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  #1  
Old 10-09-2009, 09:34 PM
Misifus Misifus is offline
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Default Archtops revisited

Tonight I heard a fellow playing a Gretsch Synchromatic. It had no pickup, he played into a mic. It sounded very full and rich. I was reminded of the recent discussion here with regard to the archtops. Well, this one gave nothing away to a flattop.

-Raf
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Old 10-09-2009, 09:42 PM
susitna susitna is offline
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I'm wishing I had the fundage for one of those. That other thread got me thinking, and then I started up a Beatles kick again, and one thing led to another...

If you respect them for what they are, archtops are freaking sweet guitars.
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Old 10-09-2009, 10:47 PM
mellowman mellowman is offline
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Misifus, I'm with you. A nice archtop can really sound sweet. I played a couple of vintage synchromatics that I thought sounded surprisingly good.
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Old 10-09-2009, 11:48 PM
Chordchunker Chordchunker is offline
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I have a new G100 Sychromatic and though it is a Chinese import it is a very cool guitar! It has a "spanky" kind of mid range tone and a nice fast neck. I played it side by side with a new Godin and thought the Godin might have a bit more bottom end it wasn`t as loud acoustically, I didn`t like the neck as much, and honestly didn`t think it had the "cool factor" of the Gretsch. I have an old D`armond sliding jazz pickup that sounds really good and am going to wire it into the G100. I lucked out and paid $300.00 for my Gretsch on ebay slightly used but you really can`t tell as it hasn`t a mark on it.

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Old 10-10-2009, 09:16 AM
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Livingston Livingston is offline
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Here's an interesting sounding acoustic archtop, made by Ken Parker and demonstrated by Teja Gerken:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnr8NorNg8E
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Old 10-10-2009, 10:43 AM
Aaron Smith Aaron Smith is offline
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I really want to like archtops, but I haven't found one that's grabbed me yet. Including a 40's L5 that I played this week- they wanted $9k for it. You could get a whole lot of flattop for that kind of money.
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Old 10-10-2009, 10:55 AM
JoeCharter JoeCharter is offline
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The Gretsch Synchromatic archtops are very cool indeed. Other than the MIC factor, I prefer them to the current Godin offering as well.

I don't think archtops should be compared to flat tops as "better" or "worse" though. They are totally different instruments in my view -- just as a classical guitar is a different instrument altogether as well.

I see plenty of videos on the web where people play their archtops as they play their favourite dread. In that context, the archtop may not sound "right".

But try a few Joe Pass or Wes Montgomery licks on an archtop and you'll hear the potential of the instrument.
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Old 10-10-2009, 01:48 PM
Chordchunker Chordchunker is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeNewbie View Post
The Gretsch Synchromatic archtops are very cool indeed. Other than the MIC factor, I prefer them to the current Godin offering as well.

I don't think archtops should be compared to flat tops as "better" or "worse" though. They are totally different instruments in my view -- just as a classical guitar is a different instrument altogether as well.

I see plenty of videos on the web where people play their archtops as they play their favourite dread. In that context, the archtop may not sound "right".

But try a few Joe Pass or Wes Montgomery licks on an archtop and you'll hear the potential of the instrument.
I agree. Flatpicking fiddle tunes or fingerping a Leo Kotke song might not bring out the best in alot of archtops. They shine in orchestra settings though and are great for blues. My brother and I do alot of hokum and Piedmont blues and the Gretsch works great for that. Even though it`s made of glue and sawdust that guitar is alot of fun to play. Of course I would rather have a Collings, Triggs or old Gibson archtop, but I`m a poor working musician.
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Old 10-10-2009, 03:50 PM
walrus walrus is offline
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I love my acoustic archtop; it has a full, dry, maple sound with that percussive "chop". After playing it for a while, I'm pretty sensitive to the overtone content of my rosewood guitars. I play the same stuff on the archtop as I do with the others. A different flavor for sure.
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