Epiphone Regent or Brodway

[Nedj]

Hi everyone,im 50yo musician looking to buy a nice jazz box, acoustically and amp quality must.Not looking for acoustic guitar but when unplugged i wanna be able to hear some acoustic and not a Tuna can.My budget is around $800
I have in mind Epi Regent NT finish mostly.And Brodway any suggestions are welcome.Sorry if similar posts are posted for a 100 times.

[John A.]

Hi everyone,im 50yo musician looking to buy a nice jazz box, acoustically and amp quality must.Not looking for acoustic guitar but when unplugged i wanna be able to hear some acoustic and not a Tuna can.My budget is around $800
I have in mind Epi Regent NT finish mostly.And Brodway any suggestions are welcome.Sorry if similar posts are posted for a 100 times.

I don't know those Epi's well enough to comment on their acoustic sound (I've played them, but so long ago that I don't really remember what they sounded like) Some electric archtops I do know that have pretty good unplugged sounds in that price neighborhood:

- Godin 5th Ave Kingpin (new, about $650) -- I've got one. Very pleasant unplugged sound that's fairly loud (though not truly an acoustic guitar), especially for one with a pickup attached to the top. The two pickup version is quieter unplugged,
- D'Angelico Excel EXL-1 -- new about $1500, $800-1000-ish used; there's a version of this called the Deluxe which was discontinued, but you can find them for $850-ish. They sound surprisingly good (to me anyway) unplugged; louder than the Godin. The big drawback is they only come in day-glo colors.
- Guild A150 Savoy -- new about $1100, but much less used. Quite nice, similar volume to the D'Angelico. Very skinny neck.

If you can, it's best to try out some, at a minimum to calibrate what you read on line to your sense of what's an OK unplugged sound.

John

[Gitterbug]

I've stuck to my Emperor Regent for 21 years now. With roundwounds, the acoustic sound is not huge but pleasant. You may find the original PU wanting, but don't expect a step change from any other. The Broadway I've only heard being played. Better amplified, worse acoustic than the ER.

[ThatRhythmMan]

In my experience, a Peerless built Emperor Regent is superior to most in that price range for giving an acoustic tone adequate for personal, quiet room playing. Nothing in that price range will be a good acoustic archtop, outside of a good deal on a Loar. The Loar won’t have a pickup though. The Emperor Regent can be rewired to a different schematic to sound much better without changing any of the electronics.

[citizenk74]

Hi everyone,im 50yo musician looking to buy a nice jazz box, acoustically and amp quality must.Not looking for acoustic guitar but when unplugged i wanna be able to hear some acoustic and not a Tuna can.My budget is around $800
I have in mind Epi Regent NT finish mostly.And Brodway any suggestions are welcome.Sorry if similar posts are posted for a 100 times.

I used to play in a duo/trio with a colleague who had an Epi Broadway while I played my Epi Emperor regent. Both were Korean-built of roughly similar vintage. I think you would be happy with either. As John A. points out, the Regent has a slight edge acoustically, while the Broadway has a little more range plugged in, but both are good for performing at normal cafe/club levels. My friend used cello tape on his f-holes to mitigate feedback, I probably should have as well, but feedback was really not an issue at the volumes we played at.

[JGinNJ]

I had a Broadway, recorded acoustically you couldn't tell the difference from my D'Angelico Excel. The Broadway, with 2 mediocre pickups, is a little more versatile for sound choices than the single p/u Regent (or Excel). I like the Excel neck better, it's slimmer.