Looking for semi-hollow body not 335 shape

[AZanshin]

Am looking for a semi-hollow body to replace my epiphone sheraton II for the louder gigs I do.
However am looking for the shape of the guitar to be more like a Es-175 style or even an L5 style shape as
I prefer playing the shape of my Eastman AR503ce opposed to the sheraton.

I am leaning towards a semi-hollow body since of the tracks will have some distortion.

My budget is £2000 any recommendations?

[David B]

Comins GCS-1 at £1399 new.
Comins GCS-1 Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar - Vintage Blonde

There's a couple of Peerless thinline models that I think fit the bill: the Sunset and the Electra.

Gibson ES137:
Gibson ES137 Classic in Heritage Cherry Sunburst | Andertons

D'Angelio EX-SS:
D'Angelico EX-SS Amber

[mangotango]

Find an Eastman T146 - maybe this one at Foulds Music Shop (Dan at Foulds is a regular poster on here)

http://www.fouldsmusic.co.uk/jazz-gu...46-sm-lsb.html

T146SM Thinline Electric


Failing that.......If you're replacing an Epi, how about the Epi Sorrento Reissue?

Epiphone 50th Anniversary 1962 Sorrento Electric Guitar - Natural | Dawsons Music

[GNAPPI]

Being a "Gibson" guy :-) The ES135/ES137's come to mind, if you're talking used, the Howard Roberts Fusion is a great guitar.

Dunno about prices in the UK though, maybe a Heritage Millennium / H155 may be more in line with your price range there?

[mangotango]

Being a "Gibson" guy :-) The ES135/ES137's come to mind, if you're talking used, the Howard Roberts Fusion is a great guitar.

Dunno about prices in the UK though, maybe a Heritage Millennium / H155 may be more in line with your price range there?

Heritage guitars are not so common over here, and pretty much up there with Gibsons as far as price goes. You can find a used ES135 or 137 for much less than a Heritage.

Dave B's right about the Comins, though, that's a great shout.

[ronjazz]

Samick Royale, if your budget is limited, and whose isn't?

[Clamps]

Vox virage 77 semi looks pretty sexy!

[ooglybong]

Vox virage 77 semi looks pretty sexy!

Totally agreed. They had a gorgeous trans white one (the original $2K model actually) at my local shop for months. Mint at a great price, too. Tried it a bunch of times, wanting so much to like it but... nah. It just felt kinda dead somehow, and the tones available thru the toggles weren't all that remarkable or different enough, IMO. The store owner fully agreed with me, too, FWIW. I've also since played a couple of other Voxes, various levels, same overall impression. Of course, YMMV. So cool-looking, though.

[kris]

Attachment 7713


Schottmüller Guitars

[IbanezAS100]

I would add the new Godin Montreal Premiere to your list (£1299)

GODIN Montreal Premiere Natural

If you're a happy Eastman user and want a similar feel to the AR503, have a look at the discontinued T166 (it's a Dutch shop but they ship to the UK). Similar to the T146 that Mango suggested but with a centre block and two pickups.

Eastman T166SX-CS


You could also contact this seller in Hertfordshire who was recently selling a Heritage Millennium (like the one Wolfgang Muthspiel used to play)-starting bid was £1750, didn't sell and might still be available so you could maybe make an offer


Heritage Millennium Year 2000 very rare Maple with Spruce top high end build | eBay

That's a very healthy budget, you could even have a luthier built guitar for £2K (I did) but it would involve waiting for 12-18 months.

