Help me choose/find/buy a guild archtop.

[Los Angeles]

This is an open call for enablement. I've just spent the entire beginning of summer stuck in Alaska. And now I'm going to get some time off and I have a little extra money to spend to boot.

It's time to buy a nice Guild "Box".

But I'm in a little over my head. I don't know what a good deal is vs. what a bad deal is and it turns out, I've missed out on a couple amazing ones because I'm just too gun shy.

So here are my parameters:

1) Cutaway is a must
2) prefer two pickups, preferably 60's or 70's/80's HB1's, Dearmond Dynasonic single coils are OK, too.
3) please no blondes - Sunbursts are OK (but a little boring), exotic/unusual colors are very welcome.
4) tremolo not necessary.
5) florentine cutaways are cool looking, but not necessary.
6) budget of $2000 to $2500

So I've always dreamed of getting a Starfire 2 with mini HB1's, but man those seem to be impossible to come by. I've been hunting for a CE-100-D that isn't blond, and yep, those are hard to come by, too. I've passed twice on X-500's from the late 70's and early 80's that I now know I should have bought the moment I saw them.

Anyone have any suggestions? Anyone have a guitar in mind (or even for sale) that might fill my needs?

Thanks in advance,

Kent

 

[Default]

No offense, but if you have that kind of budget, you should have no problem hooking up with something.
Sf2 should be easy enough to get. They really are not that uncommon.
There was a blue Dearmond-equipped archtop a while back that was reasonably priced. If you are in a hurry, check Gbase, if you are not just wait for the dogdays of August and you'll probably score your best deal then.

 

[Ravon]

If I had the money it'd be either an X175 or an X500.

 

[Walter Broes]

Just a tip/warning that's probably completely redundant : you're talking about SF's and Capris - an X500, in comparison is HUGE! They really are very big.

 

[ArchtopAnimal]

Didn't you just freeze on an Ebay that fitted all this .... ? :roll: Don't buy anything ; you're not in a fit mind to spend :lol:

 

[Ravon]

Wealthy Japanese buyers are snatching up all these great Guild archtops Los Angeles and soon there won't be anymore to be had (except in Japan and at exhorbitant prices :wink . Come on, you can do it! You deserve it !

 

[AcornHouse]

Talking about Starfires and X550, you're really talking two different types of archtops. One's going to be stronger on jazz, and one's going to be more bluesy. Yes, they can do both, but for that budget, I'd look at a box that's going to fit the style you want to play.

 

[Los Angeles]

Didn't you just freeze on an Ebay that fitted all this .... ? :roll: Don't buy anything ; you're not in a fit mind to spend :lol:

This might actually be true!

I'll be regretting that stumble for a while, methinks.

 

[jcwu]

Talking about Starfires and X550, you're really talking two different types of archtops. One's going to be stronger on jazz, and one's going to be more bluesy. Yes, they can do both, but for that budget, I'd look at a box that's going to fit the style you want to play.

Which one's better for which?

 

[ArchtopAnimal]

I'll be regretting that stumble for a while, methinks.

That X500 had one of the best colour jobs I've seen on a non-Artist Award Guild . You blew it !
Time to move on and buy another valve amp instead :wink:

 

[AcornHouse]

Talking about Starfires and X550, you're really talking two different types of archtops. One's going to be stronger on jazz, and one's going to be more bluesy. Yes, they can do both, but for that budget, I'd look at a box that's going to fit the style you want to play.

Which one's better for which?

Short answer is, the shallower the box, the better for blues, deeper for jazz. When you get to the big boxes, feedback is going to be an issue at higher volumes. That's why the X-170 has a center block inside to help minimize it. Also, the bridge will have an impact. A rosewood or ebony bridge will give a mellowed jazz tone, while a metal bridge will give a brighter bluesy tone.

