The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #26

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    Thanks everyone for the thoughtful insights; what a great forum and very helpful and sincere comments!

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #27

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    Quote Originally Posted by cosmic gumbo
    Those current Epiphone Masterbilt look good to me.

    Quiet guitar. Get a Loar.

  4. #28

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    There's a shop in Mason City that periodically advertises Heritage archtops on the Twin Cities Craigslist, although I can't recall the name of it. I remember they had a natural H-575 that I darned near drove down to check out. That was a lovely looking guitar.

    Google suggests there is Rieman Music and Mark's Music in Mason City; I think the ads may have been from the former although looking at their web site there is nothing to back that up. Mark's Music has a Reverb store and there is at least one Episode Masterbilt non-cutaway archtop that looks the business of swing ($600).

    Epiphone Masterbilt Deluxe Century Classic Acoustic (Seller | Reverb

    And a Masterbilt Zenith:

    Epiphone Masterbilt Zenith - Archtop Acoustic/Electric - | Reverb

    HTH!

  5. #29

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    The Epiphone Masterbilt guitars are a great disappointment - they look awesome but have none of what makes a decent acoustic archtop.

  6. #30

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    Thanks for the tip, Mason City isn't where I would look for a good music store, hard as it is for any music store to survive; I'll look em up. My friend has an Epiphone Masterbilt acoustic flat top, he loves it, but it doesn't have any life to my ears. Plays nice though. Thanks!

  7. #31

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    I got my Loar 700 used for 500€. They're not common in Italy but one or two are often on the market. Lots of people seem to buy them for the wrong reasons, grow disappointed and sell them for not very much. I played it this evening and I am very happy (but it's still honeymoon, so take my posts with a good dose of salt...). Can't wait for my pickup to arrive....

  8. #32

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    A note of caution on the Loars. The first generation of these sucked (IMO). It took them a few tries to get the acoustic archtop thing dialed in. I have been impressed with the newer ones (For the price point. Compared to a vintage acoustic archtop, they still fall short) and I put them in the same category as I would put Gitanes and Alta Miras for Selmer style guitars.

    Try before you buy....

  9. #33

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    Stringswinger,
    PM sent ( off topic)

  10. #34

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    Well, yeah, stay away from the LH-500 model - that was the first generation, and a totally different (though similar looking design).

    Go for a LH-600 or upgrade to a LH-700 - those are basically the best bet for an acoustic archtop guitar going.

  11. #35

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    Quote Originally Posted by campusfive

    Go for a LH-600 or upgrade to a LH-700 - those are basically the best bet for an acoustic archtop guitar going.

    sadly!

    cheers

  12. #36

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    When I started concentrating on this style 20 years ago, there weren't any good choices, except vintage or luthier-made guitars.
    Now we've got Eastman and Loar. Frankly give a good Eastman or Loar 60-80 years of playing and see how it compares.

  13. #37

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  14. #38

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    Both have plywood tops, and do not have a real acoustic voice.

  15. #39

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    Quote Originally Posted by campusfive
    Frankly give a good Eastman or Loar 60-80 years of playing and see how it compares.
    Not what I would call practical advice.

  16. #40

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    I'm only looking at solid wood guitars for this, this acoustic voice is the priority, probably won't be amplified much of the time. I don't think laminate guitars can compare acoustically, amplified is another kettle of fish. I think perhaps Jonathan is wondering a bit what will be the prewar Martins and Gibsons of the future. Some of the guitars that are so prized now, I don't think anyone at that time foresaw that, and some were modestly priced. And not all those were great; so many variables. It seems reasonable to expect a few of the Eastmans, Loars and others will prove to be particularly good. An extra good piece of wood, a better then average builder having a good day, cared for well and played; interesting to think about.

  17. #41

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    FWIW, the Mills Brothers guitar is an early-30s L12.

    Here is a '33 L-12:
    Swing Guitar Choice-33-l12-jpg

  18. #42

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    I get an acceptable sound from a Godin 5th Avenue with a clip-on condenser + EQ - but it's far from ideal. One day I'll upgrade to the real deal (probably luthier).

