G'day again from down under.
I've had my L03-R now since the beginning of the year...still lovin it.
Now I find that GAS is building, and an explosion is imminent.
I love the warm tone of my 3r, but I'm kinda missing the zing I used to have on a BG Maton I sold....not unhappy I sold it...it wasn't quite right for me.
Now and again I play stuff that features a lot of harmonics and some tapping...and I just can't seem to make the L03R sing in the same way that I'd like.
Thinking that a Mahog/Sapele OM might fit the bill.
Just wondering if I'm heading down the right track?
Cheers,
Greg
I've been thinking almost the exact same way as you. While I'm still a guitar novice, I'm feeling that the size and sound of the OM-03 might add another tonal dimension as I learn more fingerstyle. Plus, GAS is really at work :bgrin:
I'm also curious to hear some opinions on this.
All I can tell you is that I have found my L-10 and OM-03R will cover pretty much any musical ground I try to tackle. Either guitar by itsefl is terrific but, at the same time, lacking in some area that the other excels at. Mine, of course, are both rosewood so I don't know for sure how mahagony would change that dynamic but I'd be willing to bet that you would be very satisfied with the tonal options this combination would afford you. Best way to find out is to play a few and see for yourself.
I am constantly amazed that the OM-03R is so darn good when it cost only about a third of what the L-10 would have cost if I'd bought it new instead of used. You might also look around to see if you could pick up a good deal on a used OM-05 to get the gloss finish and a little nicer grade of wood.
Tuffythepug
Thanks Tuffy,
Problem I have here in Australia, is that Larrivee's are pretty rare.....a couple of local shops advertise them, but when you actually call, they are special order only.
I bought my L03-R from Jason at Notable after playing a friends (got lucky there, but can't convince him to buy any more :-)
Then there's the problem of people selling them in the US but who are reluctant to ship O/S.
Cheers,
Greg
Quote from: DreamyGuitar on July 12, 2008, 11:39:10 PM
Now and again I play stuff that features a lot of harmonics and some tapping...and I just can't seem to make the L03R sing in the same way that I'd like.
Thinking that a Mahog/Sapele OM might fit the bill.
Just wondering if I'm heading down the right track?
Why do you think the Sapele would 'sing' more than the L-03R? I don't really know what sound you are looking for but I would expect the sapele OM to be brighter and have less sustain,harmonics, and depth than the L03R.
You might visit www.Trinity Guitars.com and then e-mail Jim. He has four OM's posted on his website. (OM-50MT, OM-50, OM-03R and OM-03) and will give you an expert opinion.
He does ship just about everywhere. I was in his shop in May and I just shipped an LXM (Little Martin) that I purchased there for my son who is deployed in Baghdad.
Hi Jeremy,
>Why do you think the Sapele would 'sing' more than the L-03R? I don't really know what sound you are looking for but I would expect the sapele OM to be brighter and have less sustain,harmonics, and depth than the L03R.
Gee this is hard to describe using words :-)
Maybe I've misinterpreted what I've read, but I've heard the L03R described as having a darker / warmer sound than mahog/sapele.....so maybe "brighter" is what I'm after for when I want to play in that kind of style.
Possibly it's the body size rather than the tonewood that would make the difference to me...all I know is that the harmonics on the Maton (EBG808L) rang like a bell...and I suspect it has an even smaller body than an OM.
Suppose I'll only really know if I hit the local shops and start banging on a few different guitars :-)
Cheers,
Greg
And thanks for the tip on Trinity teh !
I have both the L and the Om-03R. My L is mahogany. Nice sound. In a blind test I do not think I can hear the difference between the Om 03R and the L-03. One is bigger and one is Roeswood. That being said, I keep different strings on each and I have a different pick up in each. That way they can do different things.
I think it would be a nice thing to get the OM, but try it out before buying. I liked the Rosewood OM better than the Mahogany one.
