Saturday, June 28, 2008

1984 Ovation Collector's Series Guitar


Everyone has an opinion about Ovation guitars. Mine has certainly changed over the years. Yes, I've become a guitar snob. However, back in 1985 I fell in love with this guitar and it became the very first "guitar obsession" I ever had. At the time, I lived in the...let's see, how do I say this..."not-my-idea-of-where-to-spend-forver" town of Enid, Oklahoma. I had gone to college there at Phillips University (which has since closed it's hallowed doors) and was spending a year or so finding myself (at the bar, that's where I was). There were a couple of small music stores in Enid and I walked into one of them one day for the first time and up above everything else was a collection of every Ovation Collector's Series guitar up to that point. Ovation began the Collector's Series in 1982 and continues it to this day. However, being 1985, there were only 4 guitars in the series.

I fell in love with the 1984 model, which looked different than any other guitar I had ever seen at that point. I inquired as to how much it was and the owner of the store told me that it wasn't for sale. His intention was to collect 'em all! I just mentioned that if he ever decided to break up the set to let me know and I left my number. I'm not sure why because I had no extra money at the time and couldn't really afford the guitar. I think it was around $1200 but I can't remember for sure. Way out of my league at the time.

I went about my business for a time, my business being bartending, drinking beer, and bartending while drinking beer. One day I got home and there was a message. "This message is for Jaimie Muehlhausen. This is Bob at the guitar store and, if you want that Ovation, it's yours." Evidently the store was not doing well and he needed to sell what he knew he could sell. I couldn't figure out how the hell I was going to pull this off, but I knew I would have to try. At the time I had a Gibson acoustic that was some weird model they only made for a couple of years. It had a plastic, yes plastic, ring around the soundhole and a very aerodynamic looking bridge. It sounded like crap and played poorly (hence the short model life I assume) and I really didn't want to keep it. Problem was, it had been given to me by a former coworker. And, to top it off, I wasn't sure if it was actually mine or if I was supposed to give it back at some point.

On that day, I made the decision that I wasn't supposed to give it back.

I took it in and asked the guy at the shop if he would at all be interested in taking the Gibson in as a trade. I mean, it was a Gibson after all. Had to be worth something. I don't recall how much he gave me for it, but it was a decent price. Somehow, some way, I talked the guy into letting me make payments on the balance. He even let me take it home with me. You can bet I made the payments on time.

I loved this guitar. Round plastic back and all (okay, my new bias just slipped out). It had a pickup in it, and that was first and foremost. I was starting to play some open mic nights and wanted to be able to just plug in. In retrospect, it was very quacky sounding...one of the very first of the piezos that came out. The guitar was really nice looking with a really dark walnut stain and those little leafy looking things around the cluster of soundholes that Glen Campbell made famous singing the Wichita Lineman. It was the super shallow bowl model and was actually pretty comfortable to play. Plastic bowl back and all...oops, I did it again.

I had this guitar for a few years and really did like it at the time. If you happened to read my story about the '74 Telecaster recently you know how this one ends. I'll keep it brief. I moved to California in '87 and a year or so later walked into my first Guitar Center. Up on the wall was an amazing looking Martin D-41 with extra fancy neck inlay. It was the second guitar I became obsessed with and I had to sacrifice my very first obsession to get it. I traded the Ovation, the Telecaster and some cash money to get the Martin. I'm glad I did, but I have to be honest in admitting that every now and then, just out of curiosity, I search eBay for a 1984 Ovation Collector's Series, just to see what they go for and to remind myself of what they look like. I don't really want one, but I guess it's like looking at a photo of yourself from high school...the haircut seemed cool at the time, but you don't really want to go that direction again.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Sanremo Solid Body Electric Mandolin (project)


Here's a cool one...I actually still have it, but it's in parts. So, technically it hasn't gotten away yet, but I just don't know when I'll get around to restoring it. Especially since I'm not really a guitar restoring kind of guy. I'll start the story off with this...if anyone is interested in owning this, I'd probably sell it...email me. Now for the story...

I saw this for sale on eBay one day and I got just a little obsessed with it. I bid more than I should have and won...and now it's just sitting around in my studio. It's an eight string solid body electric mandolin made by Sanremo. Ever heard of it? Me either. I think it's just a Japanese company from the '70s that probably made things under different names. If you know anything about this please let me know. I'm dying to find out something.

