best size for sitting down.

[emmonsh]

hi every1. pretty new around here, been lurking for a while. currently play a blueridge br140a. looking to upgrade to a gibson[use to have a late 60,s les paul-wish i still had] but want to get back to gibsons. always love the sound of gibson acoustics. what im wanting to know is what is the most comfortable to play sitting down.[ just a casual player] play rhythem and some flatpicking. really no fingerstyle[very little]. looking for something that doesnt break up with hard strumming and sounds good flatpicked. thanks every1

[Buc McMaster]

Welcome to the asylum!

 

Like most other aspects of guitar playing, which guitar is best suited to lap playing is subjective to sat the least. I really enjoy my CJ165 while seated, but I also felt that the SJ200 I traded out of was good on the lap as well. I suppose much of that depends on how big the player is.........for some I reckon the reach over could be a pain with a large guitar. My little CJ barks well under a flatpick without getting muddy from hard drivin'. There are many here that play various models of small-bodied Gibsons so stay tuned for more input!

[larryp58]

Maybe a SongWriter (small square-shoulder) or the CJ-165 like Buc's. I would start with a J-45 and go from there.

[Rambler]

A tall order, that, strumming and lap fit. A small box just isn't going to have the low end and general presence. Kinda but not really. A big box is going to be....big. My advice would be to get a slop dread (J45) or jumbo (J185) and play it with a strap. Best of both worlds.

 

 

[MissouriPicker]

How comfortable a guitar is depends a great deal on the player's size: weight, height, arm length, physical build. Some folks get uncomfortable holding a drednaught, while others have the arm length to easily sit holding a super jumbo. Others like the auditorium size guitars. Depends on who you ask.

[MisterGibs]

Try a Hummingbird, a SWD too.

 

You can try a J 185 Rosewood too.

[Jinder]

J185 is a great suggestion...still a jumbo but with that pinched waist that, as someone suggested in another thread, lets the box sit lower in the lap.

 

Great sounding guitar, too!

 

Why not track down a J185TV and see where your search takes you from there...

[clayville]

Can depend on the chair too: I have a Taylor 812ce for the couch (where the lower bout of a larger guitar can be a problem, pushed up by the seat 'next door'). But for an armless chair, it's my J-100 all the way!

[CAMELEYE]

How about one of Gibson's LG series or a B-25?

[zombywoof]

I would not go with a J-200 - in a rocking chair you end up playing the thing like Bill Wyman held his bass.

[onewilyfool]

Always like to O-size (concert) for couch and chair playing......

 

[rar]

 

Ernie's position -- which' date=' like much else, he learned from the Rev -- may not be the best model for the aspiring couch picker. The Rev had a special easy chair for teaching in his basement with the right arm removed so that his J-200 could hang out (beyond the edge) and down (below the seat). Cutting the arm off your couch to optimize it for guitar playing makes perfect sense to me, but some might not agree.

 

-- Bob R

[Rambler]

"The Rev had a special easy chair for teaching in his basement with the right arm removed so that his J-200 could hang out (beyond the edge) and down (below the seat). Cutting the arm off your couch to optimize it for guitar playing makes perfect sense to me"

 

Hawr! Oth, neither would be spending $$$$$ on a guitar just to lie around on a couch with (guess that depends on how thick your bankroll or how understanding the lil' lady is)? Seriously, while we also like to grab a guitar and settle into an easy seat, its worth bearing in mind that if you are really going to PLAY the thing, an upright posture is the ONLY way to go.

[StijnV]

There is a company who makes special guitar chairs, which are ergonomical and easy for transport:

 

http://www.originalguitarchair.com/overview.html

 

Kind regards,

 

 

Stijn Vergeest

Gibson Europe Customer Service

00800-4GIBSON1

00800-44427661

www.gibson.com

service.europe@gibson.com

[zombywoof]

"The Rev had a special easy chair for teaching in his basement with the right arm removed so that his J-200 could hang out (beyond the edge) and down (below the seat). Cutting the arm off your couch to optimize it for guitar playing makes perfect sense to me"

 

As a young 'un, I managed to snag a couple of lessons with Rev. Davis. I don't recall the chair he sat in but I do recall being disappointed when he grabbed a Martin rather than his "Miss Gibson." I also recall the hell I caught when my grandfather found out I had pinched a box of his favorite cigars to give to Rev. Davis.

[rar]

As a young 'un' date=' I managed to snag a couple of lessons with Rev. Davis.[/quote']

 

Lucky you!! Closest I've come is lessons from a few of his students, and helpful tips from a few more.

