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Electric Jazz Archtop with Selmer/Maccaferri-like Neck Shape & Dimensions

humphrymusichumphrymusic New
in Guitars, Strings, Picks, Amps, Pickups and Other Accessories Posts: 38
Hello, all. I've been playing my d-hole guitars primarily for years without picking up my electric archtop I've owned and played over 15+ years (Epiphone Emperor Regent) until recently, and I find the archtop feels completely "alien" to my left hand. I want to get back into bebop on an archtop, but it's seems like my left hand is used to the width and feel of a typical gypsy jazz acoustic neck. Both of my d-hole guitars are 1.75" wide at the zero fret. They're both "C" shaped.

Does anyone here play or know of an electric archtop--preferably a neck-mounted floating humbucker--that has a neck that fits these dimensions or comes very close in feel to their gypsy jazz acoustics? I prefer not to mount a pick-up onto my gypsy jazz guitars because I want tone and volume controls on the guitar.

Thanks in advance to anyone with info or recommendations.

-Teddy
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Comments

  • t-birdt-bird Portland, Oregon✭ Castelluccia Nuages, Dupont Nomade
    Posts: 119
    What timing. I am in a similar boat. Yesterday I went to three guitar shops and played 15-20 archtops, including two 50's Gibson L4s, two new Epiphone 175s (yuck), Eastmans, Guilds and more. Guess which one felt most comfortable/familiar? The early 2000's Epiphone Emperor Regent! Actually a really nice guitar. Not exactly what I am looking for, but it had a benedetto style tailpiece and sounded great.

    If you are looking for 1.75", most, if not all, Eastman archtops come with that nut width. I have played a few and liked them all. However they definitely lacked "vibe" in one way or another.
    http://www.djangobooks.com/Category/eastman-archtop-guitars

    I used to think finding/owning guitars with the same nut width was really important. I no longer feel this way since every time I pick up my Dupont Nomade the neck feels small and uncomfortable even though it is 1.75", just like my oft played DG-250M (the living room guitar). After about fifteen minutes it feels fine, but there is always a transition period. And I don't think I'll ever be totally happy with the feel of the Dupont (the smaller frets don't help).

    I now think it's about finding a guitar that feels good regardless of spec. Necks come in so many sizes and shapes - even on the same model guitar it can change from year to year. Some feel good to me, some don't. Go play 100 archtops and hopefully you'll find one that feels right, sounds right, and fits your budget. And have fun doing it!
  • ronzo4600ronzo4600 PNWNew Eimer's, Lebreton & Selmer
    Posts: 44
    Several players in the Pac. NW have electrified SelMacs which sound quite nice actually. As well, several luthiers, in the US, Canada and abroad are building guitars that sound like what you are wanting. Take a look at Shelley Parks creations here.

    http://www.parkguitars.com/fresh-sheet-custom-slimline-electricacoustic-guitar/ or....

    http://www.parkguitars.com/custom-electric-acoustic-guitar/ or.....

    http://eimersguitars.com/shop/model-eg-670/
  • humphrymusichumphrymusic New
    Posts: 38
    t-bird wrote: »
    What timing. I am in a similar boat...
    ...Go play 100 archtops and hopefully you'll find one that feels right, sounds right, and fits your budget. And have fun doing it!
    Thanks for the advice. My Emperor Regent is 90s vintage when they were built in Korea. I have a lot of great memories with that guitar gigging in the late 90s and early 2000s with a Swing band and a Jazz trio I used to play with. I measured the nut and it's about 1/16th or more narrower than my gypsy guitars. The neck shape feels rounder too.

    It's got lots of gig miles on the fretboard but is in great condition. Still, it just doesn't feel good in my hands these days, and add to that the fact the placement of the volume and tone controls are in a position that don't agree with my strumming style these days. I'll probably sell it. My Gypsy/Jazz teacher sounds interested.

    I did the customary 20 minutes at Guitar Center last night and picked up every Epiphone, Ibanez, D'Angelo, and Gretsch archtop they had available. None of them felt right. The funny thing is, I have a Music Man solid body electric guitar that I use for blues gigs and that neck feels good when I'm playing blues, rock etc.