This mando looked like someone had left it out in the backyard for the winter under some leaves or maybe in a shed. Bill Nash can try to make his relics look beat to hell, but you can't fake this. It's a mess cosmetically. But, interestingly, the action on it was pretty decent and it works fine. The problem was that the bridge had cracked into two pieces and the nut is broken. I actually reglued the bridge and it went back together pretty well. But the nut had a chunk missing and it needs a new nut made. The electronics work well and you've got to love that tortoise shell covering on the pickup. Tuners and neck are good.

My original intention was to take it apart (which I did), sand it down (which I started and quit) and completely refinish the body in Sonic Blue and give it that cool old Fender Mustang look...the Sonic Blue with the tortoise shell guard would look sweet in my opinion. Or maybe Shoreline Gold. Seafoam Green would look cool too, but if you're going to go with Seafoam Green you might as well go one better and do the Sonic Blue. Olympic White would look really nice, but a bit plain and I like things a bit different. Of course I could always go back to the yellowed looking Vintage White. I'll even admit, I gave some thought to Shell Pink, which would look cool with the tortoise. It's a really underrated Fender custom color that I'm sure is overlooked because everyone is afraid to look gay (there, I said it). But I think it can look pretty cool on the right instrument, though admittedly not very manly. Hell, it's no Lake Placid Blue! Now there's a manly color for you. And no one's going to get beat up playing a sunburst Strat. Very safe.

I was thinking I would ask you, my readers, what color do you think I should do the refin? Please, leave a comment!

It's all there and I think it would be a really cool instrument to bring back to life. I just don't know about having the time. I'm sure I could get a new nut made. And my next door neighbor is a fine craftsman woodworker who knows everything about everything when it comes to this stuff. Maybe I just need to man up (so forget the shell pink) and get to work on this thing.

Anyone know where to get a nut custom made?

UPDATE (March '09): A reader named Virginia just contacted me and let me know that she, too, owns a Sanremo electric mandolin. Hers is the same color as mine, which leads me to believe I should refinish mine in the original color. Maybe. Anyway, here is a photo (left) of hers and it certainly matches up exactly with mine. Thanks Virginia!
--

Sunday, June 22, 2008

1963 Fender Tremolux Amplifier


I had an opportunity to get an old Fender Tremolux once in a trade situation and completely blew it. When the opportunity came up a second time, years later, I wasn't about to let it get away. I'm pretty sure I've told the story of the first chance I had...I needed an amp for the first actual band I was going to be in. All I had was a really nice, extra fancy Martin D-41 (MAN, I wish I had that one back). I took it to the local guitar store to trade it for an amp and a lesser acoustic guitar and I blew it. I did get a really sweet, cherry sunburst Gibson Dove from the late 70's that played like buttah and sounded great. But when the guy said, "You can pick from those two amps over there in the corner," that's when I blew it. The two amps were a 1963 blonde Fender Tremolux with 2-10" cabinet and a Roland Jazz Chorus 120. You guessed it folks...I picked the Roland, god help me. Suffice it to say, I had no idea what I was doing when it came to amps at the time and I'm sure the guy from that shop still tells the story of how some schmuck traded a D-41 with thousands of dollars of additional inlay for a Dove and a Jazz Chorus.

It's probably his shining retail moment.

So, fast forward a few years, and I come across this second Tremolux, identical to the one I missed out on. That's how I say it..."missed out on." Prior to the world of eBay and Craig's List you had to rely on local papers and entertainment publications and the Penny Saver. In San Diego we have The Reader, which has the listings for all the live music in town, movies, articles about local politics and stories about all kinds of goofy local people, usually with a parrot on their shoulder and wearing Hawaiian shirts. The best part of The Reader for a musician though is the ads for musical instruments. That's where I found this amp...in The Reader. I actually don't remember the details in any way...I'm completely drawing a blank. But I do know that this amp sounded like a million bucks and I fell in love with tremolo.

As you can see from the photos, this amp has a separate head and cabinet. The Tremolux came with a 2-10" cabinet with Jensen speakers, though sometimes you'll find one with 2-12". I'm pretty certain that if you come across that, you're not looking at an original pairing. The old Bandmasters and later Bassmans came with 2-12's and, although they still sound great, it's the 2-10's that I think give this the sound. The head has a sort of built-in bracket system that keeps it attached to the cab with large thumb screws and it had tilt-back legs as well. I was always scared shitless to actually use the tilt-backs because I was afraid the whole thing would tip over and KA-BAM, no amp. I had a custom road case built for this amp with a red finish, so if you happen to own this amp with it's red road case let me know. I'll trade you for a Jazz Chorus...wink, wink. Not that I still have the Jazz Chorus...that's another story.

