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Posts: 10
Location: New Hartford, CT | Hello all. My name is Mark and I'm a newbie here. I live in New Hartford and have a Ovation 3862. I haven't played for quite a while and never played with a capo. I'd like to get recommendations for one as well as new strings.
(I was hoping to upload some pictures but couldn't find how. I've added the link to a picture album)
http://public.fotki.com/Markl/ovation/
I understand my Ovation was a prototype model that was never marketed. |
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September 2010
Posts: 79
| Welcome mlevinedc! That's a nice looking git! I'd ask Mike (capo guy) as he seems to collect them. |
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March 2005
Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | Schubb and D'Addario |
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Posts: 3969
| Elliott . |
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Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Schubb and Keyser for the mid-price
Elliot for the best and also highest price |
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September 2006
Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Planet
Waves NS Capo
It is light and sturdy and made outta aluminum or titanium or something, comes in black or silver.
And there is also an ABS plastic model that is cheaper but I have not tried... |
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Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | I like the Planet Waves too. |
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Posts: 3736
Location: Sunshine State, Australia | Gee those Elliots look cumbersome. Can't see how they justify their price.
I tried a G7 and hated it.
I don't like the Keyser/Dunlop 'clothespeg' style ones because the spring tension tends to press too hard on the strings affecting intonation.
Shubb's are the only capo for me.
But... I haven't tried the Planet Waves one yet. |
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Posts: 187
Location: Nahant, MA | I like the Planet Waves Dual Action capo. A little bigger than the other but I find it klutz-proof (key attribute for me). |
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November 2006
Posts: 3969
| Originally posted by muzza:
Gee those Elliots look cumbersome. Can't see how they justify their price. Admittedly not for everyone. I never thought their price could be justified until I tried one. Think a polygamous marriage of the finest German engineering to Italian styling and Swiss functionality. They simply work, the only capo I've ever used that I don't have to adjust the tuning. Not cumbersome at all, extremely easy to use. |
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Posts: 4536
Location: Flahdaw | I'd like to steal an Elliot from G8r, but I wouldn't pay $100+ for one. I use cheapo Kysers |
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Posts: 4394
Location: East Tennessee | Shubb is the best all around capo.
If you like the design of an Elliott try a Paige . Same principle light weight and a lot cheaper.
The Planet Waves NS is also a good choice. |
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April 2008
Posts: 2985
Location: Sydney, Australia | Ouch those Elliott's are expensive! Anyone here go for the gold-plated option? C'mon, don't be shy ...
Oh, and I use a G7 and am very happy with it. |
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Posts: 4081
Location: Utah | Originally posted by mlevinedc:
I haven't played for quite a while and never played with a capo. I'd like to get recommendations for one as well as new strings. I prefer simple quick capos. Proper placement is as close to the fret as possible while still getting a clear note. Not in the middle between frets, because that can stretch the string and make the notes sharp, and not on top of the fret because that will make the notes dull/muted.
Keyser is fine. I prefer the Dunlop Trigger, which is quite similar. Even better is the Planet Waves Dual Action, if you're obsessive about intonation perfection.
Strings, now there is a Pandora's Box topic! You'll probably prefer light gauge Phosphor Bronze strings. Mediums are too heavy for most people, though on some guitars the tone is much better with mediums. Extra-lights can sound pretty weak. The factory ships with lights.
The gold standard for me are Light Phos-Bnz Martin Marquis. The downside is that they tend to go dead pretty fast. With a new-to-me guitar I always start with those and then branch out to other brands. Buy a half dozen different brands and see what you like.
Each guitar and owner will have their own preference.
On one Ovation I really liked Elixir coated strings. They are slippery, so no finger squeeks, and last a long time. On other Ovations they sound muddled. Most coated strings do sound less crisp than uncoated.
Favorite brands include Dean Markley, GHS, Martin SP (last longer than Martin Marquis but sound great), D'Addario.
