Plywood Jazz boxes - 13 bought, only 1 remains

[NSJ]

I have owned 2 Gibson Howard Roberts Custom oval holes, 3 Gibson ES-175s, 2 Ibanez GB-10s, 3 Ibanez AS-153s, and 2 Sadowsky Jim Halls.


Only 1 remains; a 2006 blond Sadowsky Jim Hall that I drove down , on a cold winter morning, to Champaign Urbana to buy a few years ago.

Weird how that works. I wonder why the Sadowsky made the cut.

Became it’s instantly playable. The fingerboard, the fretworrk, is great.

I’m curious how many people have bought the same guitar over and over again another words something they gave up on and refused to give up on

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

...

[Sam Sherry]

I’m curious how many people have bought the same guitar over and over again another words something they gave up on and refused to give up on

Yeah, I like to think of it as, "I'm not done learning from this yet."

Right now I've got two guitars which are back for a second spin:
> Fender D'Aquisto Elite, which will be in use at tonight's jam session
> Epiphone Les Paul Signature, a weird mashup of LP and ES-330 with low-impedance pickups

Ah well. Next poster please!

[gitman]

My second guitar ever was a Yamaha Nylonstring , a beginner's model with plywood top and back. It's still here and working hard after 50 years, countless campfires, trips, house moves, sessions and students .... indistructable, stable and surprisingly toneful.
After many fine ones between then and now I'm active with a Trenier lam-top, a Fender D'Aquisto Elite lam-top and a vintage L5 CES. An acoustic archtop would be nice-to-have but I have no use for it on stage so ....
A lam-top/plywood-top guitar has it's rightful place and when done correctly it sounds just fine and will serve it's purpose. Cheaply/badly built solid-wood guitars are just that, regardless of the wood they are made of.

[ruger9]

...

hahahaha

[RJVB]

The thread title made me think I could ask how much it'd cost me for you to fold up the remaining one and put a stamp on it ... oh well ...

[GuyBoden]

I think that within reason, any guitar can be setup to play well by a qualified person.

Good sounding guitars are personal taste IMHO.

[RJVB]

And that's even more true for an e-guitar.

Re: laminates ... I learnt recently (rather to my surprise) that a concert grade classical guitar is likely to have a laminate back because it's stiffer.

[TedBPhx]

Taylor calls it Layered

...

[gitman]

And that's even more true for an e-guitar.

Re: laminates ... I learnt recently (rather to my surprise) that a concert grade classical guitar is likely to have a laminate back because it's stiffer.

The stiffness per se is not the main issue for the back, much more so for the sides : THESE are often doubled up for rigidity and they also add nothing to the tone or volume of the guitar. Most cheaper guitars though have solid sides since they are much easier to bend. Bending plywood is pretty much impossible or at least very difficult and labour-intensive. Many modern (high end) classical guitars have laminated/sandwich TOPS : in between two very thin veneers of spruce sits a wafer of graphite mesh which weighs next to nothing but adds a lot of stiffness, thereby reducing the normally needed thickness and also the number of the braces. There is a lot of innovation going on in the field of classical guitars ….

[yebdox]

Originally Posted by RJVB
And that's even more true for an e-guitar.


Re: laminates ... I learnt recently (rather to my surprise) that a concert grade classical guitar is likely to have a laminate back because it's stiffer.

Wow, timely reassurance! I’m looking at buying a 7 string nylon Bartolex, which come that way, I figured it was a cost saving measure, rather than a functional feature! Got inspired by some of the Brazilian players I listen to, but that clip of Antoine Boyer playing that Bill Evans tune evoked a need to explore a different direction!

[John A.]

I've never bought the same guitar more than once. I did have a Les Paul Studio DC for a long time that I eventually sold. I would't want that again (because it has a 24 fret neck, which I've come to realize is a show-stopper for me), but I could see (and do toy with) getting a "real" LP at some point. Maybe after I get my kid through college ...

I've had "only" three archtops (a lot in the real world, a pittance in Guitarforumland), all laminated tops, B&S, but all quite a bit different from each other. That journey has been based on trying to figure out whether or not I really want an archtop, and if so how "serious" a one to get. So in a sense, I have bought the "same" thing (laminated archtop) out of the same sort of maybe-yes, maybe-no thought process that might cause people to buy the literal same model over and over. But each of these guitars has been different enough that I've learned something about different aspects of archtops specifically and guitars in general from them.

First was a Samick HF650, which I had for many years, but was never completely happy with it. I wound up getting a semi (D'Angelico) in place of that and the LP Studio DC. I was happy with that (it especially clarified what I didn't like about the two guitars it replaced), and didn't pine for an archtop. Then someone here offered up a Godin Kingpin for trade and accepted my offer of a couple of pedals, so I figured why not? I got a ton of use out of that and really enjoyed it, to the point that I felt finally ready to commit to an archtop as my main jazz guitar and understood what I liked and didn't like a lot better.

After trying a great many different archtops of different sizes. woods, configurations, ages, and price points (lam, carved, pressed, set-in, floater, vintage, newer, ranging from a few hundred $'s to many thousands of $'s), I wound up with a Seventy Seven Hawk Jazz (deep). I bought it based on specs, demos, and conversations rather than actually trying it (they're never in stores), so that was a bit of a risk. But I've had it for going on 3 years, and I think I'm done with looking for archtops, Unless my tastes and requirements change radically, I can't see wanting anything else. It's by far the best made instrument I've ever had, and it sounds great. Another might sound a but different in some subtle way, but I can't conceive any guitar being better. If I ever do sell it, I'm fairly confident I would regret that and try to buy another, but this particular one is uniquely customized so I'll likely never find another. Not worth the risk, so I'll just skip all that and keep it.