The end of this amp came about when I was playing a gig one night at a local San Diego bar called Dreamstreet. It's one of those bars that has 4 local bands a night playing and no one's crowd supports any other band...so your band plays, your people come in and hang out, then your band finishes, your people go back outside, and no one ever builds up a local following because no one supports good live music...just supports their friend's band. But I digress. We got set up as quickly as we could, being the third band of the night, and got ready to kick into our first tune. I was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist. I stepped up to the mic to sing the first words and my lips slightly touched the mic and BOOOM...I literally got the shock of my life. That old Tremolux wasn't grounded and, even though I had used the same amp successfully for a long time, the situation that night all added up to massive electrocution. It literally blew me backwards just a bit and I had a burn on my lips for quite a few days. We kept playing but I stayed about a foot from the mic the rest of the night...rock'n'roll must go on.

It didn't take long for me to decide to get a different amp. I suppose I could have had that one altered with a grounded cord, but I didn't want to alter the originality of it and I just decided to get something else. I'm pretty sure I sold it and ended up with a Music Man 4-10 Sixty Five, which was no slouch. Hey, I wish I had that one back too.

Once again, I can't find photos of this actual amp, so I have resorted to stealing some from the 'net. These photos are EXACT though, so pretend this is the one I had and no one will know.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Vox T-60 Bass Amplifier


Vox is a brand name that brings up thoughts of both really cool and really marginal instruments and amps. I love Vox Mando-Guitars, Vox AC-30 amps, and some of their guitars look pretty cool (and some are even decent sounding). I've got a friend who owns one of those Vox Tonelab guitar amp modeling things for recording and he swears by it because it's got a tube you can see. One thing that I always think of is that Vox is always very identifiable as Vox.

So, when I opened up Craig's List one day and saw a Vox T-60 bass amp for sale I was very curious. I owned an inexpensive bass at the time and thought it would be cool to at least have a small bass amp around the house in case an impromptu jam session broke out...you know, like in Josie and the Pussycats. So, after a little online research, I emailed the guy and offered him $200 for the amp and he accepted. I went and picked up the bass and got it home and couldn't wait to plug it in. This amp has 60 watts of power, a 12" speaker with a horn, active and passive inputs, that cool Vox vintage amp look, and, most importantly, what they call the "Bassilator" circuit for low-end enhancement. It's a button you push that's sort of like the "loudness" button on those old silver-faced Sanyo stereos from the '70s that sound so good.

It just fattens things up with a nice bottom end...like my lady. D'oh.

Since I'm not really a bass player I won't (can't) go on and on about this amp, but I can tell you that it is definitely worth the price of admission and makes an excellent practice amp or for smaller gigs. It can kick it out pretty well with some nice tone. A few times a jam session did actually break out (but not like Josie and the Pussycats) and each time the bass player was more than happy and always asked me about the amp. There are some other Vox bass amps that look sort of similar...maybe a Vox T-40 or something like that...and those really suck from what I've heard. But this T-60 is a nice buy and, in the theme of this site, I wish I had that one back.
--

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Way Huge Swollen Pickle Jumbo Fuzz


You may have a different opinion, but personally, I don't think it matters too much what guitar you play through when you use a big, fat fuzz pedal. It all sounds the same...it's like playing through a Line 6 amp...what difference does it make if you use a Strat or an SG if all you are doing is dialing in some modeled sound of a "British Stack" with delay? For me it's the same with a fuzz pedal...it all sounds the same. I'm sure there are variations that I'm not discerning enough to grasp, but for me, no need for fuzz. Which brings me to the Way Huge Swollen Pickle I used to own...for about a week.

The good news is that Way Huge is about to reissue some of their pedals. The bad news is that those of you who own some of the originals might be getting ready to lose some of the enormous value that these pedals command. Maybe not...maybe the fact that they are "originals" will keep the prices high. A Way Huge Aqua Puss analog delay pedal easily goes for $800 or more. Back when they first came out I remember reading something about them and that some famous guitarists were saying they were the best pedals ever made. I stopped in a well known guitar shop in Huntington Beach one day to gawk at the super rare vintage Marshalls and old Fenders and other cool stuff and, lo and behold, they had a couple of Way Huge pedals. I didn't know much about compression (still don't), and I already had a delay pedal, so I migrated toward the Swollen Pickle, which was categorized as "Jumbo Fuzz." Not just regular fuzz...JUMBO fuzz. I think that I forked over around $200, which was unheard of for a new pedal at the time, and walked out the door feeling pretty pleased with myself.