[TH]

I had an Ibanez AGS 83b and it was a good affordable workhorse guitar. Thin like a 335 and semi hollow but with a single cutaway. It was inexpensive enough to make pickup upgrades to and well constructed enough to make it worth the effort. Have no idea if it, or any of its successors exist in the Ibanez line though.
For your options file.
David

[IbanezAS100]

I had an Ibanez AGS 83b and it was a good affordable workhorse guitar. Thin like a 335 and semi hollow but with a single cutaway. It was inexpensive enough to make pickup upgrades to and well constructed enough to make it worth the effort. Have no idea if it, or any of its successors exist in the Ibanez line though.
For your options file.
David

Yep, +1-definitely a great budget friendly option and you can customise it to your heart's content. I've owned it from new for almost a decade and have upgraded everything on it ( Bare Knuckle Stormy Mondays, Gotoh 510 tuners, CTS pots, Tone pros bridge/tailpiece, custom rosewood pickguard/knobs). Total cost around £800.
I use it for teaching and to my ears it nails all the classic semi hollow tones. It still puzzles me why I banez never produced a more upmarket Japanese version as single cut semis are very popular.

Here's one:

ibanez artcore electric guitar | eBay

[drobniuch]

I switched from my Sheraton to the Ibanez 83b with Gibson pickups.. and it make a huge difference. Easier to play better, great jazz sound and you can eaven play distortion with it +1

[AZanshin]

Thank you everyone for the quick replies, this why I love this forum.
@mangotango That Eastman has caught my eye but I don't think it will handle the high gain
on one of the tracks I have to do.

@kris The Schottmuller Semiakustik looks beautiful
@DavidB the D'Angelico EX-SS & the Comins have taken my fancy.

[ooglybong]

Thank you everyone for the quick replies, this why I love this forum.
@mangotango That Eastman has caught my eye but I don't think it will handle the high gain
on one of the tracks I have to do.
@kris The Schottmuller Semiakustik looks beautiful
@DavidB the D'Angelico EX-SS & the Comins have taken my fancy.

I have the out-of-production Eastman T145 (15" body), and it's fully hollow 'thinline' construction. Great guitar but I doubt that it would take to a fusion gig all that well, but I've not tried that yet, either. Great guitar for an alternative playing experience with the smaller body and very acoustic-sounding, albeit more top end than bottom.

OTOH, I also have a Comins GCS-1 ES and that works wonderfully for higher gain stuff if you need it to. (Totally different construction than the Eastman T146, of course.) Very versatile, so much so that I'm having difficulty lately deciding exactly how I want to set it up—either with lighter rounds (.11s, as is) or with Chrome 12s as an alternative more-mainstream-sounding guitar. It would certainly work well in either direction, I'm sure. By the way, it's wonderful overall with superb build quality if you're considering one. Very clear with great sustain, too.

[Frank67]

I'll put a vote down for the ES137. Very versatile, stunning looks, still a lot of archtop feel. It sounds great with overdrive but for my taste the cleans easily got a bit too mellow (read: muddy). Swapped pickups to TV Jones Powertrons - could 't be happier - much more clarity, a bit of sparkle and all of the warmth and punch.

Beware that ES137's have beefy necks that are not every one's cup of tea and probably do not play as easily as a Ibanez shredder axe (or a GB10 for that matter). Still a great guitar IMHO, in particular if one is into the look of the Florentine cutaway.

[xuoham]

I had an Ibanez AGS 83b and it was a good affordable workhorse guitar. Thin like a 335 and semi hollow but with a single cutaway. It was inexpensive enough to make pickup upgrades to and well constructed enough to make it worth the effort. Have no idea if it, or any of its successors exist in the Ibanez line though.
For your options file.
David

+1 ! Definitely !! Great neck, great sustain !

Mine is a bit customized: SD Seth Lover at the neck, SD Custom5 at the bridge, K&K transducer under the pickguard, same tone pot for both pickups, unused bridge tone pot for K&K volume, coil split and phase with push-pull,
trapeze tailpiece, ebony knobs, pu rings and tailpiece, i made the trussrod cover from the remaining old pg, locking tuners and roller bridge.
Ii definitely was worth upgrading little by little and it now plays, feels, sounds like a very expensive guitar.

[kris]

+1 ! Definitely !! Great neck, great sustain !

