That's hands down the most beautiful PRS finish I've ever seen.
That's hands down the most beautiful PRS finish I've ever seen.
If we'd known we were going to be the Beatles, we'd have tried harder.--George Harrison
Wow! I keep telling myself I need to have a PRS. They are some fine-looking (and sounding) guitars!
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
a couple years ago, I bought a 2018 MIC Squier Tele neck unused never installed as a backup to my main Squier (frets are wearing flat and refretting costs more than a new neck) and a possible candidate for a build in progress. However, in the process of attempting to smooth out the edges of the pristine nut, I all but obliterated the high E slot. A forum member had a similar neck ordered but it never showed, forgot about it until it appeared one day. It's the same neck I bought, and flamier to boot. It should be arriving tomorrow. This time I'm keeping my grubby mitts off the nut.
"Live and learn and flip the burns"
Posted more detail in the "ALL the Other Brands" topic area. 48 hours? Well, it was more like 18 months, but it arrived last evening, and after letting it sit in the box overnight, I pulled it out like a kid at Christmas. Ladeez and Genlmens, I present to you, my custom-made Stephen Holst archtop:
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
Congrats, OS. PLay it in good health.
That is one pretty guitar...
********************************
"Do you call sleeping with a guitar in your hands practicing?"
"It is if you don't drop it."
- Trent Lane, Daria, Episode 1-2.
Beautiful!!!
nice. did a double take, the strings almost looked like they were nylon. and to think I had a good eye checkup yesterday, too.
"Live and learn and flip the burns"
Nope. Double-take well deserved. Those are Thomastik-Infeld George Benson roundwounds (GR112). $45.95 a set at Sweetwater. They play like nylon!Originally Posted by DanTheBluesMan
nice. did a double take, the strings almost looked like they were nylon. and to think I had a good eye checkup yesterday, too.
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
got an email yesterday from Manchester Music Mill about their latest shipment of Squier. One was a mini P-bass in Dakota Red. Then somebody posted about buying one for their grandson on Squier Talk. I checked the Nashua GC and they were in stock. Went today to check one out, they didn't have any on the wall so they brought one out from the back room. I got to be the first person playing it. Dang thing was practically in tune. Really decent approximation of a P bass. 5 lb. 14.7 ounces. Fits in a gig bag. Speaking of which, they went up 20 dollars from the last time I bought one. Either that or I bought the last one on sale.
"Live and learn and flip the burns"
Finally spent some gift cards I've neglected for a while - none of these are that exciting, but...
1. A music nomad string winder - Pricier than a string winder should be I think, but its sturdy and operates really smooth.
2. Syringe of nut sauce - A band-aid. I need to have a nut cut by someone who knows what they are doing and need to replace a bridge as well, but since I'd never used any product like this, thought I would give it a whirl.
3. A pack of coated strings - I remember not liking them, but it has been a decade or more since I'd played them so I'm giving them a go again to see if I've changed my mind.
4. Wire and switchcraft pancake 1/4" plugs - to make a new speaker harness for my DR.
5. Some thumb picks which I am going to try out for the first time. I've been using a traditional flat pick for travis picking style bass notes, so I'm going to have to reassign some fingers.
6. A couple books on tube amplifiers.
Just bought the Live Ready Sound Acoustic Dream module for Overloud's TH-U Amp Sim program. Back when I was recording in my den in Milpitas, I recorded a bunch of songs using the Roland VG-88 guitar modeling system, and a Roland-Ready Strat. Some of the patches in the VG-88 still sound pretty good, but most of their acoustic guitar simulations, once you stripped off the tons of digital reverb and chorus or delay effects sound like the equivalent of an acoustic with a really bad piezo pickup.
I was reading a thread at Gearspace on how to improve the tone of acoustic guitars recorded through their piezo pickups, and a few people suggested acoustic guitar impulse response models. I had no idea such things existed! And it really does sound much more realistic than the VG-88 acoustic guitar sound, particularly for an acoustic guitar that will be in the midst of a song with drums, synths, an electric rhythm guitar, etc.
Having spent the last couple of years updating my old tunes with new acoustic guitar parts, I'm also really glad I didn't discover acoustic guitar IRs until now -- actually playing guitar and recording it kept whatever chops I have together far more than simply slapping a plugin on the old parts!
