Floater on a laminate archtop?

[Hep To The Jive]

Hi all,

Recently I got a nice Guild A50, which is non cutaway 16' laminate acoustic archtop, all maple body, mahogany neck. It has rather thick top. I was thinking to put a humbucker( cut in the top), but a few folks told me I should try a floater. What do you think, a good idea? What are the pros and cons?

[Max405]

Hi, If you like the acoustic sound of the A50 don't disturb it and put on a floater. I suspect, that might not be the case so in that case, cut in a humbucker.
However, if you are looking to get a nice floater for it, the Benedetto S6 is REAL nice. I heard one the other night. Made me want one for my L7c. Best price, Django Books. $105.00. Mounts under your pick guard. Smokin..
Joe D

[TedBPhx]

I put a Benedetto S6 floater on my laminate sides and back, "pressed" top, Washburn J600k. With flat wounds this is not an acoustic to brag about but the Benedetto sounds great to my jazz novice ears.

[Max405]

I think its cool to have a "Benedetto" anything.
By the way, your Washburn is a nice guitar.

[Doctor Jeff]

I got a Godin 5th Avenue last year as a project guitar and put a GFS floater on it (with no tone/volume controls). Easiest installation I've ever made, took all of 30".

It sounds really good. Something between a set in HB and an acoustic contact pickup. Not much problem with feedback, either. Though I have a Fishman preamp, I usually just plug it directly into my Fishman Artist, and with a little fiddling can get the right tone.

It's not exactly the same as a high-quality floater on a carved top guitar, but it's different enough from my other guitars that I often take it with me on gigs just to vary things up. I think it looks cool as heck too, and it doesn't affect the acoustic qualities at all.

[TedBPhx]

I think the Washburn is a good value for me to explore jazz guitar on but I drool over the fine instruments I read about in this forum on a daily basis. Now to go research the Guild A50.

[Woody Sound]

Hi all,

Recently I got a nice Guild A50, which is non cutaway 16' laminate acoustic archtop, all maple body, mahogany neck. It has rather thick top. I was thinking to put a humbucker( cut in the top), but a few folks told me I should try a floater. What do you think, a good idea? What are the pros and cons?

Won't hurt anything, go ahead.

[Hep To The Jive]

Thanks for the info guys! Here's the pic btw

[TedBPhx]

Beautiful. What year?

[Hep To The Jive]

Beautiful. What year?

1961 I think, or 62...

[Chazmo]

Beautiful Guild.

I did the same thing with my laminate Godin 5th Avenue that Doctor Jeff did, only I used a Bartolini 5J. My 5th Avenue Jazz has the stock floater. Both sound great.

[Max405]

please don't cut a hole in that guitar. Please.
consider a KK sound Definity system.
Thats REALLY too nice to modify. Beautiful guitar, older than me. Looks better too.
JD

[Hep To The Jive]

Ok, so if I go with the floater... I want a nice balanced tone, articulate, not muddy, but not too bright either. Considering it's a maple top, should I choose more warm, smooth pickups, or more bright ones? How's maple top compares to spruce? A lot of demo videos I found the guitars had spruce top.

[ColMc]

I have a Ibanez AF71 which is one of their cheaper archtops
and is a floater.
I bought it to have as a practise guitar to use acoustically.
When I saw that a local company stocked KA handwounds,
I bought the 12 pole small sized HB and surprise ,surprise,
it mounted straight on with no mods.

I wouldn't cut holes in that guit, it's too pretty and it will change the tone.

The KA is outstanding. Had to back off the plain string poles to balance it but the difference is sound and tone is
excellent. Everyone that hears or plays it comments on the tone.

BTW noticed your avatar pic shows Hank's Saloon. Did you ever play there with Sean Kershaw?
Cheers.

[jzucker]

would not recommend a K&K unless you want to get an amplified acoustic guitar sound out of the guitar. My philosophy is that it's a tool. You bought it, do whatever you want with it but make sure it's got parallel bracing. Cutting through the bracing is a big NO-NO. A floater should sound good on it but floaters have their own unique tone. Not the same as a set-in pickup.

[Chimera1to1]

Jack's point is fair enough but I would say applies to someone who knows what they want as an end result and therefore what they need to do to a guitar to get there.

If you're not so sure what you want and you fit a floater and then another and then end up routing a hole for a full size humbucker then you end up with a guitar full of redundant holes that becomes difficult to love.