 

-- Bob R

 

P.S. Since there seem to be some fans of the Rev out there, thought I'd mention that, thanks to Stefan Grossman, a revised and updated edition of Robert Tilling's previously-hard-to-obtain book "Oh, What a Beautiful City" is available here. Scores of photos of the Rev and his various "Miss Gibsons" (and my source for the armchair story).

[Rambler]

As a young 'un' date=' I managed to snag a couple of lessons with Rev. Davis.[/quote']

 

That's a wow, Z. Like Rar, Im picking it up from RGD's students. Such a great approach to the guitar.

[diogo]

if one wants a smaller guitar with a bigger, dreadnought like sound, the nick lucas special was designed to provide it. lots of nice bozeman reissues floating about.

[Rambler]

if one wants a smaller guitar with a bigger' date=' dreadnought like sound, the nick lucas special was designed to provide it. lots of nice bozeman reissues floating about.[/quote']

 

Best shot would be a rosewood model (hello, Gibson) if you can find one (like Dylan ca. Dont Look Back). My deep body L00BK (hog) was very trebly, almsot spikey when strummed. If you are looking to mimic a J45 sound, the LG2 or Lg3 would be the way to go.

[fortyearspickn]

emm, also being a casual player - I've concluded that size doesn't matter. The first criteria should be what style Guitar fits you, not what size. If you get an LG and don't like it - you will have wasted money and lost playing time. I have an SJ200 and have 2 or 3 alternative seatings - including a raised foot stand like classical guitarists use and a kidney/tear shaped cushion that hugs your right thigh and fits into the waist of the guitar securely.

So, don't assume you can't find a chair, stool or one armed couch without cushions that will fit you and YOUR guitar! G'luck.

[L5Larry]

I'm of the opinion that you will get used to, or accostomed to, any guitar you play often enough.

 

I blew out my right shoulder playing hockey in 1987, and when I first started playing full bodied archtops, it was not only uncomfortable, but PAINFUL, especially sitting down. After playing my L-5 (17"x4") almost exclusively for the last few years (and mainly sitting down), my body has adjusted and it has become very comfortable.

 

Now when I pick up my LP or Strat, or even the ES-345, they are "small" and uncomfortable.

[Guth]

First off I'd like to say that this is a great thread.

 

As has already been posted, much of this will depend on just how small/big you are, how much reach you have and whether or not you suffer from any physical conditions that would limit the size of guitar you feel comfortable with. (Just this year we've read of a couple of folks here who were forced to switch to smaller sized guitars to prevent pain from ruining, or perhaps even ending, their playing days.)

 

Much like Larry has pointed out, I've owned a variety of acoustics over the years in many different shapes and sizes. I'm definitely not a big guy (5' 8" with a slender build) and I've managed to adapt to most anything I've owned, although I've not owned anything the size of a J-200. That said, my OM is more comfortable to play while seated than my J-45 or AJ. Where I'm seated while playing also makes a noticeable difference (although less so when playing the OM). While I haven't owned one, I do like the way the J-185 feels. As is so often the case, my recommendation is to find a place where you can try out as many different Gibsons as possible to determine which model you like best. I hope that you'll report back on which guitar you end up with.

 

Good luck with the search!

 

Guth

[milod]

... The other guys have super points... I'll add one or two...

 

I've just about concluded that I need to get a nice portable "stool" for pickin' when playing out. Same guitar, different "chair" and it's a different geometry.

 

The chair I play on most at home is just about perfect putting on my left leg with it crossed over my right leg. I've use a bar stool or two that are about perfect but, alas, I really don't care to haul them around. I use an office chair at home, set up a bit higher than usual, but not that much.

 

I tend to use either a 175 or SG body for playing out, occasionally an old Ovation EA Country Artist - and oddly the same "well-fitting" chair works well with either, which convinces me that a lot of the geometry is the bod itself rather than the shape of the guitar.

 

Another variable for sitting... I've found chair height plays less of a role in comfort if you use a little footrest as used by classical guitar pickers, although I've taken some ribbing on that one.

 

BTW, never had a Davis lesson - but I got to watch closely for a cupla days when I was a kid. Interesting.

 

m

[onewilyfool]

... The other guys have super points... I'll add one or two...

 

I've just about concluded that I need to get a nice portable "stool" for pickin' when playing out. Same guitar' date=' different "chair" and it's a different geometry.

 

m

[/quote']

 

I agree....can we see some examples of stool specimens that you guys use???

[milod]

Wiley...

 

u b bad.

 

<grin>

 

m