The fun here is that the customer (who has posted comments) is getting the benefit of everyone's thoughts. Jerry is correct. Step lightly and do no harm. Got me wondering about wireless pickups in this age of bluetooth and wifi. [ computer tech here ]
This is just one more reason why you are the Master Luthier. The fact that you admit your limitations and actually solicited input from your fans is amazing. Thanks Jerry!
Put two pickups or mics on that strip of wood in center hole. Then wire them together and one wire to the hook up. Then maybe a switch to select 12 or 6 string. I know that inlay work is hard. But I found a 6 string Epiphone once. It had a tree of life on it. They wanted under three hundred dollars for it. Great video. I will look forward to the next video.
Thomas Tommy thank you very much for the idea. Yeah I don't know how they can possibly do that kind of work for that kind of money it's just boggles the mind.
I discovered you about 2 months ago and subscribed after my first look at one of your videos. Love your work and channel, and have been watching as many of the videos I've missed, as I can find time to. The first thing I would do with that guitar is tune it down to "D" and set it up to be played at that pitch. Much of the stress will be relieved and you can select string guages that are going to make more volume without playing harder. I have all my guitars (nearly 20), basses, etc. tuned down a step and have never regretted the change. My old arthritic hands and my voice also appreciate the lower range. Some of the best players have used lower tuning for a full sound and playability. Keep up your superb content.
What popped into my mind about pick-ups for that awesome guitar was some kind of a wireless setup.... compact little box and battery inside the sound-hole and out of sight but with easily accessible buttons on it, and two channels in the RF circuits so both saddle-pick-ups can be piped wireless over to a two channel receiver and on into the mixer or whatever else is between the guitar and the speakers :-)
A new set of D'Adarrio Phosphor Bronze Lights is all that guitar needs for volume.I suspect most people who are dissatisfied with a guitars sound and volume play with old strings.
phil brown yes it is definitely needs strings that will make a huge difference for sure. I'm sure it's a bit daunting to the average player to change 18 strings at once. thank you very much for watching.
hello Jerry. Neil Young' s Grestch stereo guitar played on Harvest has a stereo jack. ground is common, one cable (E A D strings) goes to a bass amplifié, the other (G B E strings) goes to a treeble amplifier. we learn a lot watching you.
I didn't read all the comments, and at this late date, I don't know if this information is still new, or if anyone cares, but here goes. Antoniosai in Vietnam was famous for build such ornate guitars, with a good build quality, at an unreasonably low price, BUT was infamous for building them out of improperly/incompletely dried tonewoods, such that the guitars literally started cracking and falling apart within the first few years of ownership. Complaints were ignored. I heard that it was so bad that some owners investigated filing some kind of class action lawsuit.
Jerry, I love how you crank the folks up, but we both know it wasn't made with green wood, which would not have survived the building process, let alone make it to the customer. Also, my personal recollection of Southeast Asian weather is either drenching rain or drenching humidity. CNC inlay is quite likely, but once, long ago on an R&R to Bangkok, I watched a Thai street craftsman inlay a MOP elephant, about the size of a quarter, into the lid of a box (looked like rosewood). Start to finish, cutting and inlaying, took little more than ten minutes, with no gaps and no fillers. I think about that man every time I'm tempted to dumb something down to make the going easier. And as you often demonstrate, doing a job right the first time is usually faster and betterer.
When I say green I don't necessarily mean that it was cut straight from the tree and build. I just mean not dried properly to our standards here in the US. For their very humid area it may have been fine if it stayed there. But when you bring it to the Midwest where it's still humid but just not that humid it makes a big difference. Our wood is dry down to around 6%. That's what you really need for it to be stable in the US. I bet this wasn't dried down below 10 or 12%. So to me that's green.
Maybe a small increase in volume could be gained, if it turns out that the bridge slots aren't though-cut? If they aren't, you could see to that, and then make a couple of your deer-antler saddles, to increase energy transfer to the top. Also, I see that the bridge pins aren't even, so maybe you can ream those holes and install harder pins? And what about those metal plates on some bridge plates, that keep the string spools from tearing out the pin holes from the inside? Maybe those would help the volume a little as well. I don't think the guitar is all that quiet to begin with, to be honest. I'd be too scared to try it on this guitar, but the only other thing I can think of would be to do some scalloping on the main lower braces of the top, to allow a little more resonance from string energy. If you decide to go crazy, you could perhaps reset both necks at a slightly steeper angle to the top, so that a set of taller saddles would bear down with more force on the top. You could put wedges below the tongues to compensate. That's all I got, Jerry! I'm glad it ain't me!
randolph patterson thanks for the input. Sounds like some good ideas. Most of them are probably more work than I'm willing to get into though. Thank you for watching.
I love your talent and skills at doing the fixes you do on instruments. The slow sceptical left eye wink at about 9:13 really cracked me up, pure theatre. The strings sound quite bright so I'll rename this episode Rusty String Works! Keep the videos coming Gerry.
I think a KISS approach would be the way to go. Five transducers under the soundboard; three for the 12, two for the six all connected to a single endpin jack on a passive wiring.
The double neck seems like a good guitar. Fix the cracks w c/a glue, bone saddles and nuts, new strings. Call it good. Double pic ups not a bad thing. Six and twelve might be set different at the amp. If it were mine I’d just get a guitar microphone! That inlay looks crazy intricate
I'd go with a Miniflex or a Baggs Lyric. I have the latter installed in one of my guitars and it sounds great. Brings out the character of the guitar quite well.
As a retired Guitar tech, my thoughts are; time yes but bone nut and saddle produce more volume particularly when strung with Martin SP lights on even cheap and shabby dreadnaughts and jumbo sized guitars at least acoustically.
and towards the end it looks the treble edge of the 6 string bridge may be coming up, but that could have been inlay that I did not notice. I am interested in this work. I almost bought a really intricately inlayed Mandolin form the seller that I think this is from, but being an import, and there being mostly negative reviews, I decided to not do so. The reviews were mostly similar to your comment that you get more than your moneys worth on the inlay, and must less on the instrument. Thanks again for the wonderful channel and videos.
There's a unit that sticks on the back, that adds effects (reverb, trem, etc) and would increase volume, but I cant remember who makes it. It doesnt connect to an amp, it's a two part device with one part inside and one on the outside back magnetically connected through the wood. No damage to the guitar. This might be what would satisfy your customer. 🎶🎸
Hi Jerry, pickups and wiring for a double-neck acoustic. I'd go LR Baggs iBeam or similar. You will NEED to build two cables with the braided shielded wire that have the micro/mini plug that matches the pickup at one end and have the other end lose for connection to a three position switch ( like on a Telecaster). That's right you will want/need to place a switch somewhere on the body of the guitar. You will then need to cut and strip the braided wire from the plug/peg unit and connect it to the output side of the switch which is now a pickup selector. Position 1= 6 string, position 2= both & position 3 = 12 string. This would be simple and clean with LR Baggs quality. My only other caution is shielding around the switch to avoid any induction hum. And I'd plug that into my Baggs Para Acoustic D.I. To get full tone control.looking forward to seeing how this one turns out.
Stereo cord to a splitter, Gibson made one with built in Y cord at other end for their 355 TDC worked great .Beats two cords . You can get him a mute strap for muting bottom neck when needed if loose enough you can push them past the nut . Its probably the easiest fix wouldn't take any time to get used to I use them quite often .