That's a knockout!Posted more detail in the "ALL the Other Brands" topic area. 48 hours? Well, it was more like 18 months, but it arrived last evening, and after letting it sit in the box overnight, I pulled it out like a kid at Christmas. Ladeez and Genlmens, I present to you, my custom-made Stephen Holst archtop:
That looks great! I've been really impressed by the build quality on the two Squiers I bought in the last couple of years.got an email yesterday from Manchester Music Mill about their latest shipment of Squier. One was a mini P-bass in Dakota Red. Then somebody posted about buying one for their grandson on Squier Talk. I checked the Nashua GC and they were in stock. Went today to check one out, they didn't have any on the wall so they brought one out from the back room. I got to be the first person playing it. Dang thing was practically in tune. Really decent approximation of a P bass. 5 lb. 14.7 ounces. Fits in a gig bag. Speaking of which, they went up 20 dollars from the last time I bought one. Either that or I bought the last one on sale.
I splurged on a Mini Maton:
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
Wow, very nice! Maton is the "official" guitar of Tommy Emmanuel. You're in good company!I splurged on a Mini Maton:
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
Yessir! It's a mini scale acoustic but it sounds so big!
I will start another thread with more pics here in a minute.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
I really like that! I've not played a Maton, but I own several mini-sized guitars, including a Martin LX1RE, a Gretsch G9500 "Jim Dandy" and my carbon fiber KLŌS (which got me started on the mini size). I went to the Maton web site looking for specs, but other than the scale and neck radius, there isn't much more than "Body size: Mini." Upon reading the scale (57.78cm [22.7"]) I was astounded! How small is this guitar, anyway?
My KLŌS has a scale of 24.75". The Martin is 23." The Jim Dandy is 24." Of course, the KLŌS is carbon fiber, the Martin is Spruce top and Rosewood HPL back and sides, and the Gretsch is "basswood." The Maton appears to be spruce and maple. No HPL. That's a winner!
Of course, Reverb has them listed at considerably more than the others, but that's not a surprise. What I'd like to know (and perhaps see) is how it sounds, and how large (small) it is!
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
Well, it's significantly smaller than a Strat. It sounds big though. 19 frets.
I'll try to grab a pic next to my Strat for you
I think there's some Australian Blackwood in it which is probably why it sounds so much bigger than it looks
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
Let’s see if this works. A new to me Martin 000
Mark
Crap didn’t work. Here’s the linkLet’s see if this works. A new to me Martin 000
https://imgur.com/gallery/jt2SZKH
Mark
Nice! Is that pickup stock, or an add-on?
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
Some years back at the Wintergrass festival there was a Maton booth set up in the vendors' hall. The guy had 5 or so, & I think I played every one. Great guitars. Very robust sounding, but so light, too. Crisp. Like what I imagine a guitar would sound like if it were made of crystal
It’s an add-on. I’ll probably remove it and put in a Baggs Anthem or K&K system.
Mark
I was looking for a guitar that had the body of a tele, neck of a strat, three humbuckers. Split coil and Wired and potted so they can sound like tele, strat, richenbacher (sp?), Les , jazz, zitar, , Gibson acoustic (almost)....nice tuners, rosewood fretboard, C neck? Silky. Trem bar, rarely used, but there. Seven way switch more out of the way. Knobs slightly shorter and slight mushroom tops. All gold plated hardware. More strat like controls than tele. Big fat luscious strap. Slung High. Christmas lights under the translucent pickguard and little lighting in the head, with a smoke pot and Lazer beam to point at the cat....
The "Swiss Army Knife" of guitars!
"When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."
That's a really great way to describe it! It is VERY light but sounds big.
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
I'm a fan of small sizes and form factors. My first guitar amp was a Pignose 7-100 plug-in/battery powered portable that I used to sling over my shoulder one way and my guitar over the other and play away. I still have it and it still works!
But times change. Even though I have larger amps, I currently use a Line6 AMPLIFi 30, which the company has discontinued. It too, still works, but I fear support for it is dwindling.
So, I learned about Positive Grid and their Spark amp. I almost pulled the trigger on one, but held off because my Line6 is still working and I'm comfortable with how it operates. Then, the company introduced the Spark MINI. Smaller than the original Spark, but still accessible via app (iOS/Android) and doubles as a Bluetooth speaker. They had an introductory offer which included a swappable grill, so I took the leap. Ten watts, two speakers (plus one passive radiator), onboard 33 Amp Models, 43 Effects (Noise Gate, Compressor, Distortion, Modulation/EQ, Delay, Reverb) all in a tight 5.76 x 4.84 x 6.49 inch form factor.
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
I have the same pignose, not functioning (nephew destroyed the 9v jack by pushing the plug too hard).
seeing the spark mini next to it really shows how small it is. Battery powered?
"Live and learn and flip the burns"
Yes. It charges via a USB cable. It takes USB-C and comes with a cable to connect to standard USB-A. This means you can use a computer as an audio source as well. Three hours to charge from zero, and eight hours on battery (at low to medium sound, they say).
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
Bought qty 2 LR Baggs Anthem systems. (Got 20 or so off of each buying multiples).
