My Recent Guitar Purchasing Experience

[BoSoxBiker]

Hi Everyone, this latest guitar hunting series probably started 3 years ago. I had been out hunting for that, "the one" guitar. I got to play a 68 model Hummingbird at a local shop, and boy oh boy, did I fall in love. Alas, I chickened out and it was above budget. That, and being old and not knowing how to care for an old guitar made me gun-shy. Well, axe-shy. So the search went on for Hummingbirds. Nothing came close to the one I saw. The ones I did see seemed dead. I played some other Gibson's, and some Martin's and Taylor's, too. Nothing was doing it for me.

 

Then at the end of another long guitar hunting day, I found myself at my local(ish) Sam Ash shop. I had just handed back the freshly strung Hummingbird that was very flat and uninspiring and was ready to call it a day. The salesman handed me this little Taylor. Instant love. This monsterous booming tone was coming out of this somewhat smaller guitar. I could dig into the strings, gently glance over them or whatever I pleased and got pure tone. Love at first site, and I had found my desert island guitar. BUT, all during this, I had that 1968 Hummingbird on my mind.

 

Fast forward three years to the past few weeks. I needed a guitar better suited for use in my home project studio. Sure, the 614 could do most things very well. It's weakness was the hard strum. Very hard to control and not sound overly resonant. It was too much. So I brought home a Martin alphabet with some fishman piezo pickup that sounded like crap. While we were bonding, we were a mile away from where I wanted to be with the electronics. I guess I was not in love enough to install them on it. That, and there would have been some destructive work due to what was in there.

 

Next up was the Gibson SongWriter. THIS one is not like the hummingbird or the J45 I had been playing. My wife liked the sound of the Hummingbird better, but I thought I would have liked the Songwriter's electric better. That, and the Songwriter was a player. Maybe not a pure strummer, but one someone could dig the pick into or finger pick with tons of volume. I chose that one, despite my wife liking the hummingbird better. I had big time reservations the whole time there and until I eventually brought it back. Some of the qualities of the Songwriter I already had with the Taylor 614CE. The strumming, though, was easily contained in the small home studio, and the electronics were not horrible. However, it just never did sing to me like my Taylor or the Hummingbird. The thought hit me. Get the hummingbird and order the proper electronics while I was there. Back to the store, this time with my Son in tow. I almost chose the J45, as it was a bit warmer than then Hummingbird and probably better suited for my studio needs. He liked the hummingbird better as did my wife 4 days prior. Once I accepted that it was the hummingbird, I was instantly relieved. I guess it had sung to me as well.

 

So now I have the 2018 Hummingbird and had installed the Baggs Anthem w/mic and under-saddle Piezo tandem. Full tone-controls onboard would have been better, but I'm figuring this one out just fine. The Hummingbird is a bright for my studio still, but is certainly manageable. I need to learn how to gain-stage it better going in than I have been doing. When NOT using it for studio stuff, this bird and me are bonding really nicely. It compliments my Taylor 614CE darned near perfectly.

 

And kudos to Gibson. The Songwriter was the single best set up acoustic guitar I had ever seen. The Hummingbird was right up there with it. So too were the J45s, J15s(IIRC - maybe there were 100s?) and a couple of little parlor guitars. All of them had better set-ups than anything and everything else in that show-room. A far cry from the state of repair the Gibbys were in several years ago in the same shop.

 

Anyhow, set on Acoustics for a while, save for maybe a dark, warm toned mahogany front or maybe cedar or something. Maybe it doesn't sustain so well. Who knows. The only thing I do know is that it will be about 20% of what I just spent.

 

Thanks for letting me ramble on about the latest guitar hunting story. Lots of fun.

 

Roy

[drathbun]

Hi Everyone, this latest guitar hunting series probably started 3 years ago. I had been out hunting for that, "the one" guitar. I got to play a 68 model Hummingbird at a local shop, and boy oh boy, did I fall in love. Alas, I chickened out and it was above budget. That, and being old and not knowing how to care for an old guitar made me gun-shy. Well, axe-shy. So the search went on for Hummingbirds. Nothing came close to the one I saw. The ones I did see seemed dead. I played some other Gibson's, and some Martin's and Taylor's, too. Nothing was doing it for me.

