Arch top info please? Cortez es-175 copy...60s

[Ryan78]

Hi everyone. I'm new not only to the world of arch tops but to guitar in general. I've only been playing a year but old flat tops and now arch tops have grabbed me. I bought this old Cortez es-175 copy and I can find very little info on it. Only a paragraph here and there. It's a great guitar I picked up for 200$. It sounds great. I've got 11 D'A flat wounds on it. It's quite loud acoustically also. Any info would be great. Thanks! Hopefully I can get the pics to post. I'm not sure how to post them from my phone. I read the instructions on the FAQ section but I can't find the "properties " in the photobucket. So here goes.



If this works I can post more detailed photos. Thanks for any help.

[Ryan78]

Okay that didn't work....maybe just the link to my photobucket?

http://s173.photobucket.com/user/rya...g.html?filters[user]=143898119&filters[recent]=1&sort=1&o=0

[Steve DeRosa]

Can't link to your pictures, but I can tell you that the upper-line Cortez instruments from the circa-1970 "lawsuit" era were among the better Japanese imports, and if your guitar is in good cosmetic/playing condition you got it for an excellent price; FYI the parent company is still in business - they changed the name to Cort in the mid-70's and presently manufacture everywhere in the Pac-Rim region but Japan. BTW, you did right to set it up with flats - they'll get you that classic '50s bop/rockabilly tone - but I personally wouldn't go any lighter than 12's on a deep-body full-hollow guitar; try a set next time around (if you've only been playing a year the 11's are a good "get-acquainted" set for the time being) and, if you've got a good amp (if not, the folks here would be glad to recommend one), you'll get more "wood" into your amplified tone as well as more acoustic volume - a "win-win" situation all around IMO...

Use it well and often,,,

[Ryan78]

Thanks for the response....I'll work on the pictures. But it's in close to like new condition as I've seen. No cracks in the finish, everything original. Pickguard, knobs, nut, bridge, all original. I'll definitely look into getting the strings you mentioned. As far as amps I've only got a small fender frontman, small Kustom tube amp hybrid...12w tube preamp with solid state, and a fender Mustang II. I nearly sleep with this guitar. I've been working on my fingerstyle and I really dig the sound. Out of all my guitars it's my go to. I'm almost 40yrs old and I wish I'd started playing a long time ago. Thanks for the info. I'll work on trying to get the pics from photo bucket from my phone.

[FrankHudson]

Yup, from what I've read Cortez=Cort in its earlier days of selling in North America. I've never seen, much less played, a Cortez hollowbody archtop myself.

Sounds like you're happy with the deal you got.

My first 12-string was a Cortez branded dreadnaught. Mine was not an upper end instrument, but the thing held together while tuned to concert pitch and served me well when I was gigging a bit back in the late 70s/early 80s.

Cort made/makes instruments for many different brands, besides the ones sold under their own name. I believe they made most of the "DeArmond" Guild/Gretsch-like guitars sold by Fender around the last turn of the century. Which means that my large hollowbody DeArmond X-155 is probably made at a Cort factory too.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Ryan78

...As far as amps I've only got a small Fender Frontman, small Kustom tube amp hybrid...12w tube preamp with solid state, and a Fender Mustang II...

Some thoughts:

• If that's the Frontman 25 1x10" (you did say small - I'm thinking you're not talking an FM 65 or 212R here) it's a great practice/studio/small-gig box, especially with a speaker upgrade; since you're going to want cleaner sounds with this guitar I'd recommend the Eminence Lil' Buddy, baby brother to the well-known Cannabis Rex hemp-cone 12" with similar tonal qualities...
• Be careful with that Kustom - it's essentially a rock practice amp so you might have a hard time dialing in the kind of tone you're after at reasonable volume without breakup, and I personally wouldn't kick in the tube-driven lead channel unless you're looking to do a Ted Nugent...
• Keep to the cleaner side of things with the Mustang; it's tempting to push a button or two for instant rockstar gratification, but once again you'll do better with some of the cleaner tone options - think blackface (Deluxe/Twin/Super Reverb) over tweed, American over British...
• Start looking toward the purchase of a mid-powered (~20-40W tube/40-70W solid-state) combo, in the name of clean headroom rather than absolute volume; good-condition '80s Peavey and pre-'85 Randall RB combos (the latter being the first SS amps with any kind of real tone IMO, and a total sleeper in the market given their intrinsic quality - BTW you want the orange- or gray-panel versions with two independent channels like a blackface Fender Twin/Super Reverb) can easily be found in the $200 range, and a new Bugera V22 1x12" - type the name into the AGF search engine or visit the Electric Guitar forum here to read the rave reviews - can be had for $300-350 if you look around...

[Ryan78]

Awesome thanks for so the info...yeah it's a frontman 10G. I don't really like the tone the kustom has at all. I'll research the info on the board here more on amps.

[Ryan78]

I still can't post a pic from my mobile phone. And it seems like the links aren't working either. I apologize.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Ryan78

... I'll research the info on the board here more on amps...

Check in over on the Electric Guitars forum - there's a wealth of info over there; here's a few examples to get you started:

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=459243
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=452163
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=450268
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=449059
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=432081
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=436026