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Forums Archive -> The Vault: 2007 | Message format |
Folkestone![]() |
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Joined: June 2007 Posts: 58 Location: Montreal | Happy July 4th from this Canadian! Most of the Ovations that I have played over the years were played plugged-in. Most of the time these days, I play unplugged. Nonetheless, I like possessing guitars that offer the acoustic/electric option, I currently have a Collectors 1996, and have had a 1619 (circa. 1985). I'm thinking a lot about Adamases. The question for me is: - does the Adamas truly offer a sweeter sustaining sound than a higher end Ovation? and; -what Ovation have the sweetest sustained sound unplugged? and; -is it unreasonable for me expect an Ovation or Adamas (unplugged) to sound as sweet as my old Taylor 810? Your comments please! Collectors 1996 Taylor 810 Guild D55 Guild D 40 Martin J12-16Gt | ||
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bauerhillboy![]() |
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Joined: February 2004 Posts: 1634 Location: Warren,Pa. | How old? | ||
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Folkestone![]() |
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Joined: June 2007 Posts: 58 Location: Montreal | Hi: My Taylor was built in 1993. | ||
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Paul Templeman![]() |
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Joined: February 2002 Posts: 5750 Location: Scotland | Yes, It's unreasonable to expect an Adamas to sound like a Taylor. They are completely different instruments with vastly different materials and construction. You may dislike the sound of the Adamas as compared to your Taylor, but that doesn't mean they Taylor is better. It depends on what you prefer and what you want to hear. Personally if any of my Ovations or Adamas sounded like any Taylor I've played I'd sell the lot and find something else. | ||
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Jeff W.![]() |
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Joined: November 2003 Posts: 11039 Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | My Custom Adamas out-sustains ANY guitar I've every played, including my big bodied Lowden 'O25'- which goes on for days at time. | ||
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alpep![]() |
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Joined: December 2001 Posts: 10583 Location: NJ | can you compare an apple to an orange? carbon fiber is different than wood. case closed. | ||
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muzza![]() |
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![]() Joined: August 2005 Posts: 3736 Location: Sunshine State, Australia | Originally posted by alpep: Would that be an OFC carbon fibre case, Al? :)case closed. | ||
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Northcountry![]() |
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Joined: February 2004 Posts: 2487 | Personal preference is going to be your decideing factor so most of what we all think is not worth much in the end. And people do compare these guitars all the time......... Here-goes I have two Adamas 1 cutaways now. They each have a slightly different acoustic sound. I also happen to have a Deep Bowl Custom Legend and a music partner who is a big Taylor fan. He has two 814's at least I think that is the numbers they use. He tried a Taylor 914 at the shop while I was with him, hell he tried them all that night, but the 914 at $5,300 did not sound as good as his second 814 he bought that night. My legend (TO ME)sounds just great next to the Taylor to be honest it is slightly louder and the acoustic characteristics are very good. It has a good high end regester and the low end booms enough that it can stand up fine in a duo with this $2,500 Taylor fairly well. Considering it is 1 & 1/2 times cheaper I'd say it is a fantastic guitar for the price. Not quite the "taylor killer" though but better than any traditional guitar I have heard..... for the same price. And it looks fantastic! The Adamas guitars I have (To Me and Many Others) are cannons compared with the Taylor. It is embarrasing the number of people who speak with me after Aaron & I have played a song or two together and they mention how good my guitars sound and look. An Adamas 1 or 2 with the textured top's are way louder unplugged all the way across the spectrum, and to me they have a very impressive "BIG" sound. I found the Taylor's, Aaron has, to be great guitars but just not as much presence when in the same room as an Adamas. He had never heard an Older Adamas until the day we played together, we were playing in a large room with five other musicians (unplugged) and His Taylor and My Ovation were the two that cut through all the other guitars there. From what I can tell using my 12 string non cutaway Adamas 1 1688.....the older bodied 1687's and 88's have an even bigger sound if that is possible but you loose the upper fret access. SO if your thinking of an Adamas to use in comparison with a Taylor. And your looking for a standard length neck and cutaway body for lots of fret work...your in the same boat as I found myself a few years ago. You'll need one of the older Adamas configurations. These new slotheads are about the best there is but non cutaway. The W597's are good too but just do not have the same kick the older textured tops seem to have. There are some other Adamas's out there that I have not tried but not many with this body style. Again this is just IMHO you will get a lot of other opinions in here. I almost bought a Taylor to replace my Custom Legend but why????? those mutli sound holes look so good compared to the traditional style there is no comparison. The Ovations are off the charts for looks........and I am telling you the truth........I get comments all the time on how beautiful the fadded blue top guitars with the leafed sound holes look when I am outplaying. And the Taylor's that sound the best start at $2,500 and go way up from there. My older Adamas 1's have all been in the $2,000- $2,500 range. I did have to updtate the electronics a little to compete with the Taylors plugged in. But that is OK.... my tree band EQ from the early 80's still sounded great! 