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July 2005
Posts: 354
Location: Flushing, MI | Yesterday and the day before I visited a few music stores in the Flint and Lansing areas. I'm actually shopping around for a small power amp to run a small PA for acoustic gigs. That turned out to be a fiasco - everyone has 3000 watt models in stock, but nothing in the 200 watt per side range, which is what I'm needing.
Anyhoo, I can't resist the urge to try out a few instruments along the way and, as usual, the only Ovations laying about are the shallow bowls - particularly the MIK ones. Now just how the heck are we to ever get to know the quality and tone of a fine, American made deep bowl Ovation if they NEVER EVER put one out on the floor??? BTW - I absolutely HATED all the super shallow bowls that I played.
At Elderly's, in Lansing, I found more SS bowls, and one deep bowl Elite. The Elite was a black, kind of a spackle finish (for lack of a better term), and when I first picked it up I thought that it couldn't possibly sound all that great due to that kind of finish. WRONG! That guitar played fantastic, and sounded absolutely KILLER! All of the other O's were shallow.
I also took the opportunity to try out several of the Selmer/Django copy guitars that they had there. I hadn't tried one in years, and I was always disappointed everytime I did try one. This time was no different. They had several different model, mostly the Gitanes brand, which was the cheapest. There was also a John Jorgenson signature model that I tried out. The verdict? Same as before. Thin thin thin. I can't imagine that these guitars sound ANYTHING like the real deal that Django played. Remember that he came to America with no guitar and hated all of the instruments that he tried out, calling them "tinpot guitars"? I can't IMAGINE Djangos Selmer sounding like these copies, and him calling American guitars tinpots. These copies are REALLY tinpots!
Well, that's all that I have to report. That one black, rough texture finished Elite was the star of the show. Oh, I did pick up the odd Martin here, and a Dobro there (which was really my favorite). But the best acoustic that I tried for all around work was that Elite. |
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Joined:
November 2003
Posts: 11039
Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | You played the elite T. Everybody raves about them.
I too have heard the Selmer repros, both the little and big mouth. Even mic'd you couldn't hear them. |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 17
| Originally posted by tragocaster:
There was also a John Jorgenson signature model that I tried out. The verdict? Same as before. Thin thin thin. I can't imagine that these guitars sound ANYTHING like the real deal that Django played. Speaking of John Jorgenson, he is playing at the Freight and Salvage in Berkeley this Saturday, Oct. 22nd. I was just at that venue tonight for open mic and they were giving out tickets for the show. Apparently, they hadn't sold as many as they had hoped. So, if anyone is in the greater SF Bay Area, check it out. http://www.freightandsalvage.org |
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Joined:
October 2004
Posts: 256
Location: chicago | I recomend you go see john if you can hes a monster gypsy jazz guitar virtuoso his command is unbelievable |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 354
Location: Flushing, MI | John is great, but I've only heard him in the Hellecasters. I've not heard him do his Django thing, although I have read about it. Wow, would you say he's in the Berelli LaGrene league? |
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On Gypsy jazz guitars and Elites...
