If I had the dough to blow, I'd definitely pick up one of these babies:
http://www.jerryjonesguitars.com/Master%20sitar.htm

Ryan
The Secret Samurai Website
The Secret Samurai on Facebook

I used a friend's Jerry Jones Master Sitar on "Satellites Over Praha", and "Valley of the Kings" from our Surf vs the Flying Saucers CD. I really fell in love with it, and would like to get one someday. Jerry Jones has a new sitar called the Supreme. It has 2 necks, a six string gtr, and a shorter fretless one. Both have the buzz bridges.

"The Neanderthals in Space" featured one on a tune. It's pretty cool.

Rev

Canadian Surf

http://www.urbansurfkings.com/

This post has been removed by the author.

Last edited: Sep 23, 2009 17:14:59

This post has been removed by the author.

Last edited: Sep 23, 2009 17:13:00

I agree with Ivan that electric Sitar is a spice that should be used judiciously. I would not want to make a meal of it. That being said, I have a Gibson SG with p-90's that I turned into a sitar. The bridge has six individually adjustable saddles for precise intonation. That makes all the difference. However, I also believe that very similar tones can be derived from a fretless guitar, and I have often considered pulling the frets out of a Jag, because you wouldn't want too long a scale length.

The problem with many electric sitar designs is a single bridge saddle for all six strings. This makes for difficult intonation adjustments. This is the case with the original Coral sitar and the Jerry Jones remakes. Also, an important aspect of the Sitar experience, the drone strings, is absent from the electric Sitar. The closest analogue I have seen was the Abe Wechter version made for John McLaughlin where the sympathetic strings ran under the main courses diagonally across the body. The little harp strings on the Jerry Jones do not sympathetically vibrate. The reason they do on a sitar is because the Sitar neck is like a double decker highway, with the sympathetic drone strings running the length of the neck under the frets. They vibrate in sympathy when the melodic strings are plucked. The frets are also moveable.

I have thought long and hard about how to create a true electricSitar analogue, and, in the end, it just seems too formidable a task. You need a neck with the center scooped out and frets that can stand on their own. Maybe with composite carbon fiber it could be done. Abe Wechter's version came close--but he is a master luthier--and anyway, the strings did not run the length of the neck. The electric Sitar I play is really more like a Sarod than a Sitar.

The best source for electric sitars is this guy in Germany named Gunther Eyb. He is a good guy. He helped me out several years ago and his work is pretty good.

http://www.eyb-guitars.de/Eyb-English/Home.html

On the other hand--great effects can be achieved with an electric oud. There are a few decent ones available, but they are spendy. I tried the Godin Glissentar, but the 25.5 fretless scale made accurate noting a near impossibility, and true oud scales are much shorter. Still, one day, I will get my hands on one.

seamoor
The problem with many electric sitar designs is a single bridge saddle for all six strings. This makes for difficult intonation adjustments. This is the case with the original Coral sitar and the Jerry Jones remakes.

The best source for electric sitars is this guy in Germany named Gunther Eyb.

On the other hand--great effects can be achieved with an electric oud. There are a few decent ones available, but they are spendy. I tried the Godin Glissentar, but the 25.5 fretless scale made accurate noting a near impossibility, and true oud scales are much shorter. Still, one day, I will get my hands on one.

I have a Jerry Jones electric sitar - a custom model without the "sympathetic" strings (I put that in quotes because they don't really work as sympathetics - they're too short) and it sounds pretty darned good - not like a real sitar, but as a sitar-y electric guitar it's pretty fun.

FWIW, McLaughlin and Wechter didn't consider the extra strings on that guitar you mention as sympathetics either - McLaughlin called them "accompaniment" strings and would strum them with a fingerpick on his right pinky. There is a cool clip on youtube of him explaining that instrument on British TV back in the day...

I also play oud, and while most oud scales are shorter than guitars, some Arabic ouds have scale lengths up to 24.5" (62cm). I've tried the Godin Glissentar our and I think the trick is not to try and play it like a guitar, but to tune and play it more like an oud - i.e., single note lines with open strings droning beneath. Fretless instruments are not really suited to playing chords, IMHO. Some virtuosos are doing it on the oud but it's durned hard!

The best electric oud I've played is built by Viken Najarian in LA. They are amazing.

Thanks for posting that link to Gunther Eyb. His stuff looks really interesting. Did you use a similar bridge on your electric sitar SG?

andreuthegiant
Probably offtopic, but here we go!

I don't know anything about sitars and stuff, but check this out, it sounds similar to a sitar (does it?):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8ZNnOklfzM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAn30uTBBDI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Wg-5_7fOgA

I asked google, and the name of this instrument is Saz (Persian).
More info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saz

But this one has a longhorn body with a lipstick!!

I saw Secret Chiefs 3 live two weeks ago, it was amazing! I am a big fan of Mr. Bungle, btw.

Cheers!

If they worked on their grooves they could even get somewhere.

The Exotic Guitar of Kahuna Kawentzmann

You can get the boy out of the Keynes era, but you can’t get the Keynes era out of the boy.