 

Then at the end of another long guitar hunting day, I found myself at my local(ish) Sam Ash shop. I had just handed back the freshly strung Hummingbird that was very flat and uninspiring and was ready to call it a day. The salesman handed me this little Taylor. Instant love. This monsterous booming tone was coming out of this somewhat smaller guitar. I could dig into the strings, gently glance over them or whatever I pleased and got pure tone. Love at first site, and I had found my desert island guitar. BUT, all during this, I had that 1968 Hummingbird on my mind.

 

Fast forward three years to the past few weeks. I needed a guitar better suited for use in my home project studio. Sure, the 614 could do most things very well. It's weakness was the hard strum. Very hard to control and not sound overly resonant. It was too much. So I brought home a Martin alphabet with some fishman piezo pickup that sounded like crap. While we were bonding, we were a mile away from where I wanted to be with the electronics. I guess I was not in love enough to install them on it. That, and there would have been some destructive work due to what was in there.

 

Next up was the Gibson SongWriter. THIS one is not like the hummingbird or the J45 I had been playing. My wife liked the sound of the Hummingbird better, but I thought I would have liked the Songwriter's electric better. That, and the Songwriter was a player. Maybe not a pure strummer, but one someone could dig the pick into or finger pick with tons of volume. I chose that one, despite my wife liking the hummingbird better. I had big time reservations the whole time there and until I eventually brought it back. Some of the qualities of the Songwriter I already had with the Taylor 614CE. The strumming, though, was easily contained in the small home studio, and the electronics were not horrible. However, it just never did sing to me like my Taylor or the Hummingbird. The thought hit me. Get the hummingbird and order the proper electronics while I was there. Back to the store, this time with my Son in tow. I almost chose the J45, as it was a bit warmer than then Hummingbird and probably better suited for my studio needs. He liked the hummingbird better as did my wife 4 days prior. Once I accepted that it was the hummingbird, I was instantly relieved. I guess it had sung to me as well.

 

So now I have the 2018 Hummingbird and had installed the Baggs Anthem w/mic and under-saddle Piezo tandem. Full tone-controls onboard would have been better, but I'm figuring this one out just fine. The Hummingbird is a bright for my studio still, but is certainly manageable. I need to learn how to gain-stage it better going in than I have been doing. When NOT using it for studio stuff, this bird and me are bonding really nicely. It compliments my Taylor 614CE darned near perfectly.

 

And kudos to Gibson. The Songwriter was the single best set up acoustic guitar I had ever seen. The Hummingbird was right up there with it. So too were the J45s, J15s(IIRC - maybe there were 100s?) and a couple of little parlor guitars. All of them had better set-ups than anything and everything else in that show-room. A far cry from the state of repair the Gibbys were in several years ago in the same shop.

 

Anyhow, set on Acoustics for a while, save for maybe a dark, warm toned mahogany front or maybe cedar or something. Maybe it doesn't sustain so well. Who knows. The only thing I do know is that it will be about 20% of what I just spent.

 

Thanks for letting me ramble on about the latest guitar hunting story. Lots of fun.

 

Roy

 

Congrats Roy! It is always nice when you find a guitar that "sings" to you!

 

Any chance of some photos or sound bites?

[E-minor7]

Hey - a serious hunt is over, , , for now anyway and congratulations. A Hummingbird !

Is it the torrefied version ?

You should post us a test from your recording set-up. And of course a picture or 2. Almost sure it would result in more reactions.

 

Enjoy the finally right guitar ^ it's deserved

[Murph]

Sometimes it's sad when the hunt is over.

[Murph]

Just kidding.

[Jinder]

A Hummingbird that really connects with you can well be the only guitar you’ll ever need. Terrific instruments, I have a 1990 which is wonderful, but have owned two new ones in the past (a 2005 and a 2006) which were very very good guitars, the ‘06 in particular. That one opened up beautifully over the first year I owned it, and I’m sure yours will do the same. Welcome to the aviary!

[BoSoxBiker]

Congrats Roy! It is always nice when you find a guitar that "sings" to you!

 

Any chance of some photos or sound bites?

Thanks! I will take some shots this week. Sound bites, too, though may be delayed a bit longer. I'm still experimenting with the best combinations of components going in between the new electronics into my interface and on into Pro Tools. My room is not the greatest for active strumming.

[BoSoxBiker]

Hey - a serious hunt is over, , , for now anyway and congratulations. A Hummingbird !

Is it the torrefied version ?

You should post us a test from your recording set-up. And of course a picture or 2. Almost sure it would result in more reactions.

