A good Beginners jazz Setup.
Arck
Im thinking of a hollowbody like a 335/135 Ibanez George Benson type of
thing. Is a Gibson REALLY worth saving up for? I've been playing for nearly
seven years, but only recently have dug deeper into Jazz/Blues. Im a learner
at jazz, but wanna get a good a rig - that ways , if i get good i dont feel
I have to upgrade :) I'd like to have two decent pickups (humbuckers) too
Also Is the Washburn montgomery good?
kaetae
I use a Rickenbacker 370 as my jazz box. It is much like the 335 in
size.
If you buy a top quality American made guitar you can't go wrong. They
will always retain their value and often go up in value through the
years. But if you want a player that you don't have to worry about
there are several Asian Jazz boxes available at affordable prices. If
you should buy an Asian guitar you may consider changing the tuners and
pickups to those of higher quality. Washburn makes some wonderful jazz
boxes. Keep in mind that they have laminated tops where the Gibsons
have carved tops.
In my opinion this doesn't change your electric sound any noticeable
amount. I recently tried a guitar that I really liked. It was a Yamaha
AES1500B. They cost more than most Asian guitars but much less than a
comparable Gibson. The one I played was white with a Bigsby.
Pt
Luke B
> have carved tops.
This is untrue - many Gibsons have laminated tops.
You can play a lot of great music on and Epiphone and you can probably get a
lot of mileage out of one too. Many people swear by them (not just at 'em).
I've never had one myself tho. I bought a used Gibson for a good price and
have been very happy with it - but not after considering an Epi. I had
lusted after this particular guitar for about 15 yrs. and I new if I didn't
get it then, I'd be mad at myself later so I took the plunge. If that's not
your case, don't overlook the variety of "under $1000" axes out there on
the market.
Luke B
"kaetae" <kae...@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:3A546861...@earthlink.net...
RobinsonCHAZZ
<< Arck wrote: >>
<< Is a Gibson REALLY worth saving up for?
I played Gibson 175s, 335s and a Byrdland for years but right now my main axe
is an Ibenez GB-10 and I wouldn't trade it for anything. CR
Brett Cooper
"Luke B" <luke...@knts.com> wrote:
> Keep in mind that they have laminated tops where the Gibsons
> > have carved tops.
>
> This is untrue - many Gibsons have laminated tops.
>
> You can play a lot of great music on and Epiphone and you can
probably get a
> lot of mileage out of one too.
plus as Greg pointeed out you get 2 (count 'em) strap buttons with an
Epi :)
Sent via Deja.com
http://www.deja.com/
OASYSCO
The J6 Montgomery is an excellent guitar and has recently fallen in price to
under $600 USD here in the States. It is big, thick and every bit a jazz
guitar. The only problem I have with it is the gaudy nature of the big "W"
tailpiece.
But let's look at the facts... it seems that you have been lusting after a
Gibson. As such, the only cure typically is to actually own a Gibson. You may
love it; you may not. If you buy anything else, you will probably always
wondered what it would have been like to spend 3x as much and have the "real"
thing.
For me, I bought a factory-fresh ES-135 in 1997-8 and did not like it at all.
Had it come with humbucks at the time, I might have loved it. I always felt the
ES-135 should have cost $700-800, not $1,500. And ES-335's go for over $2,000.
That's a lot of money for a hobby, but not alot for a profession.
Greg
Bunker
get you into some very sweet blues tone too. I will probably switch out the
pickups one of these days (Thanks everyone responding to my question on
humbuckers), but for now it is really ok. I have played out and gotten
some great sounds out of it through a mic'd solid state amp.
IMHUO, there is little reason to buy a new 335 while the 135 LE (with
humbuckers) is out there. I am sure the 335 is mo better, but it is a lot
more expensive. I bought my 135 new a few years ago for around 800,
including tax and case.
A lot of jazz tone is in the tone controls and amp. I would suggest that if
you are looking for an all-purpose axe, make sure that you like the sound of
the guitar with pickups wide open for other kind of music. You can get a
whole lot of mileage out of good tone controls, and if you sound 100% jazz
before rolling back the tone or volume controls then you may not have the
flexibility you are looking for.
Also, make sure that you have an amp with enough clean headroom. A good
tube amp that breaks up quickly may not serve your jazz needs as well as a
ss amp with a decent preamp and speaker.
Good luck, and try not to suck as much as I do.
Arck <bsm...@the.net.nz> wrote in message
news:0cY46.554$fx.1...@ozemail.com.au...
Lawson Stone
wrote on 1/4/01 12:10 PM:
> I use a Rickenbacker 370 as my jazz box. It is much like the 335 in
> size.
