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Location: Delaware | I know this is a touchy topic for all you Ovation devotees. Most of you probably love your Ovations just as they are. Since I'm new to bowlbacks or hope to be soon, I have no axe to grind so to speak, in terms of loyalty. Because of this free spirit attitude I have one criticism to lay on Ovation designs: the stick-on rosette.
If it was only a copout, which I suspect the case, it sucks. Every well crafted acoustic guitar is punctuated with a nicely inlaid rosette. If Ovation guitars are so darn awesome, why did they cut that one corner! Over the past week or so I've looked at at least a hundred Ovation guitars. I think maybe 2 or them had inlaid rosettes. What's the deal with this self-adhesive, decal, stick on rosette! Talk about a pity.
A man runs all the way across the Sierra desert, digging for beetles and sucking moisture from every tiny shrub and weed he can find, hiding during day hours and moving under cover of night through hundreds of miles of scorching sand, avoiding scorpions and snakes successfully.. only to fall dead 50 yds short of a deep, cool, clear water pool and palm trees - that is what Ovation has done all these years with their cheap rosette.
No doubt, they make up for it, functionally, with good materials, workmanship and design, not to mention probably the best guitar case, custom formed for every model, in the industry. Afterall, "form follows function" right? No arguments there. Yet, the rosette in acoustic guitars is like the little tag on a pair of good jeans.. a calling card of quality and name. Gibson, Martin, Bourgeois.. these makers are proud to router their soundboards and carefully bond their custom inlaid rosettes. Ovation? Stick-on.
why, Why, WHY has Ovation taken this one shortcut all these years? What is wrong with them! Do they need one little guy from Delaware to come up there with my router and show them what to do with a nice piece of Spruce? If I had the fantastic Walnut rosette that Chris Clark has added to his current project Pandora with me, perhaps I could convince Ovation builders of the value in that little piece of signature.
If an argument about ill-advised cutting into or thinning sections of solid Spruce for structural purposes is forthcoming, send it to Gibson, Martin and Bourgeios. Maybe they'll take note and stop cutting into their soundboards and switch to a nice, reflective sticker.
If anyone agrees or disagrees I'd love to see your remarks. If nothing more, at least this has been an interesting read, I hope. |
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| Skip i understand your point, i think it's a matter of taste. Personally I do like the traditional ovation rosette on my Legend, as well as the stick-on epaulettes on the multi-hole design (elite, adamas). but that's me.... |
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Location: Midland, MI | I thought that recently they made the move to having the USian line sport inlaid rosettes/epaulettes and the imports had the stick-on rosettes/epaulettes. But, I could be wrong. |
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Location: Delaware | If you guys take a look at Chris's Pandora project guitar (photos in his gallery) you'll notice one hell of a nice rosette he has applied to the sound hole.
Actually, routing a rosette into a finished soundboard is not quite as simple as it might appear. The router must be set to a very specific angle because of the bow in the soundboard. If this is not done properly, you will end up with a rosette that is thinner toward the edges. Another issue is that the inlaid rosette must be carefully sanded down to level. When restoring a broken down guitar, as Chris is doing with Pandora, this process is a little tricky and often adds insult to injury. I cannot speak for Chris but I will say he was wise to NOT router the new rosette in this case. Instead, he glued it down. It is quite thin and very beautiful - actually one of the most complex and fine rosettes I've ever seen. If we had a stack of those fine, checked, walnut rosettes and were building our own guitars from scratch, it would be a joy to inlay them on new, unfinished soundboards.
When I stated having seen 2 inlaid rosettes of at least 100 Ovations that I have viewed recently, I was exaggerating. One of those was Chris's which I knew was not inlaid. I don't know what Ovation is doing today but I welcome more comments and hope to get a good thread going here. Thanks cruster and giuseppe.
Did you know, giuseppe, that one of Antonio Stradivari's sons was named Giuseppe? I researched Antonio Stradivari years ago when I was thinking about making violins. Very interesting person and work. |
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Location: Pacific Northwest Inland Empire | Skip, I appreciate the approbation, certainly. Actually, my rosettes are assembled with 1/16"-square stock, and most mosaic rosettes use 1/32" stock. So, mine are a bit "coarser". Still, they ARE original, and unique.
If I could have figured out a way to router the soundhole, I probably would have inlaid the device. As for the plastic rosettes, I think they're fine. I don't think they alter the resonance or sound quality, which is my concern. And, they are "traditional".
I don't mean to hijack your thread here, but I want to know the value of the generous amount of material used in finishing the tops of the guitars. True, "O"'s are comparatively indestructible, but really...... |
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Location: CT | So...tell us how you really feel! The new LX guitars have inlaid rosettes(center). I'm so used to looking at the plastic ones though, that these (although look very nice) don't quite look 'correct' on Ovations to me - possibly just because it's smaller. The imports are cheap plastic, but many of the USA models have pearl or abalone in them which to me looks outstanding.
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Location: ranson,wva | they used to inlay the rosettes. look at a 40yr old josh white. the wood around the rosette shrinks and contracts and the rosette delaminates...simply put. the stick'ons last much longer and dont look like total shite after 40 years...personaly i like the rossettes. actualy when i send my folklore in for a top refin its gonna get a new bridge and a custom legend rossette installed......jason |
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Location: Delaware | Gentlemen, I'm getting pretty much exactly what I expected in this thread - long time O-men standing by what you have come to love and become accustomed to. For most long timers, change is bad. For newer breeds, change is good. Anyway, brainslag - thanks for taking time to engage in this discussion and for showing the awesome photo.
