|
|
Post by hcoll on Aug 6, 2004 20:40:51 GMT -5
...she-who-must-not-be-named just gave the go ahead for a trip tomorrow to try and locate some Simon & Patrick guitars........
...gonna take along my AJ-10 just to hear/feel the difference.........
...if I do locate some...my teacher advised me to at least sleep on it before committing to a purchase...just to be sure........
|
|
|
|
Post by chrisgrimes on Aug 7, 2004 3:32:18 GMT -5
Hi Man
Good on you, you have amassed some "good boy" points with she that must be obeyed, good feeling not only to have the plastic or the cash in the back pocket but also to have a note to give the guy in the store saying that you have her permission to spend your own money !!!
I rate S&P guitars highly, have not got one yet (waiting to amass sufficient credits from STMBO !!) but played a few in stores and at the recent London Guitar show. Very good quality and tone, I played a 12 string (sorry can't remember the model) and it was a serious, serious jangler !!)
I agree that you should try and "sleep" on your decision but that's easier said than done.
Let us know what you get
chris - uk
|
|
|
|
Post by hcoll on Aug 7, 2004 15:37:25 GMT -5
...Cantonsville, MD is a 'burb of Baltimore...its nickname is "MusicTown, MD"...it's well deserved...at least four music shops within two blocks of each other...this was interesting............
...first up...Bill's Music...huge...everything and just about anything in two buildings...got to play a Gibson J-160E through a Vox Valvetronix AD60VT...found out why I wouldn't want one...acoustically the 160 was okay...plugged-in it was amplified at 10 and went acoustic at about 6 on the volume pot...couldn't hear much difference on the tone pot at all...this could be due to setup...then there's the issue with the ever-present 60 cycle hum from the P-90 single coil...now that I've tried the J-160E...not interested anymore...still it's a great looking guitar...liked the trapezoid inlays...didn't like the chunky neck...............
...across the street to Ed's Vintage Guitars...you know that with 'vintage' in there it's gonna be pricey...the place has that musty odor of those antique shops that you get dragged through by she-who-must-be-obeyed...(thanks for the correction on that)...great selection of old amps and old guitars...did I mention pricey...there weren't any prices on the tags...it reminded me of certain French restaurants where everything is ala carte with no prices listed on the menu...I didn't inquire about the prices because there was nothing that I was really interested in...you know everything is negotiable here...with a lofty start............
...down the street was Jim's Guitars...a small shop that specialized in used guitars...most were in pretty good condition and had reasonable prices...it was here I found an Epiphone AJ-45s for $350...it was about a year ago that I had one of these on order for six months only to be told that it was out of production...I really wanted one of these...over on the EpiForum I was advised not to get one because it would sound about the same as my AJ-10...thank you GreyBeard...you were absolutely right...........
...back across the street and down a little is Applachian Bluegrass...this was my real destination...according to Simon & Patrick's website...this was an S&P distributer...you walk in and it's wall-to-wall acoustics...mandolins...banjos...guitars...Tayors...Martins...Santa Cruz...Godin...Seagull...Art & Lutherie...alas...no S & P...don't stock 'em...but they can order 'em...forget that..........
...back to Bill's cause that's where I parked...struck up a conversation with one of the salesmen and found this out...it all has to do with different marketing strategies...........
...Fender...no exclusive territories...they sell to any retailer...retailers compete against each other side by side in the market place...if you don't like it...too bad...we'll just replace you with a different retailer...why...because we're Fender...we're into production...and you'd better be into selling...........
...Gibson/Epiphone...more exclusive...retailers have a little more territory between each other............
...then there's LaSiDo...makers of Godin (electric)...Seagull...Art & Lutherie...Simon & Patrick...Norman...LaPatrie (classical)...with the exceptions of Godin and LaPatrie...these are all basically the same guitar with a different headstock...the idea is to have exclusive dealerships within any given area for each subcategory/brand...talk about cookie-cutter guitars...these guys took a lesson page right out of a Korean shop manual and translated it into English-Francais.............
...I'll find a Simon & Patrick to at least try...at some point...what I'm really finding out is that the more I look...the more I like my AJ-10..........
|
|
|
|
Post by chrisgrimes on Aug 8, 2004 1:16:48 GMT -5
Yo hcoll
I'd say that's pretty much mission accomplished then !!! Thanks for the tour, I feel like I know Cantonsville rather well, the only thing missing from your detailed "ops" report were climatic conditions !!
chris
|
|
|
|
Post by hcoll on Aug 8, 2004 4:29:19 GMT -5
...sunny...unusually cool for this time of year............  |
|
|
|
Post by hcoll on Feb 13, 2005 18:06:48 GMT -5
It's been awhile...........
...my search for an acoustic...actually an acoustic-electric has come to an end...purchased a Takamine EG523SC...Korean-made...probably made on the graveyard shift after they finished the Epi's on the same assembly line who knows...I do know that this guitar incorporates everything that I currently was looking for in an acoustic guitar........
...solid spruce top...acoustic-electric...cutaway...preamp w/ notch filter...short-neck scale (25")...modern (grover-like) tuners...
...and somethings that I wasn't actually looking for...but I like 'em.........
...flamed maple jumbo body...compensated string-thru bridge (no pegs)...block MOP & abalone neck inlays...abalone soundhole rosette inlays...........
...all in all...it's about as different from my AJ-10 as I could get...........
...it's a pretty good copy of a Gibson J-185EC...except I won't have a heart attack the first time it gets a ding.........the Epi EJ-200CE comes even closer...just try and find one...they're all stuck on a container ship somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.................
...there's also a 12-string version available...my local retailer says some people come in and buy them in pairs...I have too much trouble handling six strings to worry about twelve.............
...if you get a chance...I'd recommend you check one out................
|
|
|
|
Post by Steelpriest on Feb 13, 2005 22:56:27 GMT -5
Congrats!  Our former recently bought a Takamine as well and he likes it alot. |
|
Our former recently bought a Takamine as well and he likes it alot. 