Q. Which of your guitars sound the best?
A. I think all of the guitars I make sound great and this is a very subjective question. But some of my guitars sound exceptional and in my opinion sound the equal of anything I have ever played. In particular, the Michael Kelly Clubs, the Breedloves, the Alvarez RB-30SCs and AB4102Cs, the Hohner EB65s and TWP600Bs, the Takamine EG512Cs, the El Capitans, the Ibanezes, and the Aria FEB STDs. I have made at least two of each of these and their sound is consistently outstanding. That doesn't mean that some of the others are not their equal, some are. I just haven't made enough of them to judge consistency - the Ovations, the Hondo, and the Corts come to mind. I believe that whichever guitar you choose you will be surprised at the sound. That's just the nature of these longer scale guitars - more sound than you would expect.
A: There is no extra stress. In fact a 34 inch guitar with one bass string and 5 regular guitar strings tuned B - B is only under about 78% the stress it was with 4 bass strings tuned normally.
Q: How hard is it to play one of these longer guitars?
A: With very few exceptions, everyone who has looked at my guitars and tried playing them has had no trouble immediately adjusting to them. Guitar players are far more versatile they they know. Demos of the playability of some of the guitars are here, I am a little slow - it took me a couple of hours to get the knack of a 34 inch scale so I used a capo on the 2nd fret for a little bit.
Q: How are your guitars tuned?
A: They are most often tuned down a perfect 5th from a normal guitar to and A - A tuning but they can also be tuned to a B - B tuning. More on tuning and transposing here.
A: Yes. The Michael Kellys, the Alvarez guitars, the Hohners, the Arias, the Takamines, the Ovations, the Breedloves, the Morgan Monroe, the El Capitans, the Corts, and a number of the others are solid top. I'll note the sold top models as I post them. It seems to me that more than half of the guitars I have made have solid tops.
A: They are most often tuned down a perfect 5th from a normal guitar to and A - A tuning but they can also be tuned to a B - B tuning. More on tuning and transposing here.
Q: Can you convert my bass into a baritone?
A: Let me know what you have and we'll see. If you see one like the one you want converted, then the answer is likely "yes".
Q: How much will you charge to convert my bass once it is decided that it can be converted?
A: I charge $260 to convert a bass and that includes all parts, labor, and return shipping to the lower 48. Parts include a bone nut, new strings, bridge pins, you get your choice of gold or chrome tuners and whether or not you want a sound port cut. If you pay me by personal check instead of PayPal, I will take $10 off of the price. If you live outside the lower 48 the price will be more due to increased shipping price.
Q: Your 30 inch guitars seem a little bit on the expensive side.
A: Let me know what you have and we'll see. If you see one like the one you want converted, then the answer is likely "yes".
Q: How much will you charge to convert my bass once it is decided that it can be converted?
A: I charge $260 to convert a bass and that includes all parts, labor, and return shipping to the lower 48. Parts include a bone nut, new strings, bridge pins, you get your choice of gold or chrome tuners and whether or not you want a sound port cut. If you pay me by personal check instead of PayPal, I will take $10 off of the price. If you live outside the lower 48 the price will be more due to increased shipping price.
Q: Your 30 inch guitars seem a little bit on the expensive side.
A: They seem to cost me more and are harder to find too. When you think about it, it is probably hard to make a nice 30 inch bass. They do make pretty sweet baritone guitars though,
Q. Do you ever make any with solid tops?
Q: I listened to your demonstration and thought it sounded good, but how is its projection unplugged? I don't expect a Taylor but I was wondering how loud it is acoustically.
A: I have been surprised by how well these guitars sound acoustically. It is almost like they were inadvertently designed to be made into guitars. While the some of the individual guitars sound better than others acoustically, they all sound pretty much the same once plugged in – at least on the 3 amps I have.
A: Here is my intonation test on the very cheapest of my guitars. Open string, 12th fret harmonic, 12th fret string depressed – no saddle compensation.The intonation is not perfect but it is very close. We have all played guitars that cost much more and had worse intonation.
