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Post by tartanphantom on Aug 17, 2024 17:16:10 GMT -5
tartanphantom (and anyone else interested), here is part 2 of the gear highlights again, though with a few items swapped out as I'm still in the middle of a large trade deal. But I thought these were probably a little interesting: My Carvin fretless bass. A little over 20 years ago I got the bug to try playing a fretless, and I wanted a quality build but not too much money tied up in it. And that's exactly what Carvin delivered, it's all the fretless I'll ever need, a lot of fun to play:  My trusty old Gretsch, I've posted this one before, still my favorite:  While I do strongly prefer nylon string acoustics as posted previously, there are times when a steel string is in order. This USA Ovation Legend doesn't get much play, but like my fretless above, is all the steel string I need, very nice quality. It favors going through an amp versus just strumming unplugged but even there it's plenty fine for my purposes (please pardon a little bit of poster tack still on the wall, we're still cleaning up from decorations for a birthday party). I also had a very nice high end Gibson SJ-200 at one point, and I thought the "thermally aged Adirondack spruce" might be a little bit of snake oil, but dang if it didn't ring like a bell, the sweetest sounding acoustic I've ever owned. Too big a body for me though!  Carvin. So underrated. Even back in the day, their PA gear and amps were way underrated. My biggest beef with Carvin was that they had NO service network for their gear. If you had an issue or need for repairs, it had to go back to to San Diego for service work.hat's a terrible policy based on how heavy and costly it is to ship PA gear and amps, and likely one of the reasons their sales declined in the 1990's. Nevertheless, their guitars were always quality builds. Never have played one of their basses, but I'm sure that they were of equal quality. That one looks like it may have active electronics? And as far as fretless goes, the only one I own is a DeArmond Ashbory bass, although I do play a full upright bass viol on occasion in one of my bands. Belongs to a bandmate, though. I can't remember on this particular Gretsch, but is that an FSR or special finish G5420? Sometimes they give the FSR editions a slightly different model number, like G5427. Still, you cannot go wrong with the Cadillac Green & Gold combination. So classy looking. Ovation. Love the sound, hate the ergonomics. Yeah I know the bowlback was designed that way on purpose, with the engineered parabolic sound focus. And yeah, the necks generally feel pretty good too. but my gut and the bowlback do not get along at all. I can never find a comfortable position when playing one seated. They tend to want to slide right off my lap. Standing with a strap, it's not as bad, but it does sit a bit further out from the body for folks like me. As a general rule, I pass on Ovation acoustics because of this. Always loved their weirdo electrics, though. Regarding the SJ200, being too big for you, nonsense.
I've been playing Gretsch jumbo Rancher acoustics for the better part of 15 years, and I'm 5" 8'. Love the bottom end sound on Jumbos, and thank goodness they don't have a bowlback made out of helicopter blade material!  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 17, 2024 17:46:08 GMT -5
tartanphantom (and anyone else interested), here is part 2 of the gear highlights again, though with a few items swapped out as I'm still in the middle of a large trade deal. But I thought these were probably a little interesting: My Carvin fretless bass. A little over 20 years ago I got the bug to try playing a fretless, and I wanted a quality build but not too much money tied up in it. And that's exactly what Carvin delivered, it's all the fretless I'll ever need, a lot of fun to play: My trusty old Gretsch, I've posted this one before, still my favorite: While I do strongly prefer nylon string acoustics as posted previously, there are times when a steel string is in order. This USA Ovation Legend doesn't get much play, but like my fretless above, is all the steel string I need, very nice quality. It favors going through an amp versus just strumming unplugged but even there it's plenty fine for my purposes (please pardon a little bit of poster tack still on the wall, we're still cleaning up from decorations for a birthday party). I also had a very nice high end Gibson SJ-200 at one point, and I thought the "thermally aged Adirondack spruce" might be a little bit of snake oil, but dang if it didn't ring like a bell, the sweetest sounding acoustic I've ever owned. Too big a body for me though! Carvin. So underrated. Even back in the day, their PA gear and amps were way underrated. My biggest beef with Carvin was that they had NO service network for their gear. If you had an issue or need for repairs, it had to go back to to San Diego for service work.hat's a terrible policy based on how heavy and costly it is to ship PA gear and amps, and likely one of the reasons their sales declined in the 1990's. Nevertheless, their guitars were always quality builds. Never have played one of their basses, but I'm sure that they were of equal quality. That one looks like it may have active electronics? And as far as fretless goes, the only one I own is a DeArmond Ashbory bass, although I do play a full upright bass viol on occasion in one of my bands. Belongs to a bandmate, though. I can't remember on this particular Gretsch, but is that an FSR or special finish G5420? Sometimes they give the FSR editions a slightly different model number, like G5427. Still, you cannot go wrong with the Cadillac Green & Gold combination. So classy looking. Ovation. Love the sound, hate the ergonomics. Yeah I know the bowlback was designed that way on purpose, with the engineered parabolic sound focus. And yeah, the necks generally feel pretty good too. but my gut and the bowlback do not get along at all. I can never find a comfortable position when playing one seated. They tend to want to slide right off my lap. Standing with a strap, it's not as bad, but it does sit a bit further out from the body for folks like me. As a general rule, I pass on Ovation acoustics because of this. Always loved their weirdo electrics, though. Regarding the SJ200, being too big for you, nonsense.