  19. #43

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    Quote Originally Posted by Greentone
    FWIW, the Mills Brothers guitar is an early-30s L12.

    Here is a '33 L-12:
    Swing Guitar Choice-33-l12-jpg
    And I say that it aint!

    (Excuse me for indulging myself in this disagreement.)

    For me, the proportions of the body and neck scream 17" Advanced. But if that's not enough, compare the headstock. The pre-Advanced L12 shape was relatively straight along the length of headstock, whereas the Advanced headstock has more of an outward flare at the top (i.e. the "pages" of the "open book").

    Here are photos of (1) a Pre-Advanced L12, (2) an Advanced L7, and (3) Cliff White's guitar, from the photo shared before. The combination of that headstock and those fret inlays, there's only one guitar it could be.

    Swing Guitar Choice-screen-shot-2017-12-23-3-34-37-pm-jpgSwing Guitar Choice-screen-shot-2017-12-23-3-35-04-pm-jpgSwing Guitar Choice-screen-shot-2017-12-23-3-39-58-pm-png

  20. #44

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    Check out stringphonic guitars for a mid price option. Hand carved acoustic (and electric ) guitars made in Japan.

  21. #45

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    Quote Originally Posted by destinytot
    I get an acceptable sound from a Godin 5th Avenue with a clip-on condenser + EQ - but it's far from ideal. One day I'll upgrade to the real deal (probably luthier).
    I would think in someways the 5th Ave would be easier and more practical to mike than a carved archtop.

  22. #46

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    Quote Originally Posted by christianm77
    I would think in someways the 5th Ave would be easier and more practical to mike than a carved archtop.
    I can't imagine that at all. Mic'ing an acoustic archtop only boils down to proper stage geometry - unlike an electric the guitar body itself doesn't feel back usually. And a quieter guitar would require more gain from the mic, so I doubt that would be better.

  23. #47

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    Quote Originally Posted by campusfive
    I can't imagine that at all. Mic'ing an acoustic archtop only boils down to proper stage geometry - unlike an electric the guitar body itself doesn't feel back usually. And a quieter guitar would require more gain from the mic, so I doubt that would be better.
    Neither the guitar's volume nor feedback have been a problem when using a mic with my 5th Ave (which has extremely heavy strings in Marty Grosz tuning) in a range of live settings. But I've had to come up with ways to compensate for the fact that, as an acoustic archtop, it lacks the sweet voice I wish it had. (As my mother used to say, "Buy right, or buy twice.")

  24. #48

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    Quote Originally Posted by campusfive
    I can't imagine that at all. Mic'ing an acoustic archtop only boils down to proper stage geometry - unlike an electric the guitar body itself doesn't feel back usually. And a quieter guitar would require more gain from the mic, so I doubt that would be better.
    I'll defer to your experience as I've had little success with using lavelier mics in gig conditions.

  25. #49

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    Outdoors:


    Indoors:


  26. #50

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    Quote Originally Posted by destinytot
    Neither the guitar's volume nor feedback have been a problem when using a mic with my 5th Ave (which has extremely heavy strings in Marty Grosz tuning) in a range of live settings. But I've had to come up with ways to compensate for the fact that, as an acoustic archtop, it lacks the sweet voice I wish it had. (As my mother used to say, "Buy right, or buy twice.")
    I do subscribe to the idea that you should have two acoustic guitars, a recording guitar and a stage guitar. Seems sound advice. Get a guitar that sounds consistently good amplified and a guitar that sounds great recorded with a mic.

    (A guitar that sounds loud acoustic is another thing again.)

    In the case of the stage guitar, IMO consistently great is too much to hope for with acoustic guitar - hence the popularity of piezo's in general. I think that in this case going for something period correct is a source of endless frustration, because they didn't have a way of doing it back in the day. In the end I went magnetic cos I was sick of people laughing at me - when they weren't clutching their bleeding ears.

    But it depends what type of gigs you are doing, and the room in particular. I've used boom mics when playing purely rhythm guitar and that's fine.