Acoustic Parlor Guitar—Plectrum style

[swingtoneman]

Advice on type and gauge of string for acoustic Parlor Guitar—12 Frets to the body—played with a pick. My musical interests is on ‘the jazzy side of life’.

Would you go as heavy as 12 to 53 / 12 to 56?
Have you tried various Parlor guitars? If so which did you like? Round neck or ‘V’ neck?

Your advice welcome.

[Filmosound 621]

if the guitar sounds bright enough, I will string it up with JazzSwings #11, depending on scale length maybe,

as I do not like the feel and sound from regular phoshor and bronze strings.


some V-necks are cool for both kinds of playing, classic style and thumb on top of the neck style, some V-necks aren't ...

it has to be judged from guitar to guitar imo, nut-width plays a role is this calculation as well
,

[RJVB]

Apparently you do not already have the instrument? That'd be the 1st choice to make, IMHO.

Dowina make a gorgeous (sexy, actually) parlor called the Bona Vida, which also exists as a nylon-string model, and as far as I can tell their main interest is in acoustic guitars (= they're not built assuming you let an amp do the work for you).

I think you could do a lot worse (than nylon strings) for acoustic jazz - at the very least it gives you a lot more choice for the treble strings. Plus, you can always put steel strings on her (TI make 2 specific sets for classical guitar, but a priori extra-light sets should be acceptable too).

[TedBPhx]

I have a Taylor GT and use 12-53s. I’d describe the neck carve as a compound shallow V. It’s become my primary guitar. Available in multiple woods and price points. Slightly larger than what most call a parlor but only slightly.

[skittles]

I have a Waterloo WL-S. I love it for jazz. The price is now much higher than it once was but if the ones I tried (and the one I bought) are any indication, there are lovely samples out there.


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[Chazmo]

I have a Seagull Coastline Grand. The neck is typical Seagull/Godin: A little chunky, but not too much; and round. If you like 5th Avenue necks you would like the Grand.

After experimenting, I landed on using silk and steel strings on this little guitar instead of bronze. Silk and steels are typically lighter--I use D'Addario or Martin 11s-- and very appropriate for small guitars, with a warm, soft voice and a feel almost like nylon classical guitar strings. Very easy to play.

[Barra]

I have a Seagull Coastline Grand. The neck is typical Seagull/Godin: A little chunky, but not too much; and round. If you like 5th Avenue necks you would like the Grand.

After experimenting, I landed on using silk and steel strings on this little guitar instead of bronze. Silk and steels are typically lighter--I use D'Addario or Martin 11s-- and very appropriate for small guitars, with a warm, soft voice and a feel almost like nylon classical guitar strings. Very easy to play.

+1. I have a '98 Seagull Grand and have for many years settled on silk and steels 11's - Martin or Galli for a long time now. That said I recently change to Martin Retro (monel) 11's which are a little stiffer on the bass strings but ok and not too bright. I switched to them because I was trying out a magnetic soundhole pickup and you get almost zero signal from the silk and steel wound strings. On that note if you use TI Jazz Swing flats with a magnetic soundhole pickup you get a nice plugged in mellow tone on the Seagull that's natuarlly compressed and focused because of the parlour size.

[Woody Sound]

I bought one of these for my violinist wife who has little fingers. I put 13's on it because of the scale 22- 3/4 (?). Sounds fantastic. (Fabulous guitar btw, all solid, blows away the Taylor Baby for the price.)

Alvarez MSD1 3/4 Travel Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar w Bag | Reverb

[darkwaters]

I use Custom Light 80/20 Elixir Nanowebs on my S&P Woodland Pro. Mellows out the tone, to just the right degree for my tastes and the string life is exceptional. Perfect for an old timey Blues/Jazz sound. They work incredibly well with the Gretsch Deltoluxe pickup.

[Barra]

I use Custom Light 80/20 Elixir Nanowebs on my S&P Woodland Pro. Mellows out the tone, to just the right degree for my tastes and the string life is exceptional. Perfect for an old timey Blues/Jazz sound. They work incredibly well with the Gretsch Deltosound pickup.

The soundhole on the Seagull Grand Parlour is quite small so most pickup specs including Gretsch don't fit - i had to go with Schaller Western Vintage.

[RJVB]

The soundhole on the Seagull Grand Parlour is quite small so most pickup specs including Gretsch don't fit - i had to go with Schaller Western Vintage.

Seagull use smaller than standard soundholes on (most) all of their acoustics, AFAIK. A reason mine never got the Lutehole cover...

[mr. beaumont]

I'm very in to playing jazz on flat top acoustics right now...I haven't gone as small as the Parlor, but on my 000 size I really like the Martin Monel strings. They seem to have a midrange mellowness that works for jazz, not so scooped and zingy as bronze acoustic strings.

I'd also consider body woods when looking at guitars...I'm really liking all mahogany for jazz playing...I had a Larrivee parlor for a short while about 12 years ago, it was Spruce/Rosewood and always sounded brittle to me as I played it--but it actually recorded pretty well.

I think if I ever went SMALL small for my flat top, I'd look for a Martin 0-15 or a vintage 0-17 (the prices on those 17's are insane right now, though...)

[st.bede]

I am having a difficult time finding a set of a priori strings. However I was able to find a set of a posteriori strings. They are manufactured by Kant and are always delivered on time.

[Jabberwocky]

Thomastik Infeld KR116 sounds interesting.

[skittles]

I use the TI Plectrums on my Waterloo and really like the timbrel range they offer.


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[RJVB]

However I was able to find a set of a posteriori strings. They are manufactured by Kant and are always delivered on time.

But those mount on the back of the guitar, right?

Thomastik Infeld KR116 sounds interesting.

I've tried the B and E from that set, on my jumbo. I can't speak for regular nylon-string guitars but on the jumbo they were of course too light. It will of course depend on what you're looking for but for me they combined the bad aspects of steel and nylon trebles; sharp and jingly in their low range, and deadish when you go up. They were too short to try on my resonator, sadly.

Thomastik have another set for classical guitar which is much more interesting IMHO, the KFxxx which have a stainless steel tape winding over a silk-and-steel core (sadly not for the E). The G and B sound really nice (the G even tuned up to B on my jumbo).

I use the TI Plectrums on my Waterloo and really like the timbrel range they offer.

I bet! I know someone who finger-picks nickel-bronze strings on a comparable parlor (I always forget if it's a Waterloo or a Washburn...) and those sound very nice too. I think the thick nickel plating must tame the zing from the underlying PB winding, and the "hot bathtub" kind of warmth I associate with PB on big guitars could be an asset on a small body guitar.