The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    I picked up the 1978 Gibson Howard Roberts Artist about two years ago. The pickguard needed replacement, which turned out well.

    It's an exceptional player. The mystery was whether the midrange choke pot worked. These can be fairly subtle in effect, but I never could convince myself that in this guitar it did anything.

    I recently dropped it off to my friend and local guitar genius along with this article on the topic. http://www.chubbuckguitars.com/blog/2012/10/26/early-70s-howard-roberts-one-pickup-two-tones

    He pulled out the harness and found the midrange choke was not 1.5 H but only about half that. He's cleaned out the pots. We'll see whether the inductor needs to be replaced. I suspect so. It's an inexpensive part. 42TL021-RC Xicon | Mouser

    The guitar sounds great as it is. But there is some sort of responsibility, IMO, to maintain such an instrument the way it was designed, especially since the repair is not terribly expensive.

    Gibson Howard Roberts saga-46538655972_aa4cf39913_c-jpg

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    well done mg...gibby used that inductor choke pretty early on...the gibson eb-2/ epi rivoli bass has one..that's also been a source of mystery/ potential trouble (noise!)...but if you get it right..its great!!

    that's bill lawrence pickup scientist stuff!..he was all about inductance!...not resistance!

    howard roberts was always modding his guitars..from the early days!...he was cutting edge tech searcher/supporter as well as great player!

    cheers
    Last edited by neatomic; 08-02-2020 at 07:48 PM.

  4. #3

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    I've owned several of those--I seem to remember that control, which Gibson described as a "bass rolloff," working pretty well. It's an unusual feature on passive electronics.

    Gibson Howard Roberts saga-hra-n-17-jpg

    Gibson Howard Roberts saga-hra-wr-front-jpg

    Had a sunburst one too, can't find a photo.

    Danny W.

  5. #4

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    I had a mint sunburst one a really long time ago when they were less than a grand. The guitarist from Boyz to Men bought it from me and I made a friend. He sold it to another prominent player yrs ago that I met on a festival and I made another friend.

  6. #5

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    Wilde Pickups (a.k.a Bill 'n' Becky) sell the Q Filter, which is a 1.8 H version of the same thing, albeit for more money that the Xicon one. But OTOH the Xicon one is out of stock with a 20 week lead time according to the web site.

    Filter – Bill and Becky Wilde Pickups

  7. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cunamara
    Wilde Pickups (a.k.a Bill 'n' Becky) sell the Q Filter, which is a 1.8 H version of the same thing, albeit for more money that the Xicon one. But OTOH the Xicon one is out of stock with a 20 week lead time according to the web site.

    Filter – Bill and Becky Wilde Pickups
    that's bill lawrence (great pickup scientist)..who i alluded to in my post ^

    he was the great scientific pickup innovator/maker...he worked for every major guitar company...europe and usa!...taught young kent armstrong & many many others... ..super well respected!!...with the help of his wife and fam, he created wilde pups...he passed a few years back..but his family continues to wind, using his unreal formulas for pickup goodness

    cheers

  8. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cunamara
    Wilde Pickups (a.k.a Bill 'n' Becky) sell the Q Filter, which is a 1.8 H version of the same thing, albeit for more money that the Xicon one. But OTOH the Xicon one is out of stock with a 20 week lead time according to the web site.

    Filter – Bill and Becky Wilde Pickups
    Thanks for the tip. The Xicon site says 20 months but they say it will be September- next month. We'll see.

    Very interesting video. Thanks again.

    Q-filter – Bill and Becky Wilde Pickups

    Q-filter for Guitar or Bass – Bill and Becky Wilde Pickups

  9. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by Danny W.
    I've owned several of those--I seem to remember that control, which Gibson described as a "bass rolloff," working pretty well. It's an unusual feature on passive electronics.

    Gibson Howard Roberts saga-hra-n-17-jpg

    Gibson Howard Roberts saga-hra-wr-front-jpg

    Had a sunburst one too, can't find a photo.

    Danny W.
    I don't think Gibson made that many of these, so having three is a lot!

  10. #9

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    These were great guitars. Danny had it figured out early on.

  11. #10

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    Gibson also used a 0.5h choke in the MIII electronics. That is the 'jazz' setting.


    Gibson M3schematic.PDF

  12. #11

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    I built an amp once with a stack of three chokes too. Somewhat similar to what is shown in the OP link.

    Gibson Howard Roberts saga-dscf6179-jpg

  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by Marty Grass
    I don't think Gibson made that many of these, so having three is a lot!
    I had the sunburst one for not very long in the mid-'80's. Bought the other two a few years later and had them about six years. I liked them, but back then I just wasn't into 16" guitars, especially full depth ones.

    Quote Originally Posted by Greentone
    These were great guitars. Danny had it figured out early on.
    They were very nice and had a different kind of archtop sound. At the time they were the only 16" Gibson archtops with a 25.5" scale.

    Danny W.

  14. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by Danny W.
    I had the sunburst one for not very long in the mid-'80's. Bought the other two a few years later and had them about six years. I liked them, but back then I just wasn't into 16" guitars, especially full depth ones.



    They were very nice and had a different kind of archtop sound. At the time they were the only 16" Gibson archtops with a 25.5" scale.

    Danny W.
    Danny has owned all the guitars!!!!

  15. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by customxke
    Danny has owned all the guitars!!!!
    I've probably missed a few, but not many.

    BTW, the second guitar in my post was a dark wine-red, although you'd never know from any of the photos I have.

    Danny W.

  16. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by Danny W.
    I've probably missed a few, but not many.

    BTW, the second guitar in my post was a dark wine-red, although you'd never know from any of the photos I have.

    Danny W.
    I'm a fan Danny. I always look forward to your informed posts, and killer pics!