Looking at an oo-40

[tiogajoe]

Hi, new to the forum. I'm a returning player after more than a decade off.  I started acquiring a stable of guitars about 2 years ago. I currently have a Yamaha LL16m, Yamaha ac3m dlx and an FG5. They are all Hogs as that is what my ears like. I retired from the fire service after 25 years and my hearing is not that great...a lot of tinnitus. Anyhow, I really would like to get a couch guitar. The 00 40m looks beautiful! I can't try one as I live in the middle of nowhere. I did have a chance to play a Martin ooo-17. I really liked it but it's a 14 fret as opposed to the 12 fret oo-40. I would love to hear what anyone who owns this guitar has to say? Thanks in advance and I look forward to learning on this Forum.

[teh]

First, welcome to the Larrivee Forum.

You will discover that there are a lot of experienced, knowledgable members on this site who will offer a wealth of information about all things Larrivee. John, Jr. and Matthew Larrivee even chime in on occasion. There are also several quality Larrivee dealers who visit the forum. Google Nick's Tune Up Guitars, Heartbreaker Guitars or Sweetwater Guitars to watch and listen to videos and sound clips. Be warned. If you buy your first Larrivee, it probably won't be your last.

In the interest of full disclosure, I don't own a 00-40 but I do have two "all" mahogany Larrivees including an LV03MT 12 string and a 12 fret short scale 00-24 6 string. I also have a Martin 12 fret, short scale 000 6 string that is spruce and mahogany. One common bond between these three guitars is the fact that I never played any of them in advance of buying them. That is a testament to the confidence and trust that I have with these builders.

Another plus to buying a Larrivee is the fact that either Jean, John Jr. or Matthew Larrivee will have their hands on your guitar at some point before it leaves the factory. Matt took my son and me on a tour of their operation in Oxnard, CA in June. At the time, my 00-24 was being built and I got to see and hold the mahogany top, back and sides during assembly along with samples of the bracing. I also got to meet and shake hands with several of the employees during my visit. That visit was a welcome addition to the 1,800 mile road trip my son and I made from Seattle, WA to San Antonio, TX.

Good luck with your decision.

[Silence Dogood]

Hi, new to the forum. I'm a returning player after more than a decade off.  I started acquiring a stable of guitars about 2 years ago. I currently have a Yamaha LL16m, Yamaha ac3m dlx and an FG5. They are all Hogs as that is what my ears like. I retired from the fire service after 25 years and my hearing is not that great...a lot of tinnitus. Anyhow, I really would like to get a couch guitar. The 00 40m looks beautiful! I can't try one as I live in the middle of nowhere. I did have a chance to play a Martin ooo-17. I really liked it but it's a 14 fret as opposed to the 12 fret oo-40. I would love to hear what anyone who owns this guitar has to say? Thanks in advance and I look forward to learning on this Forum.

Welcome to the forum!  It sounds like you have some nice guitars.  But once you get a Larrivee I wouldn't be surprised if those Yamahas don't start to get lonely!
 

I did a search for "OO40" and several threads came up.  I can't post my search results (tried), but you can easily find those discussions using the search feature.  Traffic here is a bit slow so the search feature comes in handy for past discussion on particular models, etc. 

 

[tiogajoe]

Thank you for the Welcome.  I ordered this morning from Nick at Tuneup guitars.  Nice guy. He was very helpful. Now the waitng game

[Myopic Squirrel]

Hi tiogajoe,

And welcome! Congratulations on pulling the trigger on your 00. As TEH said - this place is an incredible resource re: all things Larrivee.

As a recent owner (June) hope your 00MH is as pleasing to you as mine has been to me. IMO an extremely well crafted guitar with great balance and clarity. Has much greater projection than anticipated with the smaller 00 body size. The 12 fret neck was important because of a shoulder issue and with the body size it gets much longer play than my prior larger guitars. Mine came extremely well set up (for me) right out of the box. To add extra fun to your new 00, wait 'til you experiment with different strings! The Larrivee family builds great guitars!

[tiogajoe]

Hi tiogajoe,

And welcome! Congratulations on pulling the trigger on your 00. As TEH said - this place is an incredible resource re: all things Larrivee.

As a recent owner (June) hope your 00MH is as pleasing to you as mine has been to me. IMO an extremely well crafted guitar with great balance and clarity. Has much greater projection than anticipated with the smaller 00 body size. The 12 fret neck was important because of a shoulder issue and with the body size it gets much longer play than my prior larger guitars. Mine came extremely well set up (for me) right out of the box. To add extra fun to your new 00, wait 'til you experiment with different strings! The Larrivee family builds great guitars!

Thank You! What strings do you like? Nick is stringing mine with xs 11/52,s

[jweave69]

Welcome to the forum and thank you for your service!

[tiogajoe]

Welcome to the forum and thank you for your service!

Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate it.

