SOS! I'm having frequent antacid moments...(LONG!)

Can you provide a little more detail about why you're not crazy about the Gretsch, musica? And maybe your level of playing experience?
As a novice player, I was a long time growing into my Godin LG (it was a limited edition with a great build quality and quality components, so I snapped it up). But with the tight low action, shorter scale neck and wider fretboard radius, there was a lot to get used to. I'm happy to say it's now my favourite, but that was months in the making.
There's sort of a guitar player's truesim that if you play a bunch of guitars, you'll find the one that's right for you. I'm not sure that is really true for beginning players (especially with electrics). Had I done that 6 months ago, I would have tended towards the sloppiest, mushiest setup in the shop for its easy playability. Now with a little more time under my belt, playing wise, a guitar that 'loose' isn't so attractive.
:)

Hi there :D

I know exactly what you mean about the Gretsch.
I have wanted a Gretsch for SOOOO long....
Several years ago, for Christmas my ma bought me a Traveling Wilbury's 'Gretsch' (A 1/2 scale $100.00 guitar) just
so I could say I have one. :D

For me, it would have to be a G6122 1962 Country Classic, or an orange (Orange is my favorite color!!!!) G6120DC Nashville.
These are 2 to 3 thousand dollar guitars.

I have played a few Gretsch's.
A friend of mine has a 60's Monkee's model that I've played several times.
I've played real vintage Aniversary models (with cracked up lacquer finishes and all).
I played a Black Duo-Jet back in the early 90's.
And most recently a black hollow body ($500.00 Korean) at the local music shop.

My opinion of all of them are: Look GREAT - Feel CHEAP.

I just can't get over the cheap feel of them all.
And for how much they cost!!!!
Didn't really care for how they played or sounded either.

If I bought one, it would more than likely be for a decoration in the frontroom. :wink:
I love the style, orange color, and I LOVE Bigsbys (even though I don't use vibrato tailpieces. They just LOOK cool 8) )

I would say, ditch the Gretsch and get an acoustic.
No one should ever be without one of those (or 2 or 3 :twisted: )

Ken :wink:

Hey boxboy,

Thanks for wading through all of that!

To answer your question, I'm not exactly a novice but I'm certainly not a top-notch player. I've been playing electric off and on now (mostly off until recently, I'm afraid) for about 35 years. My primary guitar before my recent resurgence into this world was an Aria Pro II Cardinal Series 250 (from 1981, I believe). It's a solid body, double cutaway, dual humbucker, rosewood neck, hard tail and is pretty versatile sound-wise (and not much to look at!). The neck is small (as are my hands and fingers), and I used to play 8's until now (I can do 9's and 9 1/2's for some reason all of a sudden). I love the action as low as possible. I naturally play blues-type stuff and am attempting to branch out (hard rock, metal, jazz, rockabilly...pretty much everything). I am better at lead than chords, but am also in the process of changing that. I have a good ear, but I need work speeding up and diversifying my playing (and utilizing my pinky!). Also, I am just now learning to play with a pick! I always used my thumbnail (and more recently just my thumb and fingers a la Jeff Beck...sorta!) because I never wanted to cut my nails so short. Too bad, but now I've taken the plunge and cut 'em! My current favorite guitar for playability and sound is the Jeff Beck Signature Strat. I guess that's about it...

The Gretsch now has 10's which may be part of the problem. :?: Not only am I not used to that gauge, I'm afraid the 5120 might need even heavier strings to sound its best. The body is much thicker than I'm used to (the Artcore is thinner and manageable). I'm really trying to hear "That great Gretsch sound" but it doesn't seem apparent to me. To be fair, the guitar hasn't had a proper set-up (I got it at GC) and I've got some fret buzz and tuning problems. But still...the overall tone doesn't seem very distinctive to me. That's why I'm thinking the DeArmond 2000's on the 5129 might give me a more Gretsch-y type sound.

Any further thoughts will be appreciated! Thanks for your reply. Take care!

CitiZenNoir said:

My opinion of all of them are: Look GREAT - Feel CHEAP.

I just can't get over the cheap feel of them all.
And for how much they cost!!!!
Didn't really care for how they played or sounded either.

That's it! Granted, I've never played any of the higher end Gretsch models (not even over $1000), but I've played the Electromatic Jet and thought the same thing. It's not the most expensive guitar, but compared to others in its price range it seemed cheaply made to me and sounded kinda ordinary. But then I go to the Gretsch site and read everyone raving about the 5120 and the Corvette and I think I must be outta my mind!

And that Bigsby is just too cool...and now the orange (which is not even close to my favorite color) has got me under its spell. Crazy. :?

I knew someone would understand the Gretsch thing! I'm still looking for a good reason to hang onto this one or get a different one, so please keep the suggestions/feedback coming!

As for an acoustic, I have an acoustic/electric Ovation that's pretty decent but I seldom play it. I love electric!

