Re: OT: Update on my mini jazz archtop guitar ("The Little Mammoth")

["Boise Experimental Music Festival" <khartung@cableone.net>]

Yes, it is very interesting. The scale and neck length on this guitar was designed after the Epi "Roadie" I have, which is why we ended up with 50cm rather than a standard inch measurement, or 19 3/4".  The 12's seem to work well on the Epi, and even though I haven't played the new guitar yet, Bobby says the neck is super fast and low action. That was one of my requirements. He says the strings are almost touching the frets and there is no buzzing.  That's what you get when you pay for a hand made neck, I guess. :)  I stil may put 13's on it, though. We'll see.

 

You are right on with the comment on the sound. Bobby says this guitar easily competes with the tone of  a larger jazz guitar. So yes, you have to wonder why more people don't play smaller guitars, especially given the real estate you save in narrowing the fret distance...you can play quicker and move around more efficiently.

 

Now, I have this 6 string mandolin that I play on occasion, tuned an octave up from standard guitar tuning. I've been thinking of installing a neck humbucker on that thing and seeing how it sounds...still thin and like a mandolin, I suppose.  It has 12s on it too.

 

Kris

----- Original Message -----

From: Travis Hartnett

To: Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com

Sent: Sunday, May 25, 2008 6:18 PM

Subject: Re: OT: Update on my mini jazz archtop guitar ("The Little Mammoth")

Very interesting.  I've got a 485mm scale Breedlove Passport strung with 13's, but it's also tuned a fourth higher.  I've also  done a lot of playing on 610mm scale Larrivee parlor guitars, which I also string with 13's at standard.  The 12's it shipped with were a bit slinky for an acoustic.  And then at the other end of the range, there's the 736mm scale Tacoma Baritone which goes from 17 to 70, a fourth down from standard.  It's interesting how dinky a regular guitar sounds after you've gotten used to that, which emphasizes the somwhat arbitrary nature of "standard" scale and pitch these days.

TH

On Sun, May 25, 2008 at 3:58 PM, Boise Experimental Music Festival <khartung@cableone.net> wrote:

Sorry. String guage is 12s. The D'Addario Chromes, flatwounds. However, I may go to 13s. The stiffer and fatter the better.

 

Kris