Buying a resophonic guitar

Subject: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,GUEST: Jack Cook
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 01:35 PM

Hello everyone, I've just discovered this great forum and would like to ask some advice. I'm looking to buy a metal-bodied resonator guitar, one of the lower-priced brands (can't afford a National) and have narrowed my choices down basically to Johnson or Dean. If anyone has any experience, wisdom, advice, etc. about these two brands I'd sure like to hear it, especially as regards playability/action, tone, etc. I've heard that the Johnson cones are not that good and that they should be replaced with better ones; is that true of the Deans as well? I did try out a Dean acoustic guitar (not a resonator) in a shop recently and wasn't impressed with the action or the tone, but I think it needed some setup work on the neck, so it was hard to judge. I'm mainly interested in the "Style O" guitars.

Anyway, looking forward to hearing from some of you on this.

thanks, Jack Cook

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,Mark Ross on the road
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 05:17 PM

Check out Regal brand resophonic guitars on the Elderly Instruments website;

www.elderly.com

Mark Ross

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,CraigS
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 05:51 PM

I've been looking for a cheap resonator guitar for months,but i haven't found anything exactly right. The best overall was a Regal, but it wasn't very loud. The best value deals appear to be second-hand Dobros, but in GB these are rare.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 06:41 PM

I didn't know Dean made a metal-bodied reso. I have one of their wood-bodied models, which is nice for the price, but not world-class. But we're talking metal-bodied here....

I remember reading years ago that while Johnson's wood-bodied resos were made in Asia, the metal-bodied models were made in the Czech Republic. Is this still true? If so, they're probably a cut above Dean's which are doubtlessly really built by Samick in Korea. If Johnson has moved their metal-body production to Korea, they are probably made in the same factory that the Deans are, so there's not gonna be much difference except maybe some cosmetic stuff like the headstock.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Tweed
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 08:22 PM

Check out E-bay for metal bodied Regals. I got one and the Boberdz followed suit soon after. No complaints from me on them. They ain't Nationals but they good enough to suit my needs. Plus I got away with buying the thing and didn't get in too much trouble with Mz.Tweed. (who says I have enough guitars now. We'll see;~)

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Bobert
Date: 16 Aug 02 - 09:17 PM

Yeah, what Tweezer said! These Regals are great instruments, play smooth as silk and got plenty of bark. Put a set of nickle strings (.013's) and get ready to rock. You won't need another reso. You might want to upgrade the cone but the one it comes with has plent of horsepower. I played a '32 National for 9 months before getting my Regal and Iz here to say the the Regal sounds and plays better than that National. Got to ebay and get one in your hands for less that $400 shipped to your door...

Danged, you'd think that Tweezer and I were getting a cut, but we ain't, Just satisfied players.

Bobert

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST
Date: 17 Aug 02 - 01:36 PM

Thanks for all your input, folks. Yes, Dean does make a metal body one, but I haven't tried it yet. I've tried a couple of Dean acoustics, but wasn't severely impressed by them (I'm comparing them to my '64 Gibson acoustic, after all), but they played decently. Haven't tried the Johnsons either. I've found a store that has both in stock, though, so I'm going up there (about an hour and a half away) to try them. I've seen the Regals on the web, but a friend of mine told me Johnsons were a little better, that's why I'm looking at them. Maybe I'll rethink my strategy, though and see if I can try one out somewhere.

thanks, Jack Cook

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Les B
Date: 17 Aug 02 - 01:42 PM

I got a Johnson metal body a little over a year ago, at Elderly, and have been satisfied with it. I don't play it like a dobro, though, just a fingerpicked guitar.

Everyone tells me it's got an amazing mellow tone out front. It also holds its own in an "animal" jam, where everybody is pretty loud and wild.

I happened to get mine on sale for a $100 less than what Elderly normally charges, so I thought it was worth the money.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Blues=Life
Date: 17 Aug 02 - 09:10 PM

I've got the wood bodied Deab GCE Electric Resonator, and I love the thing. I've played the metal bodies, and for the money, they're a very good value. I do, however, admit coveting a "California Girl" Dobro metal body I played at the Gibson Bluegrass Showcase store in Nashville. Easy as pie to play, great sound, and a naked girl on the back. Throw in a cold beer, and I would be one happy camper.

LOL

Blues

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Bobert
Date: 17 Aug 02 - 09:41 PM

Hey, now I moght be wrong here and if so it won't be the first time but I think the Regal is a Johnson. My Regal came in a box clearly marked Johnson and from the looks of the box, it hadn't been opend. But, like I said, I might be wrong...

No matter, Tweezer is a purdy accomplished bluesman and Iz about half as accomplished and we both love the Regals and they're getting great reviews from folks that I talk with that have played 'em so... get with the program. The prices are going to go up once they have a foothold so even if you later want to buy a National, you should be able to seel the Regal at a profit, or a least, not a loss.

