SADOWSKY JIM HALL vs. D'AQUISTO JAZZ LINE
joemont...@hotmail.com
archtops were sitting side by side begging to be A/B 'd thru an Evans
amp with a RE10 cab.
First a physical inspection;
The colors (the violin sb) were virtually identical but the Hall was a
'deeper' shade all the way around (on top, back and sides but
mostly on top). The other difference was in the flame makeup of the
top; the JH flame was wider and more pronounced.
The body depth on the Jazzline is definitely thinner, tho I did not
measure exactly and there is more "piping" on the JH around the
edges on the sides...the pickup is mounted closer to the fingerboard on
the JH and I'm pretty sure it's a different pickup, tho the gold
cover makes them look virtually identical...
Same tuners, same pickguard, different tailpieces, headstock
shapes...the Jazzline has block inlays, no inlays on the JH...bridges
were similar but not exact...also, the bridge was set higher on the
Jazzline than the JH even tho the action on both was similar...there
was a bit of "falloff" above the 14th fret on the Jazzline. The JH
was straight all the way.
The fingerboard binding on the JH is creme whereas on the Jazzline
it's oversprayed the color of the finish. The vol and tone knobs are
virtually identical but "felt" different when turned...the JH knobs
were 'faster' if that makes any sense. Also, who else but a guitar
geek would stick their finger in the bouts to feel the bracing...They
don't seem to be in the same exact spot, the brace (bass side) was
closer to the f hole than on the Jazzline...in other words, my finger
hit the brace sooner inside the JH.
Truss rod covers are different shape, and probably most important from
the feel perspective was the 1.75 nut on the Sadowsky, which made the
guitar's neck overall feel better, at least for my style of playing.
Not that the 1 11/16 nut on DJL didn't play and feel well, but the
SJH had an evenness, a consistency all the way up and down the neck.
Frets looked identical and were both nice, the JH frets were perhaps a
tad 'shinier?' Case wise, the interiors were virtually identical,
I thought the JH case was a little nicer on the exterior. Probably the
same mfg. Weight very similar, if not dead on...balance wise, the
Sadowsky seemed just a little more even on my shoulder but again, not
by much. Both guitars had TI .13 flats on them...
--
Sound:
Acoustically, JH louder for sure, why, I cannot say...from here, it's
all subjective...the Daquisto owner summed it up by saying yeah,
they're different in a lot of respects until you plug them in...I
sort of agree and disagree at the same time...I think that there is a
lot of psychology going on while one is playing - the (perceived!)
better feeling, better responding instrument makes for less intrusion
on the musical process, so I think there's a definite value to that
better feeling instrument even if sounding alike in a living room ---
one can make a 2000 mile trip in a Ford Taurus or a Mercedes...the
destination is the same, but was the driving journey?
Both guitars sounded very good electrically, but when those highs get
rolled off and you want that sliver of acoustic sound to mesh with the
amp sound, I have to say that the Sadowsky rose to the
occasion...perhaps it was because it had that slightly upper hand
acoustically, or maybe it's the electronics differences or some
combination of both, I dunno. Still, I think with a little time, and in
a controlled situation, eq and with good mics, I could duplicate the
Sadowsky sound on the Jazzline with no problem.
Which brings us to the price differentials...
To this I claim Switzerland - The Jazzline was purchased used on eBay
for $2K. The Sadowsky JH sells for $3895 and not gonna come up used for
a while, if at all... So there's a point spread to be sure...
Ok, I'll stick my neck out this far...if cash is tight, the Jazzline
is a great ringer...but if you're the type to use the best oil in
your car, buy the Klotz cables etc...then hands down, the JH is calling
you!
As for me, well I fell prey to the Oscar Schmidt OE40 $199 delivered MF
blowout and outside of weighing about OE40 lbs and still smelling like
the forest, I bet I could record 4 on 6 with it and no one would know
it wasn't an L5CES. <grin>
There it is!
Cheers,
JM
GregD
peanut gallery, please :)-
Greg
Tom Walls
joemont...@hotmail.com says...
>
> As for me, well I fell prey to the Oscar Schmidt OE40 $199 delivered MF
> blowout and outside of weighing about OE40 lbs and still smelling like
> the forest, I bet I could record 4 on 6 with it and no one would know
> it wasn't an L5CES. <grin>
>
> There it is!
>
> Cheers,
>
> JM
>
>
>
--
Tom Walls
the guy at the Temple of Zeus
Dave Stephens
S10-ER is incredible. Some archtops will "jangle" through the ER, but the
S-10 is too rolled off to hear it. Of course, if you trying to sound like
JH, there want be any "jangle" to hear.
Dave
<joemont...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1114709540....@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
joemont...@hotmail.com
Dave Stephens wrote:
> Is your S10 a S10-ER, or the non-ER version?
S10...non ER.
>if you trying to sound like
> JH, there want be any "jangle" to hear.
Nonjangular Joe <grin>
John Link
Unknown
<joemont...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>Yesterday I had occasion to be where both the Jazzline and Jim Hall
>archtops were sitting side by side begging to be A/B 'd thru an Evans
>amp with a RE10 cab.
Where might that be? So far, it appears that if you want to buy a
Sadowsky Jim Hall archtop, you have to buy it on faith, as there are
not enough made for anyone to have them in stock.
Thanks,
Tim
http://timberens.com
A Website for Guitarists
Learn something...Have some fun
timb at erinet dot com
joemont...@hotmail.com
(Tim Berens) wrote:
> Where might that be? So far, it appears that if you want to buy a
> Sadowsky Jim Hall archtop, you have to buy it on faith, as there are
> not enough made for anyone to have them in stock.
Tim,
The 2 guitars are owned by 2 friends of mine...BTW I e mailed you off
line about the JH months ago and never received a reply so I just
figured you weren't interested...I 'replied to author' thru google
newsgroups -
If you've changed your mind and want to chat about it off line, feel
free to e mail me -
Unknown
<joemont...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>The 2 guitars are owned by 2 friends of mine...BTW I e mailed you off
>line about the JH months ago and never received a reply so I just
>figured you weren't interested...I 'replied to author' thru google
>newsgroups -
>
>If you've changed your mind and want to chat about it off line, feel
>free to e mail me -
>
>joemont...@hotmail.com
>
Joe:
A scan of my inbox indicates that I didn't receive what you sent. Did
you send it from joemont...@hotmail.com?
Dave Stephens
including the Bruno. Rich Raezer, told me that he prefers the Bruno's sound.
Of course, he's a big Bruno-buddy, but I generally concur with those guys.
Dave
<Tim Berens> wrote in message news:4271aeb5....@news.core.com...
joemont...@hotmail.com
> A scan of my inbox indicates that I didn't receive what you sent.
Did
> you send it from joemont...@hotmail.com?
Si.
JM
joemont...@hotmail.com
made...anyone know if that is true?
JM
Keith
impresssed. To me, there is one very important difference. The Sadowsky
JH has a 1 3/4 nut width. I really like that extra width. Once you get
used to that, standard necks feel skinny. I don't believe the Jazzline
has the wider nut.
Keith