I have an output jack wired up to two small crocodile clips. I have ordered in some floaters and used blu tac and the output jack to check which sounds best on the guitar. Return the pups you don't like and keep the holes to a minimum

[barrymclark]

would not recommend a K&K unless you want to get an amplified acoustic guitar sound out of the guitar. My philosophy is that it's a tool. You bought it, do whatever you want with it but make sure it's got parallel bracing. Cutting through the bracing is a big NO-NO. A floater should sound good on it but floaters have their own unique tone. Not the same as a set-in pickup.

What Jack said on the bracing. It doesn't matter what you want to do... if you hack through that bracing you got trouble.

I have three acoustic archtops: Heritage Eagle, Gretsch New Yorker (vintage) and an Epiphone. Only the Heritage is X-Braced.

Should you fasten something down to that top, it will very much dampen it. So, if you dig the acoustic tone, floater is the way to go with no question.

[Hep To The Jive]

I have a Ibanez AF71 which is one of their cheaper archtops
and is a floater.
I bought it to have as a practise guitar to use acoustically.
When I saw that a local company stocked KA handwounds,
I bought the 12 pole small sized HB and surprise ,surprise,
it mounted straight on with no mods.

I wouldn't cut holes in that guit, it's too pretty and it will change the tone.

The KA is outstanding. Had to back off the plain string poles to balance it but the difference is sound and tone is
excellent. Everyone that hears or plays it comments on the tone.

BTW noticed your avatar pic shows Hank's Saloon. Did you ever play there with Sean Kershaw?
Cheers.

Sean Kershaw sounds familiar... It could be I was in an opening band with the female singer?

Do you have any demo/videos of that Ibanez with KA pup? AF71 is all maple, right? I was thinking KA mini humbucker would be too bright, but I guess not.

[Chazmo]

KAs are good. I like the Bartolini because it has a nice balance of acoustic tone and electric warmth. My Godin with the Bartolini does not have volume or tone controls. Plugged straight into my AI Corus, it sounds great with the eq flat. You can't get any simpler than that and simple is good for me.

As others have said, when it's you guitar you can do what you want, but I personally would not cut into an acoustic guitar to mount a humbucker. If you do that, you probably bought the wrong guitar. What you really want is an L-5, ES-175, X-15-, X-170, etc. that was built that way to begin with.

[jzucker]

KAs are good. I like the Bartolini because it has a nice balance of acoustic tone and electric warmth. My Godin with the Bartolini does not have volume or tone controls. Plugged straight into my AI Corus, it sounds great with the eq flat. You can't get any simpler than that and simple is good for me.

As others have said, when it's you guitar you can do what you want, but I personally would not cut into an acoustic guitar to mount a humbucker. If you do that, you probably bought the wrong guitar. What you really want is an L-5, ES-175, X-15-, X-170, etc. that was built that way to begin with.

not necessarily. One of the best electric guitars I ever heard was an L7. They sound great with floating or set-in pickups.

[Hep To The Jive]

If I have a pickup it sure will have to have at least a volume control. Which makes me think I (mean my luthier) still need to drill for volume knob on the body, because I hate those pickguards knobs, I always end up hitting them while strumming, and it's a major PITA.

[Chazmo]

not necessarily. One of the best electric guitars I ever heard was an L7. They sound great with floating or set-in pickups.

I agree that L7s sound great electrified. I had an L-7C with a KA floater that was very nice. But I wouid never have cut into the top to mount a humbucker. When I did want that later, I sold the L7 and got an L-5 Wesmo.

[ColMc]

Sean Kershaw sounds familiar... It could be I was in an opening band with the female singer?

Do you have any demo/videos of that Ibanez with KA pup? AF71 is all maple, right? I was thinking KA mini humbucker would be too bright, but I guess not.

I'm just a beginner in jazz so no demos at this stage.
The AF71 is maple but the KA 12 pole doesn't sound all that bright.
There are those Vol and Tone pots that mount under the pickguard but then you would need to mount a pickguard.
Which ever way you go good luck with it.

I sat in with Sean's band there for a set about 10 yrs ago on a tour of the States.
Cheers.

[jzucker]

just as a point of reference the ibanez GB10, GB15, GB20 were all laminates with a floating pickup.

So was the 2nd version of the Gibson Herb Ellis. Nothing wrong with a floating pickup on a laminate

[kris]

Try first Kent Armstrong floater PAF without any hole in the top.
I used it with my laminate top guitar-sound was very good.
You have also think about pickguard with volume and tone pots...another problem.
You can instal pots in the top also-but there are another holes.