I tear off the front of the string package, write the install date on it, and put it in the guitar case. I write notes on it, such as how long they last, how they sound, if they are stiff or flexible feeling, if they have good/poor intonation, etc. After a half dozen different brands there is usually a clear winner and a clear loser, and several that are pretty good. |
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October 2005
Posts: 4081
Location: Utah | Capos are like socks in the laundry, they mysteriously disappear! I buy at least two per year for myself, and my daughters buy at least a couple each, too. |
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Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Actually, according to some very fine professional players, placing a capo on the fret is the proper way to do it.
Not sure about other brands but an Elliot on the fret is crisp and fresh and certainly not dull/muted. |
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Posts: 1227
Location: Connersville, Indiana | Dunlop trigger, never a problem with tuning, D'Addario 12's. Just like FlySig said, date the wrapper and play on. |
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Posts: 3619
Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | Kysor + D'Addario EXP Lts |
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May 2002
Posts: 1445
Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | Shubbs for me. I have a regular one, a 12-string and a classical model with no radius for flat fretboards. |
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Posts: 4081
Location: Utah | Originally posted by stephent28:
Actually, according to some very fine professional players, placing a capo on the fret is the proper way to do it.
Not sure about other brands but an Elliot on the fret is crisp and fresh and certainly not dull/muted. Nobody ever accused me of being a "very fine professional player". :)
I place the capo immediately behind the fret, sort of touching the back edge so the string is pressing on the fret and not pushed down to the wood. It seems that one string starts getting dull sounding if I put the capo more on top of the fret. Moving it any further mutes all the strings. |
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December 2004
Posts: 4394
Location: East Tennessee | This looks interesting.
Capo and tuner all in one. |
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January 2009
Posts: 4536
Location: Flahdaw | Originally posted by Capo Guy:
This looks interesting.
Capo and tuner all in one. |
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December 2004
Posts: 4394
Location: East Tennessee | Originally posted by dark bar:
Originally posted by Capo Guy:
This looks interesting.
Capo and tuner all in one.
It does seem that everyone is adding more features to stuff.
I bought an indoor/outdoor thermometer it also gives me the date,day of the week,time(atomic clock) and eats batteries like crazy. :mad: |
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August 2005
Posts: 3736
Location: Sunshine State, Australia | Originally posted by G8r:
...the only capo I've ever used that I don't have to adjust the tuning. That's why I like the Shubbs so much - same deal, much cheaper.
And I put it behind the frets, otherwise it gets in the way of my hand on certain chord shapes. |
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November 2006
Posts: 3969
| Shubbs are my favorite right behind the Elliott, but I still have occasional (slight) intonation issues with them. Not on every fret, and not on every guitar, but there nonetheless. |
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January 2006
Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | I have maybe a dozen capos of various makes, but prefer an old Victor model that I've used regularly for the past 20 years. These days, we play many songs that modulate from one key to another, so capos just make transpositions even more complex.
I also have to disagree with Flysig on placement of the capo. I find that when the capo is placed directly behind the fret, there is a tendancy to pull the string around the fret which increases the string bend angle and affects intonation. I find intonation is less impacted by placing the capo in the middle of the fret. In theory, the basis for this reasoning may be rooted in physics. This isn't my specialty, so maybe some engineer can explain this better than me, but the theory is relatively simple. The shortest distance between two objects (the frets) is a straight line (the tuned string). To minimize the capo's impact on string intonation, the string should remain as close to straight as possible. Ideally, Stephen's suggestion of placing the capo directly on the fret would result in the least amount of bend angle and the string would remain about as close to straight as possible. The next option would be to split the difference between the frets, which is what I do. Placement of the capo directly behind the fret creates a near 90 degree bend of the string as the string wraps around the fret. Another factor is the width of the capo bar that comes in contact with the string. The wider the bar, the greater the likelihood that the string will now have compound bend angles at the capo, one in front of the bar and one behind it. Adding the bend on the fret itself, there are now three angles changing the string from being straight.