 

Enjoy the finally right guitar ^ it's deserved

Thanks!

I don't see anywhere about the Hummingbird having the torrified top. My 2015 Taylor 614CE certainly does. That top on a Maple body is magical. Pics and sound bites for sure, as I just now replied to drathbun.

[BoSoxBiker]

A Hummingbird that really connects with you can well be the only guitar you’ll ever need. Terrific instruments, I have a 1990 which is wonderful, but have owned two new ones in the past (a 2005 and a 2006) which were very very good guitars, the ‘06 in particular. That one opened up beautifully over the first year I owned it, and I’m sure yours will do the same. Welcome to the aviary!

I'm very curious to hear how the first couple of years' of aging will manifest itself with the tone. I'm very much looking forward to it. My other guitar went through that process, even with the torrefied top, and it sounds richer that the day I bought it. The Hummingbird won all the family sound tests and even had some other customers commenting on it, but I still get the feeling that it is not finished. I know part of it is that it needs to train me. I'm up for that.

[Cougar]

Sometimes it's sad when the hunt is over.

Well, maybe not sad, but can be a letdown. For weeks or months you can spend time every day researching guitars, searching for deals.... I really enjoy that! Then after you get that killer guitar.... you've got the one! You're playing it! And there's no more need for researching or searching. It can be a letdown!

[fortyearspickn]

Congrats! You had me worried there for a minute - I thought you were going to buy a guitar based on the electronics! I think your appreciation of this H'Bird will grow into love. My limited experience has taught me that they gradually sound better - for a honeymoon period lasting a year or so. I'm betting you'll be needing to pay attention to your Taylor. Every month or so, with a dust rag !

[Jinder]

I'm very curious to hear how the first couple of years' of aging will manifest itself with the tone. I'm very much looking forward to it. My other guitar went through that process, even with the torrefied top, and it sounds richer that the day I bought it. The Hummingbird won all the family sound tests and even had some other customers commenting on it, but I still get the feeling that it is not finished. I know part of it is that it needs to train me. I'm up for that.

 

I love that phase of guitar ownership-it trains you, you train it and eventually the pair of you develop a deep bond and a musical codependency. I’ve got that relationship with a couple of guitars, my SJ200 and Hummingbird in particular. My Hummingbird 12 and J180 are close behind. It’s a beautiful thing, enjoy every minute!

[James Owl Smith]

Congrats Roy! It is always nice when you find a guitar that "sings" to you!

 

Any chance of some photos or sound bites?

 

Congrats on your purchase Roy! Drathbun is right: the most important matter in this is when a guitar sings to you & a Hummingbird certainly sings a great deal. I hope you're as happy with your 2018 HB as i am with my 2017 HB. As i wrote before on those Gibson forums, the Hummingbird is the Queen of them all. Enjoy any day you have the opportunity to play this beauty because the sound will be better and better i promise. All the best.

[E-minor7]

I love that phase of guitar ownership-it trains you, you train it and eventually the pair of you develop a deep bond and a musical codependency. I've got that relationship with a couple of guitars, my SJ200 and Hummingbird in particular. My Hummingbird 12 and J180 are close behind. It's a beautiful thing, enjoy every minute!

Heard ^

[E-minor7]

I'm very curious to hear how the first couple of years' of aging will manifest itself with the tone. I'm very much looking forward to it.

It will become looser and more generous, , , which especially will be noticed in the low end.

Generally it will grow richer and more complex, , , then reach something pretty sophisticated within the first 5 years.

After the overture - the opening - the clue will be to let the drying begin. That will take between 1 or 2 decades, but then. . .

 

. . . . . . . . . . . . Have patience - Await miracles

[MissouriPicker]

Glad you got the guitar you want and need. I hope it's everything you're expecting it to be. Hummingbirds are great instruments. [thumbup]

[BoSoxBiker]

Thanks again for the kind words, everyone.

 

I love that description of the aging process and the resulting tone changes. I can relate just 3 years into my 614. It wows me even more now than when I got it. If the Hummingbird takes a similar path ...... oh yeah, that's gonna be something. How cool is that?

 

I've spent much of the past week in the home project studio experimenting, trying to get that last bit of harshness out of the pickup system. My hobbyist level gear tries to enhance the same frequency range I need to contain. (2.5kHz to 3.5kHz) Gain staging is even worse as it seems like 2-3 pieces trying to brighten things up. Too much. Getting closer. I should not have to do any big notching. A moderate and not too sharp -3db to -6db dip at 3kHz goes a long way to soften the harmonics that sort of pile on. Even better when panned out even just a little bit.