I've been playing Gretsch jumbo Rancher acoustics for the better part of 15 years, and I'm 5" 8'. Love the bottom end sound on Jumbos, and thank goodness they don't have a bowlback made out of helicopter blade material! Have you played an Ovation with the "Deep Contour Bowl"? That's what mine has, here's a reference photo from another guitar but mine is shaped just like this:  Honestly, I play it in casual style position on the right thigh and it is so snug and comfy for me. Without the contour it would be unusable for me, but this design just "snaps right into place". Love your Jumbo Rancher though, something about the tone on a big old body like that, looks cool as well, nice pics "in action"!  |
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Post by tartanphantom on Aug 17, 2024 17:48:41 GMT -5
Have you played an Ovation with the "Deep Contour Bowl"? That's what mine has, here's a reference photo from another guitar but mine is shaped just like this: Honestly, I play it in casual style position on the right thigh and it is so snug and comfy for me. Without the contour it would be unusable for me, but this design just "snaps right into place". Love your Jumbo Rancher though, something about the tone on a big old body like that, looks cool as well, nice pics "in action"! And that shows how much attention I've payed to later Ovations. Wasn't even aware of the "contour bowl". That looks like something I might be able to live with. Looks sort of like a "reverse Stratocaster belly-cut".
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Post by Deleted on Aug 17, 2024 17:56:08 GMT -5
Have you played an Ovation with the "Deep Contour Bowl"? That's what mine has, here's a reference photo from another guitar but mine is shaped just like this: Honestly, I play it in casual style position on the right thigh and it is so snug and comfy for me. Without the contour it would be unusable for me, but this design just "snaps right into place". Love your Jumbo Rancher though, something about the tone on a big old body like that, looks cool as well, nice pics "in action"! And that shows how much attention I've payed to later Ovations. Wasn't even aware of the "contour bowl". That looks like something I might be able to live with. Looks sort of like a "reverse Stratocaster belly-cut".
Perfect description, and my belly fits it perfectly haha! Yeah, I should have mentioned that in my original post, because it's a different ballgame with the contour, but I'm with you on the regular bowl shape. To answer your earlier question, the Gretsch is a G5420. I'm still astounded with the quality for the price point. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2024 15:07:21 GMT -5
Sneak peek of a new guitar I have inbound next week. Can't wait!  |
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Post by tartanphantom on Aug 30, 2024 22:23:52 GMT -5
Sneak peek of a new guitar I have inbound next week. Can't wait! A Greco? Possibly a “Chibson”? |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2024 0:48:15 GMT -5
Sneak peek of a new guitar I have inbound next week. Can't wait! A Greco? Possibly a “Chibson”? Well now that I look at the headstock a little closer, you don't think I might have bought a fake, do you?  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2024 15:46:49 GMT -5
I have a soft spot for artists/bands that don't neatly fit into genre labels. Case in point, something about INXS in the 80's just hit that right spot with me. They kind of had this synthesis of the new wave and pop origins they emerged from with rock and funk aspects, and I don't know, they're simply "INXS" to me. Just catchy as heck and Michael Hutchence was such a charismatic front man with a great voice to match.
When Hutchence tragically passed away, they had a number of other singers over the years, but the most surprisingly awesome to me was the short guest stint Terence Trent D'Arby did per the performance below from 1999. I would never have thought to pair them up, but D'Arby is absolutely commanding here and channeling his own style which just flat out works somehow. I would have loved to have seen them continue to collaborate honestly, the chemistry really seemed to be there.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,209 
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Post by Confessor on Aug 31, 2024 18:22:51 GMT -5
I have a soft spot for artists/bands that don't neatly fit into genre labels. Case in point, something about INXS in the 80's just hit that right spot with me. They kind of had this synthesis of the new wave and pop origins they emerged from with rock and funk aspects, and I don't know, they're simply "INXS" to me. Just catchy as heck and Michael Hutchence was such a charismatic front man with a great voice to match. When Hutchence tragically passed away, they had a number of other singers over the years, but the most surprisingly awesome to me was the short guest stint Terence Trent D'Arby did per the performance below from 1999. I would never have thought to pair them up, but D'Arby is absolutely commanding here and channeling his own style which just flat out works somehow. I would have loved to have seen them continue to collaborate honestly, the chemistry really seemed to be there. Terence Trent D'Arby is HUGELY underrated. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 4, 2024 10:52:31 GMT -5
So I've been lamenting that I haven't been to a single concert yet this year. The pickings have been kind of slim and the times have been problematic (weeknights are hard when you work and generally have to travel 2 1/2 hours to a concert). Since Los Lobos was cancelled I was really down. But, The Sons of the Pioneers are going to be right here in my home town in October. We're going to take my in-laws. I just wish I could go with my Dad.
