The new Epiphone Olympic archtop

[gmr]

Yes Sir, Freddie Green.... I am not very bright!

[Hot Vibrato]

Haha! We all have our moments...

[gmr]

I just might have more than my share of moments... Lol. Do you get to Tulsa often? It would have been nice, had they kept the series purely acoustic, but I imagine the choice was a mrketing one, perhaps. I only have one archtop but I love the sound of acoustic archtops. My current one is not purely acoustic (Es 125). It belonged to my father. Oddly, he rarely played it amplified unless he was playing with a group

All the shops in the UK show them for sale but they are not as yet in stock which is a tad frustrating seeing as I have GAS and a bit of cash knocking around.

That said, I must admit that given their low price I am a bit concerned that when I finally get to try one I will be unimpressed. When you factor in everyone's slice of the profit (including shipments and import duties) they must be being made cheaply. Or is that just the way things are nowadays.

And moreover, why is it that there are no really good demos of each of these guitars. There is a new demo of one of the guitars by acoustic guitar magazine but there is no really good overview of the range. Surely, it would be better to pay a pro player to give a good demo of each model so we can gain more insight into what they are capable of. To me, the bits I have heard are not particularly archtop sounding: that is to say that they sound more like acoustic guitars than archtops. Maybe the Zenith or Olympic models will have the sound I am looking for.

In the meantime I am keeping an eye on ebay for anything interesting.

[Hot Vibrato]

Originally Posted by washy21

With regards to the David Rawlings guitar. I wonder just how many of these Olympics he has tried in order to assert that his is one of a kind. I suspect that some of this is simply that, unlike me and many other players, he has got to know that instrument intimately.

I have two friends who are both violinists in top orchestras and they simply don't get the so called guitarists GAS. In a recent conversation they said that they have one instrument and they cherish it and know it inside out - much like Rawlings. However, we all know that different styles of guitar need different kinds of instruments - hence my interest in archtops.

I think with violinists, the "ideal" tone is a very specific thing, and they're all going for virtually the same sound with virtually identical looking instruments. For guitarists, there is a much broader and more varied idea of what constitutes good tone, and it's all very genre-specific. We need different guitars for different musical circumstances. The more focused any guitarist is on one specific genre, the fewer guitars he/she needs. Those of us who dabble in several musical styles tend to have more guitars.

Regarding Rawlings' Olympic vs. other Olympics, I think even you and I could hear the differences if he were to play them for us side by side. I have a '39 Gibson L-37 small bodied archtop (Dave Rawlings said "I used to have an L-37!"). I've played several other L-37s, and none of them sound like mine. I think anyone would be able to hear the difference.

Originally Posted by washy21

All the shops in the UK show them for sale but they are not as yet in stock which is a tad frustrating seeing as I have GAS and a bit of cash knocking around.

That said, I must admit that given their low price I am a bit concerned that when I finally get to try one I will be unimpressed. When you factor in everyone's slice of the profit (including shipments and import duties) they must be being made cheaply. Or is that just the way things are nowadays.

They do appear to be made cheaply. I think they're made in China, so the manufacturer saves a lot on labor costs. With that in mind, I agree with Rudy - I think they're overpriced compared to similar products on the market. But I still think there's a fair chance they'll sound pretty good acoustically. I'm not too confident that the piezo pickup will sound very good, but most players won't notice or care.

[jpd]

"I think they're made in China...Hot Vibrato"


I read Indonesia....which is becoming a "hot bed" of acoustic production. Just ask "Pono" ......

[jpd]

"We need different guitars for different musical circumstances. The more focused any guitarist is on one specific genre, the fewer guitars he/she needs. Those of us who dabble in several musical styles tend to have more guitars." Hot Vibrato


I'm leaning this way the older I get

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by jpd

"I think they're made in China...Hot Vibrato"

I read Indonesia....which is becoming a "hot bed" of acoustic production. Just ask "Pono" ......

Anywhere that maximizes profit just short of putting leg chains on a 8 year old is considered fair game.

Originally Posted by Rudy4

Anywhere that maximizes profit just short of putting leg chains on a 8 year old is considered fair game.

Don't tempt me into not buying one.

[gmr]

Unfortunately it seems to build guitars stateside increases retail cost exponentially. More demos are showing up for these but they are all very market driven, and traditional jazz/big band/Western swing rhythm chunking is not the focus. After hearing some short blips of stage performances, the piezo sounds qua my like most other piezoelectric systems. I saw some single note stuff done acoustically (I think), and it was nice.....sounded like an acoustic archtop. That was the deluxe. The Reverb review has a short mic'd piece played on the Zenith but it is capoed up the neck.... Sounds good. The last seconds have some of the Olympic recorded via DI

[gerardo1000]

Considering that the new Epiphone Olympic and the Godin 5th avenue have the same price, it would be interesting to get a comparison between the two guitars. I wonder if there is any member of this forum who has the possibility to do it ?

[Mandobart]

Originally Posted by washy21

I have two friends who are both violinists in top orchestras and they simply don't get the so called guitarists GAS. In a recent conversation they said that they have one instrument and they cherish it and know it inside out - much like Rawlings. However, we all know that different styles of guitar need different kinds of instruments - hence my interest in I will go and try one of these guitars (Zenith and Olympic) and regardless of price it will have to sound good to me before I pay money...

I am a classically trained violinist. I also enjoy bluegrass, gypsy jazz, Americana, Celtic and other styles. I have four different fiddles as a result. Strictly classical players start at a young age and have years of training. They know once they have a good violin and a a few great bows, no other gear is going to make them sound better. They've put in 1000's of hour of practice.

Self-taught guitar players, like me, tend to focus on gear because, though we don't admit it, we secretly think the next instrument, pick, pedal, etc. will take us to the next level without 1000's of hours of focused practice.

I understand multiple guitars if you have an arch top, a dobro, flattop and classical. I even understand multiple flat tops if you play in a few different tunings . Otherwise IMHO GAS is just the search for a shortcut.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by gerardo1000

Considering that the new Epiphone Olympic and the Godin 5th avenue have the same price, it would be interesting to get a comparison between the two guitars. I wonder if there is any member of this forum who has the possibility to do it?

I have an acoustic 5th Avenue and plenty of music stores in the NYC tri-state area - first Olympic I see I'll give it a shot...

[jpd]

[Rudy4]

Although it's not specifically period I kinda wish they would have added the split "frequensator" tailpiece like the one that was on my Triumph. Since they are amalgamating styles, nothing says Epiphone arch top (for me...) like the split tailpiece.

It would have been another way to highlight the product line. Since they went to all that trouble for tuners and head stock it would have been nice to see the counterpoint to that at the lower bout.

Just throwing out my thoughts on that...