For volume, do you think a guitar bustle would work? I'm a big guy. And, the guitar back resting on my belly cuts the vibration quite a bit. But, whether sitting or standing, I don't like hanging over the guitar. To illustrate the idea, strike a cowboy chord, and then squeeze and release the lower bout of the guitar with your forearm. I sometimes enjoy the pleasant wah, wah sound that I can create. Back to the bustle, create a second false back for the guitar. Attach rubber, or felt lined wood or plastic, or cork posts at the non vibrating points: neck block, heel block, and on each side of the waist of the body just tall enough to let the back vibrate freely. The non finish marring posts you've created can be positioned to grip the guitar firmly. If he wants bling, you can make bustle as ornate as he could imagine. I alway thought that if I ordered a custom guitar, that I would request one be made for it. I suppose that I've given away my money making retirement idea. Thanks for the video's.
Well Jerry you certainly keep us entertained. Personally, I'm not a fan of decoration on guitars. I think it spoils the natural aesthetics of the instrument. But that's just me, obviously Solomon has broader tastes! As he has other high end guitars I would be interested to know why he is prepared to spend a lot of money on this. Unless he likes playing stairway to heaven! I think I would hang it on the wall as a conversation piece. But even that would be difficult!
Back in 1981 I used to drool over a Triple Neck Acoustic.It was the coolest and most expensive guitar,that I as a newbie, had ever seen.I built a double neck Electric SG 4 years ago,and apart from from having to change and tune 18 strings, they are as unbalanced as hell.If you are playing standing up,whatever you do,don't let go of a neck,becuse the headstocks are hitting the floor.I am so glad I was never able to afford that 3 neck back in 1981.
My suggestion... K&N bridge plate pickups and a balance potentiometer for the two channels (12 string & 6 string) send trough a volume pot to a mono output jack... no need for preamp but optionally an LR Bugs preamp-eq unit would take it off!
good luck with this one Gerry, can`t wait to see the `fixed it post! BTW it`s Antonio Tsai guitars & are renowned for intricate inlays (& being cheap!) also, the volume sounds fine to me too! I think a RSW set up, bone saddles & new strings would take it 90% there, (BTW, if you wanna film every time you make a new nut saddle or bridge, I for one am happy to watch, that`s why I come here, when you say I`ve made a new nut but you`ve seen me make one before so-- I kinda feel a bit disappointed at missing that part!) & I THINK what he means about where he bought it & his disappointment in the Chinese luthier was, he thought it was made in China only to be told he had to pay import tax as it was coming from Vietnam, that would explain that part of his letter- I think, but that`s just supposition on my part! as others have mentioned, Ovation make double (& more) neck guitars, so finding out just how they`re wired would solve that issue, as before Gerry, thankyou for taking the time to post.
Well, rather you than me Jerry... what an instrument. The electronics, should they be required, are not too difficult: an undersaddle pickup for each bridge, separated by a switch (which can be placed inside the guitar), wired to anoutput socket in the endblock. A normal lead can then take the signal to an external EQ and off you go! No holes in the guitar. By the way, it sounds alright to me and acceptably loud, but I believe him when he comments on the tuning stability; all that stress must play havoc inside the guitar, and if it goes out to a bar or something (which I wouldn't do) the tuning could change per song! Good luck.
that quilting could be maple but ive seen Camphor wood with that pattern too, I have a washburn d12 that was a limited run made from quilted maple that was pulled from the bottom of lake superior after 200 years, its gorgeous for an entry level guitar, they even bound the neck, which i dont think they did on many d-12's
Make a stereo cable system for two outputs , so you can use a Stereo Plug at the End Pin area you could put a switch under the sound hole to switch necks or have both. Page played a double neck acoustic w/one cable it's a ovation maybe you could find the wiring for those double neck Ovations that Jimmy Page uses.
Hi Jerry, I look forward to your next video on how you resolve the cracks in the body of the guitar as a friend has single neck guitar made in Vietnam with the same problem, plus the bridge is lifting. I enjoy your videos. Thanks again
You always make me laugh with your facial expressions. lol . You will make it better not a doubt in my mind. I'd like to carry that thing on stage , it's a show in itself. Good luck my friend I have confidence in you. Thanks for the videos and sharing your abundant knowledge. Looking forward to the next one.
Hi Jerry, well yeah it has to have a fairly heavy top construction to take the string tension. But it seems pretty loud acoustically. I'd have to agree with all the Baggs pickup suggestions, just figuring out the switching might be the hard part. Have fun my friend.
And nowww, for something completely different!HAHA! Here's your chance to have some fun. Good luck, and good luthiering Jerry. I'm gonna really enjoy watching this project come together. Kevin
I had a friend who bought a couple of guitars built in Vietnam. Really nice but the build quality was not up to par with most of what you’d expect from Martin or Taylor. One of them eventually succumbed to the moisture issues. I have visited luthiers in the Philippines and they have specific “export grade” lines where the woods are better cured but didn’t have time to check them out. I would ask about the age of the guitar and see what is required to stabilize the moisture concerns before sinking too much cash into that guitar just to watch it fall apart! I’m sure you know way more about that sort of stuff though. Aside from that, I’d like to hear what it sounds like properly set up with new nuts, saddles, and fresh strings! Alvarez Yairi has a double-neck acoustic as does Ovation. Looks like there is some reinforcement of the top with the spruce strip running down the middle and splitting the soundhole. That was a smart thing to do IMO.
you can wire both pickup together in parrelle so you onlu need one jack .. lounder is a pickup only deal . you will need to humidify the guitar in its case for a few weeks for sure to get the cracks to pull back together.. id not mess with the bracing either .. change the strings to light guage for sure.. upgrading the tunners is a good idea
Wow, that thing is definitely the “Liberace” of acoustic guitars. Definitely not my style, but the level or ornamentation is impressive. As you mentioned, a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machine was likely used to manufacture the instrument. I would assume all the inlay cut outs and inserts were also CNCed. Thee guitar sounds very bright; sort of surprising given the big body. I guess that may be the result of heavy bracing. I’m about to watch P2, Jerry, so it will be fun to see what the heck you do with that beast.
That is a very cool guitar ... Unique to say the least ... Better Tuning Machines the L.R.Baggs Pickups and Deer Antler Saddles all sound like reasonable ways to improve the playability, tone and versatility of this instrument ... I can't wait to see the next update on this one ... Your video's always brighten my day Thanks!
Dual pickups with a 2-way switch. Inlay silver flames on the lower bout. It sounds plenty loud, but run through a Vox AC-30, it will probably have plenty of volume.
I'd get piezo dots (those little circles you stick under the bridge), a setup with at least five or six. Glue them under the bridges, go to one pre-amp, and you have amplification on either guitar all the time. Single output. BTW - you can put two piezo under-saddles into one pre-amp box. You need to know if it should be series with a parallel resistance to balance? Or Parallel with something in series to balance it. So you need the help of an electronics person. The circuit would be simple, once you know what it is, and you use a small box (like a tin pill box or plastic switch box very small) two jacks in, one cable out to the pre-amp, and the wiring between, and one component. I simply can't tell you what the circuit would be but I bet someone else here could. Then your EQ and volume, even a tuner in the pre-amp, would work for either one.
bone nuts and saddles probably will add volume, I would recommend Piezo pickups you should be able to wire them both to the same jack and put a switch on them to switch between the two.
@@davidallen346 Bear in mind most people earn around 5,000,000vnđ ($215.00) per month in Vietnam. To which in Vietnam $200.00 is a lot of money for most people.
