No Passion for The Parlor

[Peter Cree]

Hey bud,

Musta been early in the am or something.  I read 455........ anyway the phenomena of sound is an amazing thing.  A guitars size and shape determines certain factors.   Especially the parlor.  I understand that the tone is "boxy" to many people and to many of us it fits a tonal niche especially useful for gigging and recording.  alot of us love those little guys even with the "boxiness".  To my ears I prefer them to resonators as Unclrob suggested.

The jumbo is a very comfortable guitar.  Comfort is such a key factor.  I want both.  Comfort AND sound.  Dreads, jumbos etc depending on the buildrs definition of that size often give that extra boost in volume.  But not always!!!!!!!

Go figure.  Alot of myths surround the guitar world.  One makers parlor is anothers OO.

Just gives us more to do in making choices about which guitar to buy.  The style and size designation cannot be trusted to form an opinion on.

cheers mate

[Tycho]

I like my little mahogany parlor, but I have to admit that I'm thinking about letting it go, for two reasons.  One is that I'm thinking of getting a jazz box, which will mean that I'll be trading in at least two guitars to do so, and the parlor is probably my least essential guitar right now.  The other reason is that my 12th Fret Custom OM has really become my go-to acoustic since I got it, and as a result the parlor just isn't seeing as much use.

Having said that, I really find the parlor great for slide, and I agree that it records really well.  I used mine on a studio gig the day after I bought it and was really pleased with the result.

[tim farney]

When I picked up my P-09 a few months ago, I really didn't think it would be around long. I just got such a good price on it that I figured I could give it a try, turn it, and not lose much, if anything.

It's not going anywhere.

It sounded a bit on the boxy side, didn't have much umph and felt way too loose for my picking attack...until I put mediums on it. That changed everything. It even delivers a strong bass in dropped D. Is it a huge voice? No, but that's not its purpose. The parlor is for lougning around on the couch and bed, picking fo rmyself. If I want to go play lead lines over my buddy's jumbo and be heard, that's what I bought a Thompson for.

Tim

[Fredmando]

Tim, this is interesting. I would be flatpicking--or attempting to--a parlor if I ever get one. What medium strings are you using?
It seems like mediums have the magic.
This is a great thread, by the way.