# Shopping For An Electric/Acoustic



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...i recently purchased one of these:

http://www.ovationguitars.com/index.cfm?fa=detail&mid=2061

shallow bowl, cutaway, cheap and (almost) perfect for acoustic gigs, of which my band is doing more and more.

unfortunately, it is made in china and sounds pretty cheesy, especially when i try and solo.

i suspect the cheap piezo pickup. it probably doesn't help that i use a cheap zoom pedal:

http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=1869&brandID=4

i carefully avoid using the modeling technology, and only use it for chorus, reverb etc.

given that i love the shape and design of the guitar, and can't afford the american made upgrade, does anyone have any suggestions?

cheers!

-dh


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## danbo (Nov 27, 2006)

Mic a Guild or Taylor or Martin through a nice tube amp? :food-smiley-004:


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

danbo said:


> Mic a Guild or Taylor or Martin through a nice tube amp? :food-smiley-004:


....$$$$$$$$$$$!!!!!!

not to mention excessive feedback issues...and the fact that miking an acoustic guitar severely limits mobility on stage.

-dh


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

Find a guitar that you enjoy acoustically. Put a good pickup in it.

ie) K&K


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

Jeff Flowerday said:


> Find a guitar that you enjoy acoustically. Put a good pickup in it.(ie) K&K


...what is K&K?

actually, i love playing this model (shallow-bowl w/cutaway). i can't imagine going back to the traditional acoustic, at least for playing live.

i may have no option but upgrading to the american-made version.

this one was $500. the american-made version is almost two grand.

-dh


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

david henman said:


> ...what is K&K?
> 
> actually, i love playing this model (shallow-bowl w/cutaway). i can't imagine going back to the traditional acoustic, at least for playing live.
> 
> ...


K&K is a pickup manufacturer. http://www.kksound.com/

Don't spend $2000 on the the american made version go this route instead. Shallow and still give you that electric acoustic sound.

http://www.taylorelectricguitars.com/Models/T5/


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

Jeff Flowerday said:


> K&K is a pickup manufacturer. http://www.kksound.com/
> Don't spend $2000 on the the american made version go this route instead. Shallow and still give you that electric acoustic sound.
> http://www.taylorelectricguitars.com/Models/T5/



...jeff, i'm going to look into this immediately.

thank you!

-dh


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

david henman said:


> ...jeff, i'm going to look into this immediately.
> 
> thank you!
> 
> -dh


I'm not sure on price but I'm pretty sure the standard will be over $2000 though.

:frown:


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

Jeff Flowerday said:


> I'm not sure on price but I'm pretty sure the standard will be over $2000 though.
> :frown:



...$2600 USD....ouch!!!

however, if i can convince a music store to give me some low-interest financing, i'll go for it.

-dh


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

Paul said:


> First rule: *Never* pay interest on something that depreciates in value.


Sometimes you have to bend that rule. Wait a minute, pretty much every time. :smile:

David you can write off the interest can't you? A working musician?

This is a nice one:

http://www.wildwoodguitars.com/acoustics/taylor/T5/t5s1_1517/t5s1_1517.html

$2600 is a little high this one is $1899US plus shipping up from Colorado. Say $150US express, you'll have to pay GST when it arrives.


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...i don't buy big-ticket stuff online, as a rule, although that could change one day.

i'm going to give this guitar a good test drive, however, and if it does the job, i'll make the neccessary sacrifices.

being a musician is not a hobby, for me, so i'll do what i gotta do.

short of robbing a convenience store, that is...

-dh




Jeff Flowerday said:


> Sometimes you have to bend that rule. Wait a minute, pretty much every time. :smile:
> 
> David you can write off the interest can't you? A working musician?
> 
> ...


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

david henman said:


> ...i don't buy big-ticket stuff online, as a rule, although that could change one day.
> 
> i'm going to give this guitar a good test drive, however, and if it does the job, i'll make the neccessary sacrifices.
> 
> ...