Hey Jerry, another nice project. I think it sounds decent and a good studio/instrument microphone in front of the guitar will be great for pump up the volume. From my perspective this is the best solution withouth doing any major impacts inside the instrument. If think also the new strings and saddles will be a big improvement in the sound and volume. Rusty strings sounds dull. Looking forward to part 2 and your decisions :D
This is going to be an interesting series to follow. I am still blown away by it cost $100 plus import taxes. I am only 15 minutes into this and what comes next will be a huge surprise, but I have to admit from a distance it looks darn good and the 6 string neck sounds reasonably good except for the fret buzz.
I would suggest a KISS approach. A passive setup using five transducers under the soundboard (three for the 12 string and two for the six) connected to a single endpin jack.
The figure I've heard quoted regarding acoustic guitar string tension is 60# per string. Don't recall anyone specifying that those were strings of a particular gauge or alloy. Since no gauge or alloy was mentioned, I'm skeptical that this figure is any kind of accurate. Is it intended as some kind of approximate average? How can a 0.046" low E exert no more tension than an 0.011" high E? For the sake of having a value we can relate to, using that 60# figure still translates to 360# across six strings, 720# across twelve strings. And, across the eighteen strings of this guitar, 1,080#. Acoustic Twelve-string guitars are notorious for warping necks, bulging soundboards and pulling bridges. I certainly would not be inclined to start shaving or otherwise reducing preexisting braces while I would expect any supplemental bracing to adversely effect the volume and tone of the guitar. There's no telling what this guitar is constructed of. For its cost, and by where it was built, can we expect it to be solid tone woods? I have my doubts. Many Asian guitars are adorned with extravagant inlays, while corners are cut elsewhere in construction. Compare, for example, the materials used in building an American Fender Strat and a Chinese Squire. The entire point in building and marketing a Chinese Squire is cheap labor, inferior parts and affordable but profitable price. In my opinion, this guitar is a very pretty work of "art" suited to hanging on someone's wall.
Wire both pickups to one output jack with a 3 way switch. Like Gibson does. 3 way would be 12 string - both - 6 string. Or you could put a 2 way switch and take out the option to have both on at the same time.
I think at least part of the volume problem is the plastic finish that was put on it. When you hold the back up it looks like the typical thick Chinese urethane finish - probably sprayed in one shot. Stripping and refinishing the top might help.
Well Jerry, You weren't too hard on me. LOL! I've never had 10s before. Truth is, I do play a Martin D28, so was probably used to that sound. And I play an Alvarez 12 string, so maybe I am just used to a different sound. BTW, I'm primarily a finger picker, so I don't have a problem with the double necks. Regards, Solomon
Life After Work I was wondering if you were a finger picker that would make it have a lot less volume. I think new strings the deer antler saddles in stabilizing the crack is the way I'm headed at the moment. I am going to talk to bags about the pickups just to see what the options might be.
I think you are exactly correct on all points. I appreciate your opinion or I wouldn't have sent you the guitar. You only do what is best for the instrument. Regards, Solomon
I'd imagine you could use one good eq/preamp with a single output, then have 2 piezo pickups wired with a switch to select which is feeding the preamp. They guitar sure is a looker. I'm sure after being through your shop it will be equally nice to play.
Perhaps he plays with his thumb instead of a pick, I do. I built a cigar box guitar with both magnetic and a piezo pickup and wired them with a selector switch that allowed for one or the other or both. It sounded great especially with both pickups. With piezo pickups you would probably want a preamp.
Hey Jerry. It's for sure your work is cut out for you on this one. To run it through a amp you could put in a L.R. Baggs Lyric Mic pickup. You wouldn't have to mess with the under saddle stuff. I have one in my martin HD-28V and they sound great!
fenderpicker57 yes I have installed quite a few of the lyric pickups. I think they're great. I will work with bags to see what they suggest. Thanks for watching.
You've got yourself a task and a half there Mr. Jerry. The deer antler saddles and nuts would probably give it a little more volume, but not enough to justify all the work it would take you to make them. This country is being flooded with these foreign guitars. They are mainly coming out of China. They even build alot of fake Gibson's and Martin's, that look nearly identical to the real ones for people who dont know how to tell the differences. All of those are highly illegal, but they very seldom get caught in customs bringing them in. That back and side wood could be Figured Sapele. I have a guitar with highly figured Sapele back and sides, and it looks a tiny bit similiar to mine. Theres a video on here of a double neck acoustic made by Martin. I'm wanting to say it had a $100,000 price tag on it. Good luck with this job Bud!
Bryan Wayne thank you very much my friend. Yes $100,000 doesn't seem unreasonable if it were made by Martin. It really is a ton of work to build something like this.
Usually making an acoustic guitar louder I would suggest going to next heaver strings, but not in this case. Measure strings install new equivalent gauge high quality thin coated strings such as D'Addario Coated Phosphor Bronze or martin offerings. The thinnest coating on the string should be loudest and maintain the sound the longest. Level and crown frets if needed then check neck angle see if bridge can be shaved lower. The bridges look heavy duty and may be able to be lowered a small amount to get highest saddle and break angle (can make it louder). Install new antler (Bone saddles) and new antler nut (adjust for play-ability). Both should make it play louder. Do not put under saddle piezo but rather use good under the bridge plate piezo like K&K Sound Pure Mini or the L.R. Baggs Lyric Guitar Pickup. I like the K&K as the sound is more natural acoustic and does not reduce volume like under the saddles can some times, also easy to remove if you don't like it - except for the end plug. Polish top with paste wax well can also add some volume. Shaving any braces could be an experiment at best (would not recommend it.)
We'll i only found you a few days ago. Jan. 2020. Now this episode really cought my atention! I had an Alvarez k yeri. Double acoustic. I still regret selling that one!! :° (
Everything you've shown and talked about makes me think it may have been built by a luthier student in China or wherever it's from, as their final exam project. I've seen a couple of examples on videos and this fits right into those discussions. Usually sold cheap, as maybe the maker is not able to charge a lot due to the materials being provided by the school where they are a student.The inlay quality is my 1st clue, but who knows.
So the back crack seems to be the most difficult issue, be tempted to see if you could pop some of the back braces. Certainly the appearance of the guitar is really quite striking and I can understand not wanting to get into any changes that threatened either the neck inlay or the body binding. I agree that sound reinforcement is the hot ticket; piezo or the LR Baggs, under bridge designs. I was recently listening to a CSN video where Still's D45 is amplified to the point of being thunderous (and it's not a bad guitar for acoustic volume in the first place but frankly muddy in the video). I think an RSW set up maybe with bone on the 6 string neck and saddle with new strings all around would be the not ticket. I am sorry I think asking for a rosette is gilding the Lilly.
I just read through all the comments to this point. I'll start with a question. Can you seal or "encase" wood with a finish that even water can't get out through? I suspect that there's no way, or this trick would be in common use. The idea is to humidify the wood with the cracks, spread glue on the cracks and let them swell shut. Next you coat everything with your "seals the water in" finish. If the finish cracks, the guitar goes in for repair. For the rest of it, do your normal stuff and add pickups. You could almost think of the guitar as a quadruple threat, 6 string, 12 string, acoustic and electric. 8-)
Great review and I would concur with your analyse entirely, though I don't have the ability to carry out the work. I am sure the pickups are the way to go, and that L R Baggs will assist you on that one. Always a pleasure God Bless take care.
That's a pretty guitar, very fine inlay work indeed. I would just install the LR baggs those sound nice, I have one in my 12 string. I think it has very nice volume just as is for the guitar's body size. As far as the crack goes I think you are on track with stabilizing it so it won't spread any more.
