5th avenue players club

[bobthecanadian]

I was at the local Lon and McQuade today and played on of these guitars. What a pleasant surprise to pick up a guitar and it be the best sounding instrument in the store.

[androo]

And so...did it come with you?

[wangdangdoodle]

Originally Posted by fendertastic

ooh! Maybe santa will get me a membership to this club. Mi gusta.

Everyone who has this: Can you get a good Wes-like tone out of this when Amplified? through a fender clean amp?

It should be noted that Wes used to play an ES-125, and the 5th Avenue is prety much what the 125 was when it first came out and is based on that design. Even though I havn't tried the 5th Ave I'd be most confident you could get some Wes vibe!

[telefarmer]

Here is my new Godin Kingpin CW II--really enjoying it--

[gtrjoe]

What made you prefer the non cutaway?

I really liked the fuller tone of the non-cut. It is a really beautiful looking instrument. Also the price was a factor for me since I have a Gretsch 6120-1959 LTV, I really didn't need the double cut.

gtrjoe

[androo]

I'm bumping this one....because I love mine We've got a gig tomorrow night, and I just spent 3 days in the studio as well....lovely.

Went to 11-52 TI flats, and I like the more elastic feel now. I'm all over the place on strings with this sucker!

droo

[xjazzy]

I would love to hear a Kingpin II plugged and unplugged but there's no videos on the net yet :(

[androo]

Originally Posted by xjazzy

I would love to her a Kingpin II plugged and unplugged but there's no videos on the net yet :(

ditto! telefarmer pehaps?

[gtrjoe]

I would love to hear a Kingpin II plugged and unplugged

Here is a review Unplugged & Plugged in....

Guitar Fixation - Godin Kingpin

Went to 11-52 TI flats, and I like the more elastic feel now. I'm all over the place on strings with this sucker!

......thanks for the tip on the strings-I need to change them and was wondering what way to go!!!!

gtrjoe

[androo]

......thanks for the tip on the strings-I need to change them and was wondering what way to go!!!!

gtrjoe

No problem :) Like I said, I've been all the map with strings with this guitar, which is unusual for me.
Original PB's on there, of course...too acoustic feeling for what I'm using it for.
TI flats 13s...good feel, but too heavy for single note runs.
D'daddario Flat Tops 12's...they stayed on for about an hour. Too electric sounding.
Then to TI flat 12's...now I'm on TI flats in 11's.

I like it here. I can still pound out four on the floor, but single note lines are much more fluid for me with 11's. I don't perceive any loss from the lighter setup, and my bridge is staying in place.

[xjazzy]

Thanks gtrjoe but I ment the dual pickup version.

[Codinho]

One day, I hope to join this club.

[androo]

Well Codinho....

Looky here!

[Codinho]

Originally Posted by androo

Well Codinho....

Looky here!

Awfully tempting my friend, but I'm not quite ready for that day.

[xjazzy]

The guy from this video says it was done with a Godin Kingpin II:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezCIeIbGqW8

Really nice tone. Not so good recording...

[androo]

Thanks for the cool clip!

So....if you check out my little "reverbnation" link below my post, that first tune (Sail on home, Studio version) is my 5th Avenue through a 1974 Princeton Reverb with a Weber 10f125.

droo

[xjazzy]

androo, what a cool song! A lot of James Taylor there (I'm a huge fan).
Great, great sound.

[androo]

Originally Posted by xjazzy

androo, what a cool song! A lot of James Taylor there (I'm a huge fan).
Great, great sound.

Right on! Thanks so much for the nice words :) I'm also a big ole' JT fan...you are the 2nd person to make note of that similarity....I'm gonna take that as a compliment ;)

droo

[xjazzy]

Originally Posted by androo

Right on! Thanks so much for the nice words :) I'm also a big ole' JT fan...you are the 2nd person to make note of that similarity....I'm gonna take that as a compliment ;)

droo

Please do.
JT is one of the most amazing musicians ever and he's influence is huge.
I think you have that in your music in a good way.
It's not a copy. It's a "incorporation" of a great influence on your music writing.

(Hope my english makes some sense to you)

Another question: is the sound from that clip only electrified or does it has some acoustic sound too?
I'm really tempted with this guitar.
And the live clips? What guitar it that?

[androo]

Originally Posted by xjazzy

Please do.
JT is one of the most amazing musicians ever and he's influence is huge.
I think you have that in your music in a good way.
It's not a copy. It's a "incorporation" of a great influence on your music writing.

(Hope my english makes some sense to you)

Another question: is the sound from that clip only electrified or does it has some acoustic sound too?
I'm really tempted with this guitar.
And the live clips? What guitar it that?

Well, regarding your English....I didn't even think twice about it till you said something! I won't embarrass myself with my Portuguese.

Regarding the recordings...we isolated the amp and put a close mic on it, and then we put a condenser on the guitar itself, so you're getting a bit of both. And the live clips are the Godin too, but acoustic, neither of us plugged in. We were just rehearsing in the living room and I set up a couple of area mics.

[xjazzy]

androo, thanks for the info.
I was listening to the songs again and they brought one of my favorite records to mind: Belly of the sun from Cassandra Wilson.
Do you have any record from that project? I'd love to have it.

