I sent the kingpin ii back and got...

RichardP · #1 02-08-2019, 08:06 PM

...a Godin Kingpin. So far, I like it better acoustically which was my initial concern. Part of my problem is that I only have experience with flat tops and didn't know exactly what to expect. Even with the strings Godin puts on there is much more sustain and volume. I am attempting to adjust the only amp I have (Roland AC-33) to get what I want there. I think, for me, I made the right decision. One of the things I liked about the kingpin ii was that it was forcing me to get better with my fretting hand -- 50+ years of sloppy chords really raised their ugly head. This neck is the same and I will just have to work at it more. Now...if I can just learn how to finger that G7b5+13q I can move forward!

Richard

P.S. I accidentally posted this under "Harp..." This is my attempt to move it.

upsidedown · #2 02-09-2019, 01:05 PM

So you got the Godin with just the one P90? Makes sense that it would have a better acoustic tone to it, w/o that bridge pickup.

And I'm right there with you on the 'sloppy left hand.' Amplification really exposes all the warts!

Dadzmad · #3 02-10-2019, 09:02 PM

Good choice I've had a Kingpin for a few years now as my acoustic guitar. Sounds nice through a tube amp too. Try a set of 0.13's pure nickel or Martin Retros. The heavier strings will make your Kingpin seem to "wake up".

Steve DeRosa · #4 02-10-2019, 10:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RichardP

...One of the things I liked about the Kingpin II was that it was forcing me to get better with my fretting hand - 50+ years of sloppy chords really raised their ugly head. This neck is the same and I will just have to work at it more...

As I'm sure you've read here - or are discovering on your own - archtop guitars were conceived as virtuoso "classical" instruments in the days before Segovia made the Spanish-style guitar the standard concert instrument, and require a very different technique (more akin to an orchestral string player) to bring out their best; when I was teaching I used to hand my '47 Gibson L-7 to many a middle-/high-school would-be shredder as an instant reality check - that's when the real lessons began...

62&climbing · #5 02-12-2019, 11:23 AM

So for about the last 3 or 4 years, I have been lusting after the 5th Ave Kingpin II. Found a use one in a shop a week or so ago and sat down to play it. Even plugged it in. Everything seemed to work with pickups, tone knob, volume etc. It did nothing for me. I so wanted to like it and bring it home. Maybe there was something wrong with it and that is why it was at the used shop? Dunno. Tuners were crap. And I own a Seagull and love it.

Anyway... also hanging in the shop was a Gretsch 5420. I liked. Went back home and studied posts by Mr DeRosa. Watched vids and reviews. More posts by Mr DeRosa. Called Sweetwater and should have a 5420 arriving this week. What would Tom Petty say? "Waiting is the hardest part"?

mr. beaumont · #6 02-12-2019, 12:48 PM

Cool, I think you might like the 1 pickup version more as well...

There's something really fun about a non-cutaway single pickup archtop.

dkstott · #7 02-14-2019, 11:39 AM

Try playing a classical guitar and you'll be humbled even more.

It took me a year to fix my sloppy right and left hand technique.

I've owned a Kingpin in the past & what improved mine a lot was a trip to the local luthier. The best thing he did was sand the bottom of the saddle to better match the profile of the body. That turned an ordinary archtop guitar into a great one.

I regret selling that guitar to this day.

Dave

Quote:

Originally Posted by RichardP

...a Godin Kingpin. So far, I like it better acoustically which was my initial concern. Part of my problem is that I only have experience with flat tops and didn't know exactly what to expect. Even with the strings Godin puts on there is much more sustain and volume. I am attempting to adjust the only amp I have (Roland AC-33) to get what I want there. I think, for me, I made the right decision. One of the things I liked about the kingpin ii was that it was forcing me to get better with my fretting hand -- 50+ years of sloppy chords really raised their ugly head. This neck is the same and I will just have to work at it more. Now...if I can just learn how to finger that G7b5+13q I can move forward!

Richard

P.S. I accidentally posted this under "Harp..." This is my attempt to move it.

Cameleye · #8 02-21-2019, 11:19 AM

I replaced the hard resin plastic bridge on my Godin and that in itself greatly improved the guitar's acoustic tone.

Woolbury · #9 02-21-2019, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Cool, I think you might like the 1 pickup version more as well...

There's something really fun about a non-cutaway single pickup archtop.

I stumbled upon a '59 ES125T(thin line) with a single P90 about 6 mos ago. I mostly play it acoustic, but I really like it thru my amp at super low volume and hear the mix of elec/acoustic. I'm a finger style acoustic blues player that has grabbed a pick and is diving headfirst into Kenny Burrell. Midnite Blue, Chitlins, etc. New territory!

mr. beaumont · #10 02-21-2019, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Woolbury

I stumbled upon a '59 ES125T(thin line) with a single P90 about 6 mos ago. I mostly play it acoustic, but I really like it thru my amp at super low volume and hear the mix of elec/acoustic. I'm a finger style acoustic blues player that has grabbed a pick and is diving headfirst into Kenny Burrell. Midnite Blue, Chitlins, etc. New territory!

Great place to start.