EUREKA !!!! - finally found it ( I hope )

[lw216316]

I've searched long  and hard
near and far,
for a vintage Martin style,
small body, 12 fret, slot head, wide nut, finger style guitar that DOES NOT HAVE a  V- profile neck

A new offering came out at the most recent NAMM show.
I have one on order, due to arrive by Monday.

I feel like 

I've never seen or played one and have a 7 day return option if I don't like it
but my hopes are UP 

It has a  " C " profile neck,
and has won an Editor's choice award by Guitar Player magazine.

It has all the right ' parts '   -
OO size, 12 fret, slot head, wide nut, pyramid bridge, dove tail joint, abalone rosette......

WHAT IS IT ?.......its a MYSTERY until I get it in my hands and find out if its the guitar I've been looking for 2 years now !
I'll reveal it then.   

Some of you may have already heard of it.

By the way, my Recording King will go up for sale if I keep the MYSTERY GUITAR 


- Larry

[ffinke]

Kinda sounds like an H&D 00-sp custom. Good luck; hope this is the one!

f

[lw216316]

Kinda sounds like an H&D 00-sp custom.

CLUES- to the MYSTERY GUITAR

Its NOT
Huss & Dalton
Martin
Collings
Larrivee
Taylor
Gibson
Olson
Louden
Recording King
Seagull
Blueridge
Morgan Monroe
Tanglewood
Eastman
Epiphone
Yamaha
Takamine

...those are just SOME of the places I searched and came up empty   

....but it is the editor's choice award from Guitar Player magazine   

[gitnoob]

Cort?  Lakewood?  Stonebridge?

BTW, did you know that Recording King does make a 12-fret 000 with a 1-13/16" C-profile neck?    And it's priced at around $250.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B002IC1DDQ/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance

[lw216316]

Cort?  Lakewood?  Stonebridge?   

YES - one of those
you get a 3-pack for narrowing it down   

BTW, did you know that Recording King does make a 12-fret 000 with a 1-13/16" C-profile neck?    And it's priced at around $250.   

I forgot to mention that I am looking for a ROSEWOOD guitar -
so this model was not on my list because it is MAHOGONY

Also - I want a SOLID top and back and this model has a laminated back

EVEN SO, are you sure it has a ' C ' profile -???       I don't see that in the specs I looked at.

- Larry

[gitnoob]

The specs on their website say it's a C-profile, and frankly, at that price I'm tempted to find out myself.   

http://www.recordingking.com/guitars_ros06.html

[lw216316]

The specs on their website say it's a C-profile, and frankly, at that price I'm tempted to find out myself.

YEP !  you are right.
I guess I never read that far because it was mahogony and laminate and NOT a slot head (its a paddle head)

The nut is listed as 1 3/4 -  and I was looking for wider like the  1 13/16 on the ROS-627 I got

I just noticed they also have a rosewood version too  - the R-07
if I decide to accept the 'smaller' 1 3/4 nut and laminate back and sides and a paddle head,
maybe I will check it out if I'm not
satisfied with the MYSTERY guitar I have on order  

At that price - having another guitar is an option !


I'm very happy with my Recording King ROS-627 - in every way
(except it came with a mod-v profile).

[lw216316]

I just noticed the main reason why I did not consider the Recording King R-06 or R-07 in my search -
               Those are   14 FRET guitars  (and a paddle head with 1 3/4 nut, OOO size)


I don't care for the longer neck on 14 fret guitars.


My search is for a 12 fret  (and , slot head, wide neck - 1 13/16 or 1 7/8, )
and I prefer an OO size (but had to settle for OOO size when I got my Recording King ROS-627).

The MYSTERY guitar is listed as a parlor but is an OO size  14" lower bout, 4" depth
- so its big for a parlor.

My classical guitar is 14" by 4" -
and is just the right size for me.

[GA-ME]

Larry, you like the hunt more than the guitars.

[cc407]

I'm going with a guess that it's a Cort L900P.

