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Joined:
April 2024
Posts: 4
Location: Kansas, USA | I’m a new member and hoping to get some thoughts and recommendations on Ovation nylon string guitars. At this point, I’ve narrowed my search to these guitars:
Celebrity Standard CS24C-4 CS (center sound hole)
Celebrity Elite Nylon CE44C-4A-G (epaulets)
I’m looking to buy a new guitar, and my main question has to do with center sound hole vs epaulets. I think I’ve read every Fan Club post on this topic and realize there’s no definitive answer in terms of which is better, but I’m interested to see if anyone has experience with either or both of these guitars.
I play mostly chord melody arrangements of jazz standards, will likely never use the electronics, nor play for an audience. So, I want what sounds best to me, not someone listening.
I’ve been playing a Cordoba C5C3 and like the narrower (for a classical) nut width, but not happy with the sound. I love my steel string 1611 Balladeer, but need to have a nylon string guitar for finger style playing.
Thanks for your thoughts!
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Joined:
April 2024
Posts: 4
Location: Kansas, USA | Sorry…NYLON string guitars. |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7222
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | I moved this question to the General area so others can respond. |
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Joined:
December 2004
Posts: 566
Location: Denmark | Hi mardeec. Welcome.
I have no personal experience with any of the two mentioned models. Try them in person would be best, if possible. A shop with a good return policy may allow you to get both and keep the one you prefer and return the other. From specifications the seem very much alike with the sound hole being the main difference. Some people claim the the center soundhole projects the sound a little better towards the player. Appearance and taste also matters. If you do a side by side test of the two please share your observations. |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | What neck width (at the nut) are you looking for? Classical is 2". Or do you want something narrower...... |
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Joined:
April 2024
Posts: 4
Location: Kansas, USA | Thanks for your thoughts. I live in a fairly rural area of Kansas in the US, so it's likely I'll need to order online. Last time I was at a Guitar Center in Kansas City (250 mile round trip), they didn't have much of a selection of nylon string guitars, certainly no Ovations.
I've been playing a Cordoba C5CE, standard scale length, 50mm fretboard width, no radius. I like the 50mm width rather than52mm, but it still seems a bit too wide, so the 48mm of the Celebrities seems like it might be just right. At first I was drawn to the multi sound holes of the Celebrity Elite, but as I read more posts about the sound hole(s) question, it seemed the center hole would be more to my liking. Also, the Celebrity Standard neck joins the body at the 12th fret, and I've read this could produce a warmer, fuller tone than a 14th fret design. Would it make much difference on budget, factory produced guitar? Hard to say, but my Cordoba is 12th fret and doesn't present a problem in terms of playability.
The Ovation web site indicates the Celebrity Elite (CE44C-4A-G) has a reinforced neck, but doesn't have the same statement for the Celebrity Standard (CS24C-4 CS). Can I assume the Celebrity Standard also has a reinforced neck with an adjustable truss rod? |
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Joined:
December 2004
Posts: 566
Location: Denmark | I think in the past all Ovation guitars - nylon or steel strung - have had either an adjustable truss rod or a Kaman bar (something similar) in the neck. To make sure for recent models you better ask the shop where you intend to buy. |
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Joined:
October 2014
Posts: 270
| I don't want to through a curve at you but the Ovation Country Artist Model 1624 is a joy to play and sounds great. They're not a current model so you'd need to buy one on the used market (I found mine on Craigslist). Guitar Center and Reverb seems to always have a few. It was originally designed as a nylon guitar for Glen Campbell. It has a 1 7/8" neck with a slot-head. The Ovation Fan Club's model directory lists it as a shallow bowl but it's about the same (maybe a tiny bit shallower) than my mid-depth Celebrity CC 24 and is significantly deeper than the shallow bowl Celebrity I used to have. |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | If you're never going to plug in, then I would say to go with an older Ovation classical, model 1113. It's got a 2 inch nut and flat fingerboard. A Country Artist is a great nylong string if you're going to plug it in, but the acoustic sound is lacking. Look thru some of the old catalogs from the 70's and 80's to learn about what Ovation offered. I wouldn't be thrilled about any of the current Ovation nylon strings unless acoustic sound is not high on your priority list. For what you are looking for, older is better. |
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Joined:
April 2006
Posts: 848
Location: Munich, Germany | I'd search for a used 6773 Country Artist. 1 7/8 nut, no radius fretboard, mid depth bowl. They do sound good plugged and unplugged. Mine is a Custom order, strung with John Pearse Folk strings. Awesome guitar. Do yourself a favour and stay away from Celebrities. 
Happy hunting,
Kurt
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December 2004
Posts: 566
Location: Denmark | Nice wall :-) |
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Joined:
April 2024
Posts: 4
Location: Kansas, USA | Thank you for the recommendations on other nylon string guitars to consider. If they sound much better than the current Celebrities, they’re worth hunting for.
I’ve had to move to nylon strings by necessity. For the past few years, I’ve been getting chilblains sores, mostly on my right hand, and during all but the hottest weather. This makes it painful/impossible to play fingerstyle on steel strings. The flat fingerboard Cordoba and Yamaha that I have now still seem a bit challenging to play, so I wanted to try a nylon string guitar with a slight fretboard radius. From what I understand the 1624, 1113, and 6773 are all flat fingerboards, so I would lose that feature. Maybe what I can do is try *any* nylon string guitar with a radius and see if makes a difference in playability.
Thanks again to everyone for your help. You’ve given me a good start!
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Ovation Nylong String Guitars