Long-scale, deep body 00 vs. 00-18

AgentKooper · #1 09-21-2018, 08:30 AM

I love my 00-18, but sometimes I'm in the mood for the extra oomph I get from my OM, a good deal of which I assume comes from the longer scale length and increased string tension.

I've had my eye on a Tweedy 00-DB for awhile. I really like its looks and design, I'm a Tweedy fan, and I'm interested in an all-mahogany guitar. The thing holding me back has been: do I really need another 00?

So my question is, for those of you who have played both, how much of a different feel does a longer scale give on an 00 sized guitar? I'm not necessarily just looking for feedback on the Tweedy, though I'm happy to hear people's thought on that too.

Hasbro · #2 09-21-2018, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AgentKooper

I love my 00-18, but sometimes I'm in the mood for the extra oomph I get from my OM, a good deal of which I assume comes from the longer scale length and increased string tension.

I've had my eye on a Tweedy 00-DB for awhile. I really like its looks and design, I'm a Tweedy fan, and I'm interested in an all-mahogany guitar. The thing holding me back has been: do I really need another 00?

So my question is, for those of you who have played both, how much of a different feel does a longer scale give on an 00 sized guitar? I'm not necessarily just looking for feedback on the Tweedy, though I'm happy to hear people's thought on that too.

This will not seem like a direct answer to your question, but because I recently fell in much deeper love with my double O 18 I will share with you. Try a tonewood amp, and see if it adds the dimension that you think youd enjoy. With the verb, you can dial the snap of the shallow body "back".

Sagebrush Tom · #3 09-21-2018, 10:01 AM

All mahogany 00 guitars don't generally project like what you're looking for. Your 00 like mine isn't going to project as much but make up for it with a more defined articulate tone, a more balanced sound than a larger bodied guitar.

AgentKooper · #4 09-21-2018, 04:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hasbro

This will not seem like a direct answer to your question, but because I recently fell in much deeper love with my double O 18 I will share with you. Try a tonewood amp, and see if it adds the dimension that you think youd enjoy. With the verb, you can dial the snap of the shallow body "back".

I'm looking forward to putting a pickup in the 00-18, but I don't have one yet.

llew · #5 09-21-2018, 07:14 PM

I owned a 00-DB Tweedy right after they first came out. They are very nice guitars but overall I prefer the voicing of a standard 00-15 with the 4 1/8" tailblock depth (or there about?). Depending on what you're doing/playing the 00/000 14 fret and the 000 12 fret all mahogany Martin guitars are stellar. Just my two cents...

opencee · #6 09-22-2018, 12:09 AM

I’ve owned dreads, jumbos, 000s, and smaller. My favorite, for a variety of comfort and sonic reasons, is 00.

Long scale and deep body can be a very powerful combination on a 00. I have a Martin custom 00-18 with long scale, deep body, Adirondack top, and GE bracing. My favorite guitar ever. Also a favorite of my friends who have played it.

My other Martins have their place, but this one gets played the most. It was a custom ordered by Wildwood Music. It’s a combo I never would have considered. After playing it, I realized how special it was. Three and a half years of playing has made it, and me, even better.

opencee

.

Kerbie · #7 09-22-2018, 03:14 AM

Another thought is a Collings C-10. It's pretty much a 00 body and comes in long- or short-scale and has a deep body option. Plays like a much bigger guitar... lots of attitude and mojo. It has a very different personality from anything else in the Collings line.

jgmaute · #8 09-22-2018, 07:13 AM

I few years back I discovered Martin’s Women and Music series. All are 00 deep bodies. A friend got a 00C-DB which is mahogany and sitka and once I played it I went in search of a rosewood model. It took a little over a year but I finally found and love my ‘98 00-16DBR. Every NAMM show I always find some time to talk with Diane Ponzio, one of the design team for the series, about my guitar and the great series. (They were made in the late 90s and include the 00-16DB which is mahogany and sitka, 00-16DBM all mahogany, 00C-16DB cutaway mahogany and sitka, 00-16DBR rosewood and sitka and 00-16 DBFM flamed maple and sitka.)

From an article by Diane
“...It’s a thrill for me to have been a part of a group that designed an instrument that a linebacker could love as well as any of my peers - the “00” Deep Body. In playing several prototypes, we all fell in love with the Mahogany model. The sound was spectacular. The slotted headstock, because of its increased downward pressure on the nut, gives an even bigger sound that the scalloped braces and Dreadnought depth already insure. And the tight waist provides wonderful tonal balance, yielding a versatile guitar that packs a punch!...”

All of this is to say if you want a deeper, fuller sound go with a DB. I find mine comes really close to a dread sound but I love the 00 body and so does my 71-year-old shoulder!

Hasbro · #9 09-22-2018, 07:31 AM

https://youtu.be/25Qhgsld8a0

This is the 00 with tonewood amp

AgentKooper · #10 09-22-2018, 08:40 AM

Thanks for all the responses. I’m trying to decide between the Tweedy and an OM-21. Very different guitars, I know, but they both appeal to me in different ways. Every time I think I’ve decided on the OM, I read another comment about how special a long-scale deep body 00 can be. Y’all are not making it easy for me!

AgentKooper · #11 09-24-2018, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hasbro

https://youtu.be/25Qhgsld8a0

This is the 00 with tonewood amp

Nice playing, btw. Did you replace the stock tuners? I like how yours look.

justonwo · #12 09-24-2018, 11:54 AM

I went through a period of time where I really liked 00s because of the punch and intimacy but ultimately found myself always returning to my OM/000 size guitars because I wanted more girth and a deeper bass. I go back and forth. I'm selling my Baranik PX even though it has a fair amount of bass because I just like that extra bit from the larger guitars. I played that PX most of the weekend and fell in love with that little guitar sound all over again.

That being said, I played a real-deal vintage Nick Lucas L-00 a couple of weekends ago. It has a pretty deep body (I don't recall how deep off the top of my head). To date, it stands out as the only 00 size guitar I've ever played that has the kind of bass I've come to love from larger guitars. And I've played a lot of 00s over the years. In this particular case, it was a red spruce and maple guitar, and I didn't feel like the headroom or response was limited by the shorter scale.

So you might consider looking at a deep body L-00 Nick Lucas guitar. I know I was impressed.

Malcolm Kindnes · #13 09-24-2018, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AgentKooper

Thanks for all the responses. I’m trying to decide between the Tweedy and an OM-21. Very different guitars, I know, but they both appeal to me in different ways. Every time I think I’ve decided on the OM, I read another comment about how special a long-scale deep body 00 can be. Y’all are not making it easy for me!

If you can find one, a Martin OM21 special is a very fine guitar.

Hasbro · #14 09-24-2018, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AgentKooper

Nice playing, btw. Did you replace the stock tuners? I like how yours look.

Thanks. No I don’t know what those tuners are, I took the guitar on trade and decided just to keep it the way it was.

I was unsure about the guitar in general until I figured out it liked Monels.

fwphoto · #15 09-24-2018, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AgentKooper

Thanks for all the responses. I’m trying to decide between the Tweedy and an OM-21. Very different guitars, I know, but they both appeal to me in different ways. Every time I think I’ve decided on the OM, I read another comment about how special a long-scale deep body 00 can be. Y’all are not making it easy for me!

I have a CS 00-18 & an OM-21. A terrific combination of 2 wonderful, but different voices. I play them both regularly. The OM-21 has a K&K pickup so it gets most of the amplified work, but the CS 00-18 sits next to my desk & probably gets more play time.

Frank