I really like the LR Baggs also. However they won't work with me in terms of trying to get two pickups inside with a switch so that I can switch between the two necks.
Jerry, you could scallop a little of the brace work through the sound hole with your fancy little finger plane. And improve the overall sound and tone. Now, just me talking, I would pull a nice Mike up to that bad boy for a real good sound. )
Jerry..i checked out..and subbed..to Solomon's YT site..He is talented and skilled with model ships, trains, planes and an occasional car...urge you all to check his videos..Rich
The guys that watch your videos are just as smart as me. I thought right away bone nut and saddle ( maybe tusk) set it up and put in 2 pickups controlled by one switch. The other option is to take the necks off and stick them on a couple old Martins or just hang the one you have on the wall and dont even play it. Its worth what the guy paid just to look at it. Sometimes ugly beat up guitars sound better. LOL
You must change the sound board to a really good 3A really high quality and forget about the inlays. Just go with bindings. Let the client know that he must sacrifice the inlays for good sounds and get rid of the double hole and make one hole with a nice rosette . And wail you have the guitar open fix the back with some clits . And this guitar would sound much better ...
I have an Alvarez 5054 that makes that sound like a "tin can with strings on it". I also have a Kaytone with its flimsy 12 string neck mount in total failure mode. That one's gonna look good hanging on the wall, unless I win the Jerry Rosa guitar repair lotery.
Hmmm. That's interesting. Say your Alvarez doesnt sound good? I have an old classical Alvarez, and a kid neighbor of mine has an Alvarez Dreadnaught. Both of them are built very well and sound great. Especially his. Ive heard from other Alvarez owners and they all seem to love theirs. Maybe something simple is off on yours causing the sound to be off. Have you had a luthier give it a look over?
one jack out one pickup switch to swich between 12 or 6 mic.have a el double neck 12 and 6 Carvin el guitar it has 2 jacks out to have the posibility to have both necks active and in different amps.never uses that option only the one jack and the switch i use on it.less wires less hum to.You do real craftman ship.
Jerry I think this was built by Antoinio Tsai he is a master Inlay artist I have a solid body 12 string with Dragon Inlays he built very beautiful Good Luck!
As you know, with 18 strings tuned to pitch, the body must be built like a tank to take the stress. As I believe you've said about violins, to sound best they are built ready to fall apart. Guitars are the same. I have a cheap plywood guitar that would survive WW III, but it has little volume. My Seagull solid wood has great volume because it is so light. You cant' have your cake and eat it too. If it were mine, I would have you take the necks off and build two separate guitars. I love the inlay.
Truth or Dare I am surprised how good this thing actually sounds. I think it's going to be improved a lot by my setup, antler Saddles, and new strings. The new strings will probably help more than anything. Thank you very much for watching.
You got lucky with an Antoniotsai. I've worked on a few that were unplayable and unfixable. Most of them self destruct when they leave Vietnam at 99% humidity, and hit an American dry winter. The ones that survive often have frets out of place, need a neck reset straight out of the box, or a jillion other QC problems. When I quote repairing one, most people say -but I ONLY paid XXX. Garbage in>garbage out.
What an interesting instrument! My first thought is that with such intricate work on it, I can’t see it being a regular “touring” guitar - it seems like you’d just be asking for it. I too thought the double piezo pickup option would be the way to go, with an a/b switch (I guess it’d be a 6/12 switch, right?) because I think two cords would be too ungainly and probably too much bending on it. So, where to put the switch? Not in that beautiful top, and probably not near the end pin...too likely to get bumped (not cool if you’re playing and flip it) or worse, broken! So, perhaps on the top side put in a rocker switch? Such a pretty thing, I don’t know I’d have the heart! Another thought...I would think that guitar might be a “howler” - would it be more likely to feedback with that HUGE sound hole?
Put a double pole double throw switch on the lower bout and switch between pickups or maybe use a potentiometer as a blend to go from one to the other or mis the two with the ability to blend one louder than the other. Just a couple of thoughts. The 6 string sounds mor tiny than the 12 but I am 12 string biased!
+The unmusician I contacted several companies that make the pickups none of them would warrant their product if we did all that. Thanks for watching. I think it turned out very nice. The customer was quite happy.
When playing the 12 string. It's better to Pick Trough the chords. As opposed to strumming them. So that would take care of the running into the 6 string section.
I think pickups would work and as for the plugin instead of 2 jacks I would wire a switch just inside the sound hole so he could reach it easily and switch from one to the other also a lighter string set would give it better sound i think
The fun here is that the customer (who has posted comments) is getting the benefit of everyone's thoughts. Jerry is correct. Step lightly and do no harm. Got me wondering about wireless pickups in this age of bluetooth and wifi. [ computer tech here ]
Howard White thank you very much. I like your line of thinking.
This is just one more reason why you are the Master Luthier. The fact that you admit your limitations and actually solicited input from your fans is amazing. Thanks Jerry!
Patience-is-a-virtue and you have it down to a fine art
Put two pickups or mics on that strip of wood in center hole. Then wire them together and one wire to the hook up. Then maybe a switch to select 12 or 6 string. I know that inlay work is hard. But I found a 6 string Epiphone once. It had a tree of life on it. They wanted under three hundred dollars for it. Great video. I will look forward to the next video.
Thomas Tommy thank you very much for the idea. Yeah I don't know how they can possibly do that kind of work for that kind of money it's just boggles the mind.
i wouldnt miss your videos for anything
michaeladam caira thank you very kindly my friend.
You are right. Extra light. It will sound great...
Libarace's guitar ! Wow !
Yes and love to see you working on so many different instruments
Jerry I really enjoy listening and watching you work I can tell you take a lot of pride in what you do and I like that
Wayne Wilburn I agree with you Jerry does quality work with pride I like that too.
I discovered you about 2 months ago and subscribed after my first look at one of your videos. Love your work and channel, and have been watching as many of the videos I've missed, as I can find time to.
The first thing I would do with that guitar is tune it down to "D" and set it up to be played at that pitch. Much of the stress will be relieved and you can select string guages that are going to make more volume without playing harder. I have all my guitars (nearly 20), basses, etc. tuned down a step and have never regretted the change. My old arthritic hands and my voice also appreciate the lower range. Some of the best players have used lower tuning for a full sound and playability. Keep up your superb content.
I generally tune down 12 strings by ones fret. Thanks for taking a look.
Im with you. I would take care of the saddle and nut problems and the crack issues. Then test to see where to go.
What popped into my mind about pick-ups for that awesome guitar was some kind of a wireless setup.... compact little box and battery inside the sound-hole and out of sight but with easily accessible buttons on it, and two channels in the RF circuits so both saddle-pick-ups can be piped wireless over to a two channel receiver and on into the mixer or whatever else is between the guitar and the speakers :-)
That inlay work is very beautiful and delicate and elegant.... that is one awesome guitar.... kudos to Antonio for creating it.
A new set of D'Adarrio Phosphor Bronze Lights is all that guitar needs for volume.I suspect most people who are dissatisfied with a guitars sound and volume play with old strings.
phil brown yes it is definitely needs strings that will make a huge difference for sure. I'm sure it's a bit daunting to the average player to change 18 strings at once. thank you very much for watching.
hello Jerry.
Neil Young' s Grestch stereo guitar played on Harvest has a stereo jack. ground is common, one cable (E A D strings) goes to a bass amplifié, the other (G B E strings) goes to a treeble amplifier. we learn a lot watching you.
