More Praise for Mark Campellone

[Mark M.]

I know that Mark is already held in the highest esteem here on the forum, and the Standard he built for me last September is an incredible guitar. However, I started to notice some sort of reaction happening to the pickguard a few months ago (see pic below). I brought it to Mark’s attention and he immediately offered to re-sand or replace it. I waited a couple of months and when I noticed it getting worse I decided to send the pickguard and assembly to Mark. He indicated he has seen it happen occasionally before. The pickguard material is stable for years in the shop bu may have a reaction to the nitro as it cures. After seeing how easy it was to remove the whole assembly I asked Mark to build me a second assembly, this time with a Lollar gold foil that I could swap out with the original Vintage Vibe floating CC the guitar came with. I had a hard time deciding between the two when I first ordered the guitar, so having both seemed like a good idea. Mark agreed, since he would have the original assembly to use a model for getting the angle and placement of the pickup right. He also offered to install an RCA jack between the end pin jack and the pickup(s) so changing them would be even easier. In addition, per my request, he replaced the original 500k pots on the CC assembly with 250k pots. This required placing the controls on the pickguard vs underneath w/thumbwheels as originally installed. I ordered the Lollar and had it shipped to Mark, and I received both pickup/pickguard assemblies today from Mark.

Since I was most curious about the gold foil, I installed that one first and I’m stunned by how great it sounds! It’s clear, articulate, and very warm and quiet for a single coil pickup. The sound is amazing! This is the sound I have had in my head but could never find with any combination of high end Gibsons or other boutique instruments and pickups. The search is over! I am also looking forward to trying out the CC again, this time with the intended specs for the pots. If it’s anything like the gold foil, I expect much improved taper of both the volume and tone and a much warmer tone. I liked the CC before, but had some trouble managing the brightness with the 500k pots. I’ll try to post a comparison video in the near future, if and when I can bring myself to stop playing it with the gold foil.

So, here’s yet another story about Mark’s great customer service, artistry, and great knowledge. I couldn’t be happier with the results.

[vinnyv1k]

A Campellone signature means more to me then a Hutch signature inside the F hole.
Total stand up guy and a great friend. Love his heavy Boston accent too.

[JazzNote]

Since I was most curious about the gold foil, I installed that one first and I’m stunned by how great it sounds! It’s clear, articulate, and very warm and quiet for a single coil pickup. The sound is amazing! This is the sound I have had in my head but could never find with any combination of high end Gibsons or other boutique instruments and pickups. The search is over! I am also looking forward to trying out the CC again, this time with the intended specs for the pots. If it’s anything like the gold foil, I expect much improved taper of both the volume and tone and a much warmer tone. I liked the CC before, but had some trouble managing the brightness with the 500k pots. I’ll try to post a comparison video in the near future, if and when I can bring myself to stop playing it with the gold foil.

Hi Mark,
I enjoyed reading your post. Can you tell something about output of the Lollar Gold Foil pickup. Generally floaters have less output than regular size pickups. I've been told by Kent Armstrong that this is due to the smaller size magnets. How do these Gold Foils compare in terms of output to a regular single coil, or a humbucker?
TIA

[Mark M.]

Hi Mark,
I enjoyed reading your post. Can you tell something about output of the Lollar Gold Foil pickup. Generally floaters have less output than regular size pickups. I've been told by Kent Armstrong that this is due to the smaller size magnets. How do these Gold Foils compare in terms of output to a regular single coil, or a humbucker?
TIA

JN: Yes, it definitely has less output than a HB or a P90. It may be even less output than my floating CC, but now that I can make an A/B between the two with the proper pots. I have read that gold foils use magnets that are similar to refrigerator magnets. They were the cheap pickups back in the 50’s and 60’s. Apparently, the quality of vintage gold foils varies considerably. Some are great, some not so great. I’m certainly happy with the Lollar floating gold foil so far. As I said, the sound is perfect - warm and not too bright but with excellent clarity and articulation. The sweet spot on my guitar seems to be volume on full, tone at about 50% and EQ on the Henriksen Blu 10 set at 12 o’clock for everything but the high mids, which I have dialed back to about 8 o’clock. I plan to experiment more later today, but so far that setting is spot on where I like it. On my solid 17” Campellone I think it will be hard to beat, though I’m looking forward to trying the CC again as well.

With either the CC or the gold foil, this guitar is just right for solo chord melody or playing in a duo with another guitar or bass, etc. The low output may present a challenge with a bigger group, especially involving a loud drummer. In comparison, my Trenier has a built in Lollar Imperial HB and it has a lot of volume, easily twice the power of either of my floating single coils. Hope this helps.

[Mark M.]

…I should add that whoever suggested in another thread to turn the high mids way down on the Henriksen was genius! That’s where I’m finding the sweetest tone on my Trenier as well.

[PDeville]

…I should add that whoever suggested in another thread to turn the high mids way down on the Henriksen was genius! That’s where I’m finding the sweetest tone on my Trenier as well.