Thanks much and take care!
:)

This thread gave me a chuckle. :lol:

But I can relate, probably everyone here can relate. You are looking for the elusive TONE. That I can understand. I have been looking for this mysterious perfect tone for 35 years myself.

When you say you are looking for that Gretsch tone, do you have a certain artist in mind? If so, you may have to do a little investigating. There are lots of factors when it comes to tone. What kind of strings and gauge did they use? What kind of picks (yes, they make a difference)? What kind of amp did they use? Sometimes even the guitar cables make a difference. Was the guitar or amp modified? What kinds of effects did they use? And with all this, you still can't guarantee getting that elusive perfect tone. The player themselves make a difference, and recording techniques make a huge difference too.

So, what to do?? :?

For me, I've just had to experiment. I've tried all different kinds of guitars, amps, and effects. In the last few years I have gotten pretty close to the tones I am after.

And don't give up on a guitar because it doesn't sound perfect out of the box. You have tried different strings, that can help, but one of the best things you can try is a good EQ pedal. You can dramatically change the tone of any guitar with an EQ. Really one of the best pedals to invest in. A good compressor will make your clean tones sound brilliant and wonderful, and increase sustain too.

Try a better speaker in that Blues Junior. That is a great amp, but a better speaker can do wonders to the tone.

As far as looks, I can't help you. I love beat up guitars. A guitar that is too pretty does not seem right to me. I like guitars that looked like they've been played. When I was a kid I surfed. We would see some kid come down to the beach with a shiney new surfboard and laugh because we knew he really didn't surf. Our boards were all beat up from surfing every day. And that's how I feel about guitars too. Those Schecters are too fancy with those inlays. I would put that in a glass case and hang it on the wall.

But don't keep buying guitars. Take a little time and see if you can coax some great tones out of it. Put lighter strings on. Turn the tone knobs on the guitar and amp and see what happens. Invest in an EQ pedal and compressor and you will probably be amazed at how wonderful your clean tones become. Read lots of reviews on other pedals too. Most cost much less than a new guitar. Put a better speaker in your BJ.

You'll never find that perfect tone, but you might find some that keep you satisfied for awhile. :D

Hi again :D

Are you saying that you have a Beck Strat????
I'm also a strat guy. And I enjoy playing blues mostly.

I also have an Ovation acoustic/electric. :shock:
Spooky. :D

Anyway - have you tried an Epiphone Casino????
The import models are in the same price range (550 or so).
No orange that I know of, though the Natural is quite striking IMO.
No Bigsbys on the imports, though the more expensive Elitist models have a Bigsby option.

IMO a much better guitar then the Gretsch. And a bit thinner.

Ken :D

Wes Inman said:

You are looking for the elusive TONE. That I can understand. I have been looking for this mysterious perfect tone for 35 years myself.

Hey Wes,

You are partially right but, for the most part, I'm probably looking for another excuse to buy yet another guitar! I'm a definite shopaholic (whether it's about guitars, Cadillacs or hillbilly music). I understand that this is not the forum for that problem and I appreciate all of your comments.

I do also have an excess number of effects pedals (EQ included), and I hate to say that I've yet to use most of them (EQ included again). I read so much about the Danelectro Fish & Chips here that I had to buy one. Maybe now I should try using it. :roll: I've got a few compressors, and pretty much everything else you can come up with. One thing I haven't done, though, is to change the speaker in my Blues Jr. I was asking the guy who checked it out yesterday about that. He suggested Jensen. What do you think? Of course, knowing me, I'll probably just hope for a bigger and better Fender tube amp and keep the Jr. as it is. It really is a bite that I cannot (and don't really want to learn to) mod my stuff myself. It's so hard to find a good guitar tech in my area. I know of one and he's got a waiting list a mile long.

I do keep buying guitars, but even after I've found a great one! (I've decided I'm primarily a Strat girl.) I also like nearly all genres of music (with the possible exception of most opera) and my collection of music and of guitars reflects that. There's not much that doesn't sound at least remotely interesting to me!

As for pretty guitars, you and I are opposites! While I can look at and admire a beat up guitar, it had better not be mine! Just the other day, I said that a particular guitar was "cute" and set off all the guys in GC. "A guitar can't be CUTE!!!!" :evil:

I think the most important thing I got from your very thoughtful post was that I need to PLAY and stop looking around on the internet or going shopping! I 've already found several tones I love and I'm sure there are more. I just need to learn to be a better player!

Thanks much, Wes, and wish me luck! Take care!

CitiZenNoir said:

Are you saying that you have a Beck Strat????

Yep! I got it a few months ago for my (August) birthday. (That's how far ahead I am on special occasion days...) I love it and should be happy with just that ONE guitar. It feels great, sounds great and I'll never get rid of it. I worship Jeff Beck (in case you can't tell from my avatar), but I wanted it because it feels right and the pups are outstanding! I've got the Olympic White one which I find rather plain, but I don't care! I love the brown tweed case and everything else about it.
Anyway - have you tried an Epiphone Casino????

