Thanks Joe - I tried the mirror thing but failed - maybe its my technique! Will have another crack at it!

Alan, thanks for the info. Not sure if this bridge had/has a transducer, but my intitial guess was that one of the previous owners had a pickup and a transducer and used the 3rd knob as a blender.

I've ordered a neck mount humbucker from GFS and will redo electrics just with that for now.

Thanks again,
Dave

kapepper wrote: nice guitar
what model/year?

I'm not entirely sure - I've been scouring the internet (vintage hofner sites) and I've found some pics of similar guitars, but nothing that is exactly the same. It was sold to me as being over 50 years old, but I'm not sure about that either. I tried looking inside with a dental mirror, but I can't see anything.

It could be model:

450
455
or 4500

If anyone has any other possible models, please let me know.

Shot

Chocklit_Thunda wrote: Remove the cannon and see how it's mounted... If the guitar has a large route that's bigger than a standard amp cable jack then you may have to fabricate a new plate that will for an amp jack. But I'd suggest removing all the wiring, and redoing it for the neck pickup and an amp jack. Basically you may just have to remove the cannon and mount your jack on a similar sized plate

Hope that was clear

Thanks Chocklit_Thunda - that is very clear indeed. I am still wondering why/how there was a canon plug there in the first place! Will post the outcome when I'm done.

Thanks,
Dave

Thanks Karl - I fixed the link - sorry about that!

Hi All, I recently bought this old Hofner Archtop and I want to set it up as a Jazz guitar. It does not have a great acoustic sound and will definitely need a pickup. There was clearly once some sort of pickup on it, but I'm a bit stumped as to what it might have been.

There are three knobs on it, one for tone and one for volume and then the third looks like it may have been a blending option.

The pickguard is missing and it appears as if there is only one loose wire (which looks like standard pickup wire to me). The weird thing is that this guitar has a canon output and I was under the impression that these only worked with pre-amps? There is certainly no preamp anywhere.

So.... I'm wanting to initially put a GFS or Armstrong neck mounted mini pickup on it, but I'm not sure if the electrics will work (i.e the canon plug)

Down the line, I may want to add a piezo transducer and use the blending option.

Anyone have any experience with any of this?

Some pics to illustrate





Thanks,
Dave

Hi all, found this site with a wackload of Gypsy Jazz standard backing tracks. All recorded with real instruments and good quality. Very fun to solo along to. I gave "All of me a try".

I imagine it would be a cool practise tool for anyone into Jazz or just those wanting to expand their horizons.

Here's the link:


http://www.stephanewrembel.com/music/play-alongs/

Cheers,
Dave

Thanks IceCreamMan!

IceCreamMan wrote:

Dave the Pub muso wrote: Hi all, I've just secured a gig in Swaziland for St Patrick's day.

Anyone got advice regarding how to cross the border with sound equipment without too much hassle?

Thanks,
Dave

swaziland is a doddle to get through , i would not worry too much about it but have a list of what you are taking with you etc....

and dont take yr most expensive kit either.

Edit: remember to take your car ownership papers or a letter of permission from the fiannce house giving you permisstion to go cross border with it.

Thanks - so a list with serial numbers maybe?

Hi all, I've just secured a gig in Swaziland for St Patrick's day.

Anyone got advice regarding how to cross the border with sound equipment without too much hassle?

Thanks,
Dave

I bought a Stagg electric upright on a wim because three of my jazz musician mates wanted to do a farewell gig before returning to Norway. I figured out some fingerings and practiced like hell and I think I did an alright job after 2 months. I'm certainly not good at it and it is hell on the fingers and wrist, but they do sound great and its a lot of fun to play a different type of instrument!

Of course the electrics don't sound perfect, but they are cheaper and smaller and they really don't sound bad!

oh, and the roller bridge was a practical choice. Holds tuning nicely and reduces string breakage which is a key issue if you're a pub singer!

Hey singemonkey - I think you're right about the guard. More of a Les Paul shape than a hollowbody. I'm toying with removing it alltogether!

The rooftop studio in St James is great. If you want a studio environment in which you feel really at home, I would check them out. They are obviously not near the city centre, but worth the drive! They have to my knowledge done a wide range of genres including: Folk, Classic Rock, Acoustic Rock, Pop and blues and even some hip-hop RnB stuff. Very competent people all round!

Adrian Rogowski wrote:
By the way, I must highly recommend the guys at The Rooftop Studio's. They were extremely professional, and a studio we definitely would like to use again in the near future.

+1

The Rooftop guys are fantastic!

Not sure what an "arm and a leg" is to you, but I used Hybrid Media Solutions and they are very good!? Some things can be worth the money.

Here's a link if interested:

http://www.hybridmedia-solutions.com/

So I’m finally getting around to showing off my most recent purchase/upgrade. I bought this rather unique limited run Ibanez Artcore AXF74 on bid or Buy for R1700. It was a blind purchase, but I was looking for a small hollowbody and I was willing to spend a bit upgrading whatever I bought. It arrived with the original shop tags on it, but there were old strings and plenty of gunge on the fretboard. The guitar has a nice feel to it, but there were some tuning consistency problems and I figured I could improve the pickups too. So, I have done the following:

New GFS roller tunomatic type bridge
2 x GFS Fat Pat Humbucker pickups

Now it stays in tune well and I don’t think I’ll ever break a string!

I did not change the switch or the pots because they’re difficult to access and I’m not exactly a past master at this whole upgrade thing!
Here’s the end product:



Great guitar for warm, mild overdrive blues and rockabilly through my champ. Also sounds good for jazz with the volume and tone rolled off through my Roland Cube.

Dont' get pissed the night before.
Make sure you've had enough sleep.
Eat well. (wholsome food)
Keep hydated.

I know this doesn't sound like rock n roll, but it's worth it!

I don't want to speak on behalf of anyone else, but try the Rooftop recording studio in St James - they used to take students as a learnership program. Not sure if they still do, but worth a try!

Dingwall wrote: There is just something about a tele, that simplistic timeless 50's shape. I love them. But I still choose strats over teles in terms of live performance. Maybe my humbucker strat gives me options and possibly a more rock sound, which is what music I play.

Maybe one day I will chuck everything away and just keep my tele, and my little Fender champion 5w amp and I will hit the road with some old pensioner in search of that 'lost' Robert Johnson song....

Here she is:

I'm totally in agreement with you ! I've got an upgraded squier tele (affinity, vintage white, maple) and a champion 600 (matta) amp and it is THE sound for me. I love the simple, humble tele - some of us reckon that Leo and Co. got it right the first time!

I've had many electric guitars both solid and hollow, single coil and humbucker and I always come back to my tele... That said, I agree with those who rightly point out that it depends entirely on your taste in sound and music anyway..

I used PG58s for the Tuba, Bass drum and solo mic and a SM58 for the vocal. The PG worked well for the solo mic, but not great for the Kick drum or tuba - the frequency ranges weren't ideal. That said, it was certainly not bad...

Dave