[Stringswinger]

I have owned 113 guitars at this point (starting in 1968) and currently own 20 of those. It does seem that there are several "types" of guitars that I keep buying and in fact mostly own multiples of. IMO, this is good as it means that I have figured out what i like. Why do I have multiples of some? That is an easy answer, I like them and I have the resources and space to own multiples. Why do i have different "types"? Because they scratch a different musical itch. The truth is that they are my art collection. If I wanted to, I could probably pair down to one electric guitar and one acoustic guitar. But I don't want to.

Here is what I have by type at present:

Classical guitar (1)
Gypsy guitar (2)
Telecaster (1)
Stratocaster (3)
Les Paul (2)
ES-175 (3)
L-5 (6)
Super 400 (2)

Those "types" will get me through the rest of my days and I might acquire more up the road. I have given up the bass guitar, flattop guitar, thin-line guitars and guitars with more than 6 strings. I have also given up keyboards, reed instruments and the mandolin. Being a decent jazz guitarist takes all that I have got. And all of my guitar "types" are pretty good for me in the world of jazz guitar,

[lammie200]

The only guitars that I have multiples are:

1 Herb Ellis ES-165 BJB floater
1 Herb Ellis ES-165 490r set humbucker
1 Tele solid one piece ash partscaster with a Seth Lover neck humbucker
1 Tele semi hollow maple top/alder body partscaster with a Dimarzio Area T set
1 Tele semi hollow maple top/mahogany body partscaster with a SD PAF Pro II neck humbucker (Gibson scale neck)
1 Tele semi hollow mahogany top/alder body partscaster with cheap Guitar Fetish noiseless bridge pickup and a fretless neck

I have tried a few lower end models and traded up. Epiphone Casino to a Gibson ES-390. Epiphone Zephyr Regent to a Herb Ellis.

[wintermoon]

I have owned 113 guitars at this point (starting in 1968) and currently own 20 of those

Wow, you've been keeping track! I'm not sure I even want to know how many I've had.

[Stringswinger]

Wow, you've been keeping track! I'm not sure I even want to know how many I've had.

A few years ago, I decided to make a list before any senior memory issues arose

[wintermoon]

A few years ago, I decided to make a list before any senior memory issues arose

If you can remember what you've had over 55 yrs you're a better man than I Gunga Din.
I can't remember what I had for dinner last night.
Wait a minute, it was a turkey sandwich......I think

[sgcim]

You're all just children compared to the guy I bought my Borys Jazz Solid from.
He bought 179 guitars, and he still has them all!!!!
He had five other Jazz Solids, and all different boutique axes I've never heard of, but the majority are Strats.
How many Strats can you own?
He told me his wife was bugging him about there being no room in the house because it was filled with guitars.
The funny thing was he seemed to have no idea that she might be right!
He tells me on the phone,"Gee, she's really changed."
Something tells me Northern California is a very strange place...

[skiboyny]

Wow 6 L-5! So your the guy scooped most of them up.

I have owned 113 guitars at this point (starting in 1968) and currently own 20 of those. It does seem that there are several "types" of guitars that I keep buying and in fact mostly own multiples of. IMO, this is good as it means that I have figured out what i like. Why do I have multiples of some? That is an easy answer, I like them and I have the resources and space to own multiples. Why do i have different "types"? Because they scratch a different musical itch. The truth is that they are my art collection. If I wanted to, I could probably pair down to one electric guitar and one acoustic guitar. But I don't want to.

Here is what I have by type at present:

Classical guitar (1)
Gypsy guitar (2)
Telecaster (1)
Stratocaster (3)
Les Paul (2)
ES-175 (3)
L-5 (6)
Super 400 (2)

Those "types" will get me through the rest of my days and I might acquire more up the road. I have given up the bass guitar, flattop guitar, thin-line guitars and guitars with more than 6 strings. I have also given up keyboards, reed instruments and the mandolin. Being a decent jazz guitarist takes all that I have got. And all of my guitar "types" are pretty good for me in the world of jazz guitar,

[John A.]

I have owned 113 guitars at this point (starting in 1968) and currently own 20 of those. It does seem that there are several "types" of guitars that I keep buying and in fact mostly own multiples of. IMO, this is good as it means that I have figured out what i like. Why do I have multiples of some? That is an easy answer, I like them and I have the resources and space to own multiples. Why do i have different "types"? Because they scratch a different musical itch. The truth is that they are my art collection. If I wanted to, I could probably pair down to one electric guitar and one acoustic guitar. But I don't want to.

Here is what I have by type at present:

Classical guitar (1)
Gypsy guitar (2)
Telecaster (1)
Stratocaster (3)
Les Paul (2)
ES-175 (3)
L-5 (6)
Super 400 (2)

Those "types" will get me through the rest of my days and I might acquire more up the road. I have given up the bass guitar, flattop guitar, thin-line guitars and guitars with more than 6 strings. I have also given up keyboards, reed instruments and the mandolin. Being a decent jazz guitarist takes all that I have got. And all of my guitar "types" are pretty good for me in the world of jazz guitar,

Wow, 113 is a lot of guitars. I thought you had multiple D’Angelicos? Do you not have those anymore?

[Stringswinger]

You guys need to read between the lines a bit better. I was listing types. Not particular models per se. My three D'ANGELICO guitars are 17 inch carved archtops and are therefore L-5 type guitars.. I have 2 actual Gibson L-5's.