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Been thinking about picking up a guitar that would lean more towards the Jazz/Blues genre
I've been wanting to expand my playing, have been mostly playing Blues/Rock
I presently have a LP along with my Strat along with a couple of Acoustics but have been wanting to add another guitar that would be dedicated more to Jazz/Blues
I'd like to keep the cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $1,500-$2,000 range & would probably buy something used
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
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11-24-2018 10:09 AM
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Could you explain what you mean by jazz/blues? Not really sure it’s a genre. Sure, jazz players play blues, but it sounds more like jazz than what we associate with blues as a genre. Stylistically the two genres are very different. Perhaps you could list some guitarists that do what you’re talking about which would make it easier to help you.
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I see where that is a little confusing ...my main focus for this guitar would be more along the lines of it being more of a guitar for jazz but would also have the ability to play a little blues
One of the guitars I'm looking at is a Eastman T185MX CS or a Gibson ES-137
I know these are semi-hollow but from listening to some post's on Youtube ..I like the sound
Not sure if I would be comfortable playing either one so I'd be most likely buying something blind due to fact it's almost impossible to find one to play locally
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Les Pauls and Strats are both very versatile instruments well suited to playing most varieties of blues and jazz. I'd recommend sticking with what you have until you've developed your own sense of what you want/like through your experience playing jazz and trying guitars.
Originally Posted by Hit-em
John
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Look at it this way: you already have two very versatile, iconic guitars. To delve a little farther into a classic jazz sound, look at a semi-hollow i.e. Gibson ES 335 (or ES 330, even the smaller, more comfortable ES 339). You’ll be adding another iconic guitar to your arsenal. And this would include all of the other brands that make semi-hollows: Ibanez, Epiphone, etc. I have finally scaled down my collection to just 4 electrics: Gibson ES 275 for straight-ahead Jazz (thin line, but fully hollow), Ibanez AS153 (semi-hollow), a Strat, and a Tele. These 4 guitars cover all the bases for whatever gig might come up, although I have to restrain myself from purchasing another hollow-body with a wider depth, like an ES 175—and I have had two of those in the past, along with a few other big jazz boxes.
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From a historical perspective the Gibson ES-335 is an example a guitar that was created (1958) to cross-over from electrified hollow bodies to a purpose-built electric guitar. The semi-hollow body is an incredibly versatile format that will cover jazz and blues - you won't be disappointed. You are already looking at Eastman, so I would encourage you to do some research on the T386 and T486 models as well as the carved top you are looking at now.
Jazz Guitar Online published a survey of jazz guitar popularity that will give you a look across brands.
Best of luck in your search!
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I think it's cool to have a guitar set up for jazz if you want to learn it.
I'd say a guitar I set up for jazz would be drastically different than one I'd set up for blues. But you have two perfect blues guitars already.
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Absolutely agreed! When I started my journey into jazz guitar I could've just go ahead and use my favourite 335 style guitars witn great success but I wanted a guitar dedicated to jazz and that to me includes a full hollow body, a wooden floating bridge and bigger flatwound strings. Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
Other than that a 335 is possibly a good choice if you want the best of both worlds....
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There you go! Proof that what has, over the years, become the very standard for rock guitar can be used for jazz. GB obviously had it strung with very heavy flatwounds, which can make almost any guitar suitable for jazz. And he still sounds like George Benson! Originally Posted by whiskey02
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Take one Les Paul, lower the pickups a tad, string it with some nice flatwounds (12s or 11s), tweak the neck as necessary, and you have a great Jazz guitar. Just listen to Benson's tone in that clip, in spite of one string being flat.
