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August 2003
Posts: 888
Location: Louisville, OH 44641 | I stopped out to the local GC to check out the VXT. It was a beautiful guitar with nice action and fit and finish. But when I asked the salesman about the guitar, he said he hadn't sold any yet. He felt the reason was that you needed 2 amps for this guitar and no one wants to lug around 2 of them.
Then he said the guitar you want to buy is this new American Fender Strat. For close to the same price, you can have a great Strat that also models drop D tuning, humbuckers, a 12 string and then it's also a nice strat if that's what your looking for.
So he didn't try to sell the Ovation at all. But I wonder if Ovation may have made a fatal judgement about needing 2 amps. Or maybe Ovation will come out with an Acoustic-Electric amp with 2 inputs.
Finally, from what I've been reading lately, it sounds like the VXT possibly should have been the 07 Collectors Guitar. Very different and collectable.
Jim |
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March 2005
Posts: 1421
Location: Orange County, California | Yo Jim,
Go back there and SCHOOL THEM!!! You don't need two amps. Flip the little switch next to the battery and plug a regular cable into to ONE amp. Electric or acoustic, it doesn't matter, it will sound good. |
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October 2006
Posts: 51
Location: Arizona | Yeah, they're pushing the VG Strat. I figured that'd be The Next Big Thing and since they both came out at about the same time the VXT is easy to push back into the shadows.
And you need two amps with the VXT as much as you need two amps with the T5...i.e., not really that much. It's fun to use them that way but you're sure not obligated to do that and it's not that restrictive. I usually wind up plugging into one or the other, and seldom into both. With the T5 (and I'm sure with the VXT) you can get some really nice, unique electric sounds just by playing around with the processing on a good acoustic amp. You ain't gonna be goin' into overdrive a lot, but still lots to do. |
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March 2006
Posts: 1634
Location: Chehalis, Washington | I had this really long, thought-out post, and the system booted me off...not very nice. I'll sum up:
Go with a good tube amp. My personal choice is the Fender Blues Jr - works great for acoustic guitars as an alternative to "acoustic" amps, and cries like a baby with my Viper plugged into it. I run it through a few analog pedals, particularly a Boss Blues Driver, and the sound is incredible. That's exactly how I'd run the VXT, though I'd probably be very selective how many effects I added in. You just run it through a good overdrive like the BD or a nice Fulltone, delay, etc, and use your pedals AND the blender knob on the guitar to get whatever array of sounds you want.
My thought is that it's never going to sound like a deep-body Adamas, so don't fret too hard about trying to make it. Go with one clean tube amp, and let the guitar do the rest.
As far as sales, I think that you'll see WAY more electric players pick this up eventually than something like the T5. The VXT doesn't totally replace the need for an acoustic, but what it DOES do is offer an array of sound options for electric or lead players that previously wasn't available. I think it will really find its own niche that way.
Just my $ .02. Someone should just send me a VXT and I'll figure it out for you. :D |
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February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | A GC salesman who doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground. Now that's rare.
His logic is fundamentally flawed. You do not need 2 amps unless you choose to go down that route. You can, as Fred pointed out switch the output to mono. But, anyone performing on stage with an electric guitar amp will usually also have a PA system, and that's where the acoustic output can go. Pretty damn obvious to anyone with half a clue. |
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March 2003
Posts: 555
Location: Wooster, Ohio | I had a similar experience with the salesman saying try the Fender. Reality the Fender was very nice and actually may have had the better acoustic sound though I didn't spend enough time on either.
Steve |
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Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | About halfway through this link is on topic.
And the rest is intersting, too.
Strat w/ fishman |
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August 2003
Posts: 888
Location: Louisville, OH 44641 | Thanks guys. I'm not sure Ovation has hooked up with thd right people with the GC. But I certainly hope for the best with the VXT. I think it's a pretty cool guitar. |
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Joined:
May 2004
Posts: 2850
Location: Midland, MI | Originally posted by stellarjim:
Thanks guys. I'm not sure Ovation has hooked up with thd right people with the GC. But I certainly hope for the best with the VXT. I think it's a pretty cool guitar. I predict one of two things will happen...the VXT will disappear and someone in KMC manglement will say, "See! That's why we don't build electric guitars anymore!"
Or, some up and coming, indy rock star will pick one up, figure out how to get some innovative sounds out of it, and it'll take off like the second coming of the UKII (or was it the Ultra GS? I CRS any more) when that guy from Queens of the Stone Age played one (of course, he doesn't any longer).
My money is on the former, which means in about four months, GC is going to be blowing out some VXTs for cheap. And that means people will pick them up for cheap. And then we'll have another branching...either the buyers say, "Whoa, this thing is cool!" and it stays alive, or, they say, "Man, the guy at GC was right! You do need two amps or something to make this sound good!" and they'll start showing up on TGP and eBay for peanuts.
I would consider buying one, especially that prototype -4, semi-hollow with tort binding and the very cool Ovation-branded, Bartolini-esque pickups. But... |
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May 2003
Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Have to agree, send the acoustic into the PA, the electric into the amp. Or go mono.
I think the clue as to success is if other places pick up the VXT. Does anyone know how long GC / Musicians Friend's exclusive lasts? |
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Joined:
May 2004
Posts: 2850
Location: Midland, MI | Originally posted by an4340:
Have to agree, send the acoustic into the PA, the electric into the amp. Or go mono.
I think the clue as to success is if other places pick up the VXT. Does anyone know how long GC / Musicians Friend's exclusive lasts? I'm pretty sure that Al's latest newsletter (you do get the newsletter, right?!) said that the VXT is available to all dealers now.
But, maybe that was from my dream about buying the prototype -4 semi-hollow with tort binding and wicked cool Ovation branded, Bartolini-esque pickups (have I mentioned this enough? Heh.). ;) |
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March 2006
Posts: 1634
Location: Chehalis, Washington | There's one ebay store listing them available now, but I don't know how far spread that is. I must need to get on Al's newsletter list. :rolleyes: |
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March 2005
Posts: 12755
Location: Boise, Idaho | Cruster, I hope your mistaken reference to the Ultra GS (should have been the GP) will spread like wildfire on the internet and cause the value of mine to skyrocket. |
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Joined:
May 2004
Posts: 2850
Location: Midland, MI | Originally posted by Mark in Boise:
Cruster, I hope your mistaken reference to the Ultra GS (should have been the GP) will spread like wildfire on the internet and cause the value of mine to skyrocket. Unforunately, Mark, my posts on the internet seem to spread like...uh, something much more, um, viscous than wildfire. Which means they'll probably drop in value, now. :eek: |
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Ovation VXT at the local Guitar Center