What do I really think? Well, for starters, the impressions I get from your photo are way bigger than rosettes. I'm jealous as all get out for one... look at that sound room you've got! I've met some local guys that are set up like you and I hate every one of em. Second - nice guitars and I'm so jealous again! To be honest, looking at your photo, I don't give a rat's ace about rosettes!
Jason - that you for those comments. I never said real wood inlaid rosettes were perfect or that no problems are ever associated. I only said most top makers consider the rosette a signature and that the rosette is thought of in the industry as a signature.
Being new to Ovation but getting off to a great start thanks to all of you, I think Ovation should offer both as an option for all buyers. That way, old timers can have what they love and are accustomed to - the stick-on and newcomers can have a nicely done signature rosette. I do not propose that Ovation should simply put in standard rosettes. I propose that they totally design their own, unique and completely diffent rosette.. something that reflects their unique place in guitar design.. something worthy of Ovation. |
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Location: ranson,wva | skip. the old inlaied rossettse were not wood. i do belive they were the same material as the stickons but were inlaied. id have to dig my delux balladeer out of storage and look. the ovation rossette is their signature that many of us have come to love...jason |
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Location: Simpsonville, SC | brainslag, BEAUTIFUL group of O's. Love the Customs' Bling.
Like you said skipp77, to each their own! Maybe a custom order if offered? |
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Location: Tennessee | I have a CL12 (6759) which has the rosette inlaid. It is gorgeous. It was made in 2000 I think; since then they've stopped with the inlaid and gone back to the stick ons. |
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Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | You could buy an Adamas... :D
Blessings... |
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Posts: 100
Location: Delaware | Good comments by all - thank you. MusicMishka - very funny! Currently, 4 acoustics are sitting out in my living room and I'm about to add one more - the 1711 Balladeer from Norseman1 that I can't wait to get my hands on. For now, my guitar money is spent. I'm not into electric and will play the Balladeer acoustic only. From what I have seen of Adamas it is really designed for amp, is this correct? If so, it's not my bag. I'm your au naturale guy. |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Here comes the Blasphemy...
If someone doesn't like the stick-on, at least they are easy to remove, and possibly replace with something else.
On that note, I may have them slap a new one on my 1115 while it is on vacation in New England.
(wish I could go with it, I got a 2nd cousin in Mansfield) |
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Location: Alberta, Canada | skip77,welcome to the fold.
I've always felt the Ovation rosette was a trademark signature. It promotes instant recogonition and I personally feel it is a classy look. Particularly the Custom Legend rosette with its abalone underlay.
I sent my Custom Balladeer back to the factory last September to have the top replaced. My research showed me that an inlayed rosette was a possibility, but I quickly pushed that option aside and went with the CL raised rosette to keep that classic look.
Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate a finely inlayed rosette, just not on an Ovation.
You mentioned Gibson in your original post and that brought this to mind. I have never liked the pick gaurds on gibson models like the "Dove", for example. To me they look cheesy and cheapen an otherwise fine looking guitar.
Here again, it is to each their own. If guitars were all built the same and looked the same, what ever would we have to talk about? :)
Enjoy that 1711,
Dave |
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Location: CT | That 'sound room' is actually the basement, and I have to keep an eye on the stuff or my wife will walk it out to the curb. lol. If I had a box to put it in, that console would be up on ebay now. I work in the film biz, and most of the stuff was given away free when they upgraded the studios. It was fun at first, but I don't really use it anymore and would like to redo the space. |
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Location: Providence, RI, USA | I'm gigging lately with a 1969 Ovation Balladeer and I must say that I really enjoy its rosette. The body profile, lack of a pickguard, and classical-style 'big rosette' look is what makes Ovations instantly recognizable, aside from the body. Part of the reason I like Ovations is this old-time but new-tech look. Clean.
Jake |
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Location: Tychy, Poland | yeah. and even on poor copies of old videos, like this you instantly see that there is ovation playing. |
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Location: Delaware | Actually, I've learned to like the rosette on my 1711 too. It is more substantial than I had expected and actually serves as a nice little pick guard for me. No complaints! Awesome guitar too, by the way. Thanks for all comments. |
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Location: CT | Nice 'puffy' shirt in the vid. :D |
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Location: CA | Perhaps a better analogy might be building a high-end Formula One car from the ground up using every bit of carbon fiber, 'unobtanium' and high-tech trickery known to man. You end up with a car so stunning and so fast that the sight of it makes beautiful women weak in the knees and grown men weep.
And then, as the final touch before leaving the shop, you install some cheapo plastic hubcaps from Pep Boys — and ruin the whole thing, at least aesthetically.
FWIW, I completely agree with you. Over the years I've gotten used to the stick on ring, but every time I see an O (or any other guitar) with a nice inlay, I really appreciate how much better it looks. If I ever make the big bucks and can order a Custom Legend — custom made — the first thing on the order form will be 'routed and inlaid' around the sound hole. |
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Location: Delaware | Good analogy Oddball! |
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Ovation Rosette