Q How well does the pickup from a bass work once it is a baritone guitar?
A: I actually switch the bass pickup for one for a guitar unless the bass came with a braided pickup. The electronics package stays the same. From what I understand, the electronics packages from almost all acoustic electric basses are actually for regular guitars.
Q: Can I get one with a wider neck than 1 3/4 inches?
A: I actually switch the bass pickup for one for a guitar unless the bass came with a braided pickup. The electronics package stays the same. From what I understand, the electronics packages from almost all acoustic electric basses are actually for regular guitars.
Q: Can I get one with a wider neck than 1 3/4 inches?
A: I have not been able to find basses with wider necks but I am looking.
Q: Is there a way to raise or lower the action?
A: Yes. I leave enough room to lower the action at both the saddle and the nut. They all have truss rods in the neck for adjustment up or down and there is the ability to add and remove shims under the saddle to raise or lower the action there. I have found that thicker shims can be made out of slices of credit card and thinner shims can be made out of slices of playing cards.
Q: What strings are on the guitars?
A. For the last 60+ guitars I have made, I have used D'Addario Phosphor Bronze Mediums exclusively. 013, .017, .026, .035, .045, and I usually use the A bass string that came with the bass as the 6th string instead of the .056. If you want a warmer tone, Dean Markley Vintage Bronze Acoustics also fit the longest guitars.
Q: Can I get a left handed version?
A: I have made several but will only make future left handed guitars on commission.
Q: Can you make me an 8 or 9 string version for the same price?
A: No. What you really want is a Taylor GT-8, so go get one.
Q: Can you make something a little more upscale?
A: I am buying quality used basses and selling them along with the new basses that I convert at a comparable price. I don't see buying any new Alvarez, Michael Kelly, Breedlove, Takamine, or Ovation (etc.) basses and converting them but if that is what you want, let me know and we'll see if we can work something out..
Q: How do you price your guitars?
A: I base my prices entirely on how much I pay for the bass for conversion and the materials it takes to convert it. If I get a bass cheap, you pay less for the baritone. I pay myself a fixed rate per guitar regardless of how long it takes to do the conversion. So if you see some pricing that doesn't really make sense, I probably got a real good deal on a bass. On shipping - if it's larger, heavier, and sells for more, the shipping and insurance costs more. At the moment, I ship elusively with The United States Postal Service.
Q. Can you make me a little better deal?
A: If you see a guitar on eBay that you want I can cut $25 off of that price if I invoice you directly. If you order a guitar before I list it on eBay I can cut $30 - $50 off the price. I am willing to pass on the bulk of the savings in eBay fees to you.
Q: Can you make me a 27 inch scale baritone for under $500?
A: I base my prices entirely on how much I pay for the bass for conversion and the materials it takes to convert it. If I get a bass cheap, you pay less for the baritone. I pay myself a fixed rate per guitar regardless of how long it takes to do the conversion. So if you see some pricing that doesn't really make sense, I probably got a real good deal on a bass. On shipping - if it's larger, heavier, and sells for more, the shipping and insurance costs more. At the moment, I ship elusively with The United States Postal Service.
Q. Can you make me a little better deal?
A: If you see a guitar on eBay that you want I can cut $25 off of that price if I invoice you directly. If you order a guitar before I list it on eBay I can cut $30 - $50 off the price. I am willing to pass on the bulk of the savings in eBay fees to you.
Q: Can you make me a 27 inch scale baritone for under $500?
A: I had a couple of 27 inch scale Alvarez MSB1 traveling baritones for about that price - I might have one again someday.
Q: Can you ship outside the lower 48?
A: I am willing to work with you if you are willing to pay. Basically I can ship guitars via United States Postal Service to any country with a 108 inch length + circumference limit.
So far I have shipped to Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Norway, South Korea, Spain, and the UK and will add other countries as I ship to them.
So far I have shipped to Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Norway, South Korea, Spain, and the UK and will add other countries as I ship to them.
