NVintageGD

Boudoir Guitar said:
If I did, it would probably be like a Vicky Verb - or some sort of tweed Princeton clone + outboard verb/trem unit. Dealing with vintage amps just does not appeal to me, and I’m not holding it in my hands, etc., so vibe points are so much lower.
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Well at least you're thinking of an actual amp though. :grin

(as I stare at my tube amps while dialing in my hx stomp)
 
FuzzyAce said:
Well at least you're thinking of an actual amp though. :grin

(as I stare at my tube amps while dialing in my hx stomp)
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Actual amp or digital amp is not real critical for me (I’ve been playing through a headstrong Princeton reverb copy a lot lately, in addition to the axe, so it’s not like I’m basing this off memory or conjecture). With the hollow bodies, real cab vs "FRFR" makes a BIG difference, as well as does “watching a movie on a home theatre with the fam” volume vs “watching late night TV” volume.

I need reverb and really like bias tremolo. And bias tremolo is hard on tubes. And adds a lot of cost to the whole situation. Or I run a Strymon Flint in front of the amp and kinda ruin the whole point.
 
A reissue Princeton and ;
IMG_4244.jpeg

That would be great.
Sounds fantastic and completely destroys the flint.
 
Eagle said:
If you haven’t tried it you should. It sounds so much better than you might think.
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I've played other short tank reverbs and...on the one hand, more authentic than digital. On the other hand, still not REALLY the sound I "want" from a "real genuine spring reverb"?

Which is where the rubber always meets the road on the signal processing side of things. Everything is a compromise on some level and as un-sexy as it is, for the sounds I'm chasing the Axe III is the least compromised.

The sound that I'm chasing is a Fender Princeton (I used both tweed and reverb models a lot) turned up loud enough that it's compressing, just breaking up with hum buckers, which is louder than my daily playing situation allows.

The "no compromise" solution would be to build an iso-closet in the attic above my office to house the cab, using that cab as a load and re-amping through a monster of a power amp into a cab in my office. I've thought that through on a pretty detailed level. I could measure the impedance of the cab and build a load which would be pretty close to "no compromise" and I'm sure with some forum help I could figure out how to do that.

Everything short of that, though...is still a compromise. Maybe its "all analog" or whatever, but to my ears and what I care about in the sound, the compromises I would need to make to stay "all analog" are typically at least as bad as the compromises I make using my Axe Fx along with a lightweight power amp into a cab.

Different strokes for different folks.

The good news is that on the guitar front, I was able to get this thing, which for me is not a compromise at all, for less than what a 2024 Gibson USA ES-330 would cost.
 
Boudoir Guitar said:
Actual amp or digital amp is not real critical for me (I’ve been playing through a headstrong Princeton reverb copy a lot lately, in addition to the axe, so it’s not like I’m basing this off memory or conjecture). With the hollow bodies, real cab vs ""FRFR"" makes a BIG difference, as well as does “watching a movie on a home theatre with the fam” volume vs “watching late night TV” volume.

I need reverb and really like bias tremolo. And bias tremolo is hard on tubes. And adds a lot of cost to the whole situation. Or I run a Strymon Flint in front of the amp and kinda ruin the whole point.
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I love bias tremolo too. The one in my old YGM-3 combo is :chef. That with some spring reverb is about all you need for lots of things.
 
Boudoir Guitar said:
I've played other short tank reverbs and...on the one hand, more authentic than digital. On the other hand, still not REALLY the sound I "want" from a "real genuine spring reverb"?

Which is where the rubber always meets the road on the signal processing side of things. Everything is a compromise on some level and as un-sexy as it is, for the sounds I'm chasing the Axe III is the least compromised.

The sound that I'm chasing is a Fender Princeton (I used both tweed and reverb models a lot) turned up loud enough that it's compressing, just breaking up with hum buckers, which is louder than my daily playing situation allows.

The "no compromise" solution would be to build an iso-closet in the attic above my office to house the cab, using that cab as a load and re-amping through a monster of a power amp into a cab in my office. I've thought that through on a pretty detailed level. I could measure the impedance of the cab and build a load which would be pretty close to "no compromise" and I'm sure with some forum help I could figure out how to do that.

Everything short of that, though...is still a compromise. Maybe its "all analog" or whatever, but to my ears and what I care about in the sound, the compromises I would need to make to stay "all analog" are typically at least as bad as the compromises I make using my Axe Fx along with a lightweight power amp into a cab.

Different strokes for different folks.

The good news is that on the guitar front, I was able to get this thing, which for me is not a compromise at all, for less than what a 2024 Gibson USA ES-330 would cost.
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Well if you get chance to try it still do . It totally surprised me . It just doesn’t sound compromised , big , lush and the vibrato is amazing too.
Enjoy your guitar,it looks like a good example.
 
"Brian Adams -- played it till your fingers bled? That's nothin'. Next time, play it until you form grooves in the Brazilian rosewood fingerboard!"

A few better, but not great, pictures. I don't have a great spot to take pics inside at my house and its cold as $%@# here this time of year so outside is out of the question. Unfortunately, some rando decided that rather than let me take some pictures of my guitar he should get in the way and talk my ear off...so I gave up. Will try again in a few days. Will eventually do a video with some audio, including both unplugged and plugged sounds. Might be a couple weeks before I can make that happen.

