NGD, and a Change of Direction

[davidbeinct]

After purchasing two different, expensive to me guitars and finding one wonderful sounding but difficult for me to play (neck width) and the other just not to my liking tone-wise or for its setup, I’ve gone in a different direction.
I know I want a twelve fret short scale for ease of fingering, especially thumb over. I would eventually like something with the wonderful tone of the Eastman E10OO I just sold on here, but I think playability and playing a lot should be my chief concern right now. I know the tone of this laminate back and sides Alvarez is pretty great for $350, the neck is great, and it came set up beautifully by a local shop. So I returned the Breedlove, sold the Eastman, and put my fourteen fret Alvarez on consignment at the shop I purchased the above guitar at. All the rest of the money is going back into the guitar account, maybe until my sixtieth birthday, maybe sooner. But for now I’m going to concentrate on playing the snot out of my new Alvarez.

[jpd]

I like your style!

[VJP5]

Originally Posted by davidbeinct

But for now I’m going to concentrate on playing the snot out of my new Alvarez.

That.... is an excellent plan put in action!

Congrats on the new guitar. It's a looker.

[lar]

Did you try the Eastman SS versions, which have a neck width of 1 11/16" ISO 1 13/16"? If you eventually want the Eastman sound this could be a future possibility.

[TBman]

Congrats. I have one also. Nice little guitar.

[jschmitz54]

Nice decision and I hope you get all the snot out of it. Is a beauty.

[Macpage]

Sounds like a plan and a nice Alvarez you have there. Interestingly, I was just about to post on Alvarez models. I played an Artist series last night with a 1.75" nut and wider string spacing. Is this similar to what you have on yours and what do you think of the neck?

Also, I wondered if you ever tried a Martin with the "low profile" neck that came to be in the late 80's? I have been following your posts about moving to a 1.75" nut and trying the Eastmans and the recent Breedlove. Kinda doing the same experimenting as choices are limited in 1.69" for OM's and smaller. Interested to hear your thoughts on the subject.

Best,

Mac

[madhat]

Excellent!!


madhat.

[davidbeinct]

Originally Posted by Macpage

Sounds like a plan and a nice Alvarez you have there. Interestingly, I was just about to post on Alvarez models. I played an Artist series last night with a 1.75" nut and wider string spacing. Is this similar to what you have on yours and what do you think of the neck?

Also, I wondered if you ever tried a Martin with the "low profile" neck that came to be in the late 80's? I have been following your posts about moving to a 1.75" nut and trying the Eastmans and the recent Breedlove. Kinda doing the same experimenting as choices are limited in 1.69" for OM's and smaller. Interested to hear your thoughts on the subject.

Best,

Mac

Mac, I’m still very much a new player. I started in August of 2019 after not having played for years. When I did play I didn’t try nearly hard enough. I was under the impression that some people who were just natural players. This time around I’m putting in work and making slow but steady progress.
That’s all to say that I’m still learning what I want in a guitar, neck and otherwise. I can tell you that the guitar whose neck really grabbed me was the Waterloo WL-K. The Alvarez neck is a bit slimmer but has similar string spacing. The Waterloo has to me just the right amount of “chunk.” The Alvarez doesn’t provide the same support to my palm but I can definitely play it comfortably. Hope that helps.

[Macpage]

Originally Posted by davidbeinct

Mac, I’m still very much a new player. I started in August of 2019 after not having played for years. When I did play I didn’t try nearly hard enough. I was under the impression that some people who were just natural players. This time around I’m putting in work and making slow but steady progress.
That’s all to say that I’m still learning what I want in a guitar, neck and otherwise. I can tell you that the guitar whose neck really grabbed me was the Waterloo WL-K. The Alvarez neck is a bit slimmer but has similar string spacing. The Waterloo has to me just the right amount of “chunk.” The Alvarez doesn’t provide the same support to my palm but I can definitely play it comfortably. Hope that helps.

Thanks. Every bit of information helps. We have a Waterloo dealer fairly close to give one a try. I went a long time without playing much as well. I'm kind of rediscovering things now that I'm older and sharing my daughter's initial playing experiences. I get to relearn while supervising her progress. I'm excited, but she just wants to play classic rock songs! Enjoy your playing. I'll be sure to catch your post when you get to the next one.

Best,

Mac

[FrankHudson]

Not about the guitar, but I admire your chest (and abdomen) of drawers in your picture.

[Robin, Wales]

I think that you have a great guitar there David and had a really good strategy to find it.

Last year I was well on the way to buying something in the $1500 upwards region. But realised, firstly, that I didn't really have a burning preference and, secondly, that there were lots of guitars at much cheaper prices that had all the features and, most importantly, the timbre that I was looking for. So I ended up buying a <$400 nearly new Art & Lutherie Legacy. Plywood b/s and spruce top 000 size. There's plenty of "dry bark" tone hidden in that little plywood box. I flatpick and Travis style finger pick old time, bluegrass and general Americana songs. And I know now that I would have to go a long way up the food chain to get something better for me. And I'm in no hurry to do that because, for the present, the "perfectly acceptable" is, well, perfectly acceptable!

Enjoy your Alvarez, it sounds like you have discovered your "perfectly acceptable".

[boneuphtoner]

Good for you - I've only been playing for a few years now, but a change in direction can bring about all kinds of new possibilities. I'm personally undergoing a change in direction as we speak (different than yours), and will share a little more about it soon.

[emtsteve]

Those little Alvarez 12 frets are fantastic guitars. I'm finding new joy in a couple lower price instruments lately. I see some simplification in my near future as well.

[davidbeinct]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

Not about the guitar, but I admire your chest (and abdomen) of drawers in your picture.

Thanks. We are very proud of that piece. My 25 year old stepdaughter did that when she was a junior in high school. I’m quite sure having that in her portfolio was what got her accepted at RISD.