Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: The amazing Phil on September 09, 2005, 04:53:30 PM
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What kind of monkey would make a guitar that looks and sounds great but plays pooish? I tried an Electromatic one yesterday and it had an ace sound, looked good, but it played like poo... which I assumed was down to the limitations of the range. So today I went to town and grabbed a G-6120-DS, expecting the same great sound but playing much better.
It was suprising but it didn't play [i[much[/i] better, the neck still felt a little odd and the strings stiff, and it wouldn't stay in tune. It's frustrating to have a guitar in your hands that looks and sounds the dog's own, but doesn't play good. It'd be good if they did one with a decent neck and a satin western maple stain finish.
Does this happen to anyone else?
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A guy I knew bought a Gibson 335 a couple of years ago. He showed it to me and said to have a go. It was bloody awful, played like a dog and didn't sound a lot better( I was playing through his Boogie amp). I hated it and sure enough he flogged it some months later. It looked good though. Conversly, another mate had an old ( 1960's)and well used 335 and it looked a bit worse for wear but sounded fantastic through his 1960's Marshall Plexi.
2nd bit of the post misses the point possibly but Phil ( if i may , for the sake of brevity, dispense with your epithet) raises a good point.
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I tried a 6120 once. Played like a dream. I guess there are some dogs around. If you can find a Electromatic hollowbody that plays nice, swap the pickups for Dynasonics, DeArmond 200's or DeArmond 2000's. The Electromatic has DeArmond 2k's wich are a totally different animal. Or if you have money to spend, find a Guild X160 (has 2000's not 2k's) and forgat about Gretsch all together.
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WTF !! :x
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I had a noodle on a pro jet electromatic in a shop recently. Loved the look, loved the sound (unplugged at least) and the price point makes it really pretty tempting. One thing killed it stone dead though - the weight. I realise they're chambered for a reason but it felt like it was made out of balsa wood to me.
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A good setup by a pro tech does sometimes miracles. I had my strats set up by a pro and they play better and stay in tune, whether I use the trem or not.
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I'll be getting a 6120 with TV classics this week.
Back to the OP. Binding nuts are a bit of a common Gretsch flaw. That's what causes tuning problems. Not the bridge or Bigsby. They often need a bit of filing and lube. Gretsches are also fitted with .011's from the factory. That might feel a bit stiff if you're used to girly strings. :lol:
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Don't have much experience with Gretsch guitars, but for quite a few other guitars (various makes and models) and wrt// feel and playability, I can testify that a good setup sometimes makes a world of difference.
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I don't think I've ever played a Gretsch that I was totally in love with in terms of playability, but they nearly always sound great. Same with Rickys.