I have not owned an OM but have had the LV-O3R and others (all rosewood) But I did play 3 OMs a few days ago a sapele , a hog(it didn't say sapele) and a rosewood. The rosewood clearly had more depth. It was very distinct, not a preference on my part. I do own several mahogany guitars in other brands and like them a lot. Larri does rosewood very well. And rosewood is a really great tone wood. Danny
Hi there, fellow aussie here, dont know if you need to go to mahogany to get the extra zing, going to a Rosewood OM may give the sound your after. i tried the mahogany OM-03 and found it too bright, and ended up going for a Rosewood OM-03R. I had a BG808, never gelled with it either. The BG808 is more like a 00 (smaller than an OM), but with a Dreadnaught depth. Strange. The guys at My Favorite Guitars will happily post to Australia, do great prices on guitars and postage. Just be aware of the customs Import duties, if you buy a guitar with a value of less than AUD $1000.00 (approx, US$950.00), theres no import duty. Yeehaa !
What state are you in?
Cheers, scott.
Thanks very much for your insights guys, much appreciated.
Cheers,
Greg
G'day Scott,
That's very interesting....I think I definitely need to track down some local OM's to have a play on...will just have to try harder.... or travel further :-) (I'm in Sydney by the way)
Thx for the tip on My Favourite Guitars, I'll check them out...I got my L03-R from Jason at Notable, (excellent!).... took me ages to save up for it...and the exchange rate was favorable which helped get it in under $1k.
Right now I dread (no pun intended) to think what the courier costs will be from the US, but it would still be cheaper than buying here in Oz !
Have you got an OM-03R coming in?
Cheers,
Greg
Quote from: obe-wan on July 14, 2008, 08:10:19 AM
Hi there, fellow aussie here, dont know if you need to go to mahogany to get the extra zing, going to a Rosewood OM may give the sound your after. i tried the mahogany OM-03 and found it too bright, and ended up going for a Rosewood OM-03R. I had a BG808, never gelled with it either. The BG808 is more like a 00 (smaller than an OM), but with a Dreadnaught depth. Strange. The guys at My Favorite Guitars will happily post to Australia, do great prices on guitars and postage. Just be aware of the customs Import duties, if you buy a guitar with a value of less than AUD $1000.00 (approx, US$950.00), theres no import duty. Yeehaa !
What state are you in?
Cheers, scott.
Heg Greg,
My first Larrivee was an L-03R (rosewood).
I liked it a lot but decided I needed a wider neck - on the guitar, not me :humour:
I then bought the super wide SD-50 mahogany from Guitar Adoptions. :thumb
The SD-50 was everything the L-03R was and more - more volume, more (if possible) sustain,
overtones and harmonics are bettter than any guitar I've played.
Some people on this forum have called the SD-50 THE BEST guitar period.
It has 12 frets compared to the 14 on the L-03R - it is a little shorter than the L-03R and since I am small, this makes it easier for me to reach those open chords.
I play fingerstyle.
The SD-50 (or SD-60 rosewood) is more expensive but you can shop for a good buy.
Here is where I posted pics of my SD-50
http://www.larriveeforum.com/smf/index.php?topic=21664.0
- Larry
Hiya Larry,
Wow...I didn't realise that Larrivee made necks larger than 1.75.
That SD-50 is a beaut...have you done any recording with it yet?
Think 1.75 suits me perfectly though....I struggle on classical guitar :-)
Cheers,
Greg
When I learn how to do it then I'll post some audio clips.
For 20 years the ONLY guitar I had was a wide neck classical.
When I decided to get a steel string also - (the L-03R) - I thought I would adjust to the 1 3/4 neck but I could not.
So I got the 1 7/8 SD-50.
Here is a youtube link - it has a guy playing and comparing a L-03 to and SD-50 (just like mine) listen to here ring !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD323bedWiE&feature=related
enjoy :thumb
- Larry
Would an OM compliment my L03R?
Only if it was being polite. :humour:
Quote from: bhika on July 14, 2008, 10:09:32 AM
Would an OM compliment my L03R?
Only if it was being polite. :humour:
Well, I think so.
I have an L-05MT. Gets a nice boomy low end.
And I have an SD-50MT TSB for an even lower end.
(And a BT-60 when low end just isnt low enough.)
However I spend most of my time with the L-05MT and an OM-50TSB.
the OM works much better for quick little ditties and the harmonics, and the L is what I like to use for slower, traditional numbers, American Primitive sorts of things in open C and open D tunes.