Philippe Delfosse thank you very much. That's a good idea.
I didn't read all the comments, and at this late date, I don't know if this information is still new, or if anyone cares, but here goes. Antoniosai in Vietnam was famous for build such ornate guitars, with a good build quality, at an unreasonably low price, BUT was infamous for building them out of improperly/incompletely dried tonewoods, such that the guitars literally started cracking and falling apart within the first few years of ownership. Complaints were ignored. I heard that it was so bad that some owners investigated filing some kind of class action lawsuit.
Jerry, I love how you crank the folks up, but we both know it wasn't made with green wood, which would not have survived the building process, let alone make it to the customer. Also, my personal recollection of Southeast Asian weather is either drenching rain or drenching humidity. CNC inlay is quite likely, but once, long ago on an R&R to Bangkok, I watched a Thai street craftsman inlay a MOP elephant, about the size of a quarter, into the lid of a box (looked like rosewood). Start to finish, cutting and inlaying, took little more than ten minutes, with no gaps and no fillers. I think about that man every time I'm tempted to dumb something down to make the going easier. And as you often demonstrate, doing a job right the first time is usually faster and betterer.
When I say green I don't necessarily mean that it was cut straight from the tree and build. I just mean not dried properly to our standards here in the US. For their very humid area it may have been fine if it stayed there. But when you bring it to the Midwest where it's still humid but just not that humid it makes a big difference. Our wood is dry down to around 6%. That's what you really need for it to be stable in the US. I bet this wasn't dried down below 10 or 12%. So to me that's green.
Maybe a small increase in volume could be gained, if it turns out that the bridge slots aren't though-cut? If they aren't, you could see to that, and then make a couple of your deer-antler saddles, to increase energy transfer to the top. Also, I see that the bridge pins aren't even, so maybe you can ream those holes and install harder pins? And what about those metal plates on some bridge plates, that keep the string spools from tearing out the pin holes from the inside? Maybe those would help the volume a little as well. I don't think the guitar is all that quiet to begin with, to be honest. I'd be too scared to try it on this guitar, but the only other thing I can think of would be to do some scalloping on the main lower braces of the top, to allow a little more resonance from string energy. If you decide to go crazy, you could perhaps reset both necks at a slightly steeper angle to the top, so that a set of taller saddles would bear down with more force on the top. You could put wedges below the tongues to compensate. That's all I got, Jerry! I'm glad it ain't me!
randolph patterson thanks for the input. Sounds like some good ideas. Most of them are probably more work than I'm willing to get into though. Thank you for watching.
Never seen a double neck on acoustic guitars... weird...good work Jerry ✌🎶🎶🎶
I love your talent and skills at doing the fixes you do on instruments. The slow sceptical left eye wink at about 9:13 really cracked me up, pure theatre. The strings sound quite bright so I'll rename this episode Rusty String Works! Keep the videos coming Gerry.
Thank you very much my friend.
Piezo pickups under the saddles and a three way selector switch like a les paul into the electronics
Boudreau Guitars thanks for the ideas. Thanks for your continued watching.
I think a KISS approach would be the way to go. Five transducers under the soundboard; three for the 12, two for the six all connected to a single endpin jack on a passive wiring.
The double neck seems like a good guitar. Fix the cracks w c/a glue, bone saddles and nuts, new strings. Call it good. Double pic ups not a bad thing. Six and twelve might be set different at the amp. If it were mine I’d just get a guitar microphone! That inlay looks crazy intricate
WOW !.. I I agree o n putting LR bags transducer drum type
pickup in order not to damage the bodyside in making hole for preamp...
I'd go with a Miniflex or a Baggs Lyric. I have the latter installed in one of my guitars and it sounds great. Brings out the character of the guitar quite well.
Lone Star Guitars yes, I was thinking of a lyric. Thank you very much for watching.
As a retired Guitar tech, my thoughts are; time yes but bone nut and saddle produce more volume particularly when strung with Martin SP lights on even cheap and shabby dreadnaughts and jumbo sized guitars at least acoustically.
steby123 yes that is true. I will be putting a deer antler saddle on it which is basically bone. Thank you for watching.
and towards the end it looks the treble edge of the 6 string bridge may be coming up, but that could have been inlay that I did not notice. I am interested in this work. I almost bought a really intricately inlayed Mandolin form the seller that I think this is from, but being an import, and there being mostly negative reviews, I decided to not do so. The reviews were mostly similar to your comment that you get more than your moneys worth on the inlay, and must less on the instrument. Thanks again for the wonderful channel and videos.
S. Ryan Russell thank you for watching and your comments.
There's a unit that sticks on the back, that adds effects (reverb, trem, etc) and would increase volume, but I cant remember who makes it. It doesnt connect to an amp, it's a two part device with one part inside and one on the outside back magnetically connected through the wood. No damage to the guitar. This might be what would satisfy your customer. 🎶🎸
Edward Wunder thank you for the note. I've never heard of that particular item. I'll look into it. Thanks for watching.
@@RosaStringWorks, I believe the unit is called "TonewoodAmp". It has reverb, chorus as well. I think.
Hi Jerry, pickups and wiring for a double-neck acoustic. I'd go LR Baggs iBeam or similar. You will NEED to build two cables with the braided shielded wire that have the micro/mini plug that matches the pickup at one end and have the other end lose for connection to a three position switch ( like on a Telecaster). That's right you will want/need to place a switch somewhere on the body of the guitar. You will then need to cut and strip the braided wire from the plug/peg unit and connect it to the output side of the switch which is now a pickup selector. Position 1= 6 string, position 2= both & position 3 = 12 string. This would be simple and clean with LR Baggs quality. My only other caution is shielding around the switch to avoid any induction hum. And I'd plug that into my Baggs Para Acoustic D.I. To get full tone control.looking forward to seeing how this one turns out.
Heartofclay thank you for the detailed information. Thank you very much for watching.
Stereo cord to a splitter, Gibson made one with built in Y cord at other end for their 355 TDC worked great .Beats two cords . You can get him a mute strap for muting bottom neck when needed if loose enough you can push them past the nut . Its probably the easiest fix wouldn't take any time to get used to I use them quite often .
For volume, do you think a guitar bustle would work? I'm a big guy. And, the guitar back resting on my belly cuts the vibration quite a bit. But, whether sitting or standing, I don't like hanging over the guitar. To illustrate the idea, strike a cowboy chord, and then squeeze and release the lower bout of the guitar with your forearm. I sometimes enjoy the pleasant wah, wah sound that I can create. Back to the bustle, create a second false back for the guitar. Attach rubber, or felt lined wood or plastic, or cork posts at the non vibrating points: neck block, heel block, and on each side of the waist of the body just tall enough to let the back vibrate freely. The non finish marring posts you've created can be positioned to grip the guitar firmly. If he wants bling, you can make bustle as ornate as he could imagine. I alway thought that if I ordered a custom guitar, that I would request one be made for it. I suppose that I've given away my money making retirement idea. Thanks for the video's.
Gene Hanson very interesting idea. Thank you very much for watching
Well Jerry you certainly keep us entertained. Personally, I'm not a fan of decoration on guitars. I think it spoils the natural aesthetics of the instrument. But that's just me, obviously Solomon has broader tastes! As he has other high end guitars I would be interested to know why he is prepared to spend a lot of money on this. Unless he likes playing stairway to heaven! I think I would hang it on the wall as a conversation piece. But even that would be difficult!
