Members LiFeStArTs@40 Posted February 3, 2015 Members Share Posted February 3, 2015 First... I don't have pictures yet, but will post them soon. I bought this guitar not really ever hearing one and really didn't know what to expect. I've just always wanted one because I like how they sound plugged in. In my mind, it had two potential things that aren't in its favor. 1. I expected it to be very boxy tone wise because of the non wood bowl. 2. Its cedar top had me thinking it might be a bit bright or abrasive. Anyway, it is set up VERY well. Nice buttery low action with no buzzing at all. I was worried about the 1 11/16 neck and its profile, but it's quite comfy to play on. The frets are dressed really nicely and appear to be over sized. This guitar is built very very well to the point where I just can't find any negatives. How does it sound? Way better than you'd think... Acoustically, very balanced, warm, good volume, and to my surprise, really strong Martin like bass. It doesn't have that "sweetness" of my yamaha LL6X, but is pretty damn close and I'd have to say the bass is better and more natural. I was really expecting boxy and quiet, but it sounds better than my old seagull and close to my Yammy. Plugged in, WOW. Through my Loudbox Mini by itself, through my PA by itself, and through the Loudbox / DI out to the PA, it sounds really really good. I was afraid that its strong bass would muddy up the plugged in sound, but it actually is very balanced and EVEN. Keeping all settings flat, it has that classic Ovation electric sound, which is what I was looking for. With a little reverb, it just gets sweeter, but sounds great dry too. I could just call it a day because it's way better plugged in than my yamaha, but I'm going to get a Zoom A3 to help the Yammy and some feed back issues with my PA in my music room. I'm betting that will really improve my Yammy but will make the ovation fun too. Anyway, $350 for this guitar is a STEEL! It normally street prices around $700, and would be worth it. Make no mistake, it's not the low end Celebrity line, it's in their Elite series. This would be a GREAT working mans gig guitar / workhorse. When I have people over to jam, (where I'm playing drums) this will be a great guitar that a real guitar player can just plug in, go, and get a great sound. The place I bought it from is out of New York and they bought all of the remaining inventory of these and are still blowing them out for $350 shipped. If anyone is even thinking about it, or starting out, or what ever, this is a great deal!!!! PICS are coming, and so are a couple of sound clips as soon as I figure out how to record and post those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted February 3, 2015 Members Share Posted February 3, 2015 . . . I was worried about the 1 11/16 neck and its profile' date=' but it's quite comfy to play on. [/quote'] Congratulations and Happy New Guitar Day. Glad you're enjoying it. Not sure what the issue was with the 1 11/16" nut though since that's fairly standard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LiFeStArTs@40 Posted February 3, 2015 Author Members Share Posted February 3, 2015 I play more finger style than strum. My seagull is 1.8" and my yamaha is 1.75". I'm truly not a great guitar player and figured switching back and forth wouldn't be easy. It's not as bad as I thought, but I definitely have some getting used to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarist21 Posted February 3, 2015 Members Share Posted February 3, 2015 Glad you're happy with it, sounds like a great deal. Looking forward to pics and clips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tony Burns Posted February 6, 2015 Members Share Posted February 6, 2015 I owned two legends over the years -they were exceptional sounding threw an amp .Of course i owned them in the seventies -when the best sound guitar with a built in pick upwas Ovation - They also played easy and had nice tonation .I would add thou , they didnt change for all the years i owned them -you expect any decent guitars tone to improve-they didnt -but no regrets anyways they filled their need when i bought them ( at two different times )the second one i bought from a man who needed the money for a Gallager -i also want to add that it was nice to have when i needed a trade in for my Martin ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Idunno Posted February 7, 2015 Members Share Posted February 7, 2015 It's great that your hearing a keeper. Congrats. I know they play well. The one I had in '73 was a bunch of playing fun, sounding not so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Emory Posted February 8, 2015 Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 Is it safe to conclude that you are going to keep it then? yuk yuk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LiFeStArTs@40 Posted February 8, 2015 Author Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 I'm definitely keeping it! This guitar is way nicer than what I paid for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DocD3F4U17 Posted February 8, 2015 Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 clapping ovation for the standing player had a buddy put grip tape on the back of his ovation for when hed sit, my only gripe with em Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarcapo Posted February 8, 2015 Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 I never played one I could warm up to. I think the idea was always that they were a great touring guitar for playing in a live band to cover the acoustic parts. Because they sound great plugged in. But some of them seemed neck-heavy to me. They don't feedback amplified much...but that's because they aren't very resonant acoustically.And some shallow-bowl ones seem to have a problem balancing on one knee because of the curved back. Also a nightmare to repair if it needs a neck reset...and some actually can't be refret because the fingerboard and frets are one piece of metal. But durable and usually inexpensive if you buy used. Back in the 70's they were THE guitar for playing acoustic live. But since them pickup systems have improved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members katopp Posted February 8, 2015 Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 If you know,/that the Neck is set using a mortise/tenon and that it comes apart nicely after losing just one screw, a neck reset is all easy. All you have to do is chip off ne neck block cover and you have free access to the m/t bolt.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members katopp Posted February 8, 2015 Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 I have learned, that neck resets on Ovations are as easy as on Taylors or mortise/tenon Martins. The hardest part is to chip off the neck block cover to find the bolt. After that it's simple, very simple. Just don't bother to reglue the chipped cover. You will mess up and have glue where you don't want it...Modern Ovations have standard necks with wooden fretboards and pressed-in frets. If you find one with a metal fretboard, you can auction it off to a collector and buy yourself two decent other guitars.Shallow bowl Ovations are not meant to be played dry. You would not mark down a Taylor T5 for having no dry voice, would you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LiFeStArTs@40 Posted February 8, 2015 Author Members Share Posted February 8, 2015 The sliding around the knee thing IS a real issue on these. Mine is a medium bowl and has that problem. I used a piece of that drawer liner stuff across my knee and it solved the problem. Acoustically its pretty decent... Decent volume, balanced tone although slightly bass heavy, pretty articulate. It's definitely not as "sweet" as my yamaha LL6 though. BUT it's a lot better than you think it would be. It's a very dynamic guitar where it's nice and mellow finger picked and strummed lightly, and definitely growls when you dig in. Plays VERY easy once you get it steady on your knee. With out the drawer liner, it's like trying to play a moving target. Plugged in, it just slaughters my Yamaha. It sounds more acoustic and natural. But if you use their preset EQ, it has that classic old school vibe. Its definitely a keeper for me but would make a great working musicians guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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