Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
I participate in a number of guitar enthusiast forums. This forum is unique in that every post that I contribute that includes an attached image requires moderator approval before it can be shared. I have a post in this thread that has been awaiting moderator approval for days. I assume that this rule applies to other participants, yet I see images from others who posted after I did.
This policy does not promote participation nor is it scalable. When someone is an established forum member, I know of no other forum that operates under such a restrictive policy. This policy makes me not want to participate here. What is odd is my words in this moderation policy gripe are free to be read contemporaneously. The limitation is on images.
Finding well seasoned, quartersawn tonewoods such as Koa or African Blackwood has for years now become more difficult. This set of African Blackwood was one that I selected for a luthier built guitar almost a decade ago. This quality of wood is rarer than hen’s teeth these days. Most of African Blackwood sets that Insee being used these days are flatsawn.
Here is the set in the finished guitar. The set was large enough to eliminate the sapwood and was able to fill some of the small worm holes. You can see the true color in natural sunlight.
While I appreciate the demonstration of the luthier’s craft with the exquisite execution of instrument ornamentation in terms of marquetry, shell, inlay and scrimshaw etc., I do feel it competes and diminishes from the “center of the plate”, which is about the quality of the rare soft and hardwoods. The aesthetic choices are a bit much for me and compete with the beautiful tonewood sets (sorry).
That said, I suspect that I am likely in the minority, and SCGC who understands their market, and retailers who will be receiving these “showcase” guitars will be delighted with the “bling”. The historic Martin paradigm of value is strong in the acoustic guitar market (e.g., Style 45 < Style 42 < Style 28 < Style 18 etc.). This construct has unfortunately influenced many to believe mahogany is an inferior (not different, and preferred) tonewood to many guitarists as well.
My $.02
I live about 1 hour outside NYC. There are fewer and fewer local guitar shops left. There are a few Guitar Centers and a Sam Ash but I need to shower after visiting one of those. Mandolin Brothers is long gone. I purchased guitars there for 20-years.
The nearest SCGC dealers are now >1-1/2 to 2 hours away. When I ordered my Santa Cruz, I ordered through a dealer near St. Louis and worked with Carolyn Sills. I now order strings via the internet (SCGC is part of this channel). The era of the “local” guitar shop for many of us is long gone.
All face-to-face trade shows are in decline. It has been headed that way for decades now. Advances in information technology and tightening of travel budgets all fueled this trend. Throw the pandemic intermission in there and it further erodes. In addition, the trend to go direct to consumer by guitar companies has also arrived which will impact business to business shows as brick and mortar shops get squeezed out.
Small Shop companies like SCGC with a building, 15-20 staff, inventories of materials located in area where the cost of living is 86% higher than the national average (https://www.bestplaces.net/cost_of_living/city/california/santa_cruz) need to charge premium pricing to exist even with a moderate profit. Because they work through brick and mortar resellers, that further adds to their pricing structure. One area of opportunity for profit is in the area of wood upgrades. The purchase price, time value of money and what the market will bear all go into that. Individual luthiers do not have the same overhead structure of SCGC + its retail network and tend to charge less even for seasoned, quartersawn, flitch matched Brazilian Rosewood. Sets like that become rarer and rarer as each year goes on. I wish them well on the project. I suspect they will end up with “collectors” but hopefully as tools will be played and enjoyed.
I will be interested to see the woods discussed in the episode. I own a Claro Walnut SCGC FS, and qurtersawn Pernambuco L00 made by a luthier friend of Tad and myself.
Claro Walnut Set & Guitar
Pernambuco Set & Guitar
I wanted wider string spacing (2-1/8” vs. the standard 2-1/16”) and nut width (1-11/16” vs. 1-5/8”). The Lollar Charlie Christian’s with their blade pole pieces is string spacing agnostic. Laurent also made a fairly meaty D shaped neck profile with EVO fret wire. They are fairly quiet pickups (some hum), while clear sounding, they are a bit warmer to my ear than Fender style single coil pickup. Yes, it is a Tele but it plays and feels a bit different.
Those are of course are electric versions (nickel vs. brass or bronze). I like the NYXLs on my Tele.
I have played the XTs as well, fine strings. They are “treated” (a plating) and feel more like regular PB strings. They last me a bit longer than regular EJ16s but not as long as the XSs. They are fine strings (the 80/20s as well).
The D’Addario XSs are coated, are quieter and last even longer. Very similar to Elixirs, but I prefer them. I simply have enough instruments that extending the time between string changing is worth the extra cost. The tension on XS .053”-.012” are similar to SCGC Parabolic Medium Tensions. Both sound very good on my FS.
Just an update on this instrument…
The guitar definitely benefited for my style of play with a change to SCGC Parabolic Medium Tensions over the Parabolic Lights that it came set up with. I still think that I prefer D’Addario XL PBs. Additionally, with a year of play some of its initial tightness is perceptively opening up in terms of player envelopment, bloom and sustain.
I put a Mid Tension set of SCGC Parabolics on my SCGC FS today. There is simply no comparison to my ears how much better they sound compared to the Low Tension set that was on it, particularly in the trebles. I play with both a fairly heavy pick and my fingers but I don’t have a particularly strong attack.
The set timbrally thicker (naturally based on their heavier gage) but the G and the D strings still have lower tension than a conventional 53/12 set (no doubt through greater mass by core/wrap manipulation). In fact the D string despite being a higher gage than the low tension set is lower in tension.The new packaging while no doubt protective is not intuitive for a new user in terms of how the strings are organized (low E + D, A + B and D + E).
String——Mid———Tension——-Low——Tension—
E————0.013”———22.5———0.012”——–20—— + 2.5 lb.
B————0.0165”——-24———-0.016”——-22.5—— + 1.5 lb.
G————0.024”——-28.5———0.023”——-27.9——+ 0.6 lb.
D————0.033”——-28.5———0.032”——-30.5—- (- 2.0 lb.)
A————0.045”——-32.5———0.044”——–28——+ 4.5 lb.
E————0.054”———27———-0.054”—-—-27———Same
Total———————-163.0——————-——-155.9—