One will go into the new to me Martin 000 to replace the Fishman mag pup in it. The other will go into my Guild 12 string. That came with a cheap Fishman UST that never worked (got the guitar used). Got a replacement system from Guild (very minimal cost) and it never worked either.
On the horizon , my Guild JR is very close in size to the Martin. May let that go and get the equivalent Guild Jumbo (to match my 12). If I do that, and if I like the Anthem system, 2 more to be ordered. One for the forecasted Guild, and another for the Alvarez Bluegrass dreadnaught.
I have 3 way K&Ks that I really like, but they dont do those anymore except by custom order. In fact there is no onboard K&K preamp anymore unless custom. I hope I like the Anthem. Been doing research for months and listening to systems for hours on the studio monitors. I think I’ll be satisfied.
Mark
I picked up a 2012 Fender American Std. Tele and Mesa Express amp for a great price this morning. The guy threw in an amp stand and overdrive pedal. I was looking for a Tele and a small Mesa amp.
The Tele was routed for a bridge humbucker and has a couple of unsightly gaps next to the bridge. Otherwise, the guitar and amp cleaned up nice (this pic was as i received them)!
I bought a Allparts vintage tinted rosewood Strat neck and a set of hipshot tuners in the past 48 hrs for a sunburst body I bought 72 hrs ago.
Couldn’t buy it yet, but I’m trying to buy a Strap button for my Rickenbacker. A real PITA, as they don’t ship to other countries and the NJ authorized dealer I used to buy RIC stuff from is no longer in business.
I tried to purchase it from the Rickenbacker boutique and have it sent to my cousin who lives in Maryland, but they don’t accept non-US PayPal accounts either. She is trying to buy it for me, but since she knows very little about guitars I’m guessing it’ll take some time…
Check your messages
Got a strap for my Mini Maton. I had to order it from Germany, but it wasn't expensive and arrived pretty quickly:
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
I'm such a fan of Van Halen, and since I can't play better than my gear at this point, this was a fun purchase. It came with a clip on tuner I gave to my daughter for her acoustic:
"...pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only inhabitants of the field;
that, of course, they are many in number; or that, after all, they are other than the little,
shriveled, meagre, hopping, though loud and troublesome, insects of the hour."
-Edmund Burke
NGD! My last one! I promise!
As many of you know, I have a thing for travel guitars. I love my KLŌS - it's small, easy to play, and because it's carbon fiber, nearly indestructible. Best of all, it disassembles quickly and packs away easily, and re-assembles nearly as fast.
But the drawback is the sound is kind of "tinny." It works well as a hotel room practice guitar, but it has no pickup (a choice I regret making) and thus isn't really suitable for a performance guitar.
Then, I heard about the Furch Little Jane. Made in the Czech Republic, this guitar has a unique disassembly mechanism, is made of all wood, and packs away in its own back pack. It has a sound port that doubles as the neck storage when packed, and actually has a very rich sound, even though it's smaller than a standard guitar. Given that I'm now performing live, I thought this might be a good way to get around.
Below, is a video on how the guitar is assembled.
Last edited by OldStrummer; 08-25-2022 at 06:37 AM.
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
Let us know how it plays and sounds. I’m interested
Mark
It's been less than 24 hours, but I confess that every time I pick it up I'm surprised by the quality of the sound. It won't beat a dread for presence, but that's why I wanted one with a pickup. Straight up acoustically, it has a full voice, even if the bass isn't as full. The nut is a full 1-3/4," which is unusual for a guitar of this size (the scale is 24-3/16" with a 14 fret-to-body neck). The sound port, which doubles as neck storage when disassembled, is a real plus (when my custom guitar maker suggested adding one to the jewel of my collection, I balked at first, but he talked me into it. He was right. He told me he thought every acoustic guitar would benefit by adding a sound port).
The build quality is excellent. I've gone over it visually and tactically, and it's smooth, unblemished and finished. The tuners are custom Furch Machine string-lock Chrome, with a gear ratio of 1:15. This means one can pull the disassembled guitar out of its backpack, snap the headstock on (with no visible clue) and then just close the neck with the latching mechanism and start playing. Most of the time, no tuning is needed!
The woods are Western red cedar top and African Mahogany back and sides. The neck is African Mahogany with an ebony fingerboard (my favorite!). The action isn't as smooth as either my Martin DJr-10 or Taylor GS Mini-e Koa, but I'm hoping it will smooth out with repeated playing. Compared to those two, it isn't as "chimey," but that could just be the strings (it ships with Elixir Ph-Br Nanoweb 12-53s).
Bottom line: It isn't a full-blown concert guitar, but it may be the best travel guitar I've ever played!
Striving to be ordinary
Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!
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