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No 12 string threads on here that I can find (more 8 string threads???)
Window shopping middle of the road 12 strings. Anyone have any good or bad experiences with any of these? Rickenbacker 360/12 looks great but at $3k plus setup/intonation issues - seems like not a great deal. Although they do sound cool.
Note: links work despite foreboding message
Guild Starfire IV 12-ST
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Reverend Airwave 12-string
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Danelectro 66-12
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Gretsch G5422G-12 Electromatic
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07-12-2022 11:55 AM
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I hate to break this to you but the only 12 string recording I have ever liked was Joe Pass playing 12 string. He did a recording of great motion picture themes. I am sure it was for some commercial success, but I really like the recording. As for 12 string to me they just do not work for jazz given the complex chords and the overtones just make them impossible to use. That is my guess why you will not see much on them here.
As for a 12 string the holds up that is really up for grabs. Probably best to stay with a Martin or Guild. Somewhere I remember reading Guild actually built 12 strings to be able hand the added stress. That is probably true I have yet to had to work on a Guild 12 string.
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Mark I picked up a Guild 12 string years ago to use in church. You are correct it was built like a tank. I think it could have been an excellent weapon. I could not handle going from 6 to 12, I kept trying to use my usual Jazz based chords and between the size of the neck (large, thick) and the string feel I gave up IIRC after one service.
OP it might help us if you can indicate what style music you want to use the 12 for.
jk
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Chord melody! Or if that's a mess, then arpeggiating the standards...
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Well for me in that case a 12 string guitar would be the antithesis of what is needed. Play a 6 string for chordmelody since dominate chords with extension and alterations will not sound good.
Originally Posted by tomems
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I'm tempted to chime in even if I agree with Deacon that a 12-string just doesn't sound right in jazz and brings along a lot of complications. Having said this, I must confess that the 12-string jangle is part of my youth in the 1960s, and a 12-string dreadnought with a PU across the soundhole was my ticket to a rock band where everyone else was a much better player. The early love hasn't died, and I've had both acoustic and electric 12-strings over the past 55 years.
The current one is a Tele clone by Knoxville, a house brand of Gear4Music I believe. It's all solid maple and ash, has individual intonation for each string, decent single-coil PU's and a rock-solid neck. The street price was a whopping 99 GBP, but I paid 50 EUR extra for an expert setup. At a show, a passing luthier put the value at 2,000 EUR. The tone is not as ice-picky as Rickenbackers but clearer than the 335-style takes with humbuckers by e.g. Ibanez or Hagstrom.
Why do I have it? 1) It's part of the testing routine for new speaker cab versions, revealing their sonority and separation better than 6-strings, and 2) because I hope the 1960s band will reunite once more - preferably in this life.Last edited by Gitterbug; 07-12-2022 at 03:20 PM.
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I have one of the masonite (hardboard) Danos. It was pretty cheap but is very good.
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Best of both worlds :
Gibson Custom EDS 1275 CH – Thomann France
but remember that all that glitters is not necessarily gold
For an affordable one, look at the Epiphone "equivalent'
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Ralph Towner has played some beautiful Jazz in a 12 string...
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Here's some viewpoints on the 12 string universe:
They are very beautiful sounding instruments, with so much potential for interesting composition.
They are not easy and require special considerations.
To do any good with a 12 string, you do need to apply time and skills to the instrument. That translates to practice, a special touch, and the desire to do so. It won't be automatic going from 6 to 12 string!
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I have a Korean-made Danelectro 12 string. I believe you can get a similar one for under $500. It plays great and sounds real good. Very comfortable neck for a 12.
I use it for Beatles and Byrds songs in a rock band that I occasionally gig with. The rest of the time it just hangs on the wall and looks pretty...
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Yes, Ralph Towner sprang to mind when I saw this thread. Originally Posted by charleyrich99
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Pat Martino had a go on one.
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I have a great 12 string similar to Ralph's that I was planning on putting up for sale...
1970's US Guild F212xl...
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Here's the Joe Pass album... sounds pretty good to me, esp. for a change of pace:
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Lonnie Johnson played 12-string in the duets with Eddie Lang.
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I have a special fondness for 12-string guitars; my very first new guitar was a German Framus dreadnought (that I still own). Built like a tank and braced so much that it didn't project well without a mic (no built-in electronics). But an ebony fingerboard, with a narrow nut (I have small hands, and this is especially odd for a 12-string). Purchased new in 1971, it's now 51 years old! Weathered, but not beaten.
