jjulch Posted January 7, 2010 Share Posted January 7, 2010 I was looking at Elderly Music in Lansing, Michigan online yesterday and found a '59 Gibson ES-125 for $1400. This guitar was slightly modified, but for good reason. ABR-1 bridge and Grover Tuners, not too tramatic of a change. However, never actually playing an archtop, would it be more worthwhile to own a new(er) Gibson Acoustic/Electric or buy an old archtop? My reasoning is I want an acoustic sound to amp, but would an old p-90 ES-125 hollowbody give me a more versatile guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAMELEYE Posted January 7, 2010 Share Posted January 7, 2010 I have an unmodified '51 ES-125 and with the original wooden bridge it has a nice "woody" archtoppy tone, not too loud with the electric strings, but acoustically it's all the archtop I need. Plugged in, that old P-90 just sings. Everything from hard rockabilly to very mellow jazz. That pu can do it all. Ce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rambler Posted January 7, 2010 Share Posted January 7, 2010 Kind of depends on the sound you are looking for. The ES125 is going to have a good, clear chord chop. Treble notes will sing. BUT chords won't ring. If you are looking for any kind of a folk-rock-son-of-Roger McGuin-meets-Tom Petty kind of thing, an archtop might not get it done for you. If you are looking for a clear fat fundamental, Eddie Taylor meets Willie Nelson, it might. ps Not plugged, an ok sound but compressed (laminates). Jk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaxson50 Posted January 7, 2010 Share Posted January 7, 2010 If you go with one with a pickup, with all the pedals on the market you can shape the sound, I love arch tops, always have, they are greatly under rated. My old L-4 will hold it's own with my Martin D-35, or my Taylor 814CE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyK Posted January 7, 2010 Share Posted January 7, 2010 Never give up an opportunity to acquire an arch top. I don't have one as I never had the opportunity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjulch Posted January 7, 2010 Author Share Posted January 7, 2010 The archtop isn't going anywhere. I'll have to try it out to decide. It will be very cool to strum a 50+ year old guitar... Hope it doesn't need too much work... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuestionMark Posted January 7, 2010 Share Posted January 7, 2010 To behonest, when I amp my 1965 Gibson 125TCand its P90 or any of my flat top Gibsons with a sound hole Fishman humbucker pickup...the sound isn't that much different depending on how I set the amp's controls. The 125TC P90 is probably a bit warmer sounding, but I can get the Fishman to do pretty similar. I love playing my 125TC, but to be honest when I play it in folk venues its looked at as an electric guitar. When I play an acoustic with a soundhole pick-up that's amped that sounds basically the same, no one seems to think I'm playing an electric guitar in a folk club. Go figure. Since gig wise, I play a lot of folk venues or venues that bill acoustic music, I generally don't play my 125TC at those. (In those respects, its limiting.) If I'm playing a more electric-like venue...the 125TC seems to go over well. If I want a pure acoustic sound, I go with my flat-tops due to their versatility. The acoustic sonic range of an acoustic flat top is greater than the acoustic sonic range of an acoustic archtop (although I have a 1936 Epiphone Zenith archtop that sounds phenomenal...but yet it is not as sonically versatile as one of my flat-tops.) Hope this adds to the discussion. QM aka Jazzman Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjulch Posted January 8, 2010 Author Share Posted January 8, 2010 Question Mark- Deep response. I'll have to read it a few times to figure it out. I'll keep going back and forth until I decide what I really want to do. Right now its not on the budget for either, but if I could jump the gun and go for it, I'll have to see how they sound before I decide.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted January 8, 2010 Share Posted January 8, 2010 Hows about a good flattop but forget the Fishman. Just slap a DeArmond 210 pickup across the soundhole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted January 8, 2010 Share Posted January 8, 2010 To behonest' date=' when I amp my 1965 Gibson 125TCand its P90 or any of my flat top Gibsons with a sound hole Fishman humbucker pickup...the sound isn't that much different depending on how I set the amp's controls. ...I have a 1936 Epiphone Zenith archtop that sounds phenomenal...but yet it is not as sonically versatile as one of my flat-tops... ...[/quote'] I agree to a point. If you're building a collection, an archtop is definitely a must. You can shape the sound you want using different amp, mic and pedal setups. If this is a single or second purchase, it depends on what you looking for in sound and versitility. BTW, if you find an archtop with a solid carved top (my Guild X-700 has one), it makes quite a difference (improvement) in the unplugged sound and tone over a laminate shaped top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.