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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | This weekend I went into a local music store to pick up some replacement strings (my usual D's & G's). I walked by the acoustic guitar section and saw a sign on one of 'em that said "Ovation 12-string $200". I made a bee-line for it.
It was black Korean-made (1515-D) Ultra 12-string.
The strings on it were so-so, but the neck was pretty good and it sounded nice acoustically. I asked to plug it in and noticed a bit of a problem with the stacked volume/tone controls. Both knobs seemed to reach a certain point and would then "free-wheel" in either direction.
"...Not a good sign . .", I thought to myself. The volume/signal also seemed to fluctuate and/or cut-out at certain volume positions, but I kinda half attributed that to the POS "demo cord" they had in the store. It amazes me that a store could have an entire peg-hook display of high-end cables for sale, and four feet away they're demoing guitars with a cord that's the thickness of friggin' knitting yarn!! :mad:
Anyway, this wasn't (by any means) the 12-string I've been wanting, but hey! for two bills I could take this out on gigs, beat the shit out of it and not be worried. I bought it.
Now, I'm not very versed in the models (other than what I already own), and I get lost in the Applause/Medallion/Summit/Ultra fog, so I don't know what's what. This thing has black neck that appears to be non-wood, so am I safe in assuming that this is the legendary ali-urethane foam neck?
It has rosewood-looking fingerboard so I'm assuming it's not an Applause-type neck. Does this thing HAVE truss rod? I took off the old strings and polished it up. The black lacquer finish isn't the best job I've ever seen, but the top seems in good shape. I tighetened up any of the loose Ping tuners and the endpin. Took the pre-amp completely out and opened it up. All of the soldered connections looked pretty healthy and the control pot seems pretty solid (it seems that the "free-wheeling" of the control knobs may have been attributed to loose sets screws on the knobs themselves and they were spinning on the stems of the pot. I put in a fresh battery, put it all back together and put on fresh strings.
I haven't tried it through the P.A. yet as I got it all put back together late last night. I figured if worse comes to worst I can just leave the level at the guitar be and control it from the P.A. for the time being. IF by chance the pre-amp is bum, what type did they put in these things and does anyone have one they'd be willing to sell? Anything else I should know about these particular models? For two hundred bucks it's not a bad twelve-string! |
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February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Cliff, if it's an Ultra with a foam neck, the fingerboard is rosewood, so don't worry (Fret?) it can be re-fretted. The ali necks don't have a truss-rod, If you find a rod adjuster then it has a wooden neck. The stacked knobs probably just need the tiny allen bolts tightening which should stop them spinning, I have spare knobs if you need them. Pull out the pre and squirt some switch-cleaner into the pot, that should cure the volume problems. The foam/ali-necked Ultras were USA-made but I don't recall a 12-string version, either way $200 Sounds like a good deal. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Thanks (as always) for the info Master Templeman!
The label inside of it says:
ULTRA by Ovation
Made in Korea
(unless that's a suburb up in Connecticut somewhere). |
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Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Cliff, I'd guess you'll find a rod-nut under the fingerboard, It'll have a wood neck. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Okay, so last night I plugged it in with the new battery and strings and the volume control is totally schizoid! The is no transition in volume whatsoever (it's either OFF or varying degrees of LOUD at different spots on the pot). Even when I can find a spot where it's ON, it intermittently cuts out while playing. I'll pick up some switch/contact cleaner tonight and try it on the pot.
IF by chance this fails to alleviate the problem, can a replacement pot be readily gotten (O customer service)? Anybody have a replacement pre-amp for sale? |
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November 2002
Posts: 3666
Location: Pacific Northwest Inland Empire | Hi Cliff,
Sounds like your pot is kaput. Just look on the back of the pot for 250 or 500, surf to Stewart-MacDonald, and order yourself a new one. They're relatively easy to de-solder out the deceased carcass, and solder in the new trooper. Good luck! |
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February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Afraid not, Stewmac don't do a ganged concentric vol/tonepot, someone somewhere will. Cliff, check with the factory, they may have replacement ganged pots, I got one a few years ago from the UK distibutor. The design changed at some point & the later pots are not compatible with the PCB's on earlier pre's without modification. If the pot is kaput & the factory dont have spares I'll bring over a working volume-only fet-3 when I'm over for the factory visit. |
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Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | I did see some concentric vol/tone pots on stewmac's webpage, but don't look compatible.