View attachment FO4A4403.jpg


View attachment FO4A4405.jpgView attachment FO4A4406.jpgView attachment FO4A4407.jpg
 
Restrung it and -- there is none of the typical new-string zing. Its a tad louder (which is really f'n loud, btw -- almost as loud acoustically as my cheap laminate Yamaha acoustic), but no really any brighter, and still just as punchy and mid-focused.

I normally hate new strings for at least a few days.
 
Local shop offers one for 6300,- euro. In the UE, and a pricy shop…still…safe to say you did good in the pricing departement!
These are special instruments…ive gone through a couple of models between 1949 and late 50s…while not all were practical for me, all where great and special.. and they appreciatie in value, so I always consider them as something you “park money” in…but dont cost a dime in the long run ;)

Hope you enjoy that imstrument!
 
AFKAEjay(retired) said:
Local shop offers one for 6300,- euro. In the UE, and a pricy shop…still…safe to say you did good in the pricing departement!
These are special instruments…ive gone through a couple of models between 1949 and late 50s…while not all were practical for me, all where great and special.. and they appreciatie in value, so I always consider them as something you “park money” in…but dont cost a dime in the long run ;)

Hope you enjoy that imstrument!
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Was hoping you would stumble into this! The 125 with its seemingly frequent need for neck reset, etc., had me kinda spooked about ordering one from distance.

I need to recover a bit from some gear splurging and cost of new roof on house, but a two pickup 225 seems like a perfect 52nd birthday present in a couple of years. Really loving this thing.
 
Boudoir Guitar said:
Was hoping you would stumble into this! The 125 with its seemingly frequent need for neck reset, etc., had me kinda spooked about ordering one from distance.

I need to recover a bit from some gear splurging and cost of new roof on house, but a two pickup 225 seems like a perfect 52nd birthday present in a couple of years. Really loving this thing.
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It made me break my “read only” resolution ;)

Regarding neck resets…the vintage Gibsons I have owned didnt seem to change further over time…so maybe after 75 years..when its good today it Will be tommorow? If you still have some wiggel room on the bridge..thats your failsafe. After that..replace bridge….or file its components down. Many of these instruments had some of their bridges reduced at the base / or where they rest on the adjustment wheel. And…a neck reset isnt the end of the world either. If the price of vintage stuff keeps going like it has last couple of years…allthough you need it out of pocket..on paper you got the cost of a reset covered ;)
Anyway…dont worry about it..if it happens..it can be dealt with..
I own a Byrdland (74) that has 0,5 mm left on the bridge..but has been like this for 4 years.

Two pick up 225…wouldnt that be a 125T?
L7s, Es 120T..those are also on the affordable side of the spectrum.

If you ever want a pup on this one at the neck/bridge…the Dearmond rythm chief is maybe an option to do it non destructive.
 
AFKAEjay(retired) said:
It made me break my “read only” resolution ;)

Regarding neck resets…the vintage Gibsons I have owned didnt seem to change further over time…so maybe after 75 years..when its good today it Will be tommorow? If you still have some wiggel room on the bridge..thats your failsafe. After that..replace bridge….or file its components down. Many of these instruments had some of their bridges reduced at the base / or where they rest on the adjustment wheel. And…a neck reset isnt the end of the world either. If the price of vintage stuff keeps going like it has last couple of years…allthough you need it out of pocket..on paper you got the cost of a reset covered ;)
Anyway…dont worry about it..if it happens..it can be dealt with..
I own a Byrdland (74) that has 0,5 mm left on the bridge..but has been like this for 4 years.

Two pick up 225…wouldnt that be a 125T?
L7s, Es 120T..those are also on the affordable side of the spectrum.

If you ever want a pup on this one at the neck/bridge…the Dearmond rythm chief is maybe an option to do it non destructive.
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Thanks for all of this. I’m not worried about neck on this one. But from what I read online 125s are pretty notorious for needing them.

the 225 was made in T and TD configurations from ‘55-‘59. The 125 thin lines replace it after that and came in all sorts of configurations thick, thin, single pup, dual pup, cutaway, non cutaway, etc. the 225 vs a 125T - 225 has chunkier 50s neck where the 125s have slimmer 60s neck and 225 has fingerboard binding where 125 does not.
 
You probably won’t need a neck reset because the bridge you have is one of the work around solutions for needing one . In fact if you reinstall the original you may even find that was fitted because it already technically needs one . But the bridge you have is a very good replacement .
 
Eagle said:
You probably won’t need a neck reset because the bridge you have is one of the work around solutions for needing one . In fact if you reinstall the original you may even find that was fitted because it already technically needs one . But the bridge you have is a very good replacement .
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Yeah, shop owner said action with the OG bridge was in slide-only territory. From what I've read it seems the 125s are more likely to have a caving in top, and the thinner necks may have been more prone to wonkiness in general? I love me a bound fingerboard, though, and the 225 neck shape, so will hold out for the right dual pickup 225 when the time is right (i.e., my bank account refills itself).
 
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