So you'll see Starfires playing more blues and rock, and X-550s playing jazz.
Both types can do both, but if you start with the instrument's strengths, I think you'll be happier. (After all, Ted Nugent played a big Gibson box for a long time, and he certainly had nothing to do with jazz. Conversely, John Scofield plays a 335 (Starfire-ish) for jazz.)

 

[mad dog]

I'd love to find the right old SF III myself. On the X-500 ... the modern Westerly ones are outstanding. Mine is now with a friend. By far the best playing, best feeling larger electric I've encountered.
MD

 

[Walter Broes]

So you'll see Starfires playing more blues and rock, and X-550s playing jazz.
Both types can do both, but if you start with the instrument's strengths, I think you'll be happier. (After all, Ted Nugent played a big Gibson box for a long time, and he certainly had nothing to do with jazz. Conversely, John Scofield plays a 335 (Starfire-ish) for jazz.)

Very True - I'm a Rockabilly/Honky Tonk/R&B/Jump Blues player, and I absolutely love my deep bodies Franz pickup X175's - briefly owned a '64 Starfire IV, and while a great guitar, it really didn't work for the music I play at all.

"Blues" and "Jazz" have become too broad in meaning to really mean anything specific any more.

 

[guildman63]

Hey Kent, my X-170 in Tennessee Orange is for sale :wink: I agree with Walter regarding the X-175 with Franz pups, which is why I am keeping that instead of my X-170. This 170 is still a great guitar in its own right, and with the coil tap switch it can come pretty close to my 175.

 

[Treem]

Kent,

You probably saw this one already and too bad it's not a 77.

Oh my! :shock:

I vote for this one. 8)

 

[Los Angeles]

Thank you to everyone for chiming in!

The style issue is one I really am having a hard time grappling with. I guess I'm in the process of finding a new "voice" for my playing. I'm going through the torturous process of songwriting after a 10 year break and I'm spending most of my time doing that on my 1960 X-50 - and unplugged at that. I love that guitar but really dislike its limitations particularly in the upper register. I'm also "maxing out" that guitar with my heavy playing.

The dynamic range of the guitar is just a bit too flat considering my hard hitting right hand during the "forte" portions of my simple compositions.

Maybe Treem can help when it comes to describing my current style, but I'll give it a shot. Think somewhere between Harvest and Arc/Weld or somewhere between Yo La Tengo and Sonic Youth. Only generally slower.

I'm currently using heavier gauge round-wound nickel strings, tuned to D and sometimes dropping the lower two strings to C and F respectively. My vocals are often simply harmonized with the two-string guitar lines I'm writing.

I'm often walking chromatically on the bass strings and using my voice as the third "string" to complete the triad of a basic chord.

Acknowledging all of this, I'm becoming quite convinced that my guitar collection - which is VERY focused on rock guitars (a nod to my youth and my hearing loss), is missing a voice that should be in there. It's missing a big box. And a big box is designed specifically to handle heavier gauges and somber tones.

Regarding the choice of "voice," I think hollow body guitars that are exceptionally voiced for a rockabilly sound, might not fit in with what I'm going for right now, further, I already have two ST-302's, a Starfire and 3 different S-100's. There's a wide range of tonal possibilities there that might fall in line with an edgier tone, So my bases are very much covered in that area, especially when it comes to recording. I'm able to change guitars even multiple times in a single song and in that setting, I'm OK with letting a any guitar just be itself.

Finally, and in the end, most importantly, I just love the heck fire out of Guild Guitars, and frankly it would be cool to own one of the big boys!

 

[Ravon]

Kent,

You probably saw this one already and too bad it's a 77.

Oh my! :shock:

I vote for this one. 8)

Man, I'm in love with that X175 Treem!

 

[Treem]

The burst on that X175 is to die for! :mrgreen:

 

[Ravon]

The burst on that X175 is to die for! :mrgreen:

I'd take it even with the UPSIDE DOWN TRC!

 

[Los Angeles]

Signature updated. NGD report coming next week.