[lw216316]

I'm going with a guess that it's a Cort L900P.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner in the ' name that MYSTERY GUITAR ' contest


The prize is an assortment of delicious home baked doughnuts - fresh from Larry's oven

My new Cort L900P is on the truck and due in at the dealer today.
It got a recent 'Editor's choice award' by Guitar Player magazine.
I'm hoping by the end of the day it will receive the coveted  "  Larry's choice Award " 

It is a "  C neck profile "  - the one thing I could not find anywhere else  (all others had V neck) it also has

12 fret - requirement
slot head - requirement
wide neck - requirement
rosewood back and sides - requirement

OO SIZE   - preference ( OOO would be 2nd choice )
solid top and back - preference
pyramid bridge - preference
dove tail joint  - preference
abalone rosette - preference

scale - is a little shorter than the standard 25.5  ( I would prefer 24.9 )

- Larry







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[cc407]

Hey, congrats and thanks for the donuts!
There's one of these in my local shop and I'm saving up.
I had the predecessor to this, a Cort Earth 900. It was a really sweet guitar, though in mahogany
(and too much bling)

They made the L900P even nicer (and not so much bling) and the rosewood/cedar is the way to go.

And yes, the nut on the Earth 900 was spec'd at 1 3/4 but was actually 1 13/16

[ffinke]

Very nice looking AND it has a cedar top. That's what I like: classical steel!!!

What's she going to be called (Rosie's taken).



f

[lw216316]

They made the L900P even nicer (and not so much bling) and the rosewood/cedar is the way to go.

I'm glad. I did not like all that bling on the 900 - I like a more pristine fretboard - micro dots on the side are all I care about.

Rosewood is a requriement for me.
The CEDAR - is an UNKNOWN for me at this point.
I've never played a small body 12 fret STEEL STRING guitar with a cedar top....
I've only played those with spruce tops.

My classicals have cedar tops but I don't know if I will like the cedar on this L900P steel string or not.

I'm buying from a local dealer and he has a 7 day return policy - with no fees involved -
So if I don't like the cedar I can return it and continue my search.

If the delivery is on time, I'll find out about 5 hours from now if I like it.

It comes with bronze 80/20 strings -
that seems an odd choice to me for a rosewood / cedar guitar.
They are usually too 'bright' for my taste.

- Larry

[lw216316]

Very nice looking AND it has a cedar top. That's what I like: classical steel!!!
What's she going to be called (Rosie's taken).

You know, back when I started this search
I thought to myself what I'm really looking for is a guitar just like my classical but with steel strings.
That's pretty much what this L900P is      complete with cedar top

I hope the memory of that $12,000 Olson small jumbo cedar top I played a few weeks has faded from my memory.
....else I may be disappointed in the sound of this OO size Cort.

I just did the math and I can buy 25 1/2 Cort L900P guitars for the price of that one used Olson.
The tax alone on the Olson at my local shop would be about 2 1/2 times as much as the entire cost of the L900P.

Price was not my priority when doing this search - I was just trying to find ANY production guitar with these features
and ANY neck profile except the V.

No name for the guitar yet. I'll wait and see if we bond.
Maybe I'll use the name Eurika !   - as in, after all this time I finally found it.

[gitnoob]

I've considered the Cort L900P myself, but I've heard that the string spacing at the bridge is pretty tight.

Can anybody confirm?    If it's at least 2-1/4", I'll have to get one.   

[lw216316]

I've heard that the string spacing at the bridge is pretty tight.

...just curious,
is it possible to cut a new nut and widen the spacing a little ?

[gitnoob]

...just curious,
is it possible to cut a new nut and widen the spacing a little ?

I've heard of people doing that -- you just need to be careful of having the E strings too close to the edge of the fretboard.

I've also heard of people widening the spacing at the bridge by cutting string ramps that angle outward.

[lw216316]

I've heard of people doing that -- you just need to be careful of having the E strings too close to the edge of the fretboard.

I've also heard of people widening the spacing at the bridge by cutting string ramps that angle outward.

to me, something about this does not add up...
The nut on this L900P is listed as 45mm - that's 1.77+ inches  ...just over 1 3/4...very close to the 1 13/16 that is my favorite

so how could someone report the spacing to be 'tight' ?
seems like it would only be 'tight' if all of the available space from the nut size was not being used
and the strings were actually closer together than necessary - leaving a wider than average border between the E strings and the edge of the fretboard.


If that's true then cutting a new nut with 'normal' spacing should solve that.

[gitnoob]

The nut on this L900P is listed as 45mm - that's 1.77+ inches  ...just over 1 3/4...very close to the 1 13/16 that is my favorite

so how could someone report the spacing to be 'tight' ?

Sorry -- I said spacing at the bridge, not the nut.    The nut width sounds fine.

Personally, I like at least 2-1/4" between low-E and high-E at the bridge.