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Possible NGD!


drathbun

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Wonderful news!! I’ve just spent an hour playing mine and remembered I needed to check in on the thread and see what has transpired. I’m SO glad you went for the Bird. I know you’re a seasoned player with a fine ear and I’m absolutely 200% sure the Bird will give you immense joy. Mine often makes me chuckle at first strum as I remember just how brilliant it is. I spent many years playing lesser 12s (my first steel strung acoustic was a Kimbara 12, many years ago, and I’ve usually kept one around-Takamines, an old Yamaha, a Vintage, a ‘70s Hohner Leyanda) but the Bird was a gigantic step up for me, and really is the only 12 string I’ll ever need.

 

The guitar itself got an encore at a tour date a couple of months back, a guy at the front started a chant of “MORE TWELVE STRING!” Which soon spread through the crowd...I couldn’t stop laughing, it was so surreal. I promised them that next time i’ll just send the guitar to do the gig and they could set it on a stand and look at it all night!

 

What a terrific story Jinder! Of course, the Hummingbird would never sound as wonderful without it being in your hands. We all know a great guitarist can make any guitar sound wonderful.

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drathbun, congrats on a rockin' 12 Hummingbird. You won't be able to stop playing it ! Any idea how many of that model were produced ? I have one and it has the mellowist looking burst of any Hummingbird I ever saw. Very, very loud too... enjoy !

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drathbun, congrats on a rockin' 12 Hummingbird. You won't be able to stop playing it ! Any idea how many of that model were produced ? I have one and it has the mellowist looking burst of any Hummingbird I ever saw. Very, very loud too... enjoy !

 

Thanks, freebyrd. I'm totally stoked. I have no idea how many were produced in 2017. My guess: a hundred... a hundred and fifty?

 

It isn't just the loudness of this guitar (it is loud), but it is the resonance. It vibrates my chest. At my age, that qualifies as a sex toy!

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Great!! looks stunning, i liked how both sound really but the bird looks better!

 

One question, im not very familiarized with 12 strings i recently got a 70s Japanese Alvarez i got for $300 sounds good but has a huge neck, are all the 12 strings like this? i was thinking that maybe they need bigger necks because of the extra tension due to having more strings, but i really dont know

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Great!! looks stunning, i liked how both sound really but the bird looks better!

 

One question, im not very familiarized with 12 strings i recently got a 70s Japanese Alvarez i got for $300 sounds good but has a huge neck, are all the 12 strings like this? i was thinking that maybe they need bigger necks because of the extra tension due to having more strings, but i really dont know

 

A lot of 12 strings have enormous necks. Of course, you need a wider neck for string spacing for the six extra strings. Although, that has never bothered Rickenbacker! The heavier neck will also compensate for the extra tension of the 12 strings.

 

12 strings are notorious for needing neck resets earlier in their lifespans than six strings. Also, the extra bracing needed has caused many makers, Gibson included, to either over or underbrace the tops. There has been some discussion here about the successes and failures of early Gibson 12 strings like the B25 with and without tailpieces.

 

The nut width on the Hummingbird is 1.875" which isn't that much larger than my SJ200 at 1.725".

 

I HAVE noticed the difference in scale length compared with the Taylor. The Hummingbird is 24.75" where the Taylor was 25.5". The Bird plays a bit smoother, but I've noticed some chord shapes are a little more cramped to the point I was confused as to why I wasn't fretting them properly (ie E7 in first position).

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A lot of 12 strings have enormous necks. Of course, you need a wider neck for string spacing for the six extra strings. Although, that has never bothered Rickenbacker! The heavier neck will also compensate for the extra tension of the 12 strings.

 

12 strings are notorious for needing neck resets earlier in their lifespans than six strings. Also, the extra bracing needed has caused many makers, Gibson included, to either over or underbrace the tops. There has been some discussion here about the successes and failures of early Gibson 12 strings like the B25 with and without tailpieces.

 

The nut width on the Hummingbird is 1.875" which isn't that much larger than my SJ200 at 1.725".

 

I HAVE noticed the difference in scale length compared with the Taylor. The Hummingbird is 24.75" where the Taylor was 25.5". The Bird plays a bit smoother, but I've noticed some chord shapes are a little more cramped to the point I was confused as to why I wasn't fretting them properly (ie E7 in first position).

 

 

 

I see, and it makes sense but i didnt know for sure, thank you for the input

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