30 year old technology and it still could compete! The newer electronics stuff is outstanding! But I always liked the OP24+ units myself with the pre shape button. all I need. For what it's worth start looking and buy yourself one. And in case you did not know it, Al the guy in the earlier post seems to find these older Adamas guitars all the time. Contact him...he just sounds grumpy and mean but he's really not.He's usually only Mean.....! He may have one for sale. Randy | ||
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Tupperware![]() |
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Joined: January 2005 Posts: 4903 Location: Phoenix AZ | Asking on a fan site if an Ovamas will sound better/different/worse than your Taylor will most likely not get you a very objective answer. That being said, take any 10 guitars and throw away the names. They'll all sound different. And the way they sound different to you will be different than the way the sound different to me. "Fans" of anything tend to be very miopic. They believe universally that anything associated with their brand (band, team, city, whatever) is by default superior. I used to feel this way about Ovation. Anything that said "Ovation" on it was superior and everything else sucked. How wrong was that. Now I'm older, wiser, and don't give a damn what it says on the headstock of my guitar (as long it it doesn't say Taylor) and I just play and collect what appeals to ME. In retrospect 90% of all the ovation guitars I have owned have been "average" at best. Some have been steller. One exception to the rule of variation is the textured top adamas I and II guitars. I have NEVER owned or even heard one that was not outstanding. Maybe not in the league of some wooden guitars, but DAMN, DAMN NICE !!! Look at it this way, for the $3500. you'll pay for a decent wooden guitar you can buy THREE ovations. Play all three and then throw away the two you like least. You'll still be ahead of the game. Dave | ||
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an4340![]() |
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Joined: May 2003 Posts: 4389 Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | What do you mean by sweet? Since sound is a very subjective thing, the only way for to know the difference is for you to go play them. Actually, the Taylor is a rather soul-less sounding instrument, so yeah, any ovation, including the celebrities will sound sweeter. | ||
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Trader Jim![]() |
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Joined: June 2006 Posts: 7307 Location: South of most, North of few | Randy, be careful, I have a trademark on the "Cannon" name. :D | ||
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Old Man Arthur![]() |
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Joined: September 2006 Posts: 10777 Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Never played an Adamas... All guitar sound different. Even my modest guitars sound different while they may look quite similar. (two SSB that look quite similar but sound different... 1621 and 1121 sound different) I was in the Acoustic booth at the store, listening to people who can actually play... To me, the $900 Breedlove sounded way better than the $5000 Martin. It is all subjective. [but for $5000, you might wanna convince yourself that the Martin is better :rolleyes: ] | ||
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Northcountry![]() |
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Joined: February 2004 Posts: 2487 | somtyms I get ta typin and my figers get ta tappin and it gits hard to count all the "N's" and ya only got a few mints ta get in dere and fixem becuz the rules are tugh round here. | ||
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stephent28![]() |
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![]() Joined: April 2004 Posts: 13303 Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | You might look for a 1581 Reissue. They have the new 2 knob electronics which I feel sound better than the old 2 knobbers and they sound fantastic. Nice black textured top cutaway. | ||
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Folkestone![]() |
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Joined: June 2007 Posts: 58 Location: Montreal | I just wanted to thank Northcountry for his very helpful and well-thoughtout comments. They were very helpful for someone who is trying to keep an open mind to innovative guitar construction but also finds merit in traditional guitar sounds. Thus Northcountry's lengthy Adamas/Taylor comparison was helpful. I know that tonal appreciation is largly subjective but not totally subjective. Seasoned guitarist look for an amalgam of tonal responses in their guitars. Some guitars just don't have it. For someone like me who will only possess 4 or 5 guitars, the discussion was significant. Thanks Northcountry for the sensitivity and care in your response. Jeff | ||
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ProfessorBB![]() |