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I encourage you to purchase another instrument for this purpose, instead of modifying the setup of one of your existing guitars. Since the introducton of electric instruments in the 1930s, "jazz" guitars have typically been archtop, hollow instruments with f-holes, floating bridges and trapeze tailpieces, that have a sound that is quite different from that of solid-body guitars, or guitars that appear hollow but have blocks built into them. This sound is emphasized with heavier strings, and with flatwound strings.These guitars feel very different to the player compared to solid-body and semi guitars. Originally Posted by Hit-em
Your budget in the "$1,500-$2,000 range" is plenty to allow you to find an excellent quality used hollow, archtop, f-hole guitar on the used market. Generaly speaking, the main variables you'll encounter will be:
-scale length (typically 24 3/4", 25" or 25 1/2")
-rim depth ("full-body" vs. "thinline")
-cutaway vs. non-cutaway
-carved spruce top vs. laminated pressed top
As well, almost all of these guitars will have their neck-body joints at the 14th fret. Some makers use a 15th or 16th fret neck/body joint.
Where are you located? IMO, this affects the ease with which you can get access to certain instruments, and the best use of your budget. Originally Posted by Hit-em
Last edited by Hammertone; 11-25-2018 at 07:38 AM.
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I decided to start studying Jazz guitar in 1997. Prior to that time I had been playing Blues (both electric and acoustic sub-genres) for 35 years.
I bought a Korean made Epiphone Sheraton (which I still own and love). It plays both Jazz and Blues with equal aplomb. A semi hollow design would be an excellent choice.
If you want a "real" Jazz Guitar, a Peerless hollow body would also be an excellent choice. They have several nice models for $1100 to $2000.
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A dedicated jazz guitar is not a bad idea given the two guitars you already have, but “jazz” guitars come in all shapes and sizes. With a $1500 - $2000 budget I would either look for a used laminate archtop that is fully hollow, or I would find a 335 style semi-hollow. You can correct me if I’m wrong, but I suspect the following is what you have in mind.
The guitar used in this clip is a vintage Guild Starfire IV with their HB-1 pickups (used by Jim Hall), and can be had for within your budget.
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Epiphone Casino Coupe, fully hollow body with P90 pickups. $500
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Jeez, Epiphone did a nice job with the sunburst on that Casino Coupe.
Very cool concept for a guitar.
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I want to thank everyone for taking the time to respond to my post ..it's greatly appreciated
There's allot of great suggestions & it's going to take some time on my part to look at allot of the models suggested
My plan is to go with a dedicated guitar in my attempt to play jazz, I really don't want to start altering my current setups
I'm thinking with what I've been use to playing I'll probably end up with a thinline holllowbody for my first "jazz guitar"
Keep the suggestions coming, the search is half the fun
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forget the semi and go all hollow that eppiphone casino looks like a good one Diarmond made good arch tops but are hard to find in mint shape
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Not to nitpick, but that isn’t a full hollow. Critically, it has a centerblock to just past the bridge. That means the bridge and pickups sit on solid wood. Great for reducing feedback, but a different beast from an L5 or ES175. Originally Posted by rintincop
Epiphone Casino Coupe, fully hollow body with P90 pickups. $500
A low cost entry to full hollow would probably be a used Epi 175 premium. I believe there was a fellow forum member selling his for $600.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
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Great jazz has been played on all kinds of instruments, including the ones you already have.
I confess that I don't know exactly what setting up a guitar for blues vs jazz might mean. Different strings I guess. So, maybe at one extreme it's thick flat wounds with a wound G. And, that will require tweaking the intonation on the G string if it used to be unwound. Maybe that's what others are referring to?
I'd add this.
I don't think there's that much difference in sound between a Les Paul and a 175, once you've amplified it in the context of a band. Same hb pickup (although you can find single coils on either), same scale length.
So, maybe what you're after is something as different as possible from what you've got. If that's the issue, then 25.5 scale, fully hollow might make the most sense. Carved top, I suppose, although you'll deal with feedback. Or, stated another way, an L5. In your price range you're talking about an L5 type.
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In you OP you mention the Gibson ES-137. I have one of these, an '06, and am very fond of it. It's a bit of a hybrid - ES-175 contour, Es-335 thickness, and a mahogany center block, giving the instrument a tonal profile of its own, leaning (to my ears) very much to the mellow/jazzy end of the spectrum, but definitely capable of more aggressive sounds when the situation calls for it. I keep mine strung with 0.011" - 0.049" or so for a tad more girth. It set me back IIRC $1,600 used.
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