What do think about all the armrest bevels and sound ports builders are incorporating.

Collings is more traditional ofcourse but would you like any on your guitars if there was a choice.

Nope. Ain't broke, don't fix it.

I wouldn't care for them on Collings which are so traditionally classy. Though I haven't experienced them personally, both of these options seem cool on some of the more modern designs.

Neither of those appeal to me
I am an unabashed trad dread guy

Isn't that the stuff that alot of the classical guitars incorporate?

to me, it's overdesign. it's a mustache on the Mona Lisa. the sound port, a hole the upper treble bout, is supposed to allow the guitarist to hear him/herself. Do you have trouble hearing your guitar? the armrest, allegedly, serves two purposes: it prevents forearm contact with the lower treble bout, thus preventing unsighly sweat marks, and any damping of the sound of the guitar. Wear a long sleeved shirt. Is your guitar not loud enough? If I play mine hard you'd have to be Pavarotti to sing over them as it is. IT gives bored luthiers something "new" to do and sell. Not for me.

The armrest prevents your arm from absorbing vibrations. That's pretty simple science. It does work, but although I have two armrests I can't seem to get myself to remove the protector from the adhesive and actually attach it permanently to the guitar.

If you're the type of player whose arm rests only on the top without touching the front, then it would be relatively useless. I, however, tend to drape myself and the armrest keeps me from dampening the top. It's not just louder, it also has a wider frequency response.

I'm sure you're right, but I'm a Luddite. Can I say that here? If I had my entire meaty right arm over the guitar, maybe I'd give it a try. You know there are wire structures, resembling huge oval catcher's masks, that attach to the back of the guitar to prevent contact. We're headed to "guitar in a bubble". Kidding. I think. If I wanna hear incredible guitar without touching the instrument, I put on my Django records. Snark. Actually, I did once, briefly, think about the Pearse arm rest. I also thought about having one ear pierced, but I could never remember which ear mean which "persuasion". It's not a mistake you wanna make. At least the arm rest comes off. Hey, different strokes. tom

There are tapered bodies (wedges) with a built in arm rest made by some luthiers. In contrast the add on arm rests only makes, as far as arm position is concerned, the effective depth of the guitar greater and that could be a problem depending on the how big you are and the size of the guitar to begin with.
Personally I do not like sound ports appearance wise. Sound wise you have to be careful in judging the guitars sound compared to a non ported guitar. It may wash you more in sound yet not project out as well as you might think. On the other hand a sound port probably does not decrease the guitars projection, or very little anyway.
Rick

The sound port does not decrease the forward projection. According to the Luthiers that are using this method, there is supposed to be plenty of sound to spare.
I think the sound port may have it's place in certain settings, but I don't think I like it.
Tom, just remember, Left is right and Right is wrong. I think that's what they used to say?

Very interesting, do you notice how so many builders are using both those two options today.

I think NO for Collings but my experience has been that the John Pearse armrests are okay if the guitars dimensions are not large and you are not too small, it increases discomfort.
Also for me the open sound of a guitar is slightly different from dampened, you can use your resting arm for effect and variation, with armrest no variation available.
Classical Guitar is another case where dampening is not beneficial in the same way and good technique teaches to play in good form.

The bevel I was talking about is the one where the soundboard is shaped ergonomically.
I think you are losing some of its vibrating area which may make no difference sound wise, some say it helps with people who suffer from circulation issues from pinching of the forearm.
Some makers even add one posterior for rib cage comfort.

As for the porthole, classical makers like Ruck and Hill use 2 small 1-2 inch openings on upper bouts in addition to standard soundhole.
Others like Batson want no opening on soundboard, cantilever the neck and float the tailpiece so the whole tops moves free then they add a large port near the players upper bout.

How many times have you played in a small room or closet to appreciate the sound of your instrument, the theory is that we dont really hear our guitars with the same clarity as we should. You can even angle the guitar in your lap and hear the difference aiming the soundhole more toward yourself.
Isn't that one of the reasons we ask others to play instruments for us when evaluating a purchase. I have a small mirrored walk in closet that has a guitar stool and you can find me in there at most times by myself. Guess Im a in the closet guitar player. I love the sound of music bouncing off the walls back at me.

When I was at the Newport show in Miami I did interesting experiment with Charles Fox ergo guitar, he like a few others offer this port with a sliding window,
I was amazed at how much it effected the sound clarity coming to the player and projection relative. Almost like a pump for the air depending on how much you closed it.
Now it didnt make the sound inferior or superior but I do believe that physics would determine that just like a cutaway there is a change.

I like the sound to the player so now the question is, better to have lets say 10% more for arguments sake monitoring for us or them.
Just like Pink Flyod sang US AND THEM.

Either way it sounds great.

I put a soundport in my Goodall Standard and it's like it's on steroids- the sound is brighter and louder overall. The sound projection up towards your ear just envelopes you....it's subtle yet very noticeable.

That being said, would I do it to my Collings OM? NO. My Collings is a traditional sound completely different than my Goodall. Both are awesome for different reasons.

Kevdog