I would like to hear a sound sample of the Campellone guitar and the pickup. Looks nice.

[Stringswinger]

…I should add that whoever suggested in another thread to turn the high mids way down on the Henriksen was genius! That’s where I’m finding the sweetest tone on my Trenier as well.

That was Oomph's suggestion. I know that he likes the Fender scooped mids sound. After reading about how much you liked it, I decided to try it. Today, I played a concert in Healdsburg, California with my Campellone and I was using my Blu 10. I tried a tune with the high mids turned all the way down. Not for me. Glad it works for you and Oomph. It might work well for others. It seems I like the mid heavy sound of a Polytone or Henriksen just fine.

And speaking of more praise for Mark Campellone, I will soon do a thread about my real world gigging experiences with a Campellone. IMO, a better archtop guitar cannot be had. If Bryant Trenier is the modern day Jimmy D'Aquisto, Mark Campellone is the modern day John D'Angelico. And that is no hyperbole. As an owner of several vintage D'Angelicos, I should know.

[jorgemg1984]

That was Oomph's suggestion. I know that he likes the Fender scooped mids sound. After reading about how much you liked it, I decided to try it. Today, I played a concert in Healdsburg, California with my Campellone and I was using my Blu 10. I tried a tune with the high mids turned all the way down. Not for me. Glad it works for you and Oomph. It might work well for others. It seems I like the mid heavy sound of a Polytone or Henriksen just fine.

And speaking of more praise for Mark Campellone, I will soon do a thread about my real world gigging experiences with a Campellone. IMO, a better archtop guitar cannot be had. If Bryant Trenier is the modern day Jimmy D'Aquisto, Mark Campellone is the modern day John D'Angelico. And that is no hyperbole. As an owner of several vintage D'Angelicos, I should know.

I think the Fender scooped mids would be turning the low-mids (420hz) down, not the hi-mids (1.6k). The last time I tried an henriksen, I also enjoyed turning the hi-mids down, less ice-pick, but it should be very guitar dependent.

Would love to hear those thoughts on gigging with the Campellone, they seem like great guitars.

[Mark M.]

I’m very interested in Stringswinger’s observations as well.

[Stringswinger]

I’m very interested in Stringswinger’s observations as well.

I will be doing a couple of gigs this week with the Campy and by next week, I should have my thoughts together enough to do an informative post.

I am surprised that the Campellone archtops have not been more visible in the front lines of the jazz guitar world. My guess is that these guitars are too traditional for some and that the cats who are stuck on tradition are also stuck on the Gibson models.

I will say this, the Campy that I am playing is a cross between a Gibson L-5C/L-7 and a Gibson Johnny Smith with the balanced response all across the fretboard of a D'Angelico. I am usually somewhat underwhelmed by most luthier built archtops that I play. This one has exceeded expectations quite a bit. More to come......

[frabarmus]

I am surprised that the Campellone archtops have not been more visible in the front lines of the jazz guitar world.

The late Garrison Fewell played one (as well as his Gibson L5 with a florentine cutaway).

[floatingpickup]

I will be doing a couple of gigs this week with the Campy and by next week, I should have my thoughts together enough to do an informative post.

I am surprised that the Campellone archtops have not been more visible in the front lines of the jazz guitar world. My guess is that these guitars are too traditional for some and that the cats who are stuck on tradition are also stuck on the Gibson models.

I will say this, the Campy that I am playing is a cross between a Gibson L-5C/L-7 and a Gibson Johnny Smith with the balanced response all across the fretboard of a D'Angelico. I am usually somewhat underwhelmed by most luthier built archtops that I play. This one has exceeded expectations quite a bit. More to come......

Stringswinger:
It’s nice that you have joined the Campellone club. I first met Mark a number of years ago, at the early Long Island Guitar Shows. I was very impressed with the guitars he brought each year, including his first Cameo. My brother had a guitar shop at the time and he became one of Mark’s small number of dealers. Every time a new Campellone was delivered to his shop, I rushed out to see it before the lucky customer came to pick it up. During that time, I became quite aware of how wonderful Mark’s guitars are. One day, a customer brought a natural Deluxe back on a trade and I bought it. It was an incredible guitar. I eventually decided I wanted the the extra bling of a Special, so I got my name on Mark’s list. A few weeks before my Special arrived, I let a guy talk me into selling him my Deluxe. I regret that decision. I love my Special, but I wish I had kept both. I have owned lots of high end archtops, including an original D’Angelico, and I also believe Mark’s guitars are as good or better than anything. He is a delight to deal with and his workmanship is incredible. I look forward to your post-gig report.
Keith

[Max405]

Mark M, you are a classy dude.
Floating Pickup and Stringswinger, it is so great hearing what’s been said all along by our guy Vinny, directly from pro players like yourselves. That’s the kind of backing that really resonates with people.
I can’t wait to see the article SS.
JD