MikeysTunes you know what they say. Different Strokes for different folks. Thank you for watching.
Back in 1981 I used to drool over a Triple Neck Acoustic.It was the coolest and most expensive guitar,that I as a newbie, had ever seen.I built a double neck Electric SG 4 years ago,and apart from from having to change and tune 18 strings, they are as unbalanced as hell.If you are playing standing up,whatever you do,don't let go of a neck,becuse the headstocks are hitting the floor.I am so glad I was never able to afford that 3 neck back in 1981.
My suggestion...
K&N bridge plate pickups and a balance potentiometer for the two channels (12 string & 6 string) send trough a volume pot to a mono output jack... no need for preamp but optionally an LR Bugs preamp-eq unit would take it off!
it should be used with external microphone like on stage with a small amp . my opinion only as a stage roadie !
good luck with this one Gerry, can`t wait to see the `fixed it post! BTW it`s Antonio Tsai guitars & are renowned for intricate inlays (& being cheap!) also, the volume sounds fine to me too! I think a RSW set up, bone saddles & new strings would take it 90% there, (BTW, if you wanna film every time you make a new nut saddle or bridge, I for one am happy to watch, that`s why I come here, when you say I`ve made a new nut but you`ve seen me make one before so-- I kinda feel a bit disappointed at missing that part!) & I THINK what he means about where he bought it & his disappointment in the Chinese luthier was, he thought it was made in China only to be told he had to pay import tax as it was coming from Vietnam, that would explain that part of his letter- I think, but that`s just supposition on my part! as others have mentioned, Ovation make double (& more) neck guitars, so finding out just how they`re wired would solve that issue, as before Gerry, thankyou for taking the time to post.
Thank you very much.
Well, rather you than me Jerry... what an instrument.
The electronics, should they be required, are not too difficult: an undersaddle pickup for each bridge, separated by a switch (which can be placed inside the guitar), wired to anoutput socket in the endblock. A normal lead can then take the signal to an external EQ and off you go! No holes in the guitar.
By the way, it sounds alright to me and acceptably loud, but I believe him when he comments on the tuning stability; all that stress must play havoc inside the guitar, and if it goes out to a bar or something (which I wouldn't do) the tuning could change per song!
Good luck.
that quilting could be maple but ive seen Camphor wood with that pattern too, I have a washburn d12 that was a limited run made from quilted maple that was pulled from the bottom of lake superior after 200 years, its gorgeous for an entry level guitar, they even bound the neck, which i dont think they did on many d-12's
Make a stereo cable system for two outputs , so you can use a Stereo Plug at the End Pin area you could put a switch under the sound hole to switch necks or have both. Page played a double neck acoustic w/one cable it's a ovation maybe you could find the wiring for those double neck Ovations that Jimmy Page uses.
Watchman4u thank you for the suggestions. Thank you for
Hi Jerry, I look forward to your next video on how you resolve the cracks in the body of the guitar as a friend has single neck guitar made in Vietnam with the same problem, plus the bridge is lifting. I enjoy your videos. Thanks again
David Cocker thank you very much.
Wow, Franken-Guitar a true monster
bigearl33 yes I've never seen one like it. Thank you for watching.
You always make me laugh with your facial expressions. lol . You will make it better not a doubt in my mind. I'd like to carry that thing on stage , it's a show in itself. Good luck my friend I have confidence in you. Thanks for the videos and sharing your abundant knowledge. Looking forward to the next one.
donna tuggle thank you very much for taking a look. PS I can't help the face is just part of it LOL.
Hi Jerry, well yeah it has to have a fairly heavy top construction to take the string tension. But it seems pretty loud acoustically. I'd have to agree with all the Baggs pickup suggestions, just figuring out the switching might be the hard part. Have fun my friend.
The GHS mini-flex mics are really good and easy to install. I did it on my 35 year old Birdseye maple Ibanez acoustic and it works great.
And nowww, for something completely different!HAHA! Here's your chance to have some fun. Good luck, and good luthiering Jerry. I'm gonna really enjoy watching this project come together.
Kevin
I had a friend who bought a couple of guitars built in Vietnam. Really nice but the build quality was not up to par with most of what you’d expect from Martin or Taylor. One of them eventually succumbed to the moisture issues. I have visited luthiers in the Philippines and they have specific “export grade” lines where the woods are better cured but didn’t have time to check them out.
I would ask about the age of the guitar and see what is required to stabilize the moisture concerns before sinking too much cash into that guitar just to watch it fall apart! I’m sure you know way more about that sort of stuff though. Aside from that, I’d like to hear what it sounds like properly set up with new nuts, saddles, and fresh strings!
Alvarez Yairi has a double-neck acoustic as does Ovation. Looks like there is some reinforcement of the top with the spruce strip running down the middle and splitting the soundhole. That was a smart thing to do IMO.
you can wire both pickup together in parrelle so you onlu need one jack .. lounder is a pickup only deal . you will need to humidify the guitar in its case for a few weeks for sure to get the cracks to pull back together.. id not mess with the bracing either .. change the strings to light guage for sure.. upgrading the tunners is a good idea
Kevys Rc & Music good ideas. Thanks for taking a look.
your welcome enjoy the project
Wow, that thing is definitely the “Liberace” of acoustic guitars. Definitely not my style, but the level or ornamentation is impressive. As you mentioned, a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machine was likely used to manufacture the instrument. I would assume all the inlay cut outs and inserts were also CNCed. Thee guitar sounds very bright; sort of surprising given the big body. I guess that may be the result of heavy bracing. I’m about to watch P2, Jerry, so it will be fun to see what the heck you do with that beast.
Playing a single neck guitar give me the willies.
I would have a heart attack with two necks [ or 7 or 8 strings! ]. Great video; thanks as always!
That is a very cool guitar ... Unique to say the least ... Better Tuning Machines the L.R.Baggs Pickups and Deer Antler Saddles all sound like reasonable ways to improve the playability, tone and versatility of this instrument ... I can't wait to see the next update on this one ... Your video's always brighten my day Thanks!
Martin Frog thank you very much my friend.
Dual pickups with a 2-way switch. Inlay silver flames on the lower bout. It sounds plenty loud, but run through a Vox AC-30, it will probably have plenty of volume.
I'd get piezo dots (those little circles you stick under the bridge), a setup with at least five or six. Glue them under the bridges, go to one pre-amp, and you have amplification on either guitar all the time. Single output. BTW - you can put two piezo under-saddles into one pre-amp box. You need to know if it should be series with a parallel resistance to balance? Or Parallel with something in series to balance it. So you need the help of an electronics person. The circuit would be simple, once you know what it is, and you use a small box (like a tin pill box or plastic switch box very small) two jacks in, one cable out to the pre-amp, and the wiring between, and one component. I simply can't tell you what the circuit would be but I bet someone else here could. Then your EQ and volume, even a tuner in the pre-amp, would work for either one.
RoscoeJames Roscoe thank you very much. That's good information. Thank you for watching.
bone nuts and saddles probably will add volume, I would recommend Piezo pickups you should be able to wire them both to the same jack and put a switch on them to switch between the two.
Randy Schartiger thanks Randy. It seems to be the best idea.
I bet you're extremely glad Solomon didn't send it to you! 8-)) That goes for all the luthiers who watch Jerry's videos and comment. 8-)
The original owner only pay $200 for this guitar let that sink in for a min
@@davidallen346 Bear in mind most people earn around 5,000,000vnđ ($215.00) per month in Vietnam.
