Joined: March 2012 Posts: 17
| Tore up ligaments in my left hand years ago. By the time I got around to a surgical fix, I had fallen out of the habit of guitar playing.
So fast forward,,, after a decade I happened to pick up a guitar again. Very little that I still remember, soft fingers, and coordination shot. But I was liking it, so beginning to practice again. Two dusty guitars still in the house. An Ibanez AS200 (like ES335) and brass bodied resonator. The AS200 is great on the fingers, but I don't want to have to plug in everytime I have a few minutes to practice. The resonator has heavy strings that kill the fingers, and really was never a 'normal' acoustic in playability.
Well, I always had a fascination for Ovations, but never had one. The few I'd tried before had pretty easy to play neck and string setups tho. Went out and tried what few were in the shops around me. I rather liked the contour back I found on one 2077LX hanging on a wall, but didn't care much for the price they wanted. Made in the USA or not, the price matters,,,, which is no doubt why it has hung on their wall for 2 years. There was a Korea made Balladeer sitting right next to it, however, that actually sounded better to me. Without the contour back tho.
Not sure how smart it was to buy unseen and unheard , but I did some online searching and came up with a 2077AX at what I think is a great price ($699), so I pulled the trigger on it. Should arrive sometime next week. Given the low price on the 2077AX, I'm actually tempted to get the MT37 as well later, as it sounds like a very electric-like neck and fret setup compared to other Ovations, when I researched it.
Anyway,,,,, now just waiting on a box to arrive. A quick tuning, check/lower the action, and listen,,, then likely to take a guess at what strings I would like. Probably look at Markley Blue Steels in 10's or 11's, since I liked them on my prior guitars. Will depend on how I think the stock highs and lows balance in volume, and the tonality, of the 2077.
The AS200 I have has 9's and are very very easy even on my soft fingers. So 10's or 11's seem the right starting point. My guess is 11's |
Joined: March 2012 Posts: 17
| Oh,,, while I'm thinking on it, any opinions on the AE13 3/4 size? My 8 year old is contemplating trying guitar. Seems a natural to get a smaller Ovation-esque guitar for her, and maybe even doctor the finish to look like Daddy's. But,,,, are those guitars any good? |