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So, I noticed a 1941 Stromberg Master 400 on ebay, and the seller happened to be one of Los Angeles' best guitar stores. I'm super busy at work right now, and we're playing in Rochester this weekend, so I have had no time to spare to try to see it. Well, I finished my morning work quickly and managed to get in a long lunch, so I drove out to check it out.
Now, I've only played one or two Emperors, and one Triggs Stromberg copy (which I did NOT care for), so perhaps I wasn't fully prepared for the sheer mass of sound. But, damn.
The instrument has so much interior volume that it almost feels like playing a guitaron or a string bass. Not surprisingly, the single notes didn't really sing, and it was just "ok" for chord melody. But, chunking rhythm chords was profound. The projection of the D and G didn't cut like a knife, but rather filled the room with punch and fullness. Like a fist to the chest.
The guitar is truly massive, although the skinny waist and small upper bout help keep it from being uncomfortable. I'm a bigger dude, and I feel the guitar dwarfs me in that picture.
The true test was after I gave the guitar back to the sales guy. He had been cool enough to offer to take the photo of me above, and he asked if I'd be willing to take a picture of him with guitar. He played at little bit of rhythm on it, and I couldn't believe how loud it was when I was standing 4 feet in front of the guitar taking the picture. The "monitor"-ing of sound back to the player isn't anything close to the wall of sound coming off the top. I could totally see one of these actually being audible acoustically, sans amplification, at least in a vintage-sounding big band.
Sadly, I couldn't really get video of it, but if it's there next week when I get back, I may try to get some.
As Ferris Bueller says, "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up." Me, I'm still a long way away from being able to buy one of these.
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06-04-2015 02:03 AM
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Great photo! High action? Heavy strings? I guess it excels at the job it was designed to do.
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Not particularly high action and they didn't seem particularly heavy.
Now, I wonder what an even more mindful set up could do?
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Fantastic !
Not all Stromergs are alike, only the ones made after WWII have the diagonal bracing and will sound like that
of course, the large body will account for the large volume as well, but buying a G3 (the 'cheapest' model) at 17" wide will sound very similar at 1/3rd of the price . The M400 you have there will probably be around 40k, wheras you can find the G3 at around 12. Still a lot of money, but there is nothing else that sounds quite the same.
I owned one for a long time, and like you say not a great guitar for single note lines, but an excellent guitar for rythm and as loud as a cannon. Look at some of the (acoustic) clips of Ranger Doug on youtube. Maybe not everyones taste if youre not into western stuff, but you ll hear his Stromberg
pre war Strombergs are only interesting to certain collectors, because they say stromberg on the headstock, but have ladder bracing and dont sound all that well
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That's a really joyful picture of you with the guitar.
Yes, one of Los Angeles' best guitar stores, and only a few blocks from McCabe's, one of Los Angeles' OTHER best guitar stores (if you like flattop guitars).
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Please do take and post a video if it's still around when you next visit.
Great photo!
And thanks for sharing the story.
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"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
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Very cool
I still haven't checked to see if I won anything in this weeks Mega-millions ...
maybe I have a chance
LOL
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"Maybe not everyone's taste if you're not into western stuff, but you ll hear his Stromberg"
... unimaginable
check out the pics of this gorgeous burst model
https://reverb.com/item/24731-vintag...0-archtop-jazzLast edited by wcbeav; 06-04-2015 at 11:47 AM.
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>check out the pics of this gorgeous burst model
That 'gorgeous burst' is done quite recently, and the reason that it is so dark, is to cover up the third soundhole that was cut into the top prior to the refin.....
here is that same guitar with the hole patched and some artistic embellishments added, but before the refin
Last edited by fws6; 06-04-2015 at 12:44 PM.
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Originally Posted by fws6
>check out the pics of this gorgeous burst model
That 'gorgeous burst' is done quite recently, and the reason that it is so dark, is to cover up the third soundhole that was cut into the top prior to the refin.....
here is that same guitar with the hole patched and some artistic embellishments added, but before the refin
must have passed through the same shop that this guitar came through.
Gibson Super 400 | eBay
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Great thread. Would love to play one of those guitars someday, just to see what it's like.
Speaking of Ranger Doug, here's an interview with him in which he plays a few different guitars, including his favorite, a 1950 Stromberg Deluxe, 'the ultimate rhythm guitar.'
Last edited by MarkRhodes; 06-04-2015 at 02:38 PM. Reason: detail
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Well, Jonathan. You shure bought it, right?
