No one wants to talk about guitars here? ;-)
I thought so....
Back from IBMA a day early. Arrived home to a gig cancellation.
It was good to be back with Paul for the show. Just like the olden days. Here are the highlights as I recall:
As far as I can tell, Beard was the only builder present although Elderly was there with a few guitars. Gold Tone was dealing with "Ian" so, understandably was a no show.
The Beard booth: 10 squarenecks, one roundneck reso and 4 Deco acoustics.
Old/New models and some rebranding:
The ever popular E and R models are now the "Legecy E/R" . Hard to believe that they've been available for 30 years or so and still popular. The Mahogany R, in its standard config is now an open body guitar, as the E has always been.
Contrary to rumor the Deco 37 & 57 is NOT discontinued. The Deco 27 has been dropped.
The big surprise, at least for me?
The spankin' new "Radio Standard E" and "Josh Swift Standard" models! HOLY COW!! I was never much of a maple E fan but these guitars, both birch laminate are frankly "awesome" imho. Both guitars lean towards the contemporary and are super articulate (with my right hand). The RS E was particularity addictive ;-) to play. The "named" players that played it were really impressed and I predict they will be popular at $2,900 retail.
Here's the booth inventory for squarenecks:
Legacy E
Legacy R (older with soundwell)
Legacy R (new design)
Belle (active/passive cones)
Jerry Douglas Black Beard
AB (Anders Beck)
Josh Swift Standard
Josh Swift Signature
Odyssey
Parts news:
Hold on to your hats... The new "Vesper" cone and spiders. Polymer top coat. Jerry, And and others have been testing these for over a year and have them now in their guitars. Paul will use these in all of his "high" end guitars and available as options in others. Increased longevity and a bit more "brilliant" sounding than the Legend. The polymer eliminates aluminun oxidation/tarnish where oxygen meets the cone.
So why this cone? You have to understand that unlike us mere mortals, many "names" replace cones once/twice PER YEAR. So, this cone allows for them to replace at 2-3 year intervals. A huge improvement. You may/may not feel the need. Retail = $150/cone, $150 spider. I'll have a Vesper in my Odyssey in the next few weeks.
Other non-Beard news:
Paul, Jerry and other endorsers will be testing a new D'Addario formulation. Coated like the discontinued EXP42, the new strings will have a thinner, MORE durable coating over (I think) phos/bronze.
That's what I recall from the week. I'll apologize in advance for any inaccuracies.
The opinions about specific guitars are mine alone.
YMMV
hp
Edited by - hlpdobro on 10/02/2022 09:00:18
I don't recall the Legacy cone.
Oops..My bad. "Legend Cone" Corrected.
Thanks
Edited by - hlpdobro on 10/02/2022 08:46:41
Many thanks Howard, for posting this since many of us were not able to attend.
Sounds like a new revolution in the 'cone' catagory is coming upon us..
And... with new models coming, I predict a new resergence in reso players especially when the new models will be seen and heard by players on U-TUBE. .
Many thanks again for your review !
I don't think anyone needs to worry about the future of players. There were an incredible number of (very) young players that frankly were astounding.
Paul and I were amazed at one player that "rocked" the booth even as he was young enough to struggle a tad with the physicality of playing.
Age?
9
Was there any mention of Vesper tricones?
Thanks for the report, Howard!
Will you be at Resosummit this year?
No Reso Summit for me I'm afraid.Too much happening on the music front this year and at the time I had to commit Paul was unsure about what his plans were.
Y'all have a great time!!
h
quote:
Originally posted by wlgiiiWas there any mention of Vesper tricones?
Ahhh.. No mention I'm afraid. I just don't know what (if any) plans are.
h
I've had the Vesper cone and spider in my guitar since ResoGat and can personally say the tone and sustain, as well as volume, are phenomenal. The difference is very noticeable.
Oh yeah, and those new D'addario strings are sweet too. I was able to get a couple sample sets and have been impressed.
Thanks Luke.
It was terrific to see and hear you again!
h
Thanks for the info on the Vesper cone and spider (though I have been trying to figure out how they came up with the name).
I'm still waiting for the Radio Standard website that was originally scheduled to debut last spring. We know that Howard was very impressed with the sound and that the guitars are made from the Finnish birch laminate as used in for example the Mike Auldridge model. But that's about all most of us know.
Since Paul at some point I'm guessing is still planning on a separate website for these guitars, there must be a series of unique features beyond the wood and the finishes that would warrant the time and expense of a new website.
You'd be guessing wrong.
Patience. Their expertise is guitar building and not web development. The RS's have actually been shipping & selling for a while.
h
I'm not sure about what I'm guessing wrong. I was guessing (or speculating) there is still going to be a separate Radio Standard website. Not a right or wrong question.
Do they handle all of their website creation and maintenance in house?
I'm well aware that the guitars have been out there for awhile and I've even seen online a few which have come up for sale on the used market.
Guitar Sanctuary in particular in Texas has loaded up on the Radio Standard models along with their usual assortment of drool worthy Beards.
The only Beard dealer in my part of the country that is even a drivable distance is Gryphon in the Bay Area, and it's not convenient - two hours or more each way, so I haven't been able to check out any Radio Standards in person.
And though I'm not in the habit of checking out their website on too regular a basis, when I have looked, there has yet to have been a Radio Standard in stock.
Edited by - MarkinSonoma on 10/03/2022 16:10:05
I'll just repeat:
"Patience. Their expertise is guitar building and not web development. The RS's have actually been shipping & selling for a while."
Have a fine day.
h
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