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Joined:
December 2010
Posts: 4
Location: Panama | Hi there,
My names Paul (ppinny) and i'm after a new guitar and hopefully a little help!
I have just started playing the guitar again after a long lapse and i’m enjoying it a lot but the guitar i have is very cheap and pretty much untunable.
The issue is simply which Ovation do i go for?
I want an acoustic electric 6 string.
I think i would be happiest with the deep body type, for the low end. And i play with the guitar tuned well down with the 1st at “B”, 2nd at “G” etc. so this might need considering.
I’m not able to spend too much first time out so my budget will be $600, but i will need to get a case within that price as well. I live in the tropical jungle with some wild animals so the guitar will need protection! Part of the reason for wanting an Ovation is the composite body; better at dealing with teeth (animals and bugs), the humidity and the salty air.
It’s remote where we live so i will have to order my new guitar on the net. A lot of stuff i have tried to get from the US is made prohibitive by the shipping costs, sometimes three times the value of the goods, so i could use some help with a good supplier.
Any help or advice would be great as i’m a bit lost as to where to start! So many to choose from, so little time and our very bad internet connection make it hard to research as well.
Thanks for your time,
Ppinny |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 10581
Location: NJ | it sounds like you are looking for an Adamas.
I doubt you will find one for $600 w case
good luck |
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Joined:
February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | If you tune down that far you might want to consider a baritone (longneck) Ovation model. You would be more likely to find one closer to your budget than you would an Adamas. |
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Joined:
December 2010
Posts: 4
Location: Panama | Thanks both.
The conditions where i live are so harsh i don't think i should risk an expensive instrument until i'm sure it's not going to suffer too badly; hence the price ceiling. It doesn't look like i'll find an Adamas, i agree Alpep!!
Waskel. I have quite small hands, (and fingers that are starting to suffer from arthritis a little), and i don't think i could manage a longer neck. Maybe it's a little odd but i like the flappy sound from the down tuning. It kinda suits my "style", ( as if i had one!).
Is the neck a lot longer on a baritone?
Thanks again. Ppinny |
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Joined:
February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Yeah, the neck's a little longer and the fret spacing is somewhere between standard scale and bass. And it really requires heavier strings.
Sounds like it wouldn't be the best fit for you. |
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Joined:
October 2005
Posts: 4026
Location: Utah | I would suggest an older Balladeer, which can be found for about $300 including case. Getting someone to ship to Panama will be the hard part.
Alternatively, a laminated top might really be exactly what you need in the high humidity of Panama. One of the Celebrity models would be perfect, and you can find them used with case in that same $300 ballpark.
For downtuning just use a thicker gauge of string, even just replacing the lower one or two strings. A mid depth bowl does just fine with lower tunings, the tone is surprisingly good. A deep bowl or deep contour may give slightly better depth but I would not rate it as required. I am working on a project with my mid-depth Elite with the low string at C# and the 5th string at E. With standard "light gauge" strings there is some fret rattle but the tone is ok. |
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Joined:
December 2010
Posts: 4
Location: Panama | This is going to hurt! I was looking at the, dare i say it, Taylor site so entranced was i by Manelli Jamal's playing, and someone said his Talor made his Ovation sound like a toy!!
Yes, shipping to Panama is a nightmare. Sometimes the shipping costs are three times the value of the product!
Thanks again, Ppinny |
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Joined:
April 2008
Posts: 2985
Location: Sydney, Australia | Ppinny, that's going to bring some people out swinging. Now to sit back and watch the fun. |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 10581
Location: NJ | maybe you need to get on the taylor site and talk to them....oh bob taylor shut it down long ago.
OOPS |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7210
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | "The conditions where i live are so harsh i don't think i should risk an expensive instrument until i'm sure it's not going to suffer too badly;"
Keep in mind... for harsh conditions, an Adamas is really the ONLY choice. Most other guitars have such a high content of wood put them somewhat out of the durability running. It's seems like with other manufactures, the more expensive you get, the more DELICATE the guitar is. Quite the opposite with Ovation and especially Adamas.
I have still have my first Ovation bought in the late 70's. It's a wood top, aluminum neck and standard bowl. Other than being banged all up from 16 years travel in the Navy and general abuse.... it still plays great.
I have a brand new custom Adamas. If I had to play under harsh conditions, I'd really be silly to try and play anything else.
When I lived in Hawaii, Adamas was the most common guitar because it was the only one that could handle the daily day-to-night temp changes without going out of tune mid-song/mid-set, and the only ones that could handle the harsh salt air.
I'm just say'n... Over the next 20 years buy 3 or 4 $600 guitars, or just one Adamas and have it for a lifetime.
Of course forgetting all that... your tuning requirements seem to point to Adamas as well. |
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Joined:
December 2010
Posts: 4
Location: Panama | Thank you Mr Ovation.
I'll just show your post to my wife and i might even get away with it! (I'll have to remove this one of course;-)
Seems i truly need the best and most expensive one then! Of course i'll have to wait a bit to get the funds together and work the diplomacy but so be it. How we suffer for our art! ;-)
The local Panama dealer has some lower range Ovations but seems to be quoting sensible prices, comparable to US, so i'll get a price for the Adamas, which he says he can get.
Ppinny
Thanks again everyone. I'll let you know how i get on! |
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Joined:
December 2005
Posts: 247
Location: Seacoast NH | I can't comment on the suitability of the Adamas to meet your needs (as I've never been fortunate enough to own one), but my 18 year-old Ovation Elite 6768 has survived climates and accidents that would have destroyed a lesser guitar. I've dropped it down flights of stairs, my brother left it in his car trunk on a hot summer week when I was stupid enough to let him borrow it, general wear and tear ... the thing is still in great shape, and I've never even had to have it reset. Love my Ovation, the work horse! |
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which one?
