JakeDobner wrote:

Surfgitar
I saw The Dillengers live and guitarist Rick Rossano had about 5 different guitars on stage. He alternated between guitars depending on the song and the sound he wanted.

I own a bunch of guitars but play a Strat in the band for the "one guitar fits all" thang. But I'd love to reach a point where I use multiple guitars onstage. (Maybe when we get roadies... )

The problem with that is that there is too much dead time when switching guitars. I'm sure everyone's been in an audience or on stage when it takes too much time between songs. It's happened to us and it pisses me off.

I concur. My rule is that I only take guitars that are versatile enough to do our entire repertoire with me to gigs. I realize that I lose something in the process but I've never had anyone complain that the sound of my guitar was no appropriate for the music we played. My main axe right now is a Gretsch 6120 DC which Surfs like a son of a gun but also does Rock/Country/Blues quite well.

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

There's no "right" or "wrong" answer to this particular debate, because every one of us has our own tastes when it comes to tone, but for what its worth, I'm exactly the opposite (from Synchro) in the sense that I'd own another Jag long before I'd own another Strat.

I have two Strats currently, an original vintage-white (now banana yellow) '62 that my Dad bought new in July of that year (probably worth a King's ransom), and a '56 Reissue (Time Machine), made new in 2003 that probably isn't worth $2K. Although one is maple and the other rosewood, both have absolutely 'stellar' tone. In fact, if blindfolded, one cannot tell them apart, audibly speaking.

However, their crisp, clean, vintage tone aside, they both lack the distinct "fatness" and chunky (primal sort of) bottom-end that my '62 AVRI Jag possesses. For lack of a better word, the Strat is just 'thinner'. To some, that single distinction doesn't matter much. To me, it matters plenty.

The best overall examples that I could offer-up as comparative tonal differences between these two sounds would be the following recordings, all of which are simply fantastic tunes in their own right, yet markedly different in tonality:

JAG: FAT-N-CHUNKY

1. Vintage: 'Goofy Foot' (The Lively Ones)
2. Contemporary: 'Morpheus' (Satan's Pilgrims)
3. Contemporary: 'Longboard Legato' (Slacktone)

STRAT: NICELY BRIGHT BUT ARGUABLY 'THIN'

1. Vintage: 'Miserlou' (Dick Dale)
2. Contemporary: 'Graciella of the Dunes' (Miles Corbin)
3. Contemporary: 'Return to Paia' (Aqua Velvets)

Last edited: Jun 28, 2012 19:52:17

My surf-twanger is a Yamaha SGV-300

and then a few more Yamaha guitars.

I'm a Yamaholic !!
XS1100

SG3000S SG50 SG35 VG-STD NSX-2000Exart SX60 WEDDINGTON-CUSTOM WEDDINGTON-CLASSIC AES500 AES720 AES800B SGV300 SE912A SA503TVL SLG100S FZ1000 RBX4A2 RGX-A2-WHITE RGX-A2-BLACK RGX-A2-RED RGX520FZ RGX420S-D6 AEX500 AEX500N PAC311MS PAC303-12 GX1 BX1

THR10 THR10C THR-10X RA50 TA30 TA70 TA90 TA120 G50-2-112 DG100-212 DG-130 G100-1head G100-2head G-100IIIhead B100-1head

Last edited: Jul 21, 2012 16:23:34

Hi everyone I'm Daryl a new member and this is my first post. Its taken me a while to read through this thread and there is some great stuff. I am kind of a Fender bigot as you can tell be my screen name. I prefer my 62 all original sonic blue Jag for surf. But I love my American Special Strat also I will included pics as soon as I figure out how ( That's my Jag as my Avatar). I am hoping to make the SG101 convention in August. I grew up in So Cal in the sixties and early seventies and Surf music is my roots.      