The OM is lighter, airier, quicker.
I use John Pierce Mediums (.013-.056) on all my guitars.
Dang, did it again, forgot to put the link. (sorry about that)
Here is the link i mentioned above
to a guy on youtube playing and comparing an L-03 to and SD-50.
Just listen to her ring ! :bgrin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD323bedWiE&feature=related
now enjoy !
Thanks Queequeg,
That's a nice collection you have there...Baritone as well....now if I had the money I'd love to try one of those.
Seems like an OM is in my future....but am gonna do the rounds of the shops and try out a few others.
I won't part with my L03R for anything (famous last words) ....but would it be silly to also get an OM3R ?
Cheers,
Greg
Quote from: Queequeg on July 14, 2008, 10:24:51 AM
Well, I think so.
I have an L-05MT. Gets a nice boomy low end.
And I have an SD-50MT TSB for an even lower end.
(And a BT-60 when low end just isnt low enough.)
However I spend most of my time with the L-05MT and an OM-50TSB.
the OM works much better for quick little ditties and the harmonics, and the L is what I like to use for slower, traditional numbers, American Primitive sorts of things in open C and open D tunes.
The OM is lighter, airier, quicker.
I use John Pierce Mediums (.013-.056) on all my guitars.
Quote from: lw216316 on July 14, 2008, 11:18:05 AM
Dang, did it again, forgot to put the link. (sorry about that)
Here is the link i mentioned above
to a guy on youtube playing and comparing an L-03 to and SD-50.
Just listen to her ring ! :bgrin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD323bedWiE&feature=related
now enjoy !
Thanks Larry...very nice....that guy's great...he has a few Larrivee's to listen to.
Youtube is becoming quite useful if you want to have a listen to all sorts of guitars etc.
Cheers,
Greg
Quote from: DreamyGuitar on July 15, 2008, 06:08:47 AM
I won't part with my L03R for anything (famous last words) ....but would it be silly to also get an OM3R ?
I think so or rather it would be if I were buying the OM-03R when my other guitar was an L-03R. It's the same guitar except for the different body shape. I'd rather have variety.
+1 on the OM-03R sounding very similar to the L-03 unplugged and from the player's perspective. That being said, the OM-03s I've tried (all mahogany/sitka, not sapele/sitka) have sounded "punchier" (less sustain and bass response, accentuating the midrange register) and "woodier" (strong note fundamental with little or no overtones) than the OM-03Rs.
I guess I'd say that the OM-03 would be different enough to justify another guitar purchase. The OM-03R would sound different from the L-03R but not as much as the OM-03 which would bring more diversity to your guitar collection.
I've had the OM-03R, and later sold it for a L-03R. I prefer the L-03r just because it had more volume and a little deeper bass response. But they are very similar and probably not worth spending that much money to have both the om and the l rosewood. I'd recommend looking at a different type of wood, maybe mahogany, or a dreadnaught to give you enough variety from what you already have.
Re: Would an OM compliment my L03R
Yes it would! So would a sapele top or mahogany top OM.
Hard call - I love my OMv60 - but larrivees have a simalar sound thou their are differences . the way their braced and constructed gives them a distinguishable sound . Been going threw the motions myself of whats the next step - either another Larrivee or something totally diferent ( already have a Martin OM28v) possibly a Goodall or Lowden -- who knows guess i just have to keep an open mind and hope the right one finds me . Maybe we should be in a looking mode ( not a buying mode )
Quote from: bluesman67 on July 16, 2008, 01:23:09 PM
Re: Would an OM compliment my L03R
Yes it would! So would a sapele top or mahogany top OM.
:+1: :+1:
The OM body is very comfortable and regardless of the tonewood selection, probably warrants a purchase. However, if you can find a hog top or sapele top then I highly suggest you try one out. If not, check out some of the recordingsrecordings (http://www.12fret.com/new/SoundFiles/Larrivee_L-05_mahogany_top_David_Martin.mp3) on the 12th fret website. This is likely to give you some serious tonal variety and it's great to record with.
well, one of my many lifetime goals is to have an OM and an L to go along with my D. Next is an L-05 on my list, hogtop if I can. Try to have the widest spectrum possible.