Maybe I should have tried the pedal out first.

I got home and called my fellow bandmates and bragged about my new possession. We had band practice the next night and I was the first one there. I got all plugged in and powered up and kicked in my new Way Huge, cream of the crop, coveted by many owned by few, Swollen Pickle and...FUZZZZZZ. Big fat fuzz. Jumbo Fuzz if you will. Man, I'd heard that before in a $45 pedal and it didn't sound much different than the thing on the floor that I just paid two hundred bones for. Let me note right here that I know some of you are reading this right now and thinking to yourself, "Holy shit, this guy's an idiot. Fuzz is awesome and there is good fuzz and bad fuzz and the Way Huge Jumbo Swollen Fuzzy Pickle Machine is the best f*$%in' fuzz known to man!"

I'm sorry. It's me, it's not you. I just don't like you that way.

Let's continue...I had no use for a fuzz pedal for the kind of music I play. I quickly realized my mistake and thought about seeing how fast I could pack it back up and put it in the car before anyone else showed up for practice. Too late. Door opens and in walks our lead guitarist, also not a big fan of the fuzz. I decided to get his very valued opinion. Quote: "You paid HOW MUCH for that?" Damn. And at the time there was no such thing as eBay or Craig's List. I honestly don't remember how I sold it or for how much. I do wish I had it back right now to sell on eBay since the value has gone up so much. And, by the way, I have played through other Way Huge pedals and they really are amazing...I don't want anyone to think I'm bagging on Way Huge...it's the fuzz that I'm not excited about and the fact that I bought a fuzz pedal is my own mistake. I'm a little stupid.

Ironically, just last year I got an email from Jeorge Tripps, the original inventor/owner/mad scientist behind Way Huge and he had seen my website about Locobox pedals. He asked if I would be interested in building a tribute website for Way Huge pedals. I was gung ho and we were going to do a trade out for some Way Huge pedals he still had...but Jeorge is a super busy guy who now designs pedals for Line 6 and MXR (Jim Dunlop) and it just never came together. From what I understand, MXR just came out with an analog delay pedal called the Carbon Copy that is supposed to be as good as or better than the Aqua Puss for less than $150. I believe Jeorge designed it. I think I'm going to need one.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Model 780 Guitar Amp


Third up for amp week is a weird one I found at the swap meet for a whopping $10. Come to think of it, I think the guy would have paid me $10 to take it with him so he didn't have to lug it back home. This will be a short entry because there just isn't any information about this amp on the internet and I don't recall much about. However, what I do know about it is the only reason I bought it in the first place...the built in rhythm machine. That's right, all the standard rhythms at your fingertips: Waltz, Bossa Nova, Samba, Rhumba, Swing, Rock Beat, etc. along with a tempo control knob and a volume knob to control how loud the rhythm is mixed with the guitar.

I just couldn't help myself. I thought it might be fun to use to practice with at the very least. And maybe, just maybe it would be cool to make a whole CD of recordings utilizing the cheesy beats. Unfortunately, the quality of the guitar sound could not come close to the cool factor of the beat box section. Add that to the problem of it being rather large, and every time you picked the amp up, the front grill fell off with the beat box attached. The only markings on the amp were the model name on the front, Model 780. No brand on the back. No Montgomery Wards sticker on the inside somewhere. Nuttin'.

I have included a photo of my daughter, who was looking pretty sassy at the time, standing next to it for size reference. She was practicing her best "The Price is Right" modeling techniques. She's still slightly sassy, but the amp has moved on to greener pastures.

I actually sold this amp at a garage sale to a gentleman who spoke very little English. I tried to explain the amp to him and let him know what he was getting into, but he was too busy giving me $50 for it and trying to get moving on to the next garage sale to care. Or perhaps I needed a better translator than my hand gestures. Es muy okay, man! Adios!

UPDATE 2-3-09: I just found an auction on eBay that has allowed me to figure out this amp was made by Kay. Thanks eBay!