Mine is a bit customized: SD Seth Lover at the neck, SD Custom5 at the bridge, K&K transducer under the pickguard, same tone pot for both pickups, unused bridge tone pot for K&K volume, coil split and phase with push-pull,
trapeze tailpiece, ebony knobs, pu rings and tailpiece, i made the trussrod cover from the remaining old pg, locking tuners and roller bridge.
Ii definitely was worth upgrading little by little and it now plays, feels, sounds like a very expensive guitar.

looks nice...any mp3 sound?
Thanks
Kris

[xuoham]

Thanks Kris,

Here are two sloppy samples i just recorded. Wish my playing was more self confident, precise and the timing not so nervous but here it is. Anyway, since jazz guitar is not my specialty i guess it's ok

This is my most versatile guitar, jazz sound, lespaul sound, strat sound (coil split and two pickups with phase) and so it is strung with 11-50 elixir nanowebs, so not really jazz strings here.

First sample has about a third of the transducer sound, and the guitar is straight into my sound card.
That's why it might sound a bit like having too much high end, i usually put less transducer in the mix for a jazz sound, but i overdo it on purpose to show how a simple transducer (k&K) can really add to a mag pu only sound and sound like an exoensive archtop, in my opinion.
A bit of nice reverb and LA type level amplifier (V.O.S Thrillseeker VST).
Vaguely inspired by the very awesome Sylvain Luc on his album "Ambre".
http://paulmahoux.com/media/AGS83Clip1.mp3

Second sample is the same setting but this time with a Fender Amp simulation on my Zoom G3 then to my sound card with the same reverb and LA type level amplifier.
Stella, after the arrangement of the fine Sir Leigh Jackson from NZ, seen on youtube. (the best version of Stella i.m.o. kind of classic but classy)
http://paulmahoux.com/media/AGS83Clip2.mp3

Guess i should have added a clip with just the mag pu, round and gorgeous, but time is running out.
The recordings don't do it justice, but in your hands and with a tweaking to your liking, it would do wonders !

[disco~juice]

You should try godin montreal premiere.

[xuoham]

Magnetic pickup only, tone pot wide open, Zoom G3 Fender Vibrolux emulation.

http://paulmahoux.com/media/AGS83Clip3.mp3

[kris]

Thanks Kris,

Here are two sloppy samples i just recorded. Wish my playing was more self confident, precise and the timing not so nervous but here it is. Anyway, since jazz guitar is not my specialty i guess it's ok

This is my most versatile guitar, jazz sound, lespaul sound, strat sound (coil split and two pickups with phase) and so it is strung with 11-50 elixir nanowebs, so not really jazz strings here.

First sample has about a third of the transducer sound, and the guitar is straight into my sound card.
That's why it might sound a bit like having too much high end, i usually put less transducer in the mix for a jazz sound, but i overdo it on purpose to show how a simple transducer (k&K) can really add to a mag pu only sound and sound like an exoensive archtop, in my opinion.
A bit of nice reverb and LA type level amplifier (V.O.S Thrillseeker VST).
Vaguely inspired by the very awesome Sylvain Luc on his album "Ambre".
http://paulmahoux.com/media/AGS83Clip1.mp3

Second sample is the same setting but this time with a Fender Amp simulation on my Zoom G3 then to my sound card with the same reverb and LA type level amplifier.
Stella, after the arrangement of the fine Sir Leigh Jackson from NZ, seen on youtube. (the best version of Stella i.m.o. kind of classic but classy)
http://paulmahoux.com/media/AGS83Clip2.mp3

Guess i should have added a clip with just the mag pu, round and gorgeous, but time is running out.
The recordings don't do it justice, but in your hands and with a tweaking to your liking, it would do wonders !

I/ve just open first file...nice sound.
I have problems with openig next mp3 sounds.
Best
Kris

[xuoham]

Try downloading instead of opening.
At least try the last one, just the mag pu.

Cheers

[Jazzman301]

That's a great sound man!!! Looks like another not well known but great guitar from Ibanez.

'Mike

[tejastani]

Fano Guitars - Alt de Facto GF6
Like a Fender Starcaster!