The 1965 series

prsteve, don't you have an Alvarez ADA1965? Are you still enjoying it.

They sound pretty bright to me when listening through headphones, which is really what I'm looking for. Could be a good Seagull Artist Cameo or Taylor alternative?

El Gull,  LOL!  Just a coincidence.  He's just using a typical G, C, D progression a lot.  In order for that to be Break It To Them Gently, he'd have to throw in an Em and an Am; which he doesn't. 

Funny thing right now though, I tried to go to the Alvarez website and it's blank right now.  Nothing shows up except a blank grey screen.  I think they must be updating their site or something.  My bookmark leads to that, so I tried a google and Bing search, and I get the same thing.   Weird.  Hope that is just very temporary.

El Gull,

Thanks for the post on the 1965 series. I actually have the AFA 1965 which is the 000 or folk model. Yes, I am really enjoying it. I like the smaller size for ease of playing. And yes, it is a brighter sound than a dread. I haven't played the dreadnought, so I couldn't say, first hand, of the type of sound. I have found that most folk size guitars are brighter than dreads that I have played.

Think a lot comes down to luck, when buying Guitars or anything else of the internet, like I said in an earlier post, but trying in a shop prior to buying is not risk free, over the years I can think of at least three guitars, that I have had to return the next day,or soon after, that have been faulty, I like to think I'm quite knowledgeable when buying new guitars, but I think you need to get them home