Thinning the herd.........

[Bucster752]

I decided long ago that one great guitar is all I really need.......but which one? In my quest to find it, over the last year and a half I've bought two different Collings electrics (a Statesman LC and a 290DC-S), two Stratocasters (a CS 1970 big headstock and a CS '57 LTD) and a CS '55 Telecaster. Both Collings and one of the Strats are gone......and now it's time for the last Strat to go. It's a very fine example of the model but it doesn't hold a candle to the Telecaster. The big 'U' neck is just so right for me and makes the Strat neck feel very foreign. So the Tele stays.....

And the same for amplifiers. Been through two Swart amps (an AST and a Mod 84), a Mesa Boogie California Tweed, a Marshall 1974X a Marshall Origin 20C, and a Fender Princeton Reverb LTD. All good amplifiers for sure, but the Swarts and the Mesa are long gone.....the 1974X is on a short leash and will be sold soon. So the herd is trimmed down to this: one guitar and a pair of low-powered combo amps. I'm old school for tone and these two with this guitar hit the nail on the head for me.

 

[MTPoteet]

Excellent!

 

[Skydog1010]

I would hang on to that #1 Randall too.

 

[Lef T]

Nice lefty !

 

[Gimble]

I’m about the same but flipped, two guitars and one amp.

 

[Bucster752]

I would hang on to that #1 Randall too.

Absolutely. Had this one for several years now..........a 1968-69 Model 1 fighter with original sheath & stone. Pretty cool old piece as cold steel goes.

 

[Old Plank]

That's a nice trio you've settled upon!

 

[Cyberi4n]

I decided long ago that one great guitar is all I really need.......but which one? In my quest to find it, over the last year and a half I've bought two different Collings electrics (a Statesman LC and a 290DC-S), two Stratocasters (a CS 1970 big headstock and a CS '57 LTD) and a CS '55 Telecaster. Both Collings and one of the Strats are gone......and now it's time for the last Strat to go. It's a very fine example of the model but it doesn't hold a candle to the Telecaster. The big 'U' neck is just so right for me and makes the Strat neck feel very foreign. So the Tele stays.....

And the same for amplifiers. Been through two Swart amps (an AST and a Mod 84), a Mesa Boogie California Tweed, a Marshall 1974X a Marshall Origin 20C, and a Fender Princeton Reverb LTD. All good amplifiers for sure, but the Swarts and the Mesa are long gone.....the 1974X is on a short leash and will be sold soon. So the herd is trimmed down to this: one guitar and a pair of low-powered combo amps. I'm old school for tone and these two with this guitar hit the nail on the head for me.

View attachment 1056105

The origin is a great amp for sure, here’s my 50w Head and Cab, along with my keeper Tele! Great choices!

I find myself loving my Pro Junior atm, to the extent that I’ve just commissioned a ‘twin’ from a Welsh cabinet builder using a donor ProJunior amp. I have three other guitars that I’ll probably never sell, but really don’t play that much…

(By ‘twin’ I mean he’s building me a 2x10 tweed cabinet to handle a ProJunior chassis)

 

[Joe M]

Buc, good to see you here on TDPRI, noticed you had posted on another forum about you getting rid of all your acoustics. Now this, wow, you sure are cutting back. FWIW, you’ve kept the right guitar.

 

[8bit]

I have an Origin 20 as well. Such a fantastic amp. And not just "for the price". I also have an AC15 and a Jazz Chorus. The JC is probably about to go as I never really play it.

I'd like to get down to 2 guitars (from 4) as well. In my case the tele wouldn't make the cut. It'd definitely be my SG Junior and Jazzmaster. But idk, haven't quite been ready to pull the trigger on moving the others just yet.

 

[Bucster752]

The origin is a great amp for sure, here’s my 50w Head and Cab......

Indeed! The Origins are quite nice. I changed the stock speaker out for a Celestion Gold and it seems to have tightened everything up. (I ordered one of those block logos as well to change the script on this combo!)FWIW, you’ve keep the right guitar.

.....haven't quite been ready to pull the trigger on moving the others just yet.