    There's a small independent shop in town that sells Godin guitars. I'll check those out. The fact that they're made in Quebec is nice trivia for the musicians in my wife's Quebeqois family. I need to find an Eastman dealer in my area. Thanks for the heads up on that.
  • humphrymusichumphrymusic New
    Posts: 38
    ronzo4600 wrote: »
    Several players in the Pac. NW have electrified SelMacs which sound quite nice actually. As well, several luthiers, in the US, Canada and abroad are building guitars that sound like what you are wanting. Take a look at Shelley Parks creations here.
    THIS is exactly what I was imagining to be a solution, but those price points are way out of of budget for me. Still, that's a great solution. The Eimers is especially handsome. Still, I'd prefer a neck-mounted pick-up versus P90 on the body.

    Thanks for the advice.
  • BonesBones Moderator
    Posts: 3,319
    I have several archtops that I've built or are in process that I could probably configure to fit your specs but I'm located in Santa Barbara, Ca. If you are in the area give me a shout and you can check them out.
  • JazzaferriJazzaferri Victoria B.C.Moderator Dunn Ultrafox, DuPont MDC20 Gretsch Chet Atkins CG
    edited October 2016 Posts: 3,707
    I switch between my Dupont my Dunn and my Gretcsh almost daily. All 3 have different necks, different frets and the Dupont has a 10th fret dot.

    It took a while but now the transition is very short. Just a few minutes. there are still a few of the more difficult chords that I have to think about to make sure the fingers land cleanly.

    If you still like the sound of your Emperor, you might try switching between the two on a daily basis for a while to see if you can get comfy again.
    The Magic really starts to happen when you can play it with your eyes closed
  • humphrymusichumphrymusic New
    Posts: 38
    Thanks for the offer, Bones. I probably should exhaust all of the "off the rack" offerings before I decide on investing on a custom.
    Bones wrote: »
    I have several archtops that I've built or are in process that I could probably configure to fit your specs but I'm located in Santa Barbara, Ca. If you are in the area give me a shout and you can check them out.

  • humphrymusichumphrymusic New
    Posts: 38
    Thanks. Good points.

    I don't know if I'm so smitten by the sound of my Emperor Regent. To be completely honest, the "sound" of the archtop is less important than the feel at this point. Not to say sound quality doesn't matter overall, but I don't think my current archtop's sound is too "special".

    As for the transition to the different neck, I think it's more than just it being different because the transition to my Music Man isn't too big of a deal and after a few minutes it's comfortable and familiar again. A friend of mine has one of the those student Cigano oval holes and it feels familiar playing it even though the neck radius is flatter than on my gypsy guitars.

    And again, the volume and tone dials on the pickguard are really annoying. I guess 15-20 years ago I just played differently. I don't want to go in reverse.
    Jazzaferri wrote: »
    I switch between my Dupont my Dunn and my Gretcsh almost daily. All 3 have different necks, different frets and the Dupont has a 10th fret dot.

    It took a while but now the transition is very short. Just a few minutes. there are still a few of the more difficult chords that I have to think about to make sure the fingers land cleanly.

    If you still like the sound of your Emperor, you might try switching between the two on a daily basis for a while to see if you can get comfy again.

  • humphrymusichumphrymusic New
    Posts: 38
    A guy I play with has a newer Hofner archtop. I've played it once, and now that you mention it, it felt pretty natural to my hands. I can't seem to find a dealer here in the States that sells them. I have to ask my acquaintance where he found his.
    stuart wrote: »
    My Hofner New President has a wide neck - exactly the same size as my Alyward in fact (I just measured them both, 1.75" at the zero fret).

    http://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/Hofner-New-President-Archtop-Jazz-Electric-Guitar-Sunburst/J9S

    It still doesn't feel like a gypsy guitar though!

    Maybe the way to go here is a custom build or get a Cigano and have it modded with all the controls you want.

  • BonesBones Moderator
    Posts: 3,319
    I think 1.75" is pretty 'standard' like most Gibson archtops were back in the day. Should be lots of guitars around with that size and shape neck.
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