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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Gear »

Permalink Any love for the Coronado II w/ trem?

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Just ran into a virtually new one at my local store...I was really impressed - seems like a great surf guitar. Anybody have one?

Similar to this one:

I have heard there are issues with feedback? Any others?

The balance could be better, but it makes up for it with the super comfy fender neck. Great trem and seems to stay in tune. This one had very light strings (9s?), but I assume it can handle bigger ones since these were probably marketed as jazz guitars?

Would love to hear your experiences.

Didn't Trace Redding play one of these during his tenure with Man or Astro-man?

THE KBK ... This is the last known signal. We offer Sanctuary.

www.thekbk.com
http://www.deepeddy.net/artists/thekbk/
www.reverbnation.com/thekbk
www.facebook.com/thekbkal

None whatsoever. As great a luthier as Roger Rossmeisl was; because of his choice of tailpiece on the Rickenbacker 12-strings (which makes re-stringing an all-day project) and his association with the Coronado, his soul is burning in Hell!

elreydlp wrote:

None whatsoever. As great a luthier as Roger Rossmeisl
was; because of his choice of tailpiece on the
Rickenbacker 12-strings (which makes re-stringing an
all-day project) and his association with the Coronado,
his soul is burning in Hell!

LOL

I'd stay away from the Coronado if I were you. There are all kinds of issues with the bridge because it's not screwed down, and this makes it nearly impossible keep a good setup. I'd go for an Epiphone Casino with a Bigsby if you're looking for a hollow-body similar to the Coronado.

Matt "tha Kat" Lentz
Skippy and the Skipjacks: 2018-
Skippyandtheskipjacks.net
https://www.facebook.com/skippyandtheskipjacks
Otto and the Ottomans: 2014-2015
The Coconauts surf band: 2009-2014
www.theamazingcoconauts.com
Group Captain and the Mandrakes 2013
http://www.gcmband.com/
The Surfside IV: 2002-2005, 2008-2009
the Del-Vamps: 1992-1999, 2006-2007
http://www.dblcrown.com/delvamps.html

Hmm, Bummer...looked good, sounded good, felt good. But I guess there is a reason they flopped.

They're not bad-sounding guitars. If you can find a luthier who will permanently set the bridge for you, it may be worth it if the price is right. These guitars usually never sell for more than a grand.

Matt "tha Kat" Lentz
Skippy and the Skipjacks: 2018-
Skippyandtheskipjacks.net
https://www.facebook.com/skippyandtheskipjacks
Otto and the Ottomans: 2014-2015
The Coconauts surf band: 2009-2014
www.theamazingcoconauts.com
Group Captain and the Mandrakes 2013
http://www.gcmband.com/
The Surfside IV: 2002-2005, 2008-2009
the Del-Vamps: 1992-1999, 2006-2007
http://www.dblcrown.com/delvamps.html

Deep hollowbody jazz boxes often have unattached bridges. I have one of these and it is very well built, nicely detailed and sounds great with P90-style pickups. It's inexpensive enough that all sorts of pickups can be stuck under its covers. It sounds great with my Space Echo and Quilter MP-200.

http://www.cortguitars.com/_webapp_3832420/Source-BV

This is new and looks especially interesting.

http://www.cortguitars.com/_webapp_4134973/Sunset_I

This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got.

Last edited: Feb 25, 2012 00:23:13

There is absolutely nothing whatever wrong about a thinline hollowbody with a floating bridge. Anyone who advises you to screw, pin, or otherwise affix it to the top of your guitar is not giving you good advice. They are just fine. Put a small piece of a latex rubber balloon under there if you find it slips and absolutely must; if it is shaped properly congruent to the shape of the top, it will not move when strung with med-tension approx. 11-ga strings or above.

SSIV

Now, that said...if you find the bridge wandering because the guitar is in need of a neck reset, then it is quite another story. It is quite fixable, though, inthe hands of a skilled guitar guy. You will, of course, be very glad that the previous owner did not pin the bridge when you attempt to make the repair!

SSIV

Matt22 wrote:

elreydlp wrote:

None whatsoever. As great a luthier as Roger
Rossmeisl
was; because of his choice of tailpiece on the
Rickenbacker 12-strings (which makes re-stringing an
all-day project) and his association with the
Coronado,
his soul is burning in Hell!

LOL

I'd stay away from the Coronado if I were you. There
are all kinds of issues with the bridge because it's
not screwed down, and this makes it nearly impossible
keep a good setup. I'd go for an Epiphone Casino with
a Bigsby if you're looking for a hollow-body similar to
the Coronado.

Great minds think alike! I am a FENDER guy, but these are words of wisdom!

As an aside, a dealer who I had asked to keep an eye out for a Fender XII called me to say he had one. I rushed to see it (a 3-hour drive), and when I got there, it was a Coronado XII (I always asked after that!). It was in mint condition. It had never been played-probably because it was unplayable. Between the neck set and the tension of 12 strings on a 25-1/2 scale tuned to pitch; at the seventh fret, the strings were at least 1-1/2 inches off the fret board.
A bunch of us were riding to a guitar show in LA in my van. A buddy had a Coronado in good shape he was taking to the show. I advised him that its best use would be as a substitute for a passenger-side airbag (my van didn't have one). Better to crush a Coronado than your ribcage!

