Zager guitars

[Dragontooth]

I'm seriously contemplating a Zager ZAD50 or ZAD80 purchase. Has anyone compared the two of them and which of the two sounds better? Is the "80" worth the additional $250? Comments on the Zager guitars are most welcome!

[Queequeg]

Welcome to the HCAG Forum, Dragontooth.

Zager guitars get a lot of negative ink on this forum. Use the search function to read what others have said.

I, myself, have never had the pleasure.

[guitarist21]

 

I'm seriously contemplating a Zager ZAD50 or ZAD80 purchase. Has anyone compared the two of them and which of the two sounds better? Is the "80" worth the additional $250? Comments on the Zager guitars are most welcome!

 

 

Welcome to the forum as Queg said! Hope you enjoy your stay.

 

Like Queg said, not a lot of folks like Zager around here. Myself included. It is my opinion that he basically scams unknowning guitar players into buying a guitar that could be had for much cheaper elsewhere. You're pretty much paying for this guy to set up your guitar and it is EXPENSIVE.

 

I would not recommend purchasing either guitar. What are some of the qualities you want in your acoustic? What is your playing style? What do you want to learn? If you point us in the right direction, we might be able to give you a few suggestions.

 

Ellen

[babablowfish]

I once played a Zager - the details shall remain secret so as not to humiliate the unfortunate individual who bought it. It was mediocre but not unplayable. The tone was just OK and it looked OK but much better guitars can be had for less. What was ironic about the one Zager I played was that the action was really awful, very high. It badly needed a set up. Go figure.

[Queequeg]

 

I once played a Zager - the details shall remain secret so as not to humiliate the unfortunate individual who bought it. It was mediocre but not unplayable. The tone was just OK and it looked OK but much better guitars can be had for less. What was ironic about the one Zager I played was that the action was really awful, very high. It badly needed a set up. Go figure.

 

So, let me get this straight, Baba-

This Zager needed to be "zagerized"; is that it?

[DonK]

Denny Zager should have stuck to living off the mechanicals from "In The Year 2525".

 

He started out buying cheap Martin Sigma guitars and then performing what he calls his "E-Z Play" modifications, but what anyone else would call a simple set-up. He then jacked up the prices of the guitars by $100 - $200 to reflect his so-called E-Z Play modifications, which essentially consist of lowering the action and widening the string spacing. A good guitar tech would typically charge $30 - $50 to do the same thing. Once he realized how easy it was to pedal this scam on eBay in volume, he arranged for his own line of imports (in lieu of the Sigmas) so he could purchase them cheaper and make even larger margins.

 

You can do a lot better with your money.

[garthman]

Well the bastard needs a damn good flogging, then!

[Dragontooth]

Thanks for the advice guys. It sounds like I'b be better off buying the Martin I was going to get in the first place (D15) and having it tweaked if it needs it. At least I'll KNOW what I have.

[DonK]

 

Thanks for the advice guys. It sounds like I'b be better off buying the Martin I was going to get in the first place (D15) and having it tweaked if it needs it. At least I'll KNOW what I have.

 

 

You would be MUCH, MUCH better off buying the D-15. That's a fantastic guitar in its own right, head and shoulders above anything you can get from Zager.

 

It's my favorite guitar at that price point. Actually, the 15 series Martins stand up well against guitars costing twice as much.

[Freeman Keller]

 

You would be MUCH, MUCH better off buying the D-15. That's a fantastic guitar in its own right, head and shoulders above anything you can get from Zager. It's my favorite guitar at that price point. Actually, the 15 series Martins stand up well against guitars costing twice as much.

 

 

Plus one on this. And, if you buy it from a good authorized Martin dealer (instead of a big box store or online) they should do the setup for you - they should watch you play, ask your preferences, and make any adjustments necessary. Most Martins ship with a fairly high action - they can lower that to make it play as EZ as a Zager.

 

One more bonus - buy the Martin new and you will have their lifetime warrranty - doesn't cover future setups but if you keep the git for a long time (and I'll bet you will) it will cover a lot of potential ills. (The box store or on line will also have the warranty - they just won't do the personal setup).

 

Now, aren't you glad you asked? Happy shopping!

[guit30]

+1 very good decision, I tried a Zager once, it was very poorly set up, not a bad guitar really, but very overpriced and his technicians file down the frets , but they do use Martin strings (if you consider (Darco) Martin.

[AugTPD]

Stay far far away from the Zagerized guitars!! He jacks up the price $200 plus for a simple setup that most shops would charge around $50 for.

 

If you are considering a D15, that's a great idea. Call some dealers and most will include a setup with the purchase of the guitar so you can get it tweaked to your playing style.

[OldGuitarPlayer]

I'd like to know were you guys pay $50 for a setup. My tech/luthier charges $85 for a setup that also includes a fret leveling and trust me it is worth every penny but...he will tell you upfront if he feels the guitar is not worth spending the money on. The first thing he checks is the neck angle. If you want him to make you a compensated bone saddle and nut he charges $35 for the saddle and $50 for the custom bone nut.

 

I really don't think this Zager fellow is over charging for the work he does on the guitars but the guitars he modifies are not even worth the extra time and money. That is were the "rip off" comes in as I bet he darn well knows he is trying to sell a $100 guitar for 8 times more than it's worth.

 

Get the Martin instead...

 

OGP

[DonK]

 

I'd like to know were you guys pay $50 for a setup. My tech/luthier charges $85 for a setup that also includes a fret leveling and trust me it is worth every penny but...he will tell you upfront if he feels the guitar is not worth spending the money on. The first thing he checks is the neck angle. If you want him to make you a compensated bone saddle and nut he charges $35 for the saddle and $50 for the custom bone nut. I really don't think this Zager fellow is over charging for the work he does on the guitars but the guitars he modifies are not even worth the extra time and money. That is were the "rip off" comes in as I bet he darn well knows he is trying to sell a $100 guitar for 8 times more than it's worth. Get the Martin instead... OGP

 

 

Most techs view a fret leveling as a separate service from a setup, same for making a new nut or saddle. I'm surprised you can get a setup that includes fret leveling for $85; I think I paid around $100 for the last fret leveling I had.

[OldGuitarPlayer]

Most techs view a fret leveling as a separate service from a setup, same for making a new nut or saddle. I'm surprised you can get a setup that includes fret leveling for $85; I think I paid around $100 for the last fret leveling I had.

 

I guess my tech just includes that in the process pf doing the setup...I had no idea that ding a fret level was that expensive. He seems to have the knack of making old buzzy guitars play beautifully and I really can't say enough good things about his custom nut and saddle work as I had him make them for my old Yamaha FG-331. After that and the setup the guitar played like a dream and sounded great. His service is always fast, friendly and professional. I've had him work on my Yamaki as well and he did a great job of saving it from a pontential neck reset by making grooves just behind the saddle were the strings come out of the bridge-pin holes. Doing so increased the break angle of the strings so he could still lower my action to my prefered height and I wouldn't lose any tone. He did all that and leveled the frets wonderfully for $85. He works out of the local Folk Center here and as far as I am concerned he is the best in town

 

OGP