? from a fumble-fingered 4-stringer

[bottle12am]

Guys...

 

Greetings from one who is usually lurking in the Low Down LowDown forums.

 

I've been a bassist for 16 years, but in the past 3-4 years I've been tooling off and on with acoutic guitar stuff, trying to teach myself, write songs, etc.

 

I finally have enough songs and confidence where I wawnt to 'take the show on the road.'

 

I've outgrown my poor Korean-made Fender 6-string. I am looking to buy something decent for some home recordings and coffehouse/ small bar gigs.

 

Any recommendations? I'm a LEFTY who lives in the boonies. I'm 1 1/2 hours away from any guitar store still left standing after Rita and Katrina, so between the hurricanes and the southpaw problem, not able to conveniently pop into GC and impress the workers with my Stairway to Heaven and Smoke on the Water renditions.

 

Just looking for something that sounds good strummed, that can hide some imperfections and fumble-fingeredness if needed. Like I said, needs to be good for home-studio stuff and an occasional coffehouse/small bar setup. Budget around $1000.

 

Also, any amp recommendations? I was looking for a decent all-in-one where I could hook up both a mic and acoustic. Had my eye on the one Carvin makes. Any others I should consider? Budget for that is $500 or so.

 

Thanks guys. I can talk a good game on the Bass Player's forum, but when it comes to this kinda stuff, it starts getting a bit foggy.

[Tone Taster]

I don't know much about acoustics, but what I do know is that if you have 1000FRNS for a budget, you will be getting an above average axe.

 

However, i could be wrong in that they jack the price up on the southpaws when it comes to guitars probably due to low supply/production but high demand.(was that right? Is my econ backwards?????)

 

Since you mentined Carvin, I find their stuff to be very good value in that the quality of their instruments exceeds the price. The only problem is the resale value and i am not sure on how faithful they are on warranties

 

If they are still in biz, Larivee was an awesome acoustic

 

You may want to check out Micheal Kelley guitars or Dean, also

 

P.S. I am a 2nd string bassist for people periodically. I sure pop some blisters, though.

 

P.S.S. sorry to hear about being "all hurricaned out", Man

 

Us Tampanians seem to dodge some bullets, but I'm keeping my eye on that Wilma storm out there.

[musicalhair]

Hey man, I started on bass and got into guitar for the same reasons as you! And I play lefty.

 

How far are you from Houston? Southpaw guitars are there, as is other stores that have more lefties than most, perhaps becuase of Soutpaw's presence there.

 

I like Carvin stuff, I currently own a six string bass and a "Fatboy" guitar. I had two others I traded for other gear. That said, I went to the Carvin Store and played guitars before ordering the four I bought from them. I've got a thing about playing guitars a lot before buying them. I feel it goes even more with acoustics.

 

I have a very bright Alverez "Bluesboy" that worked great because I often backed up singer-songwriters playing lead or complimentary parts on it. For a singer-songwriter thing I'd look for a more full bodied sounding guitar. I have a Gibson "songwriter" acoustic and that is pretty nice sounding, and more full sounding than the Alverez, a much better guitar actually.

 

When I bought the Alverez, it was actually down to that or a Martin. I was in Houston and the Alverez was at Southpaw and the Martin was at GC (I think). It was a tough choice. The Martin was really nice and earthy sounding, darker and more complex in it's town than the Alverez. If I were doing a bluesy acoustic solo thing or a singer-songwriter thing I probably would have gone with the Martin. For what I was doing at the time the Alverez was a better fit, and cheaper too.

 

If you are going to spend up to $1000, then you're really making a serious purchase. You should at least consider a drive to houston. You're selection will increase immensely and that will go along way towards making sure you get the most bang for what ever buck you end up spending.

[Bluesape]

I think Guild is often overlooked. When it comes to acoustics, semihollows, and archtops,they're as good as any brand out there. Taylors are great, as are a number of brands today, but I think I would look very seriously at Guild, as I don't think a better made instrument in your price range exists.

[dave251]

What you need is an online dealer that will make sure the guitar is set up correctly. That means a store like Mass St. Music hear in Lawrence, or a more famous one like Elderly. I know the guys here will guide you in the right direction....I've heard that Elderly will too...

 

Discuss having it set up properly. The "Big Box" onliners won't do that at all...they're just moving commodity. You should be able to get into a baseline Martin or Taylor for that money..and either one of those brands will carry a bit of weight when it comes time to upgrade again.

 

Regarding the amp...I know it's a pain...but you're MUCH better of with a midget mixer and a self powered pa speaker on a pole. You should be able to do that easily in the 500 range.

[Gruupi]

Just my 2 cents. Sometimes the big boomy sound we like when playing in a room by ourselves is the exact opposite of what sounds good on recordings and through an amp. Just be carefull and listen to the sound. It would be really nice if you could play it through an amp, and also record it before you make your purchase.

[bottle12am]

Originally posted by Caputo:

However, i could be wrong in that they jack the price up on the southpaws when it comes to guitars probably due to low supply/production but high demand.(was that right? Is my econ backwards?????)

 

Since you mentined Carvin, I find their stuff to be very good value in that the quality of their instruments exceeds the price.

Originally posted by musicalhair:

How far are you from Houston? Southpaw guitars are there, as is other stores that have more lefties than most, perhaps becuase of Soutpaw's presence there.

 

I like Carvin stuff, I currently own a six string bass and a "Fatboy" guitar.

Not sure about the lefty markup nowadays... just know the market is a lot better than before for basses... In the '90's I wanted a Fender bass -- it was $250+ over the righty version. Now, the prices are identical (or close to).

 

Houston's about a 4.5 hour drive from my house... a very tempting roadtrip, indeed.

 

I do like Carvin (though they kicked me off their BBS... he he). I have a Carvin fretless, myself.

 

Also like the fact they don't give the southpaw surcharge.

 

Was looking at their Cobalts and their AE185 acoustic/electric. Concerned with Colbalt being a mass-produced Korean instrument instead of Carvin's usual custom-USA product, and how well the AE185 would do through a strictly acoustic amp.

[Dr. Ellwood]

Take a look at the Larrivee lineup. Look at the C03E

[Eric VB]

Heya bottle.

 

Speaking of Elderly, I visited them when I bought my acoustic. They had some really nice Rickenbacker semi-hollows and even a cool mandocello there, among many other great instruments. They're a great place to shop. It's hard to walk in there and not pick up something cool and play it.

 

However, I found my guitar just down the street at a non-online competitor. The Taylors and Takamines were giving me some serious sticker shock, so I picked up an Ovation just for the helluvit. An Elite LX with new OP-3 electronics, I really liked the way it sounded unplugged. (Not everyone here would like such a bright sound.) What really impressed me was how well it projected. The sticker was approaching your limit, but it sounded immensely better than the cheaper Celebrity models. It plays well, but I have another nylon-string guitar that's more comfortable because of the softer strings and wider string spacing. (You know us bass players, we like the strings far apart.) The Ovation is still my #1 6-string, though.

 

At the coffee house open mikes I go to, the host provides amplification. It's not stellar, but it does make life easier.

[Dr. Ellwood]

RIC.. Im over by Telegraph and 13 Mile Rd.... where is the open mic thing going on..is it the one in Royal Oak?....LEE

[Eric VB]

OT (sorry bottle)

 

Hey Lee, because the host is a friend, I'm actually going all the way to Warren. Sometimes I go to Auburn Hills. I don't go every week, but I pop in every now and then. I brough my Ric 4003 last time; before that I took my Ovation and mandolin. I had to bring my own rig for the Ric. Haven't been to any in Royal Oak yet.