> If you buy a top quality American made guitar you can't go wrong. They
> will always retain their value and often go up in value through the
> years. But if you want a player that you don't have to worry about
> there are several Asian Jazz boxes available at affordable prices. If
> you should buy an Asian guitar you may consider changing the tuners and
> pickups to those of higher quality. Washburn makes some wonderful jazz
> boxes. Keep in mind that they have laminated tops where the Gibsons
> have carved tops.
> In my opinion this doesn't change your electric sound any noticeable
> amount. I recently tried a guitar that I really liked. It was a Yamaha
> AES1500B. They cost more than most Asian guitars but much less than a
> comparable Gibson. The one I played was white with a Bigsby.
Uhhh Washburn is made by Samick in Korea, just like Epiphone.
Gibsons with the E prefix are all laminated, including ES 175.
The Gibsons with carved tops are only the L series and Super 400.
*****************************************************
"Go sleep it off Ike; you talk too much for a fighting man"--Wyatt Earp
Lawson Stone-Professor of Old Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary
Jazz Guitar, Cowboy Action Shooting, Leathercraft, Horses, Old West
Thomas Stubbs
has reasonable quality neck and tuners. Most jazz guitarists
use archtops because of their historical background, the archtop
was developed specifically to use with jazz.
I would recommend a guitar that you are comfortable playing.
The neck should suit your hand size and the body should be
comfortable playing in your preferred style ( standing or sitting).
I think the GB type guitars are best in this regard, 335's are
too big for sitting, at least for me.
Thomas Stubbs
335, 135, George Benson, are all completely different animals.
335 is semi-hollow, 135 has P90s, the George Benson is a
small bodied guitar.
Randy Graves
>
> . . .
>
> Gibsons with the E prefix are all laminated, including ES 175.
>
That became true only after WWII. Charlie Christian's ES-150 and ES-250
had carved tops.
Randy Graves
Adam Bravo
settings, it'll work.
"Arck" <bsm...@the.net.nz> wrote in message
news:0cY46.554$fx.1...@ozemail.com.au...
sergio
I am a beginner at jazz too, learning also in this news group, and have a
lot of questions.
So, do you think that my Gibson Les Paul Classic is good enough for jazz
tone?
If the differences between a solid body and a hollow body are not big, I'd
rather save my money.
What kind of guitar-amps are useful for jazz?
Any idea would be very appreciated.
Excuse me for my poor english.
Sergio
Thomas Stubbs <tgst...@earthlink.net> escribió en el mensaje de noticias
3A549742...@earthlink.net...
Max Leggett
>I am a beginner at jazz too, learning also in this news group, and have a
>lot of questions.
>
http://www.wpi.edu/~kgh/rmmgjFAQ.html
>So, do you think that my Gibson Les Paul Classic is good enough for jazz
>tone?
Yes. I have several guitars, and I don't think the guitar has a great
deal to do with the tone. Tone comes from your fingers. A particular
guitar, like a hollow-body archtop, may well enhance your tone, but
the guitar itself is secondary. Shop around and save the money.
Max
Thomas Stubbs
very high output pickups, they might distort the in put
of your amp, so try them at 7-8 instead of 10. Use the
tone controls on the amp and guitar to get your tone,
and if you want solid sounding chords use 12 gauge
flatwound strings, lightweight strings can flex and make
the chords out of tune. Be sure and readjust the
bridge height and intonation if you change strings
sizes more than one step.
Dunlop212
Les Paul plays with the guitar between his legs. LPs are too heavy and
poorly balanced to be comfortably played any other way. To the extent
that he had anything to do with the design, it was a P90 equipped
guitar. Some folks like LPs with humbuckers, but those folks don't tend
to be jazz players.
In recent years Gibson has ratcheted up their prices unbelievably. I'm
hard pressed to think of *any* price point where a new gibson is
anything but a foolish choice. For example, for about the price of a
135, (correct me if I'm wrong) a plywood guitar with student model
appointments and a poor reputation for fit and finish, you could get a
professional quality Tacoma archtop with a carved spruce top. Also,
almost weekly, members of this NG sell superb used japanese jazz boxes
from the 70s and 80s.
Prys Lewis
in the smoothness (less finger squeaking ) of your playing and a full fat
sound if you want it, but without loosing the option of a brighter sound
with more bite.
I found D'addario ground wound heat treated strings very good.
OASYSCO
>
>Les Paul plays with the guitar between his legs. LPs are too heavy and
>poorly balanced to be comfortably played any other way. To the extent
>that he had anything to do with the design, it was a P90 equipped
>guitar. Some folks like LPs with humbuckers, but those folks don't tend
>to be jazz players.
