Author Topic: Dream: Skylark hollowbody (Read 615 times)

tom_z · « **Reply #15 on:** March 02, 2005, 11:43:39 AM »

Valentino - Thanks for the encouraging reply - it's great to hear that Alembic is open to the idea and I'm glad you have already gotten the ball rolling with Susan. I assumed there would be some research and prototyping - I didn't think Alembic would simply rout out a Skylark and slap on a top with f-holes. I'm sure building an archtop guitar, which is fairly like building an acoustic guitar, has some additional technical issues not encountered every day at Alembic.

My vote is for a totally hollow jazz box. Not a big-body archtop, but a slimline small-body guitar with a carved back and carved top. I can find plenty of decent Gibson 335 type guitars (in fact, I own one that I really love). Also, there is no shortage of true jazz big-body archtop builders out there, but I'm finding it very difficult to find a small, quality, jazz archtop with double cutaways. Don't get me wrong - if Alembic offered something in the nature of a 335 semi-hollow, I'd probably still be all over it.

Another quick comment - there are only a small handful of guitarists that frequent the Alembic Club. Mike, Doug and I have chimed in and Brad mentioned a hollow body bass. I suspect that there are many, many more players and even collectors who would love an Alembic jazz guitar, but just don't hang here in the club.

Whatever specifications Alembic settles on, I know I?ll be looking forward to a future with an Alembic jazz archtop in it.

Tom (the patiently awaiting archtop one)

lbpesq · « **Reply #16 on:** March 02, 2005, 11:02:40 PM »

My vote is for an Alembic neckthru semi-hollow 335 style. I suspect that Susan would come up with something very choice in place of standard F holes. My experience with hollow bodies (mostly a 330 and acoustics) is that I get feedback problems at levels sufficient to keep up with the band.

The photoshopped Skylark does look cool. How about a semi-hollow Tribute?

Bill, tgo

cleartrueblue · « **Reply #17 on:** March 14, 2005, 02:07:45 PM »

Hi Tom...probably obvious, but wouldn't a Casino fit the bill? I'm in the market for a similar guitar, in fact stumbled on this thread via a Google for hollow, thin or the like. Casino's probably what I'll buy, because as you've found there are few alternatives. Cheers/Mark

pace · « **Reply #18 on:** March 14, 2005, 03:12:38 PM »

Welcome to the forum Mark!

While a Casino or 330, 335, starfire, etc etc.... would do the trick, we are pressing (in a round-about way) to have Alembic work their magic on a similar spec..... If you've never played an Alembic, try to search one out~ the choice woods, hardware & electronics are several cuts above the rest!

Bill~ Im not sure, but the Tribute might actually be the best base model to work from~ they've already done a neck-thru & custom shaped one-offs from that platform.... so who knows?!?!?

-Mike

tom_z · « **Reply #19 on:** March 14, 2005, 07:31:03 PM »

Mark - welcome to the forum. Mike has it exactly right with respect to Alembic - quality, craftsmanship, amazing tone and playability - their hand-crafted instruments are more than a few notches above mass-produced guitars. I was able to find a small-body fully hollow Gretsch (sorry, don't remember the model) with a floating bridge in the $1200 range, and while it was comfortable enough to play the quality of the construction, fit and finish was only fair. I have noticed similar quality in the Epiphones I've looked at recently. I?ve found Ibanez Artcores to have surprisingly decent quality for production guitars made in China, and picked up an AS-83 semi-hollow for a song, especially compared with the price of a 1960s Gibson 330 or 335.

Maybe I'm a bit spoiled by my Alembic, but it plays, feels and looks like an instrument of the highest quality, and I can't think of a better company to build a small, thin, hollow, tone machine. Granted the cost will easily and justifiably outpace that of an Epiphone Casino.

Mike - I agree that a Tribute would be a fine platform for this project. I suggested the Skylark because I really like the shape and size. I also like the shape of the very difficult to find, Fender Starcaster semi-hollow. Perhaps one day, in the not too distant future, Susan and Mica would bring to bear their formidable creative talents and design a hollow-body from the ground up. Ahh, the dream continues . . . hope Valentino keeps nudging . . . =)

Tom

bigredbass · « **Reply #20 on:** April 08, 2005, 10:42:12 PM »

If I remember correctly, Yamaha's SA2000/SA2200s are neck thru 335's. I'd always imagined this was a way to use the neck thru neck blanks from SG2000s to economise manufacturing somewhat.
(By the way, if you're a 335 player, NEVER try one of these guitars: You'll have to have one, and wonder what happened to your 335.)

While I generally have a dim view of guitars in general, I must admit that one day I will own an Ibanez George Benson and the Martin Taylor Yamaha AES . . . Archtops are just nobility to me.

J o e y

bigredbass · « **Reply #21 on:** April 08, 2005, 10:48:06 PM »

It just came to me after looking a Tom's photoshop Skylark: The tailpiece!

Use the ALEMBIC logo. The strings would anchor in the v-shape clouds, and curve the A L E M B I C to match the curve of the body. Carved in some suitably spiffy wood, of course.

J o e y

palembic · « **Reply #22 on:** April 09, 2005, 12:24:16 AM »

I am with you Brother Joey.
Though I will get for the Epiphone Zephir Blues Deluxe.

The upcoming Alembic Archtop will be out of my league anyway.

Paul the bad one