 

That's on strumming stuff. Anything less than strumming is fairly clean with the exception of my playing. There's a special place way out to the left that is just forcing me to play "Angie" and "Wild Horses". I take my personal arrested development seriously.

 

Anyhow, I'll export some of the experiment results when I'm done and take some pics after I tidy up that "studio" a bit. In the meantime, oh woe is me, having to play my new red bundle of joy.

[BoSoxBiker]

Here are a few shots of the home project studio. It's quite small, but does OK. Not a whole lot to it other than a PC from ProToolsPC (highly recommend), Eleven Rack, interfaces, some pedals and a couple of guitar processors. I need to do some real audio treatments, but the quick and easy foam fixed quite a bit and I seem to be doing alright with it for now.

 

This was the main purpose for the Hummingbird purchase. Not the best small room guitar, but I've got it doing decently. I'll post some audio in the next couple of days. The Taylor is as good at note picking lead stuff as the Hummingbird is at strumming. I'm looking forward to getting those both in some tracks. I'm not very good, but I do have fun with it.

[QuestionMark]

I'm very curious to hear how the first couple of years' of aging will manifest itself with the tone.

 

It took a bit more than 2 years, but my J-45 got a lot louder once it opened up. My Gospel Reissue got a lot brighter. My SJ-D got a lot mellower and the natural finish turned a lot oranger. My LG-1 got a lot louder and fuller in its sound spectrum, my ‘65 Epi FT-30 Caballero turned into a really great guitar (somehow), my “55 Epiphone F79 (pre-Texan) turned into a really cool worn looking guitar, and my 1936 Epiphone Zenith turned into a loud monstrosity that makes me know why amplication really wasn’t originally needed on an archtop guitar. In other words, every guitar seems to have different great aging characteristics. All the more reason to keep ‘em!

 

QM aka Jazzman Jeff

[BoSoxBiker]

Sorry for the delay on getting the sound sample together. I've been getting used to the new bird. She's a biggun. I also took far too long getting the hang of this Anthem system. I still have further to go. The documentation on the Anthem is horrid small. Once I got the big obstacle out of my way, though, the rest is just dialing to taste.

 

And that brings me to this. I decided to leave it bright for the samples. Dialing the mic back any more than I do now quickly loses it's luster. It's a muffled, begging for compression thing no matter the signal path. The new bird is bright, loud and proud. The bright part can be tamed with ease. Doing so in this sample, though, is not a fair representation.

 

Three passages played twice each using different signal chains. All played played. All unedited except for one particular nasty string scrape during one of the "Melissa" passages. The signal chains were:

#1: Guitar(via Anthem) -> Apollo Hi-Z -> Computer

#2: Guitar(via Anthem) -> Boss AD-10 -> Apollo Line In -> Computer

Each had a small low end cut around 40Hz and a short, narrow dip somewhere between 2.5kHz and 3.0kHz of about -4db for some resonance control. Each passage was volume matched inside the DAW(Pro Tools). The Boss AD-10 was left flat with the exception of turning down the presence down a bit. The AD-10's built-in compressor was left on during the "Angie".

 

Here's the road map so you can skip around at your leisure.

0:02 - 1:28 Angie Hi-Z

1:30 - 2:54 Angie AD-10

2:56 - 3:24 Melissa Hi-Z

3:26 - 3:52 Melissa AD-10

3:52 - 4:21 Hurt Hi-Z

4:23 - 5:02 Hurt AD-10

End

 

ps - please ignore the few older things on Sound Cloud. I've gotten much better since then, and you do NOT want to hear me sing. Click the other songs will reveal that bit of nastiness. Fair warning.

 

https://soundcloud.com/patriotsbiker/hummingbird-sample

[BoSoxBiker]

I felt I had to put another sample up as the previous one did not do it any justice after further listening. This one is much warmer and more complete. I think I had fallen victim to pre-amp stacking. One in the guitar, the Boss AD-10 and the ones I cannot get around in my interface. Regardless, this sounds more like the real thing. I am digging the Baggs Anthem a lot more now that I've cleared this hurdle.

 

It's much shorter, but does repeat from a week ago for the sake of fair comparison.

 

https://soundcloud.com/patriotsbiker/hummingbird-sample-adj