I hear ya. Not easy to let go of things like these even if they're just "in the quiver". Good to move stuff not being made use of, though.....let someone else enjoy it.

 

[Skydog1010]

Absolutely. Had this one for several years now..........a 1968-69 Model 1 fighter with original sheath & stone. Pretty cool old piece as cold steel goes.

All the 1960's I've seen had sheaths that weren't as nice as your incredible find.

 

[Slip Kid]

I decided long ago that one great guitar is all I really need.......but which one? In my quest to find it, over the last year and a half I've bought two different Collings electrics (a Statesman LC and a 290DC-S), two Stratocasters (a CS 1970 big headstock and a CS '57 LTD) and a CS '55 Telecaster. Both Collings and one of the Strats are gone......and now it's time for the last Strat to go. It's a very fine example of the model but it doesn't hold a candle to the Telecaster. The big 'U' neck is just so right for me and makes the Strat neck feel very foreign. So the Tele stays.....

And the same for amplifiers. Been through two Swart amps (an AST and a Mod 84), a Mesa Boogie California Tweed, a Marshall 1974X a Marshall Origin 20C, and a Fender Princeton Reverb LTD. All good amplifiers for sure, but the Swarts and the Mesa are long gone.....the 1974X is on a short leash and will be sold soon. So the herd is trimmed down to this: one guitar and a pair of low-powered combo amps. I'm old school for tone and these two with this guitar hit the nail on the head for me.

View attachment 1056105

What did you not like about the California Tweed? I’m not normally a Mesa guy but am interested in it because of the selectable power mode. I would like to get an amp that can sound good clean at a lower volume home use.

 

[Bucster752]

What did you not like about the California Tweed? I’m not normally a Mesa guy but am interested in it because of the selectable power mode. I would like to get an amp that can sound good clean at a lower volume home use.

First, like every Mesa I've owned in the past (Mark III, Studio 22, RectoVerb), it sounded sterile. Clean....yes, very much so.....too much so for my ears. Hard to describe but for me there is something missing in the character of a Mesa tone. Not to say they are not a well-built amplifier and work marvelously for many, many players. But not me. My little PRRI has a clean tone that shames the Cali Tweed....there's something indescribable in the tone that the Mesa does not have. Of course this is but my opinion and you may well perceive the Cali Tweed tone as magnificent.
Secondly, I do not now nor have I ever cared much for master volume amps. I much prefer an amp in the 10-20watt range with simple tone controls and one volume that can be cranked without killing those before it.
(The Marshall Origin 20 is an exception as this one seems to work somehow differently than others. Another of those I-hear-it-but-I-can't-explain-it things, I suppose.)
And lastly........the damn thing was heavy! I'm old and I don't like heavy.

 

[Tone Quest]

There is a lot to be said for "keeping it simple". Great choice in gear.

 

[Slip Kid]

First, like every Mesa I've owned in the past (Mark III, Studio 22, RectoVerb), it sounded sterile. Clean....yes, very much so.....too much so for my ears. Hard to describe but for me there is something missing in the character of a Mesa tone. Not to say they are not a well-built amplifier and work marvelously for many, many players. But not me. My little PRRI has a clean tone that shames the Cali Tweed....there's something indescribable in the tone that the Mesa does not have. Of course this is but my opinion and you may well perceive the Cali Tweed tone as magnificent.
Secondly, I do not now nor have I ever cared much for master volume amps. I much prefer an amp in the 10-20watt range with simple tone controls and one volume that can be cranked without killing those before it.
(The Marshall Origin 20 is an exception as this one seems to work somehow differently than others. Another of those I-hear-it-but-I-can't-explain-it things, I suppose.)
And lastly........the damn thing was heavy! I'm old and I don't like heavy.

Thanks for your insight, it is very helpful!

 

[tho618]

Minimalism can be a great thing!

 

[msalama]

If I had to get rid of all but one, this would stay. A perfect guitar for me and I love the chunky neck. Sounds great too, whichever genre or style.

 

[SampsonRustic]

I appreciate the effort to thin down. I would highly recommend playing the SV20 before you throw in the towel and keep the origin though - that amp blew my mind and I will definitely get one once I thin down a bit myself.