The Coronado makes a Jaguar look like-a Strat!

I am listening, but trust me, this thing was set up to kill. It looked brand new and it does make me wonder if the previous owner couldn't set it up and never played it. Almost no fret wear. As I said, it played, looked, felt, and sounded great!!!

I am listening, but trust me, this thing was set up to kill. It looked brand new and it does make me wonder if the previous owner couldn't set it up and never played it. Almost no fret wear. As I said, it played, looked, felt, and sounded great!!!

BTW..anybody here own one of these? What is the source of the bad experiences? I did uncover another thread where the owners were pretty happy:

coronado thread

I dig the looks of a Fender Coronado. I would trust a set of 12s and a good set up to get this one in playing shape.
image

https://kingpelican.bandcamp.com/

Last edited: Feb 25, 2012 01:38:00

BTW..anybody here own one of these? What is the source of the bad experiences? I did uncover another thread where the owners were pretty happy:

I own one, a '67 in the Wildwood II finish. It's a flawed beast, but not without its' charm. It's actually the first guitar I ever paid more than 99 bucks for, and has been played by both me and my siblings in various bands for the past 20-plus years.

The grousing about bad neck sets comes from when these guitars age; the block that the bolt-on neck attaches to can come unglued, throwing off the action and tuning stability. A good luthier can fix this, it's not too big a deal.

The real bugaboo with Coronados is the pickups. Made by Dearmond, they are universally underpowered, bright (often painfully so), frequently microphonic, and prone to feeding back in difficult to control ways. Some of this is exacerbated by the Mustang-style bridge, which steals away a lot of sustain, and makes the guitar more prone to "howlround".

Furthermore, the pickups are difficult to fix or rewind. Early ones are riveted together, and later ones are dipped in Epoxy. Either way, it's a real bear to take apart and put back together.

Now, having said all that, A properly set up Coro, if treated like any other Hollowbody guitar, can be a fun axe in a surf band. You can't play real loud, or have to keep your amp far enough away that you can control the feedback, watch your treble settings, and realize that some overdrives and fuzzes can be an issue when used with the boogers.

I currently play in a Link Wray inspired Surfabilly band; my main axe is a big ol' Dearmond T-400 hollowbody, but my Coro is the designated backup guitar. The Wildwood is brighter and a tad softer than the big D, but the only thing I really have to deal with differently is feedback control when a fuzz or overdrive is engaged; With the Dearmond, I can mute the strings to stop the feedback. With the Coro, you can mute the strings, but it might just keep on howling.

If you really want this guitar, I'd bring in your amp and your pedals and see how it deals with these things at club volume. If it's not an issue, there ya' go.

--Crispy

PS--Here's a "lounge shot" I did with my Coro a few years back:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/12169575@N06/6151736552/in/photostream

Crispy: That's cool...I have a T-400 also. You don't see many of these around. It makes me happy that you play it as your #1. I have played mine in a surf band as well. Not as useful as a solid body guitar for me as it is a little harder to "dig in" for some of the fast stuff. But I like the sound a lot. Again, the floating bridge of that one is no problem. The neck angle is, of course, a wee bit more forgiving than the Coronados I have tried.

You are right, also: hollowbodies have to be treated a little differently. They are a little more sensitive to abuse but big the payoff is the sound. It can be very pleasing.

Back to the Coronado, I would be very intrigued if I saw a player in a surf combo bust out this guitar, for example:

image

SSIV

Last edited: Feb 25, 2012 17:44:15

I had an early '67 for about 6 months last year, and everything Crispy says above was my experience too. I liked how it played, liked it's looks, but it sounded not too great. I don't know what I was expecting, but it didn't have any 'oohmpf', no matter what I did to it. I think I sold it to raise funds for a vintage Jag - at least thats what I'm telling myself now.

It was a very 'un-Fender-y" Fender guitar. Still, I think they are pretty cool, just not for me at that time.

"You can't tell where you're going if you don't know where you've been"

Most of my guitars have floating bridges. It's not a problem unless you're using 9s or something.

http://www.reverbnation.com/thedeadranchhands

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZEW74mHjQk

When I started getting into guitars at the age of 13, i found a 1968 Fender catalog among my dad's old papers. I used to pour over that catalog for hours and hours (but stupidly sold it some years ago!). One thing I remember distinctly is the Coronado Wildwood series, and thinking that those guitars were just SOOO BEAUTIFUL! I actually still do. I've never even seen a Coronado in person, but man, I don't think it gets much prettier than this (and I don't even like semi-hollow guitars!). (Crispy, that's a gorgeous guitar you've got!)

image

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
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The Madeira Channel on YouTube

Last edited: Feb 25, 2012 21:47:49

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