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Man, I'm not saying I'm on a Meisterbrau budget, but I'm not on a Cristal budget either.
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the woods on that one are superb, not many Strombergs have figured wood of that caliber.
also that's one of only about 4 or 5 Master 400's I've seen w/pearl peghead inlay.
a sound clip would have been nice. I'm guessing it's parallel braced?
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> Hi Campusfive, I've owned and still own some of Jim Triggs' works. I remember when Jim started making the Stromberg and I tried one out at the New York show. It didn't please me either. But then again,I play with a low action with flats. The D'Angelico Triggs' have,IMHO,been wonderful pieces. What exactly was it that you didn't like about the Triggs Stromberg. I know that Oldane loves his. Originally Posted by campusfive
So, I noticed a 1941 Stromberg Master 400 on ebay, and the seller happened to be one of Los Angeles' best guitar stores. I'm super busy at work right now, and we're playing in Rochester this weekend, so I have had no time to spare to try to see it. Well, I finished my morning work quickly and managed to get in a long lunch, so I drove out to check it out.
Now, I've only played one or two Emperors, and one Triggs Stromberg copy (which I did NOT care for), so perhaps I wasn't fully prepared for the sheer mass of sound. But, damn.
The instrument has so much interior volume that it almost feels like playing a guitaron or a string bass. Not surprisingly, the single notes didn't really sing, and it was just "ok" for chord melody. But, chunking rhythm chords was profound. The projection of the D and G didn't cut like a knife, but rather filled the room with punch and fullness. Like a fist to the chest.
The guitar is truly massive, although the skinny waist and small upper bout help keep it from being uncomfortable. I'm a bigger dude, and I feel the guitar dwarfs me in that picture.
The true test was after I gave the guitar back to the sales guy. He had been cool enough to offer to take the photo of me above, and he asked if I'd be willing to take a picture of him with guitar. He played at little bit of rhythm on it, and I couldn't believe how loud it was when I was standing 4 feet in front of the guitar taking the picture. The "monitor"-ing of sound back to the player isn't anything close to the wall of sound coming off the top. I could totally see one of these actually being audible acoustically, sans amplification, at least in a vintage-sounding big band.
Sadly, I couldn't really get video of it, but if it's there next week when I get back, I may try to get some.
As Ferris Bueller says, "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up." Me, I'm still a long way away from being able to buy one of these.
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Now you see why Freddie Green played one in the 40s. It was loud enough to drive the Basie orchestra. He stopped traveling with it after Elmer died...to dear...and switched to Gretsch, which the company would give him.
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Still do! Originally Posted by Archtop Guy
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Ella Fitzgerald told a story about the recording of the Basie and Ella album. After the first day, Freddie Green took Ella aside and said that it had turned out so well that he would "bring his best guitar" the next day. Given that the Gretsch was his main gigging and travelling instrument at that time, it must have been one of his two Strombergs. Reportedly, he only used the Strombergs for recording i NY (where he lived uptown with his wife) after he got the Gretsch - never took them on the road. Originally Posted by Greentone
He owned a blonde Master 400 which can be seen on a photo from early 1940 when he rehearsed/recorded with Benny Goodman, Lester Young and Charlie Christian among others. It must be one of the very first Master 400s made. Gruhn had it for sale on consignment until recently, but it seems to have been sold (or withdrawn) by now. Green also owned a sunburst Master 300 which was the guitar he used the most until he switched to the Gretsch in 1958.
Both Stromberg guitars as well as the Gretsch can be seen here: Photos of Guitars Owned by Freddie GreenLast edited by oldane; 06-06-2015 at 03:34 PM.
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Actually, Elmer Stromberg started to make the 19" guitars with the diagonal brace around 1940. Freddie Green got his first Stromberg in 1940 and it was definitely the new design. Originally Posted by fws6
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A 19 incher... wow... OP looks like a dwarf against it, and I am sure he is not... ;-)
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Yeah, the guitar is friggin' massive, and me, I'm not dwarf.
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That guitar is so "you".
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Yes but I dont think they built many others during the wartime , and nearly all the postwar guitars have the transverse brace. Originally Posted by oldane
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OT, but I visited House of Guitars in Rochester over the weekend, and look what I took for a test drive:
A real Gibson 1934 L-5. The refin was a bit too reddish for my taste, but definitely wasn't choking the sound. Too bad it had a nasty hump on the treble side above the 12th fret. Still, when I jacked up the thumbwheels, I was able to get it sound pretty sweet.Last edited by campusfive; 06-09-2015 at 01:22 AM.
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