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Joined:
December 2005
Posts: 111
| Hi All,
I have a 1527 Ultra. Some things about it have always bothered me, including bowl depth. The Ovation history page says it's a deep bowl. How does this bowl compare to modern mid-depth bowls? I mean, would a mid-depth really be thinner, or, has Ovation renamed the late 80's "deep" to "mid-depth" because they made a deeper bowl?
I don't live near any place that sells Ovations, to get a look. Might order from Musician's Friend, or buy via Ebay. For comfort, I had been considering a super shallow. But, maybe a mid-depth would be an improvement.
Truth is, I've never succeeded in learning much guitar. I'm hoping to take lessons. Now that I can afford nicer stuff, I'd like to have a guitar that really calls out to me for attention.
Thanks |
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Joined:
June 2002
Posts: 6191
Location: Phoenix AZ | From most shallow to most deep: Supershallow, Artist, Mid-depth, Deep, Adamas Deep.
The supershallow will be very comfortable. Judge the sound for yourself.
Dave |
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February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | This might answer your question.
Welcome, by the way! |
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Joined:
December 2005
Posts: 111
| Thank you for the replies. I've also been trolling the archives, and found a couple of queries similar to mine. I have noted that a mid-depth should be 1/2 in. narrower than the deep body (5 1/4 vs. 5 3/4). And, my Ultra does measure around 5 3/4. I think 1/2 in. thinner will satisfy me, without having to drop down to super-shallow depth. |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15652
Location: SoCal | Ok. From the catalogs,
Original bowl depth -- 5 13/16"
Shallow bowl (introduced in 1970) -- 5 1/8"
Super shallow bowl -- 4 1/2"
From a catalog from about 2-3 years ago:
Deep bowl -- 5 3/4"
mid depth bowl -- 5 1/4"
supershallow bowl -- 4 1/16"
So you can see that the bowl depths have changed over the years. |
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Joined:
March 2005
Posts: 12750
Location: Boise, Idaho | I have all 3, but it's hard to compare the sound difference. My mid bowls have laminate tops, the shallow is solid spruce and the deep are spruce, cedar and laminate spruce. They also differ in the sound hole configuration. The deep bowls all have a more mellow sound with more bass, but I can't tell if it's because of the bowl depth or the other variables. The super shallow bowls are definitely easier to pick up and haul around and if you are playing for yourself or plugged in, they have what you need. This is why I tell my wife I need several Ovations. They are all different. There is enough variety to appeal to every conceivable use. That's why I love Ovations. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | So, . . that put the early Adamas at about 6"?? |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15652
Location: SoCal | Probably 6 1/16". The mounting ring gave it an extra 1/4" over the deep bowl's 5 13/16" |
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Joined:
December 2005
Posts: 111
| Super, Moody. So, I was not completely wrong in my suspicion that depths had changed. That's the best laid out list of widths I've seen, after reading numerous old threads. |
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December 2005
Posts: 19
Location: WILMINGTON, DE | Uh, how would that bowl be measured? I am guessing through the sound hole near the bridge? |
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Joined:
June 2002
Posts: 863
Location: Central Florida | On the bowl comparison chart from the Ovation web site (see link in Waskel's post), it looks like the deep bowl has a vintage style rubber anti-slip pad on it. Are they putting those on the "Traditionals" now? |
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Joined:
December 2005
Posts: 111
| JOXTER, you mean get an internal measurement at the deepest part by reaching through the soundhole, sans strings? Might work. Might be best. I'm not sure if the depth numbers in this thread are meant to be internal or external.
Anyway, I just laid mine on the carpet, stood a ruler up next to the rear strap lug, leveled the face (by eye -- didn't want to put my torpedo level on it), and got a rough measurement. |
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bowl depths over time
