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Suggestion for Boutique Archtops

Discussion in 'The Small Company Luthiers' started by TaronKeim, Jun 3, 2005.

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  1. Jun 3, 2005 #1
    TaronKeim

    TaronKeim Member

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    Just looking for some opinions, builders and what sort of price range I'd be looking for to get one built, I'm especially fond of the Schroeder's that I've seen, GORGEOUS guitars. I need it to cover classical, blues and jazz... if that is possible:D I'm a sponge... let me soak up the all the collective knowledge this forum can offer:dude

    -TJK
     
    TaronKeim, Jun 3, 2005
    TaronKeim, Jun 3, 2005
    #1
  2. Jun 3, 2005 #2
    nik

    nik Member

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    nik, Jun 3, 2005
    nik, Jun 3, 2005
    #2
  3. Jun 3, 2005 #3
    cnardone

    cnardone Member

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    cnardone, Jun 3, 2005
    cnardone, Jun 3, 2005
    #3
  4. Jun 3, 2005 #4
    noodle_world

    noodle_world Member

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    noodle_world, Jun 3, 2005
    noodle_world, Jun 3, 2005
    #4
  5. Jun 3, 2005 #5
    Edmundo

    Edmundo Member

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    Linda Manzer makes great archtops.


    [​IMG]
     
    Edmundo, Jun 3, 2005
    Edmundo, Jun 3, 2005
    #5
  6. Jun 3, 2005 #6
    TaronKeim

    TaronKeim Member

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    Thanks for all the suggestions fellas, I definately have some e-mailing, saving and looking around to do:D

    -TJK
     
    TaronKeim, Jun 3, 2005
    TaronKeim, Jun 3, 2005
    #6
  7. Jun 3, 2005 #7
    Bryan T

    Bryan T Guitar Owner Silver Supporting Member

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    A lot of great luthiers have been mentioned. I would strongly suggest that you spend some time with a guitar similar to the one you are thinking about prior to ordering. You might be really turned off by some of the limitations of these instruments. The acoustic tone is typically midrange focused and they can be a real pain to amplify without fighting feedback.

    Having said that, I absolutely love my Heritage archtop, but probably wouldn't spend much more than I did, as these guitars are so specialized.

    Bryan
     
    Bryan T, Jun 3, 2005
    Bryan T, Jun 3, 2005
    #7
  8. Jun 4, 2005 #8
    decay-o-caster

    decay-o-caster Member

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    Check Saul Koll's site - he makes a lovely guitar for far less than you would expect for a carved archtop.

    Can't wait for mine to arrive!
     
    decay-o-caster, Jun 4, 2005
    decay-o-caster, Jun 4, 2005
    #8
  9. Jun 4, 2005 #9
    arriba

    arriba Member

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    arriba, Jun 4, 2005
    arriba, Jun 4, 2005
    #9
  10. Jun 4, 2005 #10
    Cheebatone

    Cheebatone Member

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    Cheebatone, Jun 4, 2005
    Cheebatone, Jun 4, 2005
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  11. Jun 4, 2005 #11
    george4908

    george4908 Member

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    Here's a good master list of archtop luthiers:

    http://www.jazzguitarresources.com/luthiers.html

    Recommendations?

    Some years ago, I played bunches of high end archtops looking for a great one. I bought one built by Brad Nickerson; subsequently ordered a second guitar from him. Alas, he is semi-retired and I don't think he's taking orders now.

    Other great ones -- these are people who I wouldn't hesitate to order from (notwithstanding the price, some of them are stratospheric):

    Steve Anderson
    Steve Grimes
    Ted Megas
    John Monteleone
    Linda Manzer
    John Buscarino
    Tom Ribbecke
    Mark Campellone

    While Bob Benedetto is retired, his guitars are now built under license by Guild. They're still very fine guitars, and very expensive. I've also played a couple of archtops by a guy named Palen recently. Also very fine instruments.
     
    george4908, Jun 4, 2005
    george4908, Jun 4, 2005
    #11
  12. Jun 4, 2005 #12
    Zander

    Zander Member

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    any thoughts on the jim hall and jimmy bruno guitars from sadowsky???
     
    Zander, Jun 4, 2005
    Zander, Jun 4, 2005
    #12
  13. Jun 7, 2005 #13
    Straleno

    Straleno Member

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    Straleno, Jun 7, 2005
    Straleno, Jun 7, 2005
    #13
  14. Jun 7, 2005 #14
    walrus

    walrus Member

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    Although they're pretty rare around here, I love my Hancock Hobart by Australian luthier Kim Hancock (www.hancockguitars.com). It has European woods and it has a great wide open acoustic sound. Great customer service too!
     
    walrus, Jun 7, 2005
    walrus, Jun 7, 2005
    #14
  15. Jun 8, 2005 #15
    The Eristic

    The Eristic Member

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    The Eristic, Jun 8, 2005
    The Eristic, Jun 8, 2005
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  16. Jun 8, 2005 #16
    aquadog

    aquadog Member

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    aquadog, Jun 8, 2005
    aquadog, Jun 8, 2005
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  17. Jun 9, 2005 #17
    Tom Gross

    Tom Gross Supporting Member

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    A coupla suggestions -

    It would be best of course, if you could play a bunch and see what you liked and learn about it. I see you're up in the middle of nowhere (just kidding), but I would suggest the following:

    - Find a Heritage dealer or other dealer that had some archtops, play a lot of them, and educate yourself as much as possible about the different design choices and your own preferences.

    - If at all possible, get to a big guitar show. I don't know about the west coast, but Philly and especially the Long Island shows always have a bunch of the best builders. With the price of these things, it would be worth a plane ticket and a weekend to do research, especially if you can play examples of guitars by Manzer, Buscarino, Campallone, Ribbecke, Monteleone, Comins, etc. all in the same day. It's fun, too.
     
    Tom Gross, Jun 9, 2005
    Tom Gross, Jun 9, 2005
    #17
  18. Jun 11, 2005 #18
    diminishedlogic

    diminishedlogic Guest

    check this guy out. www.gagnonguitars.com


    also does anyone know about siegmund guitars archtop?! the acoustic one looks amazing!!!!! how much is it?
     
    diminishedlogic, Jun 11, 2005
    diminishedlogic, Jun 11, 2005
    #18
  19. Jun 11, 2005 #19
    adamquek

    adamquek Member

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    adamquek, Jun 11, 2005
    adamquek, Jun 11, 2005
    #19
  20. Jun 11, 2005 #20
    MOJO

    MOJO Member

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    MOJO, Jun 11, 2005
    MOJO, Jun 11, 2005
    #20
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