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March 2005
Posts: 5567
Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | Joel in France recently acquired this from eBay and had me ship it to him...He asked me to post several pic's as it seems to take forever to get the guitars finally delivered through French Customs...
It's a 2000 Custom Adamas Classical and it is one of two made: the other belonging to a factory employee...Ceder Top, Optima pre-amp, Slothead, wood inlay Adamas logo, Elite style binding, SSB, Nylon Strings, 12 fret to body...
Here's a couple of pics:
And the album:
http://ovationfanclub.ning.com/photo/albums/custom-adamas-classicia...
Interesting guitar and should be a great finger style instrument.
Congrats Joel! |
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Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | why would this be an Adamas since it has a wood top vs just a custom built O? |
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Location: Warren,Pa. | That is one of the prettiest looking guitars I've ever seen! |
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Joined:
February 2004
Posts: 1634
Location: Warren,Pa. | That is one of the prettiest looking guitars I've ever seen! |
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June 2005
Posts: 497
Location: California | Very nice guitar! It should sound great. This custom has a little bit of everything.
"By early 1982, a slightly less expensive version, the Adamas II, was introduced only as an acoustic electric. The headstock and bridge were those of a standard Ovation rather than the carved walnut of the Adamas. The neck was five piece mahogany and maple rather than solid walnut. The changes brought the Adamas II in at a list price of about $600 less than the Adamas
A year later, Ovation showed that the Adamas design did in fact work with a traditional spruce top. The proof was the Elite model" from the book pg 84. Interesting stuff.. |
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Location: Newington, CT | Wow! Just beautiful! |
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Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Originally posted by hwebster:
The proof was the Elite model" from the book pg 84. Interesting stuff.. The elite was an Ovation. Those quotes still don't tell me why this particular guitar should be considered an Adamas. |
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Posts: 15680
Location: SoCal | I really really hate to say this, but I'm with Stephen on this. Wood topped w/ multi sound holes means an Elite. An Adamas has a carbon graphite top. Period. |
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Posts: 1673
Location: SoCal | Originally posted by moody, p.i.:
I really really hate to say this, but I'm with Stephen on this. Wood topped w/ multi sound holes means an Elite. An Adamas has a carbon graphite top. Period. The Adamas Wood Top Classical Prototype was made in 1980.
I forgot all about the Adamas WTC when I recently was questioning the new Wood Top Adamas.
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Posts: 4619
Location: SoCal | I agree, not the 1537, not this, not the current "wood top Adamas" I saw at the last stop of the Revolution Tour. Even if it has Adamas logo, inlaids, and suspension ring...it is an Ovation.
AND WHAT IS WRONG WITH THAT????
As to my other 'beef', putting an Ovation logo on a Celeb is still a Celeb. Kind of like putting a Porshe logo on a VW. Probably a great VW but not a Porshe.
In the future, if they put a Fender logo on a Ovation Custom Legend, will it be a Fender? Thank goodness it will still be an Ovation.
However, this looks like a wonderful guitar/Ovation. |
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Posts: 1673
Location: SoCal | I was corrected when I said the Adamas 2081WT, with its wood top, was not an Adamas. We've generally seen graphite tops on Adamas guitars, but it appears that graphite was not a requisite. |
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Posts: 5567
Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | The word "Adamas" is Latin for "a diamond in its most native form - carbon"...pg. 82 "The History of the Ovation Guitar"
Wood Top = Ovation (w/Epi's: Elite)
Graphite Top (Carbon Fiber) = Adamas
What was that term... "Marketing Spoo"?
Yes, still nice Ovation guitars...but Adamas?
YMMV |
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Location: SoCal | ...Greek term adamas which means "invincible" or "unconquerable."
I guess it's a floating definition.
Maybe if the Book was around in 1980, they would not have made the mistake of making the Adamas WTC :confused:
It's whatever the guitar maker wants it to be at the time they use it.
30 years ago they put Adamas on a cedar-topped guitar and now on a spruce-topped guitar (and there have been other instruments in between).
The guitar maker does not agree with the graphite-top requisite. |
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Location: SoCal | maybe that is why the last four new (since 9/10) have been Takamines... :eek: |
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Posts: 5567
Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | Tony the OFCII is pretty sweet...outside of that, the old ladies (Adami) float my boat...again, Thanks Charlie! (and that Gas Station guy as well)... |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Originally posted by MusicMishka:
The word "Adamas" is Latin for "a diamond in its most native form - carbon"...pg. 82 "The History of the Ovation Guitar"
Wood Top = Ovation (w/Epi's: Elite)
Graphite Top (Carbon Fiber) = Adamas
What was that term... "Marketing Spoo"?