I'll try contacting the factory.
thanx, all! |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | btw Master Templeman, your Newark/Connecticut connection appears to be "go".
Make arrangements. |
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February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Cliff, great news, if you need it the replacement preamp is on me. |
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January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | Not Phoam.
If it says made in Kimchi it's not foam.
the foam machine has been history since 1983 |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Cool. Thanks, Bill.
This is the first guitar I've ever owned with a black neck, and it has somewhat of a "semi-gloss" finish on it. After reading all these posts about ali/urethane necks, my initial presumption was that it was "not of wooden neck".
Not a bad guitar! Granted it's not the ultimate 12-string that I would want for my collection/gigs (perhaps I'll investigate the possibilities of the custom shop on the Tour), but it's good enough to get my hands re-accquainted to playing 12 (my thumb is KILLING me!) until I can afford the guitar I want.
I really wanna use it for my solo Valentine's gig tomorrow, but the volume control keeps crapping out on me. It's not gonna be a "high volume" environment, so maybe I'll just "mic" it. |
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May 2002
Posts: 1026
Location: Back in the Valley of the Sun Mesa Az. | I know I brought my old Yamaha 12 back to life recently, by using a $35.00 Lawerence Pick up, AND a mic. The mic picked up the lows, and the Lawerence picked up the highs nicely. Anyway, I wasn't trapped to being on top of the mic, and I also had a little smoother sound than a magnetic pick-up alone could give.
This was a tip I received from someone a while back on this board, and once again,it was good advice.
Norse(good luck with the guitar)man1 |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | Well, I think this thing is FINALLY fixed!!
Since I've owned this, I'd been very cautious using it on gigs - setting the volume knob to a "sweet spot" that worked and controlling the volume from the P.A. But even then, playing anything more agressive than lightly arpeggiated chords resulted in a loud, annoying, crackling sound and gnashing of teeth (mine AND the audience's). Kim graciously sent me a replacement stacked pot that we THINK might be the right part number, but I hadn't had the time to remove strings, remove/disassemble preamp, unsolder/resolder, blah-blah, whoop-whoop.
Then the thought occurred to that (duh!) perhaps the fault lies not in the preamp, but in the pickup (for some reason warm(er) weather and Myers' rum allows me to see things SO much clearer!!)!
I still had a fully functionalal extra pickup in my toolbox leftover from when I had bought a replacement one from Al for my CBalladeer. Swapped and re-strung, plugged in and all seems to working fine. Oh, joy! Oh, bliss!! O'Rapture!!! FINALLY justification for humping the extra guitar/case back & forth to gigs!!
So watch out there Johnny(Strummin'12)!!
There's a NEW hard-strumming, TwelveSlinger in town!! ;) |
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August 2002
Posts: 623
Location: Lake Hiawatha, New Jersey | Congrats, Bro...
but this town aint big enough for the 2 of us! Someone's got ta go, and it ain't gonna be me!
Showdown...tomorra...high noon.
"...Cuz I'm a cowboy, on a steel horse I ride..."
Johnny
(oh shit, did I write that?) |
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August 2002
Posts: 623
Location: Lake Hiawatha, New Jersey | BTW Cliff...
Dave's sells D'Adario EJ38 (twelve string) sets for $9...best price I've found around.
Johnny |
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May 2002
Posts: 3005
Location: Las Cruces, NM | Time for a 12 string high noon. Too bad we don't have Tex Ritter to orchestrate the showdown. "Do not forsake me Oh my 12 string"
Bailey |
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December 2002
Posts: 939
Location: Fort Worth, Texas | (for some reason warm(er) weather and Myers' rum allows me to see things SO much clearer!!
Me too, well that is clearer until the bottle is finished and them I'm not seeing so clearly any more...
:eek: |
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Ultra12