To which in Vietnam $200.00 is a lot of money for most people.
This Guy is a Master!!!
Well, that is definitely an interesting guitar!
Jeff Grier it's a definite 10 on the interest scale. Thank you very much for
You could use 1 of the sticky pad type piezo pickups or one under each saddle to one stereo output jack.
I WANT THAT GUITAR !!!!!
Never gunna happen.
Hey Jerry, another nice project. I think it sounds decent and a good studio/instrument microphone in front of the guitar will be great for pump up the volume. From my perspective this is the best solution withouth doing any major impacts inside the instrument. If think also the new strings and saddles will be a big improvement in the sound and volume. Rusty strings sounds dull. Looking forward to part 2 and your decisions :D
WikeedOne thank you I agree with you. Thanks for
Electrics also have the multiple pickups with switches. I can see two pickups, one switch, one 1/4" out.
ElderlyIron that is true. I'll give it some thought. Thanks for taking a look.
This is going to be an interesting series to follow.
I am still blown away by it cost $100 plus import taxes. I am only 15 minutes into this and what comes next will be a huge surprise, but I have to admit from a distance it looks darn good and the 6 string neck sounds reasonably good except for the fret buzz.
I would suggest a KISS approach. A passive setup using five transducers under the soundboard (three for the 12 string and two for the six) connected to a single endpin jack.
The figure I've heard quoted regarding acoustic guitar string tension is 60# per string. Don't recall anyone specifying that those were strings of a particular gauge or alloy. Since no gauge or alloy was mentioned, I'm skeptical that this figure is any kind of accurate. Is it intended as some kind of approximate average?
How can a 0.046" low E exert no more tension than an 0.011" high E?
For the sake of having a value we can relate to, using that 60# figure still translates to 360# across six strings, 720# across twelve strings. And, across the eighteen strings of this guitar, 1,080#.
Acoustic Twelve-string guitars are notorious for warping necks, bulging soundboards and pulling bridges. I certainly would not be inclined to start shaving or otherwise reducing preexisting braces while I would expect any supplemental bracing to adversely effect the volume and tone of the guitar.
There's no telling what this guitar is constructed of. For its cost, and by where it was built, can we expect it to be solid tone woods? I have my doubts. Many Asian guitars are adorned with extravagant inlays, while corners are cut elsewhere in construction. Compare, for example, the materials used in building an American Fender Strat and a Chinese Squire. The entire point in building and marketing a Chinese Squire is cheap labor, inferior parts and affordable but profitable price.
In my opinion, this guitar is a very pretty work of "art" suited to hanging on someone's wall.
Wire both pickups to one output jack with a 3 way switch. Like Gibson does. 3 way would be 12 string - both - 6 string. Or you could put a 2 way switch and take out the option to have both on at the same time.
i would put pickups under the bridge and an selector switsh. and the jack in the end-pin
hawkins19601 that seems like the common suggestion . thank you for watching.
I think at least part of the volume problem is the plastic finish that was put on it. When you hold the back up it looks like the typical thick Chinese urethane finish - probably sprayed in one shot. Stripping and refinishing the top might help.
Well Jerry, You weren't too hard on me. LOL! I've never had 10s before. Truth is, I do play a Martin D28, so was probably used to that sound. And I play an Alvarez 12 string, so maybe I am just used to a different sound. BTW, I'm primarily a finger picker, so I don't have a problem with the double necks. Regards, Solomon
Life After Work I was wondering if you were a finger picker that would make it have a lot less volume. I think new strings the deer antler saddles in stabilizing the crack is the way I'm headed at the moment. I am going to talk to bags about the pickups just to see what the options might be.
I think you are exactly correct on all points. I appreciate your opinion or I wouldn't have sent you the guitar. You only do what is best for the instrument. Regards, Solomon
I'd imagine you could use one good eq/preamp with a single output, then have 2 piezo pickups wired with a switch to select which is feeding the preamp.
They guitar sure is a looker. I'm sure after being through your shop it will be equally nice to play.
Solitary Refinement thank you very much.
Perhaps he plays with his thumb instead of a pick, I do. I built a cigar box guitar with both magnetic and a piezo pickup and wired them with a selector switch that allowed for one or the other or both. It sounded great especially with both pickups. With piezo pickups you would probably want a preamp.
Hey Jerry. It's for sure your work is cut out for you on this one. To run it through a amp you could put in a L.R. Baggs Lyric Mic pickup. You wouldn't have to mess with the under saddle stuff. I have one in my martin HD-28V and they sound great!
fenderpicker57 yes I have installed quite a few of the lyric pickups. I think they're great. I will work with bags to see what they suggest. Thanks for watching.
You've got yourself a task and a half there Mr. Jerry. The deer antler saddles and nuts would probably give it a little more volume, but not enough to justify all the work it would take you to make them. This country is being flooded with these foreign guitars. They are mainly coming out of China. They even build alot of fake Gibson's and Martin's, that look nearly identical to the real ones for people who dont know how to tell the differences. All of those are highly illegal, but they very seldom get caught in customs bringing them in. That back and side wood could be Figured Sapele. I have a guitar with highly figured Sapele back and sides, and it looks a tiny bit similiar to mine. Theres a video on here of a double neck acoustic made by Martin. I'm wanting to say it had a $100,000 price tag on it. Good luck with this job Bud!
Bryan Wayne thank you very much my friend. Yes $100,000 doesn't seem unreasonable if it were made by Martin. It really is a ton of work to build something like this.
Usually making an acoustic guitar louder I would suggest going to next heaver strings, but not in this case. Measure strings install new equivalent gauge high quality thin coated strings such as D'Addario Coated Phosphor Bronze or martin offerings. The thinnest coating on the string should be loudest and maintain the sound the longest.
Level and crown frets if needed then check neck angle see if bridge can be shaved lower. The bridges look heavy duty and may be able to be lowered a small amount to get highest saddle and break angle (can make it louder). Install new antler (Bone saddles) and new antler nut (adjust for play-ability). Both should make it play louder.
Do not put under saddle piezo but rather use good under the bridge plate piezo like K&K Sound Pure Mini or the L.R. Baggs Lyric Guitar Pickup. I like the K&K as the sound is more natural acoustic and does not reduce volume like under the saddles can some times, also easy to remove if you don't like it - except for the end plug.
Polish top with paste wax well can also add some volume.
Shaving any braces could be an experiment at best (would not recommend it.)
Wow, what a challenge......I am really looking forward to parts 2.3.4.5.6........eeeek!
yonks49 yeah it'll definitely have another part that's for sure I'm not sure about a part 3 but possibly. Thank you for
We'll i only found you a few days ago. Jan. 2020. Now this episode really cought my atention! I had an Alvarez k yeri. Double acoustic. I still regret selling that one!! :° (
It's a monster ! 🎼🎵🎶
but I understand the fascination as I love to collect off the wall instruments 👍
springy 2112 it is definitely unique. Thank you for
Use a TRS/stereo jack for the pickups and go into a box with a footswitch to select 6/12 string or a split cable into a stereo amp
George Krabs thanks for the ideas. Thanks for watching.
A piezo pick up on the back of the sound board. I make my own from piezo buzzer/speaker. $3.50 for a musical greeting card + 1/4" jack and voila
Everything you've shown and talked about makes me think it may have been built by a luthier student in China or wherever it's from, as their final exam project. I've seen a couple of examples on videos and this fits right into those discussions. Usually sold cheap, as maybe the maker is not able to charge a lot due to the materials being provided by the school where they are a student.The inlay quality is my 1st clue, but who knows.
