First archtop!

[madhat]

Ive just purchased a new Epiphone Zenith. * should deliver Tuesday next week.
Round soundhole with 'Vintage Natural' finish.

Very excited!
I mostly pick and strum with my thumb and fingers- hoping this guitar will be a fun way to mix it up a bit.

Couple questions-

Can I (should I) start out with staple acoustic strings? I usually use DAddario EJ16 or NB on flat top guitars... think blues/folky/Americana.

Also- this guitar having a pu- my only amp right now is a Fishman LB mini. Should I consider another amp for best results and or other accessories?

I would love to hear of recent experiences or from owners of guitars from this century line.

Thanks!

madhat.

[gmr]

I have the new Olympic model. I like it a lot! While it does not scream classic archtop characteristic, it does have a nice mid range tone and it has a pretty fair "bark" when you push it. You can pull a bunch of low end from the pickup and with a bit of shaping you can smooth out the piezo quack that folks find so irritating. Even this little Olympic can sound pretty big when amped. I use Martin retro Monels 12 54. They work for me but I just prefer these strings on all my guitars. I am pondering a Deluxe but not sure of the round hole or f hole version. I wonder if the f hole would be a bit more archtop sounding. These guitars, from my perspective, give you enough of the archtop character to reasonably satisfy most folks and they have versatility that should please a lot of flat top guys. My leanings are toward fingerpicked country bluesy carter style stuff. Congrats on your purchase. Please let me know what you think of your Zenith. After a string change and fret polishing I am quite pleased with my Olympic.

[gmr]

I am just a couch picker. The only amp I have is a little Yamaha thr5A acoustic amp. The Olympic sounds reall good through this very small acoustic modeling amp.

[madhat]

Thanks gmr!
Sounds like you are really having fun with that Olympic

The deluxe is a really sweet looking instrument for sure- maybe a bit big for me though.

Hoping the Zenith will be a good fit

madhat.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by madhat

...Couple questions-

Can I (should I) start out with staple acoustic strings? I usually use DAddario EJ16 or NB on flat top guitars... think blues/folky/Americana.

Also- this guitar having a pu- my only amp right now is a Fishman LB mini. Should I consider another amp for best results and or other accessories?

I would love to hear of recent experiences or from owners of guitars from this century line.

Couple answers:

• For the styles you list I'd go with either the D'A Nickel Bronze or Martin Monels, but with an archtop you'll need 13's to drive the top properly and get a more "period-correct" acoustic tone - good thing is that setting up the action to compensate is as DIY-easy as a truss rod tweak and a couple twists of the bridge wheels; this was always one of the virtues of archtops, BTW - I've probably played a few hundred vintage pieces over the last 50+ years, and some of those '50s bebop cats had action/playability with 13's/14's that would rival (or surpass, in some cases) any modern electric with 9's or 10's...
• Since it's equipped with what amounts to a UST mounted in a traditional archtop bridge, a dedicated acoustic amp should be fine - I'd roll off a bit of the extreme high end, though, to get rid of the metallic "ping" and piezo quack and bring out the characteristic archtop "chunk"; just for laughs, I'd also run it through the low-gain input of a clean electric guitar combo (think Fender/Ampeg/'80s Peavey/pre-'85 Randall rather than Vox/Marshall/Laney/Blackstar) with a 12"/15" speaker (or two) - you may never go back to that Fishman...

Hope this helps - use it well and often,,,

[MC5C]

If it had a magnetic pickup you'd be better served with electric guitar strings - nickle wound usually - and an electric guitar amplifier. Electric guitar amps designed for use with normal Les Paul or Telecaster type pickups have a quite different frequency response designed to make them sound good, called a "mid-scoop tone stack" (you can google that). Since it has a peizio type under bridge pickup, any acoustic guitar amp or DI into a PA system will work fine.

As far as strings - I've played archtops for decades as well, and never go higher than .012 - .052 unless I am tuning down a few steps. Many many jazz players used .011's, with unwound G strings even, Jim Hall included. So my advice is buy a bunch of sets, including low tension sets like the flex-cores, and try them. You can vary the action height to suit different gauges (I go with lower action when I go to heavier strings), and to suit your playing style. If you play softly you can get away with lower action, but I find the headroom gets less with light strings and lower action so achievable volume decreases. I've never had a guitar sound better with heavy strings - unless my goal was hard chord chunking in the 1930's big band style. Then, they work great! Just my opinion, obviously...

[madhat]

Steve thank you very much for the info and sharing!
I will pick up some 13s today while out and about.

Can't wait to get my hands on this guitar - hope to get some solid play time during the turkey holidazzze.

madhat.

[madhat]

Thanks for the input Brian!

I usually play 12s and often a half step or so down.... I think you are spot on with the idea of getting several different sets to see where it goes.

Good to know I can work with the Fishman and DI for now and add other options later...

madhat.

[zombywoof]

I have never held an f-hole archtop in my hands that did not sound at its best with anything other than 13s. At present (I am very fickle when it comes to strings) my favorite strings are the D'Addario NB.

[madhat]

Thanks zomby- the guitar comes with 12s - it will be interesting to compare.

All the best
madhat