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  #16  
Old 04-28-2021, 07:55 AM
DCCougar DCCougar is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NorthenLights View Post
...Last couple of weeks, I've been GASing for a jumbo.... I'm just drawn to the look of that huge body....
Jumbos are great. I'm a huge fan of 17" lower bout jumbos. I used to have a dozen OMs and dreads. Now I've got ONE acoustic 6-string: a jumbo Guild F50R. It does it all for me. But really, I'm playing my jumbo Guild 12-strings more.....
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  #17  
Old 04-28-2021, 08:00 AM
boneuphtoner boneuphtoner is offline
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Jumbos are awesome - their voicing will vary from builder to builder, but I think most people will find that they are MORE comfortable than your average dread. The pinched waist means the instrument will sit lower in your lap, so even a 17" lower bout isn't a problem.
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  #18  
Old 04-28-2021, 08:56 AM
Rosewood99 Rosewood99 is offline
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You should if you like a nice full, round sound. You shouldn’t if you have issues with comfort with a large guitar.
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  #19  
Old 04-28-2021, 08:57 AM
buddyhu buddyhu is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brucebubs View Post
Those Martin J-14 fret guitars are great lowrider, nice collection.

As a jumbo fan I can say pick your model carefully.
They are not all the same.

Your 'I rather play with my fingers than with a pick' caught my attention.
I had a maple Huss & Dalton MJ Custom that was lightly built and would have worked perfectly for you. (Tannin below played it! )
My Gibson SJ-200 would not.
It's a guitar that comes alive with a pick, like flicking a switch... boom!

Check out the Guild F-55 Maple if you get the chance - it looks comfortable with fingers and pick in this clip.

And welcome to the AGF.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the main point, I think. An example: a Gibson jumbo in mahogany will sound VERY different from a Goodall jumbo/CJ in EIR.

Are you looking only at “true” jumbos, or are you also open to considering small jumbos and concert jumbos?

I would think that you could find a jumbo/SJ/CJ that would respond well to your fingerpicking, and that you could find a wood combo that would yield different sound than your OM’s...but whether you “should” buy a jumbo is harder to say.

Last edited by Kerbie; 04-29-2021 at 06:28 AM. Reason: Fixed quote.
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  #20  
Old 04-28-2021, 01:18 PM
Benjo Benjo is offline
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If you are average height like around 5'8" think twice before getting one. I switched from a jumbo to a smaller size and that completely solved my tendinitis issues. Jumbo is just too darn big for a lot of average height people. That is if you practice or play more than a few hours a day.
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  #21  
Old 04-28-2021, 02:29 PM
jrb715 jrb715 is offline
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I have a Collings maple SJ (small jumbo). This is approximately the same size as the Huss and Dalton MJ (medium jumbo). They are both modeled after the Gibson J185: smaller jumbos than the king size SJ200.

I prefer the smaller size for comfort; and also prefer the model in maple for the unique, hard to describe sound: for me, finger style or hybrid picked the sound is exceptionally clear and pretty; strummed, the guitar's different overtone structure makes it concise and dynamic. But they are rarely booming loud guitars like my dreadnoughts.

Should you get one? I did for the different feel and sound that is pretty seductive, especially on delicate material down the neck. They make wonderful finger style guitars: though they are uniquely involving strummers.
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  #22  
Old 04-28-2021, 04:32 PM
ricfreak ricfreak is offline
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Should......
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  #23  
Old 04-28-2021, 04:45 PM
Tannin Tannin is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Benjo View Post
If you are average height like around 5'8" think twice before getting one. I switched from a jumbo to a smaller size and that completely solved my tendinitis issues. Jumbo is just too darn big for a lot of average height people. That is if you practice or play more than a few hours a day.
People are forever saying this about jumbos and dreadnoughts, and I fair-dinkum don't understand it. I'm not a tall man, about 5' 9" on a good day - and I've never noticed the slightest difficulty with different body sizes. (I own two full-size dreads and a very large jumbo alongside my two concert-size guitars, and usually play all five every day.) I'm over 60 and no spring chicken.

My guess - and it's just a guess - is that different people hold their arms in different ways when they play guitar. How else to explan the persistent differences in the way that different people feel about large guitars like jumbos? Or maybe it's posture - standing, sitting, length of strap, knee up or knee down, left knee/right knee, whatever. There must be a reason, I just don't know what it is.

So don't be put off jumbos (or big dreds) but be sure to spend some quality time with your intended instrument to make certain you are comfortable playing it.
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  #24  
Old 04-28-2021, 04:58 PM
bufflehead bufflehead is offline
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One reason not to get a jumbo is that they tend not to fit as well into an acoustic combo that doesn't play amplified. This depends, of course, on the type of music the combo specializes in. I sit in with an old-time group now and then, and they much prefer me to show up with my 000 rather than my dreadnought. This combo features fiddle and mando leads, with strong harmonization of voices, and they want the guitar to fill in the rhythm, no banjo-killers, please.
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  #25  
Old 04-28-2021, 06:42 PM
Italuke Italuke is offline
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How big a feller are ya? 😉
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  #26  
Old 04-28-2021, 09:37 PM
Birdbrain Birdbrain is offline
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Default Size is all relative...

How big a feller is Dolly? Or Emmylou? Bet you can't picture either one without their Jumbo guitars.

Someday we'll all have guitar tailors who will fit us out with personal custom specs. Until then, remember this. For guitar sizing, the length of your legs doesn't count. The height of your head doesn't count. Proper guitar fitment depends on your torso length, shoulder to lap. I have trouble keeping the tails of my large shirts ticked in, so Jumbos feel natural and I have elevate my right foot slightly to play my mini jumbos. They could be even larger! The fact that I wear 30-inch trousers and fold up the cuffs has no bearing on this equation.
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  #27  
Old 04-28-2021, 10:42 PM
Tannin Tannin is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Birdbrain View Post
For guitar sizing, the length of your legs doesn't count. The height of your head doesn't count.
Well, unless you want to play electric lead guitar. Apparently having a big head helps with that.

(Runs and hides.)
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  #28  
Old 04-29-2021, 02:36 AM
NorthenLights NorthenLights is offline
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Thanks for all the input guys! I've decided to treat this like just another case of passning GAS (infantile pun intended). I'm indeed a pretty short guy with my 168 cm, and typically I don't get along with large bodied acoustics.
Most importantly, my Heikki Rousu OM is in need of a neck reset, and I should'nt spend money on new guitars until the ones I have are in useable condition. Incidentally, it has the largest and deepest body I have ever come across on an OM, so it could very well be the thing that satisfies that jumo itch!
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  #29  
Old 04-29-2021, 07:03 AM
Goodallboy Goodallboy is offline
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An Emerald X30 will be the most comfortable Jumbo you’ll ever play.

It rivals any wooden guitar I’ve ever owned and there have been some fine ones along the way.

And the SCGC OM I owned wasn’t comparable to the Emerald.
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  #30  
Old 04-29-2021, 08:05 AM
Shadowfox Shadowfox is offline
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I do think they are incredibly balanced, they are basically like a bigger Grand Auditorium.

Maybe a joker might be a Round Shoulder Dread or a Deep Body Grand Auditorium guitar.
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