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I was reading an earlier thread on "best jazz guitar" and wondering how many here have all the bases covered with an Archtop, semi and a hollow body, or similar--is one jazz guitar really enough? Does the choice or does a collection come down to genre preference, say archtops for traditional standards and a semi-hollow / hollow for other? I'm playing a 2015 Super 400 and while the tone and feel are outstanding, so is my JSM100, at a fraction of the cost. Do I want both, yes! Do I need both, maybe...
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12-12-2021 05:32 PM
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[Hey Tom -- and don't forget teles!]
The easy answer: play what you want to play (and can afford)! When I used to play classical, I only had one guitar; for jazz (and the funk/horn band I play with), I like having options. Guitars (and amps/cabs) are fun!
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I had a time when I had 15 guitars.
I currently have 7 guitars.
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Funny same here for classical. Just one great one is enough. (Antonio Marin-Montero)
Otherwise 3 MIJ Ibanez arch tops; 2 Indo archies to kick around. Gibson archies L5 and a TF.
Not a semi, flat top or (shudder) tele is allowed in this house.
I do get a bit frustrated thinking of which to use when, but they’re all wonderful in their own ways.
Total 7 jazzers.
Does my old HS LeBlanc Woody Herman model clarinet count?
Eh, suppose not
jk
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+1
Originally Posted by jazzkritter
Funny same here for classical. Just one great one is enough. (Antonio Marin-Montero)
Otherwise 3 MIJ Ibanez arch tops; 2 Indo archies to kick around. Gibson archies L5 and a TF.
Not a semi, flat top or (shudder) tele is allowed in this house.
I do get a bit frustrated thinking of which to use when, but they’re all wonderful in their own ways.
Total 7 jazzers.
Does my old HS LeBlanc Woody Herman model clarinet count?
Eh, suppose not
jk
7 jazz boxes is an excellent result.
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It also has to do with the usage, bands you 're playing in, gigs or not etc. I would love to play my archtops, but with both of my two jazz gigging bands (organ trios) a semi hollow is much more practical and comfortable, so i use a 335. I have two archtops, an electric style and an acoustic style. Oddly enough my only strict preference on jazz guitars is the gibson 24 3/4 scale, and none of them have it. So ... i see a new archtop sometime in my future hehe..
..but i keep buying different stuff. Also for me, once you get a few really great guitars, you kinda begin to see and hear the differences in quality between price ranges, and guitar buying becomes quite an expensive thing.. especially if you are left handed and living in Europe..
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I have a couple nice carved top guitars, a laminate archtop, a Les Paul Recording and a Fender Telecaster.
The laminated archtop, a 1983 Epiphone Emperor F does 90% of the gigs
It's not overly prone to feedback but still has a nice acoustic quality about it. The laminates are fairly thin compared to what a modern Gibson has.
I love the projection and acoustic power of a fine acoustic carved top guitar but most of my gigs call for an electric sound. The carved top guitars sound great amplified (they have floating pickukps) but feedback becomes a big problem in some situations. Unfortunately it seems the better the guitar sounds acoustically, the more likely it'll have problems with feedback.
I've had semi-hollow guitars in the past but I found they sounded more like a solid body than an archtop.
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None. The neighbours would complain.
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yes, "wonderful in their own ways" is the takeaway here. Good point. Thank you. Originally Posted by jazzkritter
Funny same here for classical. Just one great one is enough. (Antonio Marin-Montero)
Otherwise 3 MIJ Ibanez arch tops; 2 Indo archies to kick around. Gibson archies L5 and a TF.
Not a semi, flat top or (shudder) tele is allowed in this house.
I do get a bit frustrated thinking of which to use when, but they’re all wonderful in their own ways.
Total 7 jazzers.
Does my old HS LeBlanc Woody Herman model clarinet count?
Eh, suppose not
jk
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Sorta like girlfriends.
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Agreed, entirely. Originally Posted by jazzkritter
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I guess if I had to have just one, it would probably be a semi hollow. They look and sound appropriate in any genre; at least to me.
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It is hard to find one electric guitar that can do it all, I know that I need at least two for the sounds I base my music on: one nylon-string electric (Godin Multiac 7-string) and one "arch top" electric, a thin hollow-bodied Gretsch 5422 Electromatic, a tone machine that for me, offers much more than most conventional "jazz" guitars yet maintains the feel we get used to playing Gibson and Ibanez "jazz" models, the difference being in the pickup design. However if one is happy with one basic sound, then one should seek out the guitar that produces that. I hear different tonalities for different types of tune or for functional reasons like working with a singer or a more fusion or blues-oriented "jazz" group. In the end there is no "best jazz guitar", just what's best for you, which no doubt will change as you develop as a player. I've owned a couple Gibson L5s, usually at the top of the list for "best jazz guitar", and I was always impressed by the Rolls-Royce quality of the instrument, but it was never really right for me. And with a Super 400 and a JSM 100, perhaps you're all set.
