EuroAussie Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Firsty, Im NOT in the market for a new guitar, and you might go yeah, yeah, sure EA, but Im really not. However as my excellent pickin' adventure gets deeper Im sure down the track a small bodied Gibson will be added to the stable. Right now Im really satsified with the Gibbys plus the Furch OM and 00-15 which are great pickers. But Ive been taking a closer look (from a distance) at the JB and KB gits as they seem to be the perfect pickin guitars. I in particular like the wider nut width a lot. Havent played either of them but remember playing a few Seagulls with the wider nut width and really liking the feel of em. So, was wondering, if you were to be looking for a new all rounder pickin' Gibby, kickin' back on the sofa type, preferably with a wide nut with would you go for the JB or the KB ? Im guessing most would say JB as that seems to be the flavour of month, well, year ... but Im wondering whether the deeper body would be a bit of a pain when kickin' back on the sofa ? The KB seems awfully comfy to hold and play, just by lookin' .. What do you reckon folks, any that Ive missed ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rambler Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Never say never, but, based on previous posts... A JB is going to generate a low of low end (12 fret, offset somewhat by walnut b/s), maybe more than a rw songwriter, which you had issues with, yes? Cant deny that an L-series is couch friendly, but an Lg2 or 3, or a hog NLS might be more strum friendly than a Keb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EuroAussie Posted July 29, 2012 Author Share Posted July 29, 2012 Thanks Rambler, however this would be mainly a pickin' guitar with minor trumming. From the samples I heard the Keb Mo sounded great being picked but strummer only so, so, but I guess that wasnt its main design task. Never say never, but, based on previous posts... A JB is going to generate a low of low end (12 fret, offset somewhat by walnut b/s), maybe more than a rw songwriter. Could be an issue. Cant deny that an L-series is couch friendly, but an Lg2 or 3, or a hog NLS might be more strum freindlh than a Keb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry K Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 The JB is a great model and the extra depth probably isn't going to make much difference if you are used to dreads and jumbos. However, as a couch guitar the 00 body wins hands down. It's a very responsive design for finger picking. They are making a lot of L-00 variations now; I would try to check out as many as you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guth Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Honestly, I'd use the SJ. But if I just had to have something smaller, I'd go with some variation of a 000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duluthdan Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 The JB is not that deep as to be an uncomfortable couch guitar, and great neck width. Never have played a Keb, so I cannot opine one way or the other, but don't let the body depth be a stopper. Here's a side by side with a J-45 and the Jackson Browne - other than a bit more depthe, its actually a wee bit smaller than the J-45. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedzep Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 With beerbelly...LG2, without JB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dchristo Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Im thinking you should get both Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duluthdan Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 dchristo makes an excellent point. If storage space is an issue, I can make room on my rack, and I have four attack cats, so you know it would be safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParlourMan Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 EA, The Keb Mo is a cool wee guitar, while that design will never be the greatest all-rounder you already have all rounders in the form of the SJ and 'bird. In fact most of what you already have in the stable fall in to the all-rounder bracket. So with that in mind, and also factoring in how much I'd fancy a JB myself I'd say you'd get a more dramatic variation from the Keb Mo than from the JB. The KM is a totally different design, yes it's more geared towards a certain type of playing but it strums pretty well too. One of the things I have said is the KM is more all-rounder appealing that I always thought it would be, my singer uses mine as a rhythm guitar quite a bit. I play various styles on it at home and yes it's comfier on the couch than a Dred model. As much as I do want a JB myself I'd say the best you'd gan from a JB model would be the 12-fret option when comparing it to the current stable.... However if that is the perfect combo for you you might miss out a spending step by taking a 12-fretter but with the generous body size too. If you want what you know & like but with 12-fretr and 'current cool' get a JB If you want a taste of something different, try/buy a KM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rambler Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 With beerbelly...LG2, without JB. He-heh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Looking at the Keb Mo, I'm not sure how rosewood would work on an L-OO sized body. To me, that size guitar begs for the dry bark of mahogany. I'd think something like a straight L-OO would be the call, unless you absolutely need the pickup that comes with the Keb Mo. Of course, I'm in the middle of a passionate affair with an L-OO Legend, so you have to take everything I say with a grain of salt. Edit: Sorry, I just went on the Gibson website, and saw that these were mahogany. Thought I had read elsewhere that this was a rosewood guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry K Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 I've played a couple Keb Mo models and if I remember right the neck is wide but somewhat slimmer back to front than the blues king. Somewhat like a Nick Lucas reissue I have and AJ's I've tried. Can someone describe the neck on their Keb Mo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretplay Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 EA, I was years looking for the right small bodied guitar and in the end I came up with two. Firstly The Gibson Cascade, small,light,(the maple body), picks beautifully but doesn't strum. In fact Gibson make them without a pick guard maybe for that reason. But for a true all rounder Gibson CJ 165 Rosewood. small, comfortable to play and plenty of volume. Picks and strums so just what you need for playing one or a one man guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParlourMan Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 But for a true all rounder Gibson CJ 165 Rosewood. small, comfortable to play and plenty of volume. This ought to be good, take it away EA, or was it the J185 that had very limited appeal to you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EuroAussie Posted July 30, 2012 Author Share Posted July 30, 2012 This ought to be good, take it away EA, or was it the J185 that had very limited appeal to you? It was the 185 that didnt rock my boat, and most 165's I found quite thin sounding, although there was an exception I came across a few months back that sounded full and much richer than others, maybe it was just the strings ? I have to say though that if I went small bodied Gibson I would prefer one of the more mahogany b/s, bluesier sounding models to differentiate from the Furch and 00-15 which are both quite Martinesque in their tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy Morton Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 The keb mo is very comfortable to play! The jackson is deep so it will be more difficult to lay back and pick. An L-00 True vintage just became available and it is a stellar guitar. JM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParlourMan Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 The keb mo is very comfortable to play! JM I can second that, it also surpassed my expectations as a general purpose model too, yes it will do the small body blues thing, but it's also a very usable guitar. While I need 14 frets and something bigger for my wee 3-man acoustic combo, the Keb Mo remains one of my favourite guitars that I own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davenumber2 Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 If you want something to tide you over in the mean time if you end up favoring the JB, Recording King just introduced a Smeck based model at NAMM, the RAJ-122. The only thing I've seen about them on the net is a video from NAMM but they look pretty cool. Don't know when they will be hitting stores but the street price is $699. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretplay Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 This ought to be good, take it away EA, or was it the J185 that had very limited appeal to you? Its Strange that 185s hardly ever come up on E Bay but 200s all the time. I'm sure an economist could read something into that. I fell in love with a maple 165 the only one I have seen in UK but I was too slow and it was sold elsewhere. It took me a year to get one and then a rosewood and purchased USA. Interestingly the 165 Rosewood is almost the same guitar as the Martin 00028, woods, short scale, size but they sound very different, now that's a nice guitar EA but maybe I shouldn't say that on a Gibson site. Certainly for me the CJ165 is the best all rounder acoustic, the none cutaway gives the best sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishstick_kitty Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Can't speak to the JB, but the Keb Mo (one of which I own) is an incredibly comfortable guitar to kick back with and it's got a nice bark and tons of mojo when you lay into it (fingerpicking, that is). I strum it too and for my purposes it's fine...although if I was going to play w/ a bunch of people I'd probably rather bring a bigger guitar. I'd pick the keb...just to mix in a small bodied guitar to the collection :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishstick_kitty Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 wow it's easy to double post :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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