Earlier today I mentioned the 'acoustic guitars' in the Friday night sets at Cat's Art MusikCircus and here's one of them, the Godin Multiac ACS-SA that Joachin Gustav plays:
This is a really extraordinary guitar but it's not acoustic. The sound is produced electronically and this is where the guitar connoisseur stuff comes into it as some will call it perfect and others will hate it. The controls on the upper left are used for fine control over the sound by letting the player adjust high and low frequencies.
It looks like a solid-body guitar but there are chambers inside it. This still won't make it an acoustic guitar but it will change the way the guitar carries a note and this is a very big part of what gives a guitar a characteristic sound.
The cutaway on the body means the player can go way down the neck and very few acoustic guitars permit this. This is just one of many unusual features in the guitar.
I'm not sure if it's true for all models but at least some have an ebony fingerboard and I've raved multiple times about how much I love the feel of ebony.
Something that's very unusual is that it uses nylon strings and something even more unusual is that doesn't show any pickups.
The reason the above things are unusual is that this is a 'synth access' guitar which means it can be used to drive a guitar synthesizer such as a Roland GR-20. How Godin has managed to do that from a nylon string is your guess.
You've heard Joaquin Gustav and the beautiful, gentle sound he gets in his play so here's the instrument that does it.
Joachin was saving up for a Godin guitar so I'm not sure if this is the one or he is aiming at another one. I thought he had mentioned the Godin 5th Avenue Uptown GT but I'm not positive. That's another gorgeous guitar and it's quite similar to a Gibson ES-335. I've looked at it previously and would definitely go for the 5th Avenue over the ES-335 but that's a different article.
Update: Since writing the original article I've spoken with Joachin and confirmed the ACS-SA is exactly the same as his guitar and this is the other he plays, a Godin Fifth Avenue Kingpin:
The black color makes it a little more difficult to see the detail in the picture but this is the same color as Joachin's guitar so that's why I selected it.
Before making any decisions about a Godin Fifth Avenue, know that there are multiple models in this line. For example, the Uptown GT has a Bigsby tailpiece with a twang bar.
It may not look it but this guitar is actually more 'acoustic' than the ACS-SA as it's not a solid-body instrument. You can see the cutouts for the sound holes on each side of the body and the top of the guitar is contoured to enhance how they work. Unlike the ACS-SA, if you play this one without an amplifier, you will still be able to hear it.
The Kingpin will have a very different way it carries a note as, for one thing, it will be much more prone to feedback. A more subtle thing is the way the body vibrates when you play note. This makes a huge difference in how the guitar is played as it will have a large effect on how long it can sustain a note.
This guitar is quite similar to the Gibson ES-335 and the Gibson has multiple optional features as well. It also costs more. I'm heavily biased toward Godin but you owe it to yourself to play one if you're looking for a classic jazz blues guitar. Maybe you would still get the ES-335 but you would know for sure then it was the right move.
Thanks to Joachin for telling me about these as I think it's most interesting to know what instruments people have chosen.
It looks like a solid-body guitar but there are chambers inside it. This still won't make it an acoustic guitar but it will change the way the guitar carries a note and this is a very big part of what gives a guitar a characteristic sound.
The cutaway on the body means the player can go way down the neck and very few acoustic guitars permit this. This is just one of many unusual features in the guitar.
I'm not sure if it's true for all models but at least some have an ebony fingerboard and I've raved multiple times about how much I love the feel of ebony.
Something that's very unusual is that it uses nylon strings and something even more unusual is that doesn't show any pickups.
The reason the above things are unusual is that this is a 'synth access' guitar which means it can be used to drive a guitar synthesizer such as a Roland GR-20. How Godin has managed to do that from a nylon string is your guess.
You've heard Joaquin Gustav and the beautiful, gentle sound he gets in his play so here's the instrument that does it.
Joachin was saving up for a Godin guitar so I'm not sure if this is the one or he is aiming at another one. I thought he had mentioned the Godin 5th Avenue Uptown GT but I'm not positive. That's another gorgeous guitar and it's quite similar to a Gibson ES-335. I've looked at it previously and would definitely go for the 5th Avenue over the ES-335 but that's a different article.
Update: Since writing the original article I've spoken with Joachin and confirmed the ACS-SA is exactly the same as his guitar and this is the other he plays, a Godin Fifth Avenue Kingpin:
The black color makes it a little more difficult to see the detail in the picture but this is the same color as Joachin's guitar so that's why I selected it.
Before making any decisions about a Godin Fifth Avenue, know that there are multiple models in this line. For example, the Uptown GT has a Bigsby tailpiece with a twang bar.
It may not look it but this guitar is actually more 'acoustic' than the ACS-SA as it's not a solid-body instrument. You can see the cutouts for the sound holes on each side of the body and the top of the guitar is contoured to enhance how they work. Unlike the ACS-SA, if you play this one without an amplifier, you will still be able to hear it.
The Kingpin will have a very different way it carries a note as, for one thing, it will be much more prone to feedback. A more subtle thing is the way the body vibrates when you play note. This makes a huge difference in how the guitar is played as it will have a large effect on how long it can sustain a note.
This guitar is quite similar to the Gibson ES-335 and the Gibson has multiple optional features as well. It also costs more. I'm heavily biased toward Godin but you owe it to yourself to play one if you're looking for a classic jazz blues guitar. Maybe you would still get the ES-335 but you would know for sure then it was the right move.
Thanks to Joachin for telling me about these as I think it's most interesting to know what instruments people have chosen.
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