Please note this is an archived topic, so it is locked and unable to be replied to. You may, however, start a new topic and refer to this topic with a link: http://www.resohangout.com/archive/55648
rhodesbennett - Posted - 08/23/2021: 09:08:30
Hi All, I am considering purchasing a round neck Tricone Resonator from Royall. Their website lists them as being in Santa Barbara but when I called they are all on line with part of the work being done in Colorado and assembly in a nearby town of Oxnard. Leaning more towards the wood Tricone. I have seen quite a few Youtube videos of the Royall Tricones and they sound pretty good. Also they are in my price range of $800-1,000. Wanted to see if you all have had experience with the Royall line and what your thoughts are. As noted in my below addendum, would love to hear your thoughts on other brands too, Republic, Gretsch, National, Others?. Would be willing to go up to $1,500 if needed to avoid quality issues. Cheers, Rhodes.
Edited by - rhodesbennett on 08/23/2021 16:01:17
2BUCKS - Posted - 08/23/2021: 11:00:10
Hey Dan, welcome to RHO. Here is a link to an archived thread where I give a short review of my round neck Royal Triconestien (wood body / brass top) hybrid. resohangout.com/topic/53911. What I would add to the review now is that the tuners are low budget and work ok but there is some slop in the buttons. The fret ends were a bit sharp so I needed to dress them with a file a little. Also, when I opened it up after some time passed, I noticed the bridge saddle and slots were crudely shaped so I made a new saddle. Like I said before, mine is a round neck but its currently set up for lap style playing, but the tone is great on both setup's. It helps people to give you their opinions if you specify round neck or square neck in your post just so you know for future posting. Also you can search the archived threads by clicking on the search icon in the menu on the left side of this page. All that said I think I got a good guitar at a fair price.
rhodesbennett - Posted - 08/23/2021: 13:24:46
Thanks Steve! Greatly appreciate your information on this and the issues that you ran into. To answer your question, I am interested in the round neck and not the square neck version. I will definitely be mindful of the quality issues that you ran into. Wondering if you and others have experience with other brands such as Republic, Gretsch, (others?) that have better quality control. Would be willing to pay a little more, up to $1,500 if needed to get a quality instrument that didn't need a lot of tweeking. Cheers Dan
Iceman6937 - Posted - 08/23/2021: 14:07:34
I believe Republics are produced in the same factory as Royalls. Final setups and tweaks are done and/or controlled by the dealers. The QA between round and square necks should be quite similar.
Edited by - Iceman6937 on 08/23/2021 14:08:38
wlgiii - Posted - 08/23/2021: 14:56:32
I bought a Regal RC-51 tricone (roundneck) some years ago. It took a couple visits to the luthier to get things right- fret dressing, setup, etc.; but it has done just fine since.
Edited by - wlgiii on 08/23/2021 14:56:49
Linkous - Posted - 08/25/2021: 23:24:56
quote:
Originally posted by Iceman6937
I believe Republics are produced in the same factory as Royalls. Final setups and tweaks are done and/or controlled by the dealers. The QA between round and square necks should be quite similar.
Royall, Republic, Paramount, Michael Messer, ... All from the same Chinese factory: Mao Guitars
rhodesbennett - Posted - 08/26/2021: 07:04:13
Thanks Linkous, you are correct, all made by Mao in China! Thanks for the information on this. In researching this topic it appears that the real high end guitars are still made in the US and also Japan with the lower end, more budget conscious in China. Recognizing that I can't afford (or deserve at this point!) a 4K resonator made in the US, I will need to opt for one of the Mao versions. Wondering if there is any difference in brand quality or customer service amongst Royall, Repubic, Michael Messer, Paramount, etc? Also, availability is a little sketchy at this time due to COVID impact on the market so I should be content with even getting one. I suppose it doesn't matter very much since I am a part time player and I am sure one of these less expensive models will do me just fine. I have a good local luthier who can help me tweak it to make it right.
wlgiii - Posted - 08/26/2021: 07:12:10
Those were my exact same thoughts when I got the Regal; and, it has indeed done me just fine.
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