Author Topic: What model is this? (Read 823 times)

tom_z · « **Reply #15 on:** February 27, 2006, 10:44:35 PM »

Hi Michael and welcome! It's always nice to have another guitar player around here. The club is pretty big in the bottom - and a more pleasant bunch of musicians you're unlikely to meet. =) I look forward to hearing your impressions of the Electrum - my Skylark has a set-neck and has great sustain even when it's not plugged in.

BTW - I've always sort of hoped I could snag myself an Ibanez Cowboy Fancy somehow. Got to see it when Ratdog played here a few months ago, but Bobby mostly played the Modulus and Tele. Anyway, good luck and enjoy the Electrum.

Tom

bigoldv8 · « **Reply #16 on:** February 28, 2006, 06:32:02 AM »

Thanks again for the welcome guys. I should add some more info about myself since you asked. I'm 28 and work for IBM as an SAP application admin. I've always been told that in many ways I'm a 40 year old trapped in a 20-something body, though I have a very silly side. I think if we weren't all a little crazy we wouldn't get by. I've always been a music lover, and my cars have been my wife but lately guitars are creeping up close. I bought my first one 2 years ago (a yamaha acoustic) after deciding to give it a try, but didn't really work at it until 2 months ago. Now I play at least an hour a day. I have a loooooong way to go but I'm highly motivated and enjoying it a lot. My brother has played off and on for 15ish years so he's a good source of inspiration, though he's on the other side of the country.

Tom: Yeah the Cowboy model is hard to come by for sure. I guess you know they released a recreation of it last year but it sold out quickly, and it was somewhere around $5000 I believe. It says something about that era of Ibanez when he's still playing that guitar almost 30 years later! Have you ever seen a Dark Star Orchestra show? Those guys are amazing. They are true to their word - it's not a cover band, it's a recreation. They play original setlists and use vintage equipment, among other things that make it a very real experience. Unfortunately I was too young to see GD before Jerry passed so DSO is the closest I can get I think. I was very impressed.

-Michael

longhorncat · « **Reply #17 on:** February 28, 2006, 08:52:15 AM »

A Skylark is on the block now:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7394429220

tom_z · « **Reply #18 on:** February 28, 2006, 09:44:33 AM »

Yeah, I saw that Ibanez released a limited edition run of the Cowboy, maybe one will come my way some time. =) With a Further in production and a distant eye on a Santa Cruz Tony Rice model, my gear budget is pretty much tapped for a while.

I've been on DSOs guest list a couple of times (I have good friends who are connected with their scene) but I've never seen them. I have heard that they accurately recreate the Grateful Dead Experience (most notably from an interview with Bob Matthews, one of the Dead's sound engineers). DSO is an interesting concept, but having seen the Dead, many times all over the world, I've been reluctant to check them out. I should probably just get over it. =)

Tom

bsee · « **Reply #19 on:** February 28, 2006, 10:41:53 AM »

Looking at that Skylark too. Terms are unsafe, though, so I am asking questions to create a comfort level. The nut mod may hurt the value a little for true Alembic lovers, but it is fine with me.

David Houck · « **Reply #20 on:** February 28, 2006, 12:23:40 PM »

Ok, let's get back on topic. I replaced my water heater last year with a tankless wall mount unit. While apparently common in Europe, demand for these in the US has only recently started to grow. I haven't worked it out on a spreadsheet yet, but this thing appears to be well on its way to paying for itself in utility bill savings. Highly recommended.

David Houck · « **Reply #21 on:** February 28, 2006, 12:26:36 PM »

Hi Michael; welcome and congrats!!

olieoliver · « **Reply #22 on:** February 28, 2006, 12:32:23 PM »

Hey Dave, is that a gas or electric wall mount water heater. I've been thinking about going to one of these.

precarius · « **Reply #23 on:** February 28, 2006, 12:37:46 PM »

Dave- Let me know how the water heater works out. I work for Bosch and can get big discounts on the tankless water heaters & I am considering one.

Michael- Welcome. We just implemented the SAP system last April and it is quite a pain. Maybe the longer we use it the easier it will become. I hope.
Mike

David Houck · « **Reply #24 on:** February 28, 2006, 02:23:12 PM »

Gas. (Actually, here in the rural mountains, propane.)