Well if you play one locally and like it, I'll tell you to trust the guys from Wildwood when actually buying. They are up front and open when describing a guitar. I know of no one that has been led astray by them. They know how to ship to Canada they do it all the time.

If it saves you $500+ it's worth it. Taylors are very consistent. The T5 being a smaller body even more so.

PS) L&M should have a few hanging on the wall.


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## Starbuck (Jun 15, 2007)

The Arts in Newmarket had one or two a time ago as well. VERY nice guitars.


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

Jeff Flowerday said:


> Well if you play one locally and like it, I'll tell you to trust the guys from Wildwood when actually buying. They are up front and open when describing a guitar. I know of no one that has been led astray by them. They know how to ship to Canada they do it all the time.
> If it saves you $500+ it's worth it. Taylors are very consistent. The T5 being a smaller body even more so.
> PS) L&M should have a few hanging on the wall.



...thanks, jeff, and based on your recommend, i would take the chance and order one.

but, first i would take wildwood's price and have a wee chat with a couple of local stores, scheming fiend that i am.....

-dh


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...well, jeff, i auditioned the taylor t5 at the arts music store.

awesome pricing, by the way - had it been "the one" it would be sitting in my studio at this very moment.

they are designed for players who want to be able to go from acoustic to electric without changing guitars. they use only electric strings. while i can see having a guitar like that at my disposal sometime in the future, it wouldn't work in the present context, as i play my acoustic through the sound system, via an acoustic effects pedal, and my electric through the pedal board and a tube amp. the acoustic would sound awful through the amp, and the electric would sound anemic through the sound system. trying to achieve a compromise would be way too complicated at present.

i'm auditioning a godin tonight.

-dh


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

david henman said:


> ...well, jeff, i auditioned the taylor t5 at the arts music store.
> 
> awesome pricing, by the way - had it been "the one" it would be sitting in my studio at this very moment.
> 
> ...


I haven't even looked at them but I suggested it more on the lines of being a thinner body which you seemed to prefer on the ovation.

Good luck with the Godin.


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## sambonee (Dec 20, 2007)

*acoustic show and guitars*

I played about 150 shows over 3 years in Spain with a few different acoustic guitars through huge pa systems down to the fender passport ps (aka workhorse).

I believe that any respectable signal from the simplest acoustic/ele. guitar can be made to sound nice. 
1. you have to have effects, the signal needs to be beefed up before entering the pa/ amp. I find that playing through pa systems is better.

2. if you really want to solo, you need a different memory bank setting for solos with a higher output. in other words, you need a stomp boost for solos unless your band is so good that their dynamics can drop in that instance or that you're so conscious that you're able to play with your gain quite high and use your dynamics.

3. typically the sound that you get straight out is thin and tinny, (I would always push the bass up quite a bit and also the mids.) Compression also helps a ton. I know that you would be better off getting a better pickup in your current guitar rather than buying an new one. IMO the acoustic guitar that you start with (when wanting a live amplified a/c guitar sound) has only about a 20% influence on the final sound. the biggest influence is the P/U and strings (and even guage) I find that heaver gage strings can make a world of difference.

the P/U that I used back then was the fishman that had two inputs mixed before leaving the guitar. and interior condenser mic and an active "contact" style P/U. mixing then gave the best sound ever. 
something like this
http://www.fishman.com/products/details.asp?id=83 and it's only like $100. 

Let me know what you think of my comments via PM or email.
[email protected]

happy new year!!:smilie_flagge17:


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

Paul said:


> I put an LR Baggs X- Bridge in my Strat:
> 
> http://www.lrbaggs.com/html/products/pickups_xbridge.shtml
> 
> ...


I've got the same system in my PRS Archtop. Straight piezo through an acoustic amp doesn't sound very good at all. Through a tube amp it's definatley a little fuller and could be used if you had to absolutely fake it.


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## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...okay, i auditioned the godin A6 last night.

despite the fact that it is actually cheaper than the made-in-china ovation, it is far superior in all respects, including build quality, playability and electrified sound.

i'm heading back to the arts today to return the demo and to order one in black.

-dh


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