability.

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So what if rather than adding braces and thickness to combat this relentless string pull, we used this same tension to our advantage, to counteract the very deformations this tension is known to cause? In other words, harness the very same string tension to balance it's own pull on the top.  InTenSion accepts the strings in such a way that equalizes the upward, rotational torque of traditional bridge designs, while still leaving every ounce of string tension on the top, in the most active center area surrounding the bridge. Unlike attaching the strings near the end of the guitar with a harness or trapeze tailpiece, the Intension bridge design attaches the strings in the same general area as a traditional bridge. And unlike attaching reverse pressurizing bars or blocks, the Intension harness leaves the entire top floating, to produce perhaps the most active guitar top you've played.