It's a beautiful guitar. I am not familiar with "bag" pickups, but I am sure a dual pickup EQ with selector switch could be set up.
Beautiful guitar and great bargain at $100. 1 output jack with a 3 way toggle switch just like the Les Paul's use.
Gil Lamb thank you for the idea. Thanks for watching.
I have to agree with a former comment that a Tonewood Amp would be a great choice for this guitar..
NHguitar57 thank you very much I will look into it.
So the back crack seems to be the most difficult issue, be tempted to see if you could pop some of the back braces. Certainly the appearance of the guitar is really quite striking and I can understand not wanting to get into any changes that threatened either the neck inlay or the body binding. I agree that sound reinforcement is the hot ticket; piezo or the LR Baggs, under bridge designs. I was recently listening to a CSN video where Still's D45 is amplified to the point of being thunderous (and it's not a bad guitar for acoustic volume in the first place but frankly muddy in the video). I think an RSW set up maybe with bone on the 6 string neck and saddle with new strings all around would be the not ticket. I am sorry I think asking for a rosette is gilding the Lilly.
Cliff Campen I think we're on the same page. Thank you very much for watching.
Watching hell, I've got to send you my guitar. I'll get to it.
Cliff Campen that sounds great thank you very much.
I just read through all the comments to this point. I'll start with a question. Can you seal or "encase" wood with a finish that even water can't get out through? I suspect that there's no way, or this trick would be in common use.
The idea is to humidify the wood with the cracks, spread glue on the cracks and let them swell shut. Next you coat everything with your "seals the water in" finish. If the finish cracks, the guitar goes in for repair.
For the rest of it, do your normal stuff and add pickups. You could almost think of the guitar as a quadruple threat, 6 string, 12 string, acoustic and electric. 8-)
Great review and I would concur with your analyse entirely, though I don't have the ability to carry out the work. I am sure the pickups are the way to go, and that L R Baggs will assist you on that one. Always a pleasure God Bless take care.
Clive Porter thank you very much.
That's a pretty guitar, very fine inlay work indeed. I would just install the LR baggs those sound nice, I have one in my 12 string. I think it has very nice volume just as is for the guitar's body size. As far as the crack goes I think you are on track with stabilizing it so it won't spread any more.
I really like the LR Baggs also. However they won't work with me in terms of trying to get two pickups inside with a switch so that I can switch between the two necks.
Jerry, you could scallop a little of the brace work through the sound hole with your fancy little finger plane.
And improve the overall sound and tone. Now, just me talking, I would pull a nice Mike up to that bad boy
for a real good sound. )
I put Baggs in my Alvarez k y e r i double. I ended up putting a small three way switch for switching pickups.
Jerry..i checked out..and subbed..to Solomon's YT site..He is talented and skilled with model ships, trains, planes and an occasional car...urge you all to check his videos..Rich
Simple selector switch will allow the two pickups be wired to the single jack.
Fully aware of that but LR Baggs would not warranty it if we changed anything.
@@RosaStringWorks I own a couple Baggs M1s and l know they're not cheap. I'd be curious what they'd even want to build a pickup for this thing.
The guys that watch your videos are just as smart as me. I thought right away bone nut and saddle ( maybe tusk) set it up and put in 2 pickups controlled by one switch. The other option is to take the necks off and stick them on a couple old Martins or just hang the one you have on the wall and dont even play it. Its worth what the guy paid just to look at it. Sometimes ugly beat up guitars sound better. LOL
Ron Hammar thank you for taking a look.
Run!
You must change the sound board to a really good 3A really high quality and forget about the inlays. Just go with bindings. Let the client know that he must sacrifice the inlays for good sounds and get rid of the double hole and make one hole with a nice rosette . And wail you have the guitar open fix the back with some clits . And this guitar would sound much better ...
I have an Alvarez 5054 that makes that sound like a "tin can with strings on it". I also have a Kaytone with its flimsy 12 string neck mount in total failure mode. That one's gonna look good hanging on the wall, unless I win the Jerry Rosa guitar repair lotery.
Hmmm. That's interesting. Say your Alvarez doesnt sound good? I have an old classical Alvarez, and a kid neighbor of mine has an Alvarez Dreadnaught. Both of them are built very well and sound great. Especially his. Ive heard from other Alvarez owners and they all seem to love theirs. Maybe something simple is off on yours causing the sound to be off. Have you had a luthier give it a look over?
Put in the two pickups with a slide switch on the upper bout to select which one goes to a single output jack.
We chose the option we did because the company would not want to see the products if we did that.
one jack out one pickup switch to swich between 12 or 6 mic.have a el double neck 12 and 6 Carvin el guitar it has 2 jacks out to have the posibility to have both necks active and in different amps.never uses that option only the one jack and the switch i use on it.less wires less hum to.You do real craftman ship.
Thank you very much my friend.
Jerry I think this was built by Antoinio Tsai he is a master Inlay artist I have a solid body 12 string with Dragon Inlays he built very beautiful Good Luck!
One plug two pickups. Wire a two way switch between the pickups where you have one on and the other off
As you know, with 18 strings tuned to pitch, the body must be built like a tank to take the stress. As I believe you've said about violins, to sound best they are built ready to fall apart. Guitars are the same. I have a cheap plywood guitar that would survive WW III, but it has little volume. My Seagull solid wood has great volume because it is so light. You cant' have your cake and eat it too. If it were mine, I would have you take the necks off and build two separate guitars. I love the inlay.
Truth or Dare I am surprised how good this thing actually sounds. I think it's going to be improved a lot by my setup, antler Saddles, and new strings. The new strings will probably help more than anything. Thank you very much for watching.
You got lucky with an Antoniotsai. I've worked on a few that were unplayable and unfixable. Most of them self destruct when they leave Vietnam at 99% humidity, and hit an American dry winter. The ones that survive often have frets out of place, need a neck reset straight out of the box, or a jillion other QC problems. When I quote repairing one, most people say -but I ONLY paid XXX. Garbage in>garbage out.
What an interesting instrument! My first thought is that with such intricate work on it, I can’t see it being a regular “touring” guitar - it seems like you’d just be asking for it. I too thought the double piezo pickup option would be the way to go, with an a/b switch (I guess it’d be a 6/12 switch, right?) because I think two cords would be too ungainly and probably too much bending on it. So, where to put the switch? Not in that beautiful top, and probably not near the end pin...too likely to get bumped (not cool if you’re playing and flip it) or worse, broken! So, perhaps on the top side put in a rocker switch? Such a pretty thing, I don’t know I’d have the heart! Another thought...I would think that guitar might be a “howler” - would it be more likely to feedback with that HUGE sound hole?
Put a double pole double throw switch on the lower bout and switch between pickups or maybe use a potentiometer as a blend to go from one to the other or mis the two with the ability to blend one louder than the other. Just a couple of thoughts.
The 6 string sounds mor tiny than the 12 but I am 12 string biased!
+The unmusician I contacted several companies that make the pickups none of them would warrant their product if we did all that. Thanks for watching. I think it turned out very nice. The customer was quite happy.
When playing the 12 string. It's better to Pick Trough the chords. As opposed to strumming them. So that would take care of the running into the 6 string section.
Thank you for taking a look.
I think pickups would work and as for the plugin instead of 2 jacks I would wire a switch just inside the sound hole so he could reach it easily and switch from one to the other
also a lighter string set would give it better sound i think
DriveShaft Drew thank you for taking a look and for the ideas.