2011 Dupont MD50e - Position Markers and Tailpiece Screw

apwebb

Hi Everyone,

Today I've received my Dupont MD50e which I purchased used.

I purchased it from an online ad in another city and I had a friend who deals with acoustic guitars check it out and do the deal on my behalf.

Sounds great, and looks beautiful but there are a few things that strike me as unusual. And being new to the Manouche Guitar world I am hoping some of you may be able to offer an opinion.

1) The position markers are placed on the 5th, 7th, 10th and 12th frets where as on other steel string guitars they are placed on teh 5th, 7th, 9th and 12th. Is this normal for this type of guitar?

2) The in lay dots don't seem to line up, especially the 7th fret marker. Is this normal for a Dupont build?

3) I can see under the tail piece an incorrectly placed pilot hole for a phillips head screw. Again, is this a normal type of oddity of a Dupont?

Everything seems to be legit, and as I said, the guitar sounds and plays great!

Any opinions would be appreciated.

Andrew

apwebb

ok, I've done a little bit of googling and looked at previous MD50e's Michael has had in stock.

1) The 10th position marker looks like how things are done. Phew number 1...

2) The alignment of the position markers on the other other examples I have seen does tend to wander. Phew number 2!

I've just put a fresh set of strings on her and her bottom end has come back to life. This is a stunning sounding guitar! My Django licks have a whole new dimension!

Life is good.

Buco

There you go.
Good luck and give us a sample when you get around it.

stewroberts

I bought an MD50E earlier this year on ebay. I have been very happy with it. it is ultra lightweight and has great tone especially the bass response. I think is sound sociably better than the MD50's I have tried.

It has the 10th position marker which I have come to like better than the 9th position marker on my other guitars.

A great sounding and playing guitar, and beauty too

klaatu

The 10th fret marker is pretty standard on gypsy jazz guitars, although you will see some at 9, mostly in the American market. It's sometimes called the "French" dot position. The Selmer jazz guitars had a 10th fret marker - it's been said that this was done to attract the many jazz banjo players who were switching to guitar, since banjos (and mandolins) typically have it at 10 (although banjo-guitars typically use 9).

I would strongly suggest you leave it as is. In time you will grow accustomed to it and possibly begin to like it better, as many of us do. The American-style 9th fret marker is placed there mainly because it creates a visual symmetry - 3,5,7,9,12. However, the notes that it identifies are not so useful - C#, F#, B, E, G#, C#, as opposed to D, G, C, F, A, D. IMHO.

Also, if you move the dots on a higher end guitar such as a Dupont, you risk lowering the resale value. They can always be moved back, but the change will always be visible, no matter how good the work. Michael Horowitz cautioned me against doing that a long time ago, and I have been grateful ever since.

apwebb

Thanks for the thoughts people, very informative.

I won't relocate the dots, I agree with leaving it alone.

Another oddity has revealed it self.

It looks like the Dupont tuners and tailpiece have be replaced with Saga tuners and tailpiece.

I'm going to contact the previous owner to find out what the deal was.

Thanks again.

Andrew

apwebb

Ok, the more I look into it the more I am convinced this guitar is counterfeit.

I will post some pictures when home from work.

The points of concern are:

1) Chinese hardware
2) A misplaced screw hole for the tailpiece, some smearing on binding
3) The headstock is brown, not black.
4) The dot markers are smaller than the example I can find online
5) 1 dot maker is .25 of an inch out of alignment.
6) The bridge differs from the other examples I can find online.
7) There is a notice from Michael referring to such instruments linking to a listing in New Zealand. The listing has a similar story to the one told to me by the seller.

I've contact the seller asking about the hardware.

Thankfully I didn't pay anything near what a Dupont would actually cost.

I feel like such a fool.

MichaelHorowitz

@apwebb there has a been a rash of counterfeit Duponts in your part of the world. They are usually cheap Aiersi guitars made to look a bit like an MD50E. Sounds like you may have ended up with one of these, more on it here: http://www.djangobooks.com/forum/discussion/11485/

apwebb

Thanks for the info Michael.

Buco

I've been thinking to forego the dots completely next time I order a guitar.
Upright bassists don't use it as well as classical guitarists so why do we need it?

That suck man, sorry to hear.

apwebb

thanks Buco.

I'm looking into what recourse I have but may have to chalk it up to experience.