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Joined: January 2006 Posts: 5881 Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | I believe that I am in the minority on this, but I don’t really pay much attention to a guitar's acoustic tone. I only play unplugged when I’m practicing by myself late at night, in which event I am behind the guitar where the sound isn’t really true, and even if it was true, I practice to familiarize myself with the notes and chord transitions, not to hear beautiful tone. I tend to give all Ovation and Adamas models an automatic green light on tone, then judge them on their looks and playability. I'll take other people's advice on acoustic tone before I'll take my own because, since I primarily play plugged in, the acoustic only tone always sounds too weak and shallow for my ears. Unamplified acoustic guitars of decent quality all sound relatively similar to me. I've played every acoustic guitar hanging in the expensive room at a number of GCs and I rarely can hear much difference in their relative sound. Come to think of it, with almost 40 years of motorcycle riding, everything nowadays pretty much sounds weak and shallow. Use ear protection! It is interesting to observe how many symphony orchestra players use earplugs during a concert. Maybe they just don't like listening to the big tuba on their left or the trombones in back of them. | ||
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an4340![]() |
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Joined: May 2003 Posts: 4389 Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | I agree with you on the ear protection. I wear ear plugs when playing at concert volume, and I bring them to concerts and movies, and use them if I need them. My ears thank me. The best way to hear a guitar is to have someone else play it, and stand across from him. | ||
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Slipkid![]() |
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Joined: September 2003 Posts: 9301 Location: south east Michigan | I very much perceive the various tone/flavors while playing unplugged. It makes a difference to me. Wood topped AD-II or UTE... good is good. Maybe Brad you don't hear much of a difference because all the guitars you have are top drawer. Picking up my 3/4 size, shallow bowl Trekker helps me to really appreciate a good guitar. | ||
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Trader Jim![]() |
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Joined: June 2006 Posts: 7307 Location: South of most, North of few | I've found, when I have time to spend playing more than one of my guitars, if I start with the UTE, everything else sounds kind of pale. If I start with the Koa, it sounds really sweet. If I end with the Koa, after playing the 1537, the UTE, or even the 97 collectors, it sounds muted. Am I making any sense here? | ||
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Tupperware![]() |
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Joined: January 2005 Posts: 4903 Location: Phoenix AZ | Sounds like you have too many guitars. | ||
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Trader Jim![]() |
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Joined: June 2006 Posts: 7307 Location: South of most, North of few | Now thats funny, Dave. :p | ||
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moody, p.i.![]() |
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Joined: March 2002 Posts: 15674 Location: SoCal | Tup, aren't you supposed to be on a plane heading east? | ||
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Jeff W.![]() |
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Joined: November 2003 Posts: 11039 Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | I gotta "Giv-it-up" to Randy. The man did answer well the question... but then, you'd really have to own a Taylor. ;) | ||
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BluesSailor![]() |
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Joined: February 2005 Posts: 1132 Location: Parrish, FL | Brad, I've got the same observation. I played all three of my critters last night, starting withthe FD-14, followed by the UTE, and last the 1537. First I need to say that the FUD is everything anyone has ever said it would be. I have new 1818's on it and it is a bit bright, but the tone is even and balanced with sustain that I haven't seen before, not even on the UTE. The FUD is new to me, but is definately my favorite in sound, and playablity. The UTE is very similar, but with the famous Adamas sound. Oh and LOUD too! It doesn't play as smooth as the FUD (different finish on the neck), but is still quite nice. I do need to adjust a slight buzz out of it on the #1 and #2 strings. Last, the 1537. This is truely a remarkable guitar, but playing following the other two just isn't fair. The 1537 is a whole 'nother flavor. A guitar you pick up to match the mood of the music. I don't have the experience to explain further, but I now 'get it' when someone says that "I have this guitar for these songs and these others for other musings". Back to the original thoughts from Brad, they are all great, just be carefull of which order you play them in, or at least have the right song ready when you pick up each guitar. Blues | ||
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Tupperware![]() |
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Joined: January 2005 Posts: 4903 Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by moody, p.i.: Nope, leaving tonight on a redeye. Tup, aren't you supposed to be on a plane heading east? Dave | ||
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