No, but I probably won't...just in case I like it!!! The Artcore would be just fine for this sound I want, but the Gretsch name (and the Bigsby...forgot about that) are very much embedded in my brain.

I'll keep you all posted. Thanks and wish me luck! I hope you're as nice as this when I have a REAL problem! Take care! :)

Hey Wes,

You are partially right but, for the most part, I'm probably looking for another excuse to buy yet another guitar! I'm a definite shopaholic (whether it's about guitars, Cadillacs or hillbilly music). I understand that this is not the forum for that problem and I appreciate all of your comments.

LOL, now you got me laughing again. "Shopaholic" is the exact term I used to call my ex. But you really don't want to hear about that. :roll:

That Dano EQ is excellent. I have two on my pedalboard. I use one to get the tone I like, I use the other as a clean boost for solos. I have the sliders set flat, neither boosting or cutting any frequency. But I do push the volume slider up to almost 15 decibel boost. So, when its time to solo I step on the EQ to simply increase volume without changing my tone. Works great and doesn't cost $100 like boost pedals that do the exact same thing.

But then, you enjoy spending money. :D

Oh well, you only live once and if your hubby is happy, go buy another guitar.

I think you and Nick would get along well.

Wes

Edit- Oh, and while we are talking about both Jeff Beck and "pretty guitars", here is a photo of Jeff Becks Tele:

Now THAT'S what a guitar is supposed to look like. :twisted:

Hi,

I absolutely understand the Gretsch thing. I've always liked the look of them, and a guy I had a few lessons from had a two tone green one that caused me very serious jealousy issues. :shock:

It sounded just beautiful when he played it, and I coveted it almost to the point of painfulness. But when he let me play it - wouldn't you know it - most of of the tone had lifted right off it and stayed stuck to his fingers.... :roll:

So I've currently consigned them to the "supermodel fantasy" basket. I can enjoy mild dreams about running my hands all over them, but I know that we'd probably not really click and I'd probably not be all that thrilled by the noise they'd make with me either. :P

Good luck with them anyway. It sounds like you have some seriously nice guitars there, but you just haven't found exactly the right "Let's make beautiful music together" moment yet. It may still happen. It can happen with potential partners, or guitars (maybe even outfits?) - sometimes, for no obvious reasons, the kindling seems to stay damp. But then, for equally mysterious reasons, the fire just lights up and off you go .... woohooo, hang on, today's the day!! .... Would we have it any other way though... :wink:

Cheers,

Chris

you love orange and blue guitars!!!!!!!!
that's as far as I got.

now I need an orange guitar. always wanted an orange Gretch with Bigsby.
a friend has one with two tone humbuckers. it sounds as beautiful as it looks.

oh, one more thing... marry me! :oops:

Well, Dogbite, this is kinda sudden.... :shock:
I do love yer old gibbo gibsonette though. :D

How will I ever tell my betrothed that I threw her over for an Orange Gretsch and a 58 Gibsonette???? :twisted:

Ken :wink:

ps - Musica23....
My main strat is Olympic White too.
Rather than bland, I like rather: Elegant :D

Yes, Wes, I love to spend money! But my hubby isn't necessarily happy with that and I may go around less than once in this life if I keep this stuff up! Sometimes he loosens the reins on his wallet and the next thing ya know we're fighting about money. It's almost not worth it. (Notice I said "almost"... :wink: ) In all fairness, I work, too. But not this much...

Now that particular Tele is just fine with me! I've seen the pricetag, too, and can confidently say that I'll never own one. Unless I win the lottery. Also, today I will try the Fish & Chips...thanks for your feedback and understanding! I'm sure I'm not like your ex, though, so don't hold the common terminology against me! :lol:

Chris C - That might be it. I really think you nailed it! My style of playing isn't right for a Gretsch. But I can get better and become more diverse! I know I can! Besides...if I'm allowed to keep this guitar, what do you think I'm gonna do??? Unless I can get a different Gretsch. I really do love my Strats the best, so I have found bliss. I guess I'm just on a kick about "dream guitars" (I'm also coveting a Gibson "Lucille" and some kinda Gibson SG...today, that is...but only because I don't have either. This is my mid-life crisis, I guess. Who woulda thought??? :shock: ) Now that you mention it, the last guy to change the strings made my 5120 sing. :(

dogbite - I never loved an orange guitar the way I love this 5120. (Isn't that a song??? :wink: ) As for marrying you, I'll need to do a short interview first. Ready? OK...are you wealthy? Do you have excellent credit at least??? You love music, I take it, so no problem there...Do you share well with others??? Do you love to shop??? Wait a minute. My hubby's calling... :roll:

CitiZenNoir - That's a wonderful description of Olympic White! It's true, too. Simply elegant. Thanks! :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYZ50PjDTi8

Sorry Musica.... Don't mean to make you want a Gretsch again.
I ran across this vid, and just had to share :twisted:

As a side note - This is the first song that Mel ever heard me play. (In uncle Bobby's basement a million years ago -
When I sorta looked like Neil Young :wink: )

Ken