Sigma guitar?

#1 · October 22, 2009, 12:15 am

Quote from Forum Archives on October 22, 2009, 12:15 am
Posted by: srolfe <srolfe@...>
Sigma were Martin's original foray into offshore instruments. That was before the Korean guitar industry reached its current level of sophistication. Decent cheap guitars for the period, but I wouldn't drive an hour for one, and I wouldn't pay more than a couple of hundred for it.

Which makes a interesting segue to Art & Lutherie. Seagull is Godin's premium channel for acoustic guitars, and A&L is their beginner line.

Take a Seagull, and do away with everything unnecessary- no gloss finishes, no binding, etc. The craftsmanship is decent, but the plain finish never lets you forget that you're playing a cheap guitar. The only luxury items are a decent set of tuners, and a properly-braced solid top.

A&L are a killer deal in a beginner instrument. An unexpected side effect is that they make the ultimate cheap stage beater. Cheap
enough that you don't really care if thet get banged up, and fitted
with a good piezo, they sound and feel just good enough to use
professionally. The cosmetics are adequate when viewed at typical audience distances (assuming you don't mind a matte finish).

That top is the key- undersaddle pickups don't read the box very much- it's all about the top. A&L don't sound brilliant acoustically, but fitted with a good undersaddle piezo, they sound better than most acoustic-electric instruments costing a few hundred dollars more.

They are NOT pretty, but they play shockingly well for the money. Plugging in an A&L equipped with a Baggs Element for the first time, is kind of like picking up a pawnshop Stella with palm trees painted on it, and discovering that it sounds like a mid-line Takamine.

And they're built like a tank. Real North American Cherry and Maple hardwoods, properly braced... A&L make the only sub-$300 12-string that I would ever recommend, and certainly the only one under $500, that I would consider tuning to concert pitch.

So back to the original question- would I choose one for Bluegrass? Yes, but only if I was always going to use it plugged in, and only if
appearances didn't matter.

To put it another way, if you already play well, an A&L might be all you need. But if you have a discerning ear for tone, lack confidence in your playing, or hang with gear snobs, then you probably want more guitar.

--- On Wed, 10/21/09, Bryan Thomas <bjthomas44@yahoo.com> wrote:
From: Bryan Thomas <bjthomas44@yahoo.com>
Subject: [ChristianGuitar] Sigma guitar?
To: christianguitar@welovegod.org
Received: Wednesday, October 21, 2009, 7:35 PM
<font
size="4">Looked through an old phone book for guitars and one of the listings was for a "buy, sell, trade" (don't call me a pawnshop) store. I called (it's about an hour away) and they guy said he had a couple of Sigma's for around $300. He also had a Martin "X" for about $550.

Any advice/comments?

Particularly about Sigma. I know they were sold by Martin, but have been discontinued. Had never heard of them, but found this out on the web...

Also, a guy at a music store pitched me (via phone) on Arts & Lutherie. Same corp. as Seagull. Great guitars, but from what i've read don't really hack the volume when up against banjo's etc.

BJ of Indiana
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Posted by: srolfe <srolfe@...>

Sigma were Martin's original foray into offshore instruments. That was before the Korean guitar industry reached its current level of sophistication. Decent cheap guitars for the period, but I wouldn't drive an hour for one, and I wouldn't pay more than a couple of hundred for it.

Which makes a interesting segue to Art & Lutherie. Seagull is Godin's premium channel for acoustic guitars, and A&L is their beginner line.

Take a Seagull, and do away with everything unnecessary- no gloss finishes, no binding, etc. The craftsmanship is decent, but the plain finish never lets you forget that you're playing a cheap guitar. The only luxury items are a decent set of tuners, and a properly-braced solid top.

A&L are a killer deal in a beginner instrument. An unexpected side effect is that they make the ultimate cheap stage beater. Cheap
enough that you don't really care if thet get banged up, and fitted
with a good piezo, they sound and feel just good enough to use
professionally. The cosmetics are adequate when viewed at typical audience distances (assuming you don't mind a matte finish).

That top is the key- undersaddle pickups don't read the box very much- it's all about the top. A&L don't sound brilliant acoustically, but fitted with a good undersaddle piezo, they sound better than most acoustic-electric instruments costing a few hundred dollars more.

They are NOT pretty, but they play shockingly well for the money. Plugging in an A&L equipped with a Baggs Element for the first time, is kind of like picking up a pawnshop Stella with palm trees painted on it, and discovering that it sounds like a mid-line Takamine.

And they're built like a tank. Real North American Cherry and Maple hardwoods, properly braced... A&L make the only sub-$300 12-string that I would ever recommend, and certainly the only one under $500, that I would consider tuning to concert pitch.

So back to the original question- would I choose one for Bluegrass? Yes, but only if I was always going to use it plugged in, and only if
appearances didn't matter.

To put it another way, if you already play well, an A&L might be all you need. But if you have a discerning ear for tone, lack confidence in your playing, or hang with gear snobs, then you probably want more guitar.

--- On Wed, 10/21/09, Bryan Thomas <bjthomas44@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: Bryan Thomas <bjthomas44@yahoo.com>
Subject: [ChristianGuitar] Sigma guitar?
To: christianguitar@welovegod.org
Received: Wednesday, October 21, 2009, 7:35 PM
<font
size="4">Looked through an old phone book for guitars and one of the listings was for a "buy, sell, trade" (don't call me a pawnshop) store. I called (it's about an hour away) and they guy said he had a couple of Sigma's for around $300. He also had a Martin "X" for about $550.

Any advice/comments?

Particularly about Sigma. I know they were sold by Martin, but have been discontinued. Had never heard of them, but found this out on the web...

Also, a guy at a music store pitched me (via phone) on Arts & Lutherie. Same corp. as Seagull. Great guitars, but from what i've read don't really hack the volume when up against banjo's etc.

BJ of Indiana
--
To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: christianguitar-unsubscribe@welovegod.org

--

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: christianguitar-unsubscribe@associate.com