Ok; I went ahead and did the spreadsheet (all amounts are in US dollars or are US measurments). Work can wait, this is more important. The first time I filled the tanks after moving here was in October of 2004, and the water heater was replaced in March 2005; so I don't have available information to do a summertime comparison. The winter comparison is compromised by the fact that I heat the house with gas, and by the fact that it is difficult to know which winter was colder. Still, the spreadsheet suggested a 16% fuel savings, which was about .44 gallons a day. At about $2.00 a gallon (that's for propane; natural gas and electricity are probably much more), that's around $300 a year. However, a tank heater doesn't work as hard in the summer as in the winter; so let's say $200. So if you had to buy a new heater anyway (I did, my tank died), you take the marginal increase in the cost of a tankless heater over a tank and divide that by the annual savings. This seems to suggest that my tankless heater will pay for itself in about four to five years. Again, my calculations are not highly accurate and could be off by a considerable amount. When I was researching prior to purchase, my estimate then was a payback period of five years; so my current estimate seems to be in line with my expectations. Note: your mileage will vary!! Besides the tangible financial benefits, there are intangible benefits as well. First, you're burning less fossil fuels and therefore making a contribution to the preservation of the environment which sustains us all. Second, you're burning less nonrenewable resources, the demand for and control of which are causing governments throughout the world to become increasingly stressed; thus you're making a contribution to world peace. Third ... endless hot water in the shower!!!

bigoldv8 · « **Reply #25 on:** March 01, 2006, 10:27:08 AM »

I considered putting in a tankless heater for my shop but I haven't run water out there yet. I went with a Lockinvar tank heater for the house after hearing some negative things about tankless, but I think it goes both ways. I think, also, it's a problem in my area because of our hard water. I wanted to put in a tankless and then add a softener with the space I'd save in my utility room.

Mike: Yeah, SAP is not exactly fun. It will probably get somewhat better but it all depends on how good your developers are and how much customization your business wants. It can get really funky.

dela217 · « **Reply #26 on:** March 01, 2006, 10:39:25 AM »

Dave - I am completely rebuilding my house. One of my purchases will be a water heater. I am considering a tankless system. I did not know of anyone that had one of these. Now I do! So, does this water get as hot as a heater with a tank? I would suspect that in the winter the water to be not as hot as in the summer. True? Talk to me. I really do not want a tank. My water heater lives in my attic, and it always made me squeemish to have all that water wating to flood my house. I never want another flood in my place. A tankless heater seems the way to go, but I just don't know if the water gets hot enough. Let me know your thoughts.

By the way, my wife and I agreed that if the house floods again we are leaving town for good.

Michael

tbrannon · « **Reply #27 on:** March 01, 2006, 10:52:04 AM »

I've got a tankless water heater. I highly recommend them.

Michael- They get very hot and stay hot! If anything, you need to be careful with them....you can get water coming out of the tap at ridiculously high temps. I have an 18 month old daughter and had to turn down the temperature for fear of her turning on a hot tap and scalding herself. You simply set the output temperature where you want it.

The other nice thing is that the average tankless water heater is about the size of a small suitcase. They can be put just about anywhere. Mine sits against the back wall of a hallway linen closet. No need to put it in the attic.

(Message edited by tbrannon on March 01, 2006)

bigoldv8 · « **Reply #28 on:** March 01, 2006, 01:23:40 PM »

Oh man, a water heater in the attic? That thing would have a major tank around it and an alarm if it was in my house. Yikes!

David Houck · « **Reply #29 on:** March 01, 2006, 05:36:21 PM »

Michael; my experience is the same as Toby's - my water is plenty hot enough! And my well water is plenty cold! However, I've never tried to outrun it by turning on all the hot water taps in the house at once. But then I also, if I recall correctly, don't have it set on the highest temp either. And if I further recall correctly, I have a relatively small unit; there are larger units for large families.

One thing that was immediately different is that it takes longer for the hot water to initially get to the tap. My tankless is in the same location that the tank was. With the tank, the hot water is constantly being heated and is ready to go when you turn on the tap. But with the tankless when you turn on the tap, the water is moving through quite a length of coiled tubing in the box, being heated all along the way; thus it takes an extra number of seconds for the water to travel through the coil on it's way to the tap. Thus when considering a location for the box, trying to keep if close to the kitchen sink, or other location where you are turning the hot water on and off often, may help cut down on wasting water.

Also, if you go with a gas unit, the box will need to be vented and thus will need to be mounted on an exterior wall where it would be appropriate to have the vent sticking out the wall (there may be ordinances for this sort of thing). I just mounted mine where the tank was and used the same vent hole. The unit will have its own built in vent blower.

I'm on well water and if the power goes out, so does the well. But if you are on city water and if you go with a gas unit, I saw where you could get a unit that could light itself without electricity. Thus if the power goes out, you've still got hot water!

I did a good bit of research (quickly, my tank had died) and shopped around. I ended up getting my unit from my gas (propane) supplier and had them do the installation. I called a plumber for a quote and it was considerably higher. The local big box hardware stores were no help.