[Myopic Squirrel]

tiogajoe - I'm using are Thomas/Infeld Plectrum ac111's  - a light tension (130+ lbs) light gauge string for 2 reasons: 1. the light tension is easier on these old fingers 2. from another forum's post re: recommended strings for 00 mahogany guitars. Discussing guitar strings (and we all seem to hear differently) is like discussing motor oils on a car forum   

With his familiarity with Larrivees I'm certain Nick's choice will be a good one. Enjoy your new guitar and dive into the string rabbit hole later.

[tiogajoe]

tiogajoe - I'm using are Thomas/Infeld Plectrum ac111's  - a light tension (130+ lbs) light gauge string for 2 reasons: 1. the light tension is easier on these old fingers 2. from another forum's post re: recommended strings for 00 mahogany guitars. Discussing guitar strings (and we all seem to hear differently) is like discussing motor oils on a car forum   

With his familiarity with Larrivees I'm certain Nick's choice will be a good one. Enjoy your new guitar and dive into the string rabbit hole later.

At the moment I find myself a bit frustrated with my playing progress. I kinda hit the wall as I need to practice more a more regular schedule.  I also need to start meeting other players and get together to learn from others. The idea of a smaller guitar is the hopes that it is also easier of my older beat up hands and shoulders. we'll see?

[Myopic Squirrel]

tiogajoe - FWIW - because of shoulder problems, downsizing first from a dread to an OM and then to a 00 brought significant relief, especially with the shorter 12 fret neck, resulting in longer practice/playing time. Started playing again about 2 years ago and discovered the ole digits didn't work the way they used to. Now exclusively using light strings and since the 00 is  long scale, experimenting with lower tension strings (interesting tension range with light strings) and tuning down a 1/2 step which is helping with barre chord struggles.

IMO there's a lot of helpful Youtube guitar tutorials (Justin Guitar one example) to help accelerate your learning. 

Good luck in your journey and have fun!

[StringPicker6]

As a fellow owner of an 00-40 with rosewood back and sides, I will echo the high praise of this size and model. I absolutely love it, and it's a better strummer than my Larrivee parlor.

As for getting better, some good advice I got on this forum was to pick songs you really like and learn them.  Theory is important, but playing songs is the best part of guitar, and your technique will develop as you learn the songs you like. Have fun!   

[tiogajoe]

I appreciate all the advice and support.  I started working on some fingerstyle Christmas Music.  My Guitar should be here Thursday.

[mikey007]

Love my 00-40. Super great strummer and finger style guitar. Loud. 12 fret is great. I think you'll be super happy.

[tiogajoe]

My oo-40mh arrived yesterday. What a great small guitar!  The case was slightly damaged in shipping. Nick is handling that with UPS. I gave it overnight to settle into the climate in our house. The fit and finish is top notch. I do have a slight buzz on the B string between the 3rd and 5th fret. Nick said to give the guitar a few days to settle. He said it might need a small truss rod adjustment. All in all, I'm very happy with my purchase.  Hats off to Nick at Tune-up Guitars! Great customer service and communication. I highly recommend His Shop.

[StringPicker6]

Congrats!! Nick sold me my 00-40r, and his shop gives top notch service! Hope you enjoy your guitar as much as I do, and that the string buzz gets resolved.

[jweave69]

NGD YAY! Congrats! 

[tiogajoe]

NGD YAY! Congrats! 

I have to work on the pictures!  I'm having an issue with the B string kind of a rattle when fretted at the 2nd and 4th frets. it's not a buzz but more of a rattle. I tried all of the usual things...string post tight to bottom of bridge, checked tuners to see if they are loose, changed the B string to a .16 from a .15, added a tweak of relief with a small turn of the truss rod. Nothing seems to help. I spoke with Nick this am. and he is sending me another saddle that is a smidge taller. It may just be the guitar? some of my other guitars have a similar sound on the B string just not as noticeable. Nick did put D darrio xs 11/52 and lower the action. He thinks the saddle may be too low.  Kinda frustrated.

[jweave69]

I have to work on the pictures!  I'm having an issue with the B string kind of a rattle when fretted at the 2nd and 4th frets. it's not a buzz but more of a rattle. I tried all of the usual things...string post tight to bottom of bridge, checked tuners to see if they are loose, changed the B string to a .16 from a .15, added a tweak of relief with a small turn of the truss rod. Nothing seems to help. I spoke with Nick this am. and he is sending me another saddle that is a smidge taller. It may just be the guitar? some of my other guitars have a similar sound on the B string just not as noticeable. Nick did put D darrio xs 11/52 and lower the action. He thinks the saddle may be too low.  Kinda frustrated.

That's unusual for a Larrivee to not come setup properly...I'm glad he's trying to make it right. I'd be curious if it's a little on the dry side, that can also cause the top to sag a little...

[tiogajoe]

That's unusual for a Larrivee to not come setup properly...I'm glad he's trying to make it right. I'd be curious if it's a little on the dry side, that can also cause the top to sag a little...

I think Nick is right. He may have taken a hair to much off the saddle. The room where I keep my guitars is 45% RH. A straight edge across the lower bout shows a slight belly at the bridge. I also have been playing it so much that my wrist hurst a bit. I am not used to have my arm closer to my body on a smaller guitar. I would imagine that will go away with time.