Bobert

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Venthony
Date: 18 Aug 02 - 07:08 AM

Dear Folks,

I bought a wooden-body Regal from a full-time pro in Branson, and it is simply a wonderful instrument. Mellow in the right tunings and a really distorted dog in open E, etc. Just a really nice guitar-- even in concert tuning. Nice action, with or without a slide. You could play a coffeehouse/bookstore gig and use it as your only guitar.

You can get these things for around $400, and I think the rest of it, National and so forth, is just trademark and bragging rights.

I DO like Fender's attempt, with the brand-name-like "F" holes. Clever.

Tony

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Tweed
Date: 18 Aug 02 - 09:10 AM

I'm pretty sure that the Johnsons and Deans are made of brass and plated. The Regals are made of steel and that might make the difference in the sound (and weight). They surely are well constructed. I've had mine apart and the inside looks nearly as good as the outside. Bracing is well made and the neck has not budged in the year I've had it in South Florida tropics. Good product,good sound, good price. Get 'em before they realize what they've got and raise the price on us;~)

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,james
Date: 18 Aug 02 - 11:18 AM

Hi if you're in uk worth checking out the resonator centre in lonodn. www.resocentre.com. Loads of great guitars to suit all pockets, not a salesman just a satisfied customer.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: songs2play
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 03:02 AM

There are a few web sites with some budget resonators on

http://www.hobgoblin.com/local/home.htm

http://www.frailers.com/

http://www.sheehans.com/index.htm

http://www.resocentre.com/

Having tried quite a few (including the National and Dobro's), and found that I was governed by my price range, I got down to Ozark, Asbury and Gremlin. I must admit they all appear to have been made in the same place. BUT I could be wrong.

I am a great believer that if you are happy with the sound of the guitar - go for it. The name is sometimes not everything - I don't buy designer clothes, by the way, either.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,Red
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 04:58 AM

Where r u Jack ?

UK or USA

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Green Man
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 09:29 AM

Greetings,

I had a Regal, nice tone but not loud enough, actions was OK a nice mix for slide and fingr playing.

I now have an OZARK brass body nickel plated with gold fittings. (It looks a real tart). LOUD! yes, tonally its the best I have heard except for tri cones, then I would rather spend three grand on a secondhand BMW.

Have a look at the Ozark before you buy. Its a buiscuit resonator type and has a very vocal sound. I play mine witha heavy brass slide.

Am I happy with it, well yes in every way.

Happy Days and keep on Bluesing.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Grab
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 11:26 AM

Tweed, you sure the Regal is steel? Thought it was nickel-plated brass.

Tried the Regal, Johnson and Dean at Elderly last year, and the Regal was by far the best. The Dean had a thinner sound, and the Johnson sounded muddy and unclear. The Regal had the best depth and clarity of sound, and a great sustain. So I bought it! :-) Nationals sounded better, but at the price they should - the price was 4 times more though, and they certainly weren't 4 times better.

One note of warning - I've had some problems with the Regal. The bridge warped a bit, which screwed up the tuning. Elderly were good about it though and sent me a new bridge free of charge. I also have an intonation problem with mine which I can only fix by taking the neck off and shimming it out (so I've not done it yet!). I would recommend that you compare the 12th-fret note against the 12th-fret harmonic, and reject any guitar where the two don't match for all strings.

If you search for "resonator" or "reso" over the last couple of years, you'll find a bunch of stuff. "reso" will also show up "resolution" which comes up every New Year, but I'm sure you can figure out what's worth reading. :-)

Oh, and don't forget to run it with the heaviest strings your finger can manage, to get that nice rich tone.

Graham.

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,Jack Cook
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 03:14 PM

Hi Red,

I'm in the USA, in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. This past Saturday I went to a guitar shop in Cambridge (just North of Boston) and tried out a Dean and a Johnson. The Dean was a style O, which is what I'm after, but the Johnson was a tricone. I liked the Dean better than the Johnson, but it was sort of apples and oranges, since they weren't the same model. I've since been soured on the Johnson because i've read about some problems: the necks being too thin to support the weight of the body and breaking, the frets sticking out beyond the fingerboard and having to be filed off, and the nickel plating flaking off. So now I'm looking at the Regals. Almost everything I've heard or read about Regal has been good. I've compared the pictures of them with the Johnsons on Elderly's site, and Regal looks like the neck is beefier at the heel, which is where the Johnsons supposedly break, so I may go for one.

Jack

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: GUEST,ta2
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 03:47 PM

steel belly is fine......................but you need a sound hole for volume

Subject: RE: Buying a resophonic guitar
From: Tweed
Date: 19 Aug 02 - 09:01 PM

Hey Graham. Yeah mine's steel as advertised. I even took one of Mz.Tweed's magnetic fridge roosters and made sure;~)