So let them tumbleweeds tumble and let's look for some cool water.
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Post by driver1980 on Sept 4, 2024 14:59:09 GMT -5
So I've been lamenting that I haven't been to a single concert yet this year. The pickings have been kind of slim and the times have been problematic (weeknights are hard when you work and generally have to travel 2 1/2 hours to a concert). Since Los Lobos was cancelled I was really down. But, The Sons of the Pioneers are going to be right here in my home town in October. We're going to take my in-laws. I just wish I could go with my Dad. So let them tumbleweeds tumble and let's look for some cool water. If you lived in the UK, would Oasis’ reunion get you back to a concert? (With all that’s going on in my country, the news does seem to be allocating a disproportionate amount of airtime to ticket price controversies pertaining to the Oasis reunion) |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 4, 2024 15:25:27 GMT -5
So I've been lamenting that I haven't been to a single concert yet this year. The pickings have been kind of slim and the times have been problematic (weeknights are hard when you work and generally have to travel 2 1/2 hours to a concert). Since Los Lobos was cancelled I was really down. But, The Sons of the Pioneers are going to be right here in my home town in October. We're going to take my in-laws. I just wish I could go with my Dad. So let them tumbleweeds tumble and let's look for some cool water. If you lived in the UK, would Oasis’ reunion get you back to a concert? (With all that’s going on in my country, the news does seem to be allocating a disproportionate amount of airtime to ticket price controversies pertaining to the Oasis reunion) I can name a sum total of one song by Oasis and that's just because it's a meme. I'm not sure I'd know it if I heard it. So...no. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2024 4:49:54 GMT -5
The new guitar I previewed made it here safe and sound and it is quite the nice player, though it's a model I've had several times before and they tend to be very consistent so I had positive expectations. To preface, while not a dead ringer for one of these, it does channel enough of the vibe to make me smile, I do like the classic look.  And here are a couple shots of my new one:   It's a Gibson 1960 reissue Les Paul, and I had not intended to pick up a new one, but after a trade deal fell through on something else with a dealer I regularly work with (the item they sent had a cosmetic flaw), I picked out "old reliable" from their stock as a replacement. I've had many Les Pauls over the year, and while I do think they are pricey and a somewhat predictable choice, darned if they don't just get the job done for me at the end of the day. I tend to pick the 1959 and 1960 reissue models because of the flamed maple tops and the necks tend to be thinner than earlier year reissues (slight preference for the 1960 over the 1959 as it tends to be the thinnest overall). Sometimes you have to just go with what works! |
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Post by tartanphantom on Sept 9, 2024 20:45:28 GMT -5
The new guitar I previewed made it here safe and sound and it is quite the nice player, though it's a model I've had several times before and they tend to be very consistent so I had positive expectations. To preface, while not a dead ringer for one of these, it does channel enough of the vibe to make me smile, I do like the classic look. And here are a couple shots of my new one: It's a Gibson 1960 reissue Les Paul, and I had not intended to pick up a new one, but after a trade deal fell through on something else with a dealer I regularly work with (the item they sent had a cosmetic flaw), I picked out "old reliable" from their stock as a replacement. I've had many Les Pauls over the year, and while I do think they are pricey and a somewhat predictable choice, darned if they don't just get the job done for me at the end of the day. I tend to pick the 1959 and 1960 reissue models because of the flamed maple tops and the necks tend to be thinner than earlier year reissues (slight preference for the 1960 over the 1959 as it tends to be the thinnest overall). Sometimes you have to just go with what works!
Very nice acquisition! I've never been a huge LP fan, but I certainly don't dislike them. Great choice if classic '70s rock and early hair band stuff is in your wheelhouse (which, it happens to be).
Have any idea how much it weighs? I know they've done some weight relief (drilling holes) under the maple cap on several models, just wonder where yours comes in on the scales.
With a guitar like this, you're either going to have to start wearing silk Dragon Pyjamas, or install a smoking pickup at some point.
Big congrats!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2024 15:30:40 GMT -5
Very nice acquisition! I've never been a huge LP fan, but I certainly don't dislike them. Great choice if classic '70s rock and early hair band stuff is in your wheelhouse (which, it happens to be).
Have any idea how much it weighs? I know they've done some weight relief (drilling holes) under the maple cap on several models, just wonder where yours comes in on the scales.
With a guitar like this, you're either going to have to start wearing silk Dragon Pyjamas, or install a smoking pickup at some point.
Big congrats!
Thank you sir! And on the weight, you mean like an 11 pound Norlin Les Paul Custom haha? While mine is not weight relieved (these “historic reissues” target period correct specs), it’s not too bad at 8 lbs. 9 oz. And yes, much Zeppelin and KISS has been played on it (and some 80’s hair metal of course). I don’t have the Page dragon suit, but I did dress up like Space Ace on more than one Halloween. It was KISStory in the making As for the smoking guitar, I may pick up another either 59 or 60 reissue if the right tobacco burst shows up, so I “could” turn this into a smoker if I really wanted to destroy the value lol. |
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