Along the line, I picked up a Fender Stratocaster XII, but it sits in its case most of the time. I guess I'm more of an acoustic kind of guy.
I thought I was done with 12-strings, but just a couple of months ago, I took my Taylor GS Mini to a well-known shop, and I made the mistake of wandering through their acoustic room. I plinked and plunked on a couple, but then I found myself playing and falling in love with a Taylor Builder's Edition 652ce. It was still there when I went to pick up my GS Mini, so I bought it.
Here's what I love: It's a Grand Concert size, meaning smaller than a dread. It's a 12-fret, reverse-wound (and each pair uses only one bridge pin) spruce top and maple b&S with a wild honeyburst satin finish, armrest, rolled edges, a beveled cutaway. It suits me. I took it out for its maiden voyage at an open mic, and people afterwards exclaimed how well jazz chords sounded on a 12-string!
(Shown here alongside my GS Mini-e Koa)
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My first guitar was a Kay 12-string, purchased new in (probably) 1965, along with an Oak Publications book of Leadbelly songs. It was impossible to keep in tune and didn’t intonate above the fifth fret but I didn’t much mind. I took it with me on a trip to Europe in ‘67 and finally sold it during my first year of university when I had the chance to buy an old National steel 6-string resonator, a pawn shop cheapie in need of a neck replacement. I don’t regret losing the Kay but wish I had been able to keep the National which, in its repaired state, had received the blessing of Bukka White when I took it to a folk festival in the late ‘60s. I gigged with it until it had to go to pay a tuition debt so I could graduate.
Not long after I started to study jazz in the ‘70s I picked up my second 12-string, a blue solid body built by Linda Manzer for Bruce Cockburn, but we didn’t really bond and I sold it on. Then I discovered Lenny Breau and the high-A 7-string, which has been an enthusiasm pretty much ever since.
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For acoustic I use my Ovation 1115 which has a wide 12 fret neck and deep bowl. Tuned to concert pitch but able to resonate below D tuning.
Electric I have a 60s Crown thin hollow body that sounds great with Ibanez Super 70s after trying many things. It is the only guitar I like those pickups in.
Something like an Ibanez solid body plays well, worked for Pat Metheny.
I think 12 strings can be great for jazz but do need some thinking. Fewer notes in the chords as the octaves up will lead the harmony. Very atmospheric.
Currently there are more affordable electric 12s than there used to be so try them. Acoustically besides Ovation and Guild I'd look at Seagull.
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The Dano is surprisingly good for the money.
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I had the jones for a 12-string back in 2020. During the middle of COVID, my band buddy was hosting singalongs on his front porch. Everyone brought a Martin or some other flattop, and I wanted something that would add to the mix.
I got a used Taylor 150e for a good price. It is a quality guitar—flawless workmanship and nice sound. If you want a balance of quality and affordability in an A/E 12-string, I don’t think you’ll find a better deal.
150e Layered Walnut Acoustic-Electric Guitar | Taylor Guitars
I don’t have any experience with the fully electric 12ers, but I have seen pros like Nels Cline, David Gray and Neil Finn playing Danelectros in concert, so I’d take that as an endorsement.
Although I did pick it up to play yesterday, I haven’t really found a niche for the 12er with standard jazz repertoire outside of blues-based stuff like Summertime. As mentioned it takes some creativity to mold to your playing.
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Acoustic, or electric? I think the Riks have very narrow crowded necks.
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This will give you that quintessential 60's 12 string sound.
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Nice colors too. Originally Posted by AllanAllen
As I recall, George Harrison started the craze for 12-string electrics in the 60's. He was given one by the president of Rickenbacker on their '64 US tour. Among other songs, it was played on the song Hard Day's Night.
Roger McGuinn saw George Harrison play that guitar in the film Hard Day's Night, and went out and got his own.
And the rest is history.
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Now talk about a 12 string jazz guitar…. Well definitely check this fine instrument out!
And it’s only 369$ free shipping! A hollow body, cutaway 12 string jazzer….
12 String Semi Hollow Body Electric Guiatr Flamed Maple Veneer Chrome Hardware | eBay
(thinking about buying their 365$ “Byrdland” but that 565mm scale length does give me pause).
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