I've tried Stephen's method, but find that the capo gets in the way of my hand in forming chords close to the capo. I'll give up a little compromise in intonation (imperceptable to most listeners in live performances) in order to avoid the capo from interfering with my left hand technique. |
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Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Originally posted by ProfessorBB:
I've tried Stephen's method, but find that the capo gets in the way of my hand in forming chords close to the capo. Hence the Elliott. They have even come out with a superslim model which helps with the issue you mentioned.
but overall I agree. If I don't place it directly on the fret I tend to position it near the middle. |
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November 2007
Posts: 10
Location: New Hartford, CT | My sincere thanks to everyone who replied. :p |
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August 2005
Posts: 616
Location: cincinnati, ohio | I like Dunlop Trigger capos. They're fast and don't affect intonation too badly, at least on my guitars. And they're durable; I've had the same one for ten years. I liked Kysers okay, but I was going through one every six months; the springs were breaking. |
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January 2009
Posts: 4536
Location: Flahdaw | Rick- you should add a link to your website at the bottom of your posts. People like to know this stuff. Here ya go..... Rick Endres |
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Posts: 698
Location: Cork, Ireland | Interesting how many people use a Shubb. My choice too, before I ever came to the OFC. |
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January 2011
Posts: 12
Location: Philippines | I've used a number of capos through the years. Before I bought my first capo, I had opportunities to use capos that were big, heavy and cumbersome. So when it came time to buy my own capo, I bought a Dunlop Toggle Action capo . I liked that capo because it was so small it could fit in my shirt or jeans pocket without anyone noticing it's there. So I actually carried it in my pocket wherever I went.
Later I bought a Kyser Quick Change capo . I liked the fact that I could use it using only my right hand. So it became my favorite for a while until I bought a Dunlop Trigger capo . The Dunlop capo was similar to the Kyser in the one-hand operation. The difference is that the Dunlop is operated using the left hand instead of the right. But these two capos have a common disadvantage: you need a lot of grip strength to use them.
My current favorite capo is the Planet Waves NS Dual-Action capo . Using it requires only one hand, the left hand. But you don't need to have a strong grip to use it. Even better, the tension is adjustable. So you could prevent the strings from going sharp. The only disadvantage of that capo is that it's not very pocketable. So for that I also bought its smaller sibling, the Planet Waves NS capo . These two Planet Waves capos are what I use now. |
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Posts: 15680
Location: SoCal | Boy, I haven't thought of that Dunlop Quick Change in a long time.
I've used Kysers for years, but on a couple of guitars use Shubbs.
For 6 strings, I'll use whatever is handy. It's 12 strings where I have a problem. I use Shubbs, but I've got to clamp it down really hard to get all the strings to ring clearly.
Anybody else have a problem like that? What do you do about it? |
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August 2002
Posts: 8307
Location: Tennessee | I use Shubbs pretty much all the time, except on the 12. I find the wide Kyser snugged up as close to the fret as possible works best of all the different ones I've tried. On my guitar anyway ... I think your Big Blue has a more C shape to it than my 6759. |
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July 2004
Posts: 812
Location: Hicksville, NY | I use the Kyser quick change on my guitars ... seven years later, and I haven't found one reason to complain about them. :) |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Elliot works beautifully on every 12 string (including the baritone) that I have tried it on. |
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June 2005
Posts: 496
Location: California | Planet Waves, don't need to have a strong grip to use it and the tension is adjustable, you love it. |
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May 2009
Posts: 325
Location: Utica, NY | Another vote for the Planet Waves. Well made, good looking, quick & easy to use. My only choice now. Very hard to beat, especially for their price. |
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July 2003
Posts: 3111
Location: Nashville TN. | I use a Kyser strings I Adamas 1818 strings or Dean Markley Alcamy Goldenbronze |
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Joined:
July 2003
Posts: 3111
Location: Nashville TN. | I use a Kyser strings I Adamas 1818 strings or Dean Markley Alcamy Goldenbronze |
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January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | Elliott then keyser then shubb
the keyser is good for a quick key change or just to find the key when figuring out a song.
I like the Green Keyser 5 string capo that gives you the fake drop D.
I've got several Elliotts but can never find them all at the same time. |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Ha Ha...
Beal, that is why you slide the Elliott's above the nut when not in use (but at least you can easily find them). |
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July 2004
Posts: 147
Location: liverpool ,england | exp strings dunlop capo or kyser |
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Capo?