Yes, still nice Ovation guitars...but Adamas?
YMMV Careful now, I got my hand smacked for saying that the WT was just an expensive Elite. |
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Location: SoCal | Mike, I agree...Al did a great job on the specs for the OFC and OFC II.
I have #50 slothead, three early 1687's, 1688, 47RI, OFC slothead, U681T, 1687-8 reissue, and two of the 1687-2 reissues. Plus the CVT Millennium. Amazing as at one time I didn't see why I would want an Adamas...course, then I took the chance (also based on KK's sage advice to get a textured top) and bought a 1687 on eBay. Wow! |
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Posts: 1673
Location: SoCal | Joel has an outstanding Classical Adamas Guitar.
Days ago, there was a post about another wood topped Adamas.
You guys gave this guitar accolades and no one questioned why it wore the Adamas name...
...even though it has a wood top w/multi sound holes... doesn't that make it an Elite?
Didn't someone say that the graphite Adamas top did not do well in a nylon configuration?
I would give a cedar/nylon/classical configuration an Adamas pass before a dressed-up Elite.
Congratulations Joel!
I await your assessment and please post links to recordings when you can. |
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Posts: 3969
| Aside from the few customs and one-offs that had wood tops, the Adamas guitar was designed, introduced, and marketed as unique in that it had the composite top, suspension ring, multi-soundhole and new bracing pattern. It wasn't until well after Adamas development and production that Kaman took that design and modified it to produce the first Elite, the 1537 (see the "Book" and TJ Rickard's historical internal documents posted on his ning page).
I remember seeing a couple of eBay sales over the years for Elites that had the Adamas logo on the headstock. That didn't make them Adamas, and they were even labeled in the bowl as Elites. For whatever reason (a shortage of Ovation-labeled necks that week?) the folks at the factory slapped an Adamas-labeled neck on them, but they still called them Elites, not wood-top Adamas.
It's a matter of semantics. As has been pointed out, to some a Celebrity is not a "real" Ovation, even if it says Ovation on the peghead. To most of us old-timers Adamas will always mean a composite-top guitar - that's how they were introduced, marketed and up-charged. The CF top and its other unique design and construction elements give it a distinctive sound. The new wood-top Adamas I've played are very nice, but they don't sound like an Adamas. To me, and I'm sure many others, an Adamas guitar will always be a carbon fiber composite top, no matter what the marketing pukes say. |
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Posts: 497
Location: California | I think there are three of these around with carved heastock, bridge, etc... TJ\'s guitar is an example.
TJ told me that the sound of his is spectacular. |
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October 2005
Posts: 4081
Location: Utah | Marketing guys like to have their brand identified with a certain niche. It used to be Adamas was carbon fiber, Ovation was top of the line wood topped, while Celeb and Applause were the lower price points.
But maybe there is a new alignment. Maybe Adamas is now simply top of the line USA made, whether wood or carbon fiber. Ovation is now the mid range and includes Celeb, and Applause is the lower price range. USA made are all blended into Adamas, TX, AX, and Celeb are all blended into Ovation, and Applause is Applause. |
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Posts: 5567
Location: Blue Ridge Mountains | Irrespective of our personal opinions, it's still:
Potato - Potato
Tomato - Tomato
Bottom line here is that it's a beautiful guitar, Joel likes it, and it will be a great addition to his collection. He will certainly play it well...
I am looking forward to hearing the music he will make with this fine instrument...
So once again, congrats Joel! Enjoy! |
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March 2005
Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | Adamas is the Greek root for diamond and meant unconquerable or inflexible. Stretching that to "diamond in its native form", carbon, always seemed like a marketing stretch to me, but that's what sales people do and no one should really expect precision when someone comes up with a name. Otherwise we'd use all the correct scientific names for plants.
The marketing geeks surely knew better than to say that Adamas meant inflexible. It is also the root of the English word "adamant", which, when used as inflexible or unyeilding regarding opinions could surely refer to many OFCers.
I'm betting that the 1537s would have continued to be called would topped Adamas and there wouldn't be an Elite series, except someone in marketing vetoed it and had to call them Ovations.
If you're adamant about your opinion that all wood topped guitars have to carry the Ovation logo, buy it and change the decal. I really like the wood topped Adamas and if I had the money I'd have bought one, whether it said Adamas or Ovation on it. With a little playing time, it would sound better than a 1537. |
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Posts: 15680
Location: SoCal | How different is this nylon string from the one Jerome bought a few months back?
I'm too lazy to go to his site and pull the pictures, but somebody here might do that or look up the thread...... |
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Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | If I was going to pick up a classical, this could very well be it. Or one of the EA Viper classicals that come up now and then. |
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Custom Adamas Classical in France