Hi I posted in the gear section that I bought a Dipinto Galaxie . This is my surf guitar. I owned a Sherwood Green Jaguar in 2001 and it was my favorite guitar of all time up to that point of my life after owning every guitar out there at one time but sadly I had unemployment running out and a sick dog that had to go to the vet and had to sell it. Thinking I would buy one again some day but of course the don't have them in that color anymore . I saw the Los Straitjackets play and heard that cool sound coming out of their Dipintos and had to have one . I popped DAddarios flat wounds .010 set on it and wall
the magic sound is there. SURF GUITAR! The funny thing is I also use it quite effectly in the bands I play in doing Rockabilly ,Country and all around fill in and jamming. This is one seriously cool fun guitar .It has a ton of sounds plays great and you can buy it at a price I used to pay for a guitar in the 60's . I am including a picture just for fun, no I don't wear this all the time but I had to get one for fun. My wife thinks I'm nuts . If you see them you will get the urge also!

No, Jimmy Page is not surfing at all; he is clearly making a rock guitar face in that photo. Surf guitarists make this kind of face:

Mike
http://www.youtube.com/morphballio

I was skeptical about the Dipinto at first, but I can tell you, from firsthand knowledge, that Rickvox is able to coax convincing Country and Rockabilly sounds from that guitar, in addition to some spanking surftones. All done sans wrestling mask.

The Exotics 1994-Current
The Chickenshack - www.wmse.org
www.thedoghouseflowers.com
www.uptownsavages.com

I can vouch for the DiPinto... I owned one for several years and now regret selling it. Excellent guitars!

Oh goodness.. I have to mke my way thru this whole thread. Finally i have input..

I've been playing over 35 years, i've been lucky to have a few nice guitars and hang on to them. All different kinds lending to different styles. I'll stick strictly on the surf though.

I associate surf with jazzmasters and jaguars. perhaps it was the surf movies, some of the photos and album covers i'd see. Matching Fenders. Certainly on a performance level i am not that narrow minded. anything goes as far as i'm concerned..i'm all for it.

i bought a new (and still have) a Squier Stratocaster wy back in 1983.. in black. Not very surfy in appearance. I still associate it with Ritchie Blackmore, et al..

So when i played surf, i'd pull out my SF Vibro Champ and plug in my 93 Duosonic reissue. Nice bright red color. the sparkly single coils, just great for plinking around, though missing vibrato... but it sufficed for years.

Enter all the excitement of the Squier Jaguar, Jazzmaster, Mustang... I prepped buy selling off a few things i didnt need. Followed all the forums, etc. Finally, a surf guitar i've always wanted.

I picked a white jag with tort. visually, my pinnacle of a surf guitar. The Beach Boys, chrome, flash, hotrods... Sonically, i wanted all the options for sound. In a live band setting, i don't know if all the sounds are completely useable for today's music.. my band i early punk/hard rock so prolly not.. But playing other stuff, yes. i like all those options.

I think the only time i ever played a jaguar was last summer at a store. just a couple minutes, not plugged in. One of the reissues with a mute. I was really apprehensive because the lsat guitar i bought and have the strongest connection too (beating out even the vintage) is a 201? Epiphone G-400 (stop rolling your eyes!). So would my jaguar merely be beautiful piece of playable art?

I went ahead and special ordered the guitar from Guitar Center before they were in stores or online (july 5) and it arrived on friday the 13th. It was cool to be the one to cut open the box and feast my eyes...Needless to say, i haven't been disappointed. I still have the stock strings, i don't want to take it down for a moment. I've been running it thru the same small Vibro Champ -too busy playing to pull out the other amps.

to finalize the setup, i added the BOSS/Fender 63 reverb pedal (happily purchased from this forum's Jordan... he's a good guy!) and the simple setup -reverb and trem... haven't stopped playing.

there you have it!

Buzzard wrote:

My surf-twanger is a Yamaha SGV-300

My SGV-300 just got a little warped. The high E isn't really in tune with the rest. I have to get that fixed soon because I just can't live without it.