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I believe genre preferences are of big importance as per style and sound. Then the ergonomics for an individual fit for playability.. Originally Posted by tomvwash
A guitar as a tool..Last edited by Nick71; 12-13-2021 at 04:22 AM.
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maybe a short neck 330 would be a
good do-it-all guitar ?
I used to use a 335 which sang
beautifully high up
but it was a bit too solid sounding for me in the middle of the range of
the instrument
I now use an Ibanez af120 with some
internal damping as my do-it-all ....
it nearly .... works for me
I’m gonna go down a gauge to make
bending a bit more comfortable
we’ll see if that works
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I have both a semi and a hollow body. I do other stuff with overdriven sounds, so I can't get by with just a hollow body. But I can get by with just a semi (and did so for a long time, alongside a strat). But I like having a little variety, plus a hollow body is great for (relatively) quiet unplugged practicing. So it's definitely not a necessity, and If I could only have one it would be a semi, but it's nice to have options.
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In this context; -What's the difference between a "hollowbody" and an "archtop"?
-Maybe you refer to a "flat top acoustic" as a hollowbody?
Are there hollowbodys that are not archtops? Does an archtop have to be hand carved? -Is it about the bridge, the tailpiece, the pickups or the curvature of the top (or the back)? Or is it about the top wood material (spruce, ply etc.). depth or make/price?
If so, I would challenge anybody to tell the amplified difference between an "archtop" and a "hollowbody". A semi is another bred though, especially if it's got a stop tail.
There's a huge diff between a 335 and and archtop. A 335 is a nice jazz guitar, but so is a Les Paul (and there's not much of a differenece). An archtop/hollowbody with a trapeze tail and a wooden bridge and a single P-90 PU is a real Jazz guitar (because it's not optimal for anything else).
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Overdrive, delay and wah wah work just fine with my archtop (1950 ES-125):
Whereas a tele has a great tone for jazz:
I'm not so bound by a certain type of guitar for specific music styles anymore. I used to be, but it was mainly in my head.
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Yes, it is! (In my opinion) Originally Posted by pingu
Last edited by Little Jay; 12-13-2021 at 01:08 PM.
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In context archtop and hollow body are synonyms. Originally Posted by JCat
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Technically ES 335's and Les Paul's are also archtops.
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Right, but if you say to someone "Hey I just got a new archtop," very few people will assume you got one of those. And if we want to get technical about it, most flattops are actually slightly arched (either as an effect of string tension, or by design, e.g., Sel-macs). The term has a generally understood meaning in the world of guitar nerds. Originally Posted by Tal_175
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I agree with you in the case of Les Paul's. But ES 335's are semi-hollow, thinline archtops, ES 330's are fully hollow, thinline archtops etc. In fact, ES 175's, ES 330's, ES 335's etc. are all constructed in the same way in the Gibson factory (except for their dimensions and center block). I think I have seen some boutique makers put their semi-hollows in the archtop category. But yes, most will assume archtops without further qualification to be fully hollow. Originally Posted by John A.
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I have two jazzers, a carved top and a laminate.
But what guitars you need depends on whether or not you are gigging, and what kind of gigs.
When I was gigging a lot in a variety of settings, it was a semi-hollow for me (a '60 ES345, wish I still had it!).
A semi can cover all bases, but will not quite get to that fat hollow body sound.
Sometimes you need to compromise to get gigs! Unless you are one of the fortunate few who can play jazz 100% of the time. Few are able to do that if professional. Even amateurs might need to rock/funk out once in a while, especially if playing with friends!
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Pay no attention to the 'Tele cultists' Tom. If they come knocking at your door, simply turn them away. Engaging them in conversation only encourages them Originally Posted by marcwhy
[Hey Tom -- and don't forget teles!]
The easy answer: play what you want to play (and can afford)! When I used to play classical, I only had one guitar; for jazz (and the funk/horn band I play with), I like having options. Guitars (and amps/cabs) are fun!
Play whatever makes you want to play more or compose the best songs.
Ultimately 4 guitars would be ideal.
A classical, Folk, Archtop (full) and a solid body or semi hollow. That way you've got all your basis covered and you're not restricted.
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