And to be on-topic again:
I'd love to know if the acoustic sound of the Kingpin II compares to the first version...

[androo]

Originally Posted by xjazzy

androo, thanks for the info.
I was listening to the songs again and they brought one of my favorite records to mind: Belly of the sun from Cassandra Wilson.
Do you have any record from that project? I'd love to have it.

And to be on-topic again:
I'd love to know if the acoustic sound of the Kingpin II compares to the first version...

No record yet....we're heading back to the studio next week to mix. Hopefully we'll have something ready by early next month! Thanks for the tip on Cassandra Wilson....I'd not heard too many tunes of hers.

I can't imagine they changed too much of the basic style of the Kingpin series, I'd hope the acoustic sound is pretty darn similar.

[jazztele]

gentlemen, how are we?

a friend of mine purchased a Kingpin CW and i finally got a chance to play it this weekend.

it has a little less tone unplugged and a little less volume than my no cut. not too noticable, but there. We both have ours strung with .11 gauge flatwounds, so bump that up a bit and maybe the volume will increase a bit.

it was a lovely guitar--the "wine" finish, if you will. I won't be ditching my non-cut kingpin anytime soon (gigged it again this weekend--this is probably the guitar i've gotten the most compliments on over the years, both about tone and comments like "that's a pretty guitar"), but if they ever did a cutaway single pickup model, i might trade up...

[androo]

All is well jazztele :)

That's good to hear about the diff with the two. I was kinda liking that wine finish myself. And oooo, now you've got something to think about...the single pup cutaway version. Melikes.

And I've also settled on 11 flats with this (for the time being ;)

[xjazzy]

jazztele that's good and bad news.
Good cause that's what I wanted. I was afraid the acoustic sound was not close to the Non-cut version.
It has some Django quind of sound that I like.
Bad cause they're too damn expensive compared to the non cut version!

[gtrjoe]

it has a little less tone unplugged

I agree, thats why I stuck with the non-cut. No regrets......

Joe

[xjazzy]

Wait, did I got it right?
I think jazz tele ment that the unplugged tone was very close to the non cut version! Didi I got it wrong?

[jazztele]

close but not quite. non-cuts a little louder and a little fuller.

i really don't think either would be much of an acoustic for performance. unless you strung 'em with 15's and jacked the action up half an inch...i'm still bringing my amp for any big band gigs.

[xjazzy]

The problem is the big price difference betweed the two. The Kingpin II costs almosts two non-cut around here!
Would I live without the extra positions and non cut?
I wish I could try them bouth...

[wangdangdoodle]

Originally Posted by Codinho

One day, I hope to join this club.

+1 has anyone living round Yorkshire, UK found a shop that sells em?

[gevans378]

Just received a new Kingpin.

So far, I'm loving it. It will be a nice complement to my other guitars. I bought it as a one-trick pony (for my fake jazz comping) but I think it is going to be a pretty versatile guitar.

[androo]

Welcome aboard! First post, and it's to join the club. Nice :)

Agreed, it's not so much a one trick pony.

[xjazzy]

I still want a Kingpin II review!

[leebman]

Originally Posted by wangdangdoodle

+1 has anyone living round Yorkshire, UK found a shop that sells em?

I tried one in Banks music in York, but managed to find a secondhand one at Foulds in Derby. Good luck in your search !

[Dan German]

Greetings all!

Well, I got the go-ahead to buy a new tele to celebrate my impending graduation, so I looked into every imaginable possibility within the stated budget. Just as I was about to make my final decision, I took a 5th Ave. off the wall and tried it. WOW!! What a sweet guitar! Instant change of plans! (Besides, I can build a partscaster; I don't fancy my chances at building an archtop...) In the $500-$800 range, the quality of the Teles I was looking at was generally good, but rather variable. I looked at five 5th Aves and four of the P90 models, and every one of them was flawless. Well, two of the black ones were being sold as blems, but neither I nor the salesman could figure out why. (I've seen another mention of a black blem; seems to be an issue?)

At r=16" the neck should feel too flat for me, but it doesn't. I tried the P90 and cutaway versions, but I liked the basic 5th Ave. the best. And the lack of a pickup doesn't bother me much, since I have a DeArmond Guitar Mike "monkey on a stick" sitting at home pining for an archtop. Acoustically, I find the 5th Ave. sounds bigger than it is, but with the DeArmond through my Delta Blues 2x10" it sounds IMMENSE!!

Sorry about the lack of pics, but my wifey has the camera in Hogtown, and you all know what they look like (I went with the Cognac Burst). I'll post pics with the pickup on it when she gets back.

[androo]

Originally Posted by Dan German

Greetings all...

At r=16" the neck should feel too flat for me, but it doesn't. I tried the P90 and cutaway versions, but I liked the basic 5th Ave. the best. And the lack of a pickup doesn't bother me much, since I have a DeArmond Guitar Mike "monkey on a stick" sitting at home pining for an archtop. Acoustically, I find the 5th Ave. sounds bigger than it is, but with the DeArmond through my Delta Blues 2x10" it sounds IMMENSE!!(I went with the Cognac Burst). I'll post pics with the pickup on it when she gets back.

Right on! Welcome to the club Dan. I'd love to hear what that DeArmond sounds like on the 5th Ave. Good call on passing on a tele that you can build yourself