Let's not forget that the Les Paul that Les Paul played was a custom made
flattop. He did not at all like the arched top that Gibson felt duty-bound to
use.
>In recent years Gibson has ratcheted up their prices unbelievably. I'm
>hard pressed to think of *any* price point where a new gibson is
>anything but a foolish choice. For
I think you mean, it IS a foolish choice and I agree!
I heard somewhere - probably just a rumor - that the head of Gibson sought to
raise prices to distinguish Gibsons from other US makers in an effort to lend
more credence to the "Only Gibson is Good Enough" motto and make Gibson seem
like "top 'o the line" stuff.
>example, for about the price of a
>135, (correct me if I'm wrong) a plywood guitar with student model
>appointments and a poor reputation for fit and finish, you could get a
Here you are absolutely right! I had 2 of them and both had problems. The first
one had fine finishing scratches that wound in a circular fashion from stem to
stern on the body. The second one - a replacement for the first - was virtually
dropped shipped from the Gibson factory, arriving in the same box that it was
shipped to the company I bought it from with the price that they paid for it
printed on a ticket on the box. And guess what? It had a neck warp that made
low action impossible to achieve. Needless to say, I no longer have an ES-135.
Greg
AldenRo
David Kelly plays great jazz on a Strat
Mike Stern plays a Telecaster style guitar
My point is (as many others in this thread have pointed out) is that it's not
the guitar, it's the player. Get someting your comfortable with and go. and
good luck on your playing. I'm sure you're going to do great.
Bob Valentine
>>
>> Im thinking of a hollowbody like a 335/135 Ibanez George Benson type of
>> thing. Is a Gibson REALLY worth saving up for?
Don't get the Gibson (or any other way-overpriced name brand) unless you
care a lot about resale value.
Learn more about guitars and what the guitarists you like are using before
you choose. As others pointed out, 335/135 are not hollowbody but semihollow
with a block of wood down the middle. Benson uses a fully hollow body jazz
axe, but the GB model has also been built a bit different from other
classic jazz hollowbodys and is a little brighter as a result (thicker top
or some bracing to make it more feedback resistant).
There are many high quality but lower priced jazz guitars around these days,
Epi has a ton, but there are many others. I recently bought a Schecter Jazz-7
and it is about the only inexpensive 7-string jazz guitar. I would prefer it
if it were a tad more hollow (it is on the border between semi-hollow and
hollow) and had an ebony bridge, but it is a very affordable and professional
guitar.
If you can find old student guitars from the early 60's, Gibson ES-125,
Guild Starfire II, or similar Epis, these are still cheaper than any new
(or used) 335; have a better jazz sound and feel, and will retain their
resale value.
And... a lot (not "all") of it is in your fingers. Teles, especially
thinlines with the Fender humbucker, are often quoted as being good budget
jazz guitars.
Bob Valentine
Thomas F Brown
Bob Valentine <bv...@iil.intel.com> wrote:
>I recently bought a Schecter Jazz-7
>and it is about the only inexpensive 7-string jazz guitar. I would prefer it
>if it were a tad more hollow (it is on the border between semi-hollow and
>hollow) and had an ebony bridge, but it is a very affordable and professional
>guitar.
Fatdawg makes a full hollow 7-string very cheap, even less than the
Schecter.
Kari Roth
>
> snip...
> Also Is the Washburn montgomery good?
I've had a J6 Montgomery for two years now and been very satisfied with
it. Good sound (both acoustic and electric). Before bought it I Compared
it to other archtops of same price category (mostly Epiphone) and
considered J6 the best. Definitely worth a try.
Kari Roth
P.S. I am also a beginner in jazz so I can give only a beginner's
opinion...
lyle
pickup version of the x155).
nice craftmanship, nice tone, a real good buy...
"Arck" <bsm...@the.net.nz> wrote in message
news:0cY46.554$fx.1...@ozemail.com.au...
Tim Willets
>Here you are absolutely right! I had 2 of them and both had problems.
I've a P100-equipped 135 that's a perfectly good guitar. Any scratches on the
finish have happened after I bought it, everything is fitted as it should
be and it happily takes what, for me, is a very low action. I tried a few
when I bought it and none were bad guitars, but mine suited me best out
of the 4 or 5 I tried. I tried quite a few Epiphones as well but none
matched the 135 in quality or tone, and the Gibson wasn't priced much higher
than a Sorrento, so Gibson it was. It does fine for jazz through a solid-
state amp and blues/r'n'b through a valve amp.
The only problem I've found is the distance between trapeze and head which
means only a few makes of strings have enough winding on them to get the
would part onto the D tuner (I prefer a plain G).
Tim