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Post by Noah Miller on Feb 22, 2022 0:27:00 GMT
I had one of these a while back. It had the original pickup, though one of the coils had to be rewound. It was possibly the first hum-cancelling pickup ever installed in a guitar, based on the Audiovox patent, though I'm not clear whether Audiovox themselves made any dual-coil pickups prior to selling the design to Dobro. I agree that it was not a great electric guitar by modern standards, but nobody in 1933 really knew how an electric guitar was "supposed" to look, sound, play, etc. It played as well as any regular pre-War acoustic Dobro.
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Post by Noah Miller on Dec 20, 2021 12:27:19 GMT
The hum cancellation comes from having two coils wound in reverse directions, sitting in reverse magnetic fields - RWRP, or Reverse Wind, Reverse Polarity. A bridge ground helps reduce noise that comes in through pots, wires, etc., but it's a different mechanism altogether from cancellation via two coils. While the Rhythm Chief has a double coil, the FHC is a conventional single-coil and is prone to hum as a result.
This pickup appears to be a true RWRP humbucker. Dobro made one as early as 1934 on the All Electric model, so Pete's correct that it wasn't new technology.
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Post by Noah Miller on Dec 20, 2021 10:55:20 GMT
I actually don't think this model made it onto that price list. There are two 16" models listed, and the more expensive one (the N-100) lists for the same price as a contemporary L-50 ($95); at the time, a sunburst L-4 was $142.50. The N-125, N-150 and N-275 are all described as 17" bodies.
The two coils on the pickup are just about touching, so it's not like there's a big gap between them. The same method of construction is frequently used on modern "noiseless" Strat, Tele and J-bass pickups. No quiet spot to worry about.
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Post by Noah Miller on Dec 19, 2021 23:32:29 GMT
I have a fondness for acoustic archtop guitars, especially 16" ones like the Gibson L-4. So what could be cooler than a Gibson-built prototype, based around the mid '40s L-4, but with the National logo on the headstock and a unique fret marker pattern?
Paul Fox's book The Other Brands of Gibson has a chapter on National. Over 50 guitars were shipped from Gibson to CMI/National between 1944 and 1947, both flat-top and archtop acoustics. A handful made it onto a "tentative" 1946 price list, and even fewer actually made it into serial production. I am confident that this guitar is one of two "N-4s" listed in Gibson shipping ledgers; it shipped either Feb 9 or April 17, 1945 (Paul Fox was kind enough to email me what info he has). Interestingly, the guitar has a long 25.5" scale - unusual, but not unheard of for a mid-'40s L-4. As is the case with all instruments made by Gibson for other brands, there is no adjustable truss rod.
The guitar is in excellent condition, with no cracks or other damage, and not much cosmetic wear. The neck is dead straight and the playability is excellent. It sounds much like any other L-4, but the long scale gives it a bit of snap I have not heard before in this model. As far as I can see, every last screw is original. The case is original too, but all the hinges have broken so I bought a new one to house the guitar.
I also found what I thought would be the perfect floating pickup: a late '40s Supro model 755-1 "Silver Streak" floating pickup. If the housing looks familiar, check out some National tuner covers!
I thought the catalog's "hum-free" description was due to the shielding from the metal cover, but in fact, this is a dual-coil unit. It still works fine, but unfortunately, after several attempts to mount it on the guitar, I've concluded that it can't fit without removing or modifying the pickguard. There just isn't enough room for it. I may try to mount it on one of my archtop tenor guitars which has a smaller pickguard.
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Post by Noah Miller on Jan 6, 2021 23:51:55 GMT
It showed up today. No major surprises, though it's interesting to see how they covered up the old neck joint cavity. Replacement nut, nice replica pickguard, some binding rot but otherwise just light cosmetic wear. This is the first time I've played a guitar with these mini-pots, but it turns out they're wired just like normal Valco controls. \
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Post by Noah Miller on Jan 2, 2021 20:37:05 GMT
Not the wackiest one-off Valco ever made, but I was running low on mystery solidbodies. Hopefully I’ll get it around the middle of this week. This definitely looks like a “floor sweep” guitar to me. It’s somewhere in between a Supro Rhythm Master and National Val Trol Baron, which jives with the 1959 serial. However, the neck tilt system says 1961 or later. And it appears that this neck (black finish, straight headstock, bound fretboard) was not swiped from any catalogued model, but probably finished for this guitar.
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Post by Noah Miller on Nov 6, 2020 10:40:42 GMT
No longer mine, but it was very cool to play it for a while:
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Post by Noah Miller on Sept 28, 2020 14:23:50 GMT
You might want to look into Sentell's NC-17 floating pickup. I had one on a Dobro at one point. Quite thin.
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Post by Noah Miller on Jul 8, 2020 11:01:40 GMT
The bodies were definitely built by Kay, but I'm on the fence about the necks. The heel designs aren't the same as Kay's usual work.
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Post by Noah Miller on Jul 7, 2020 23:04:21 GMT
The mandolin is C5549 and the banjo is C5805.
I forgot to mention that each has a form-fitting hard case covered with the same tweed as the lap steel cases.
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Post by Noah Miller on Jul 7, 2020 19:08:29 GMT
Nope, not the steels. Not the Spanish guitars, either. I present two of the most obscure National electric models, the New Yorker Mandolin and Tenor-Banjo:
I picked up the mandolin a couple of years ago, but I just received the banjo yesterday. Both of them play & sound great, but neither is completely original. Both tailpieces snapped, were poorly soldered, and snapped again; the mandolin sports a reissue tailpiece and I have another (more appropriate one) on order for the banjo. The mandolin has had a neck reset and a replacement bridge, and the banjo's tone control is disconnected, but the pickups still work. Both instruments have the same complex internal structure as my Sonora (and, I assume, New Yorker Spanish guitars), complete with posts supporting the top and a banjo-esque method of securing the necks.
Although electric mandolins and tenors never sold in large numbers (either by National or any of their competition), these are actually excellent-sounding instruments that play quite nicely. The tenor's neck is straight as an arrow and the mandolin only has a tiny bit of relief. The adjustable poles are a godsend, since these types of instruments usually have poor string balance when electrified. Both have very good sustain, but not so much that they sound like solidbodies. The tenor, particularly through an overdriven amp, really screams.
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Post by Noah Miller on May 8, 2020 12:05:26 GMT
It's definitely the same magnet. The bobbin looks the same, but given the difference in sound, it's probably wound differently.
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Post by Noah Miller on May 7, 2020 16:05:58 GMT
The conversion refers to this:
It dates from 1937 and later, several years after my Style O, and it uses a different pickup (the same one used on Silvos). According to Mark's book there was a similar system for tricones also using the Silvo pickup. I have never seen a National with the Tutmarc/Stimson-type pickup that appeared to be a retrofit.
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Post by Noah Miller on Apr 25, 2020 16:37:12 GMT
The finish, binding, headstock veneer, and fretboard are all replacements. Dobro did make some rather fancy instruments, but they look nothing like this. Looks like somebody started with the side crack repairs and just... kept on going.
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Post by Noah Miller on Sept 3, 2019 20:23:39 GMT
I emailed back & forth a bunch of times regarding that "tricone", but they wouldn't come down to a reasonable price. A very cool instrument though, especially that cover plate.
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