New Yorkers - D'Angelico vs D'Aquisto

[QAman]

I think of all three of my vintage D'Angelicos as superb examples of a non-cut acoustic L-5.

Well said. After all, the Gibson Loar period L5’s were the standard from which all else were judged. John D’Angelico created his own interpretation of this brilliant model which has become world renowned along with the Loar period instruments.

Jim D’Aquisto continued in John’s path by refining the instrument to suit the evolution of players needs. The later D’Aquisto’s sound different than early ones , and same goes for the D’Angelico’s. If one was to chose a period , they need to evaluate their playing style and pick accordingly.

[floatingpickup]

Joe and Keith,
Nice to hear some recordings of my 91 D’Aquisto - it’s a fine guitar and Jim D’Aquisto was a close friend. Thank goodness my supportive wife took the time to video several of my visits during the build.

It was only a matter of time before I acquired another D’Aquisto - and I’m thoroughly enjoying my current 77’ New Yorker Special- which is in original near mint condition. This was my step Dads guitar - and my Mom captured video of this build as well - with Jimmy himself playing the guitar. It was sold to Gary Larsen, then a collector in Austin where I flew down to get it back.

To the Op- I have some acoustic iPhone recordings of my 77’ if your interested. You cannot go wrong with either guitar , but please be aware that D’Aquistos from the 80’s were known to develop deteriorating binding , so look carefully for this condition.
As the binding gases out it stains the guitar - and a total rebind is 4-6k.

Good luck on your decision

QAman:
That’s great that you acquired the ‘77 NYr Special. I would love to se pics.
Keith

[QAman]

QAman:
That’s great that you acquired the ‘77 NYr Special. I would love to se pics.
Keith

QAman:
That’s great that you acquired the ‘77 NYr Special. I would love to se pics.
Keith

I’ll send you a PM with some pics.

[floatingpickup]

Oh my God what treasure that album is.
The amplified D’Angelico nails the sound I lust for. QA’s Guitar deserved to be immortalized in a great record like this, because it wasn’t just a master building a guitar for a customer. He was building it for a friend.
Keith, please tell your brother he has a fan in me on the forum. Outstanding stuff.
To the OP, these are some great threads. I wish I was in your shoes. Best of luck to you. You really can’t miss the Mark with either guitar.
Joe D

Joe:
Thanks for the comments. I called my brother today and let him know that you enjoyed his recordings. I am encouraging him to record some comparisons of his guitars. He has a nice collection of guitars made by D’Angelico, D’Aquisto, Stromberg, Epiphone, Benedetto and Gibson. Funny thing...He thinks his beat up 1930’s Epiphone Deluxe is the best sounding guitar of the bunch. I have played them all, and it may be true. Hopefully, he can do some recordings, which I can share.
Keith

[D'Aquisto Fan]

Joe:
Thanks for the comments. I called my brother today and let him know that you enjoyed his recordings. I am encouraging him to record some comparisons of his guitars. He has a nice collection of guitars made by D’Angelico, D’Aquisto, Stromberg, Epiphone, Benedetto and Gibson. Funny thing...He thinks his beat up 1930’s Epiphone Deluxe is the best sounding guitar of the bunch. I have played them all, and it may be true. Hopefully, he can do some recordings, which I can share.
Keith

Hey, Keith. I remember hanging with Glenn at a couple Arlington guitar shows in Tom Van Hoose's booth. Hope he's doing well!

[floatingpickup]

Hey, Keith. I remember hanging with Glenn at a couple Arlington guitar shows in Tom Van Hoose's booth. Hope he's doing well!

.

Now I realize who you are, D’Aquisto Fan. Yes, those were really fun times. It seems like it was just yesterday hangin’ out at Tom’s booth. We met so many wonderful people and got to play so many great guitars. I miss those days more now than ever. Glenn is doing well. My family and Glenn’s family are all ok. Hang in there, stay healthy, and let’s all get through this difficult time.
Keith

[D'Aquisto Fan]

.

Now I realize who you are, D’Aquisto Fan. Yes, those were really fun times. It seems like it was just yesterday hangin’ out at Tom’s booth. We met so many wonderful people and got to play so many great guitars. I miss those days more now than ever. Glenn is doing well. My family and Glenn’s family are all ok. Hang in there, stay healthy, and let’s all get through this difficult time.
Keith

Thanks, Keith. Sorry for the silly handle on this forum. I couldn't think of anything more creative when I signed up. Anyway, yes those were great times back at Tom's booth. Sadly Gary is gone. He was such a warm, wonderful guy, and a talented musician. I'm hoping we'll be able to meet at Tom's booth again one of these days soon. Stay safe and healthy. Take care!

[gitman]

Joe:
Thanks for the comments. I called my brother today and let him know that you enjoyed his recordings. I am encouraging him to record some comparisons of his guitars. He has a nice collection of guitars made by D’Angelico, D’Aquisto, Stromberg, Epiphone, Benedetto and Gibson. Funny thing...He thinks his beat up 1930’s Epiphone Deluxe is the best sounding guitar of the bunch. I have played them all, and it may be true. Hopefully, he can do some recordings, which I can share.
Keith

I had the good fortune to see and hear the great Marty Grosz playing a courtyard concert a couple of years ago at a festival in the Rhine River Valley- he sounded great with his 30's Epi Deluxe and when I asked him about it he agreed that this Epi and his late 20's L-5 were the best two horses in his stable. He tunes his guitars in 5th intervals and IIRC he starts with a low C so he gets a very different sound compared to how Jonathan Stout's guitars sound like. Overall his tone was nicely balanced, it filled out the group's sound perfectly and since he doesn't pick/strum hard it was never shrill or strident. He had a condensor mic in front , no extra monitor. Fond memories ......
The one Epi Deluxe I've ever played was also a pre-war model and it was a fabulous guitar, built very lightly and it spoke almost like a flattop guitar.
It did not have the endless headroom of the D'Angelico New Yorker or the Stromberg Master-400 that I sampled at Mandolin Bros. but it also did not have to be pounded on to give up the goods .....

[wintermoon]

30s Epis are the best imo.
I had a well played '39 asymetric headstock Deluxe forever and must have had at least a dozen other Deluxes from the 40s-50s through the yrs but that '39 was superb. I finally had it rebound (sop for 30s Epis) and a good friend was hammering me to sell it to him for yrs so I finally did a few months ago as he had done me a solid and sold me his dot neck L-5 back when.
If I'm playing acoustic the L-5 is usually what I'd reach for, but if I didn't have the L-5 I'd still have that '39 Deluxe. The only comparable one I've heard was another friend's '39 just a few serial numbers away from mine that sounds just as good.

[skykomishone]

30s Epis are the best imo....

No doubt! I own a 1936 Emperor, and it rules, just like it's name implies! The thing is a canon, and a work of art! Your comment just made me go grab it out of it's (original) case and play it. Sure enough, you're absolutely correct! What a joy.

[wintermoon]

I had a '36 Emperor too Sky, best sounding one I ever played and I've played many.
Like the '39 Deluxe I had, the top strings were big and thick sounding not metallic as so many archtops can be, like a great D'Angelico.
I bought it locally from the orig owners daughter, it needed a fair amount of work so I got it for very little $.
I sold it to fund another guitar and it popped up on that northwestern dealers site @ one point, here's a pic.

[ReedAmbedastam]

Have you checked out the various clips that Norm Harris has on youtube : fleet-fingered virtuosos on high-$$ archtops, filmed with cheap lenses and still cheaper microphones. I doubt that ANY such clip is an earnest representation of the true tonal qualities of ANY such guitar. I've played one of Mr. Burrell's D'Angelico's when he had it for sale at Mandolin Bros many years ago and
IIRC it was a late 50's New Yorker in sunburst (US $ 45.000). Unplugged it did not really blow me away with it's flatwound strings and low action but through an amp the combo guitar/DeArmond 1100 pickup was IT as far as copping that classic Bop/Cool/50's / 60's jazz guitar tone. Same can be said about my '63 Super-400C with the same pickup : meh unplugged, a bomb plugged in. Unfortunately it was unusable on stage at any normal playing volume so it had to go....

Anyone who can differentiate
BY EAR ALONE between a decent Gibson (or any other in that category) archtop/DeArmond combo and either a D'Angelico or early D'Aquisto/DeArmond with a comparable setup has my utmost respect ....

Re your search for D'A recodings I'd also look into Hank Garland, Chet Atkins, Mark Elf, Gene Bertoncini, John Pisano, ...
Trouble is : they used ELECTRIFIED versions - I've never heard any of them playing their archtops un-amplified. I also don't blame them since to my ears nothing beats the pure acoustic tone of a good nylonstring guitar. An electrified archtop comes in a close second
Of course, when you plan on laying down 4 to the bar in a swing band then you need the big box guitars with heavy strings, high action and thick picks (and an iron fist left hand). It's not a particularly "beautiful" sound but a D'Angelico New Yorker would be really good at it ....
Good luck in hunting your holy grail guitar !

Hey Gitman,
I indeed have watched all the Norm's Rare Guits D'Angelico videos and theyre certainly infinitely better than no reference points of the guitars played alone but no late 50's NY's etc. - I know Ive heard the sound many times but it would be just great, whether as an admirer or owner, to sort of put a bit of an archive of the records with DA New Yorkers on them together.

Amazing that you played KB's DA! Wow. I mean.. wow.
I agree with you on some guitars just not having it all acoustically vs amplified.. funny how that works though its sometimes if not most of the time by design.
That super 400 you owned mustve been a sweet one but to your point, sometimes its beyond tone - its often as much to do with the the relationship between the player and their *idea* of their instrument lol and how interacting with its response makes them feel. And loving that feeling, whatever it may be that sparks enthusiasm in a person, brings the best out of that player. Some cheap guitars can do it to.

Thanks for your comments!

[ReedAmbedastam]

My brother recorded a cd a few years ago, playing two guitars - a D’Angelico and a D’Aquisto. The D’Angelico is a mid-1950’s 17” cutaway Excel with a De-Armond Rhythm Chief. It was used on all of the electric guitar tracks. The D’Aquisto is a 17” fully acoustic cutaway Excel from around 1990 (originally commissioned by by fellow forum member QAMan). It was used on the acoustic tracks. I’m not promoting his recording, but it does include samples of what you are asking about. You can listen to it here:
Please Play Again by Glenn Murch on Spotify
Keith

Thank you so much for this!! I can't tell you how much I enjoyed listening to this - for the music as much as the amazing tones.. your brother knows what hes doing with those guitars. What a pleasure - thanks for sharing!! Wonderful.

[Tal_175]

[Stringswinger]

My brother recorded a cd a few years ago, playing two guitars - a D’Angelico and a D’Aquisto. The D’Angelico is a mid-1950’s 17” cutaway Excel with a De-Armond Rhythm Chief. It was used on all of the electric guitar tracks. The D’Aquisto is a 17” fully acoustic cutaway Excel from around 1990 (originally commissioned by by fellow forum member QAMan). It was used on the acoustic tracks. I’m not promoting his recording, but it does include samples of what you are asking about. You can listen to it here:
Please Play Again by Glenn Murch on Spotify
Keith

Both guitars sound superb, as does Glenn's playing.

[AGM]

30s Epis are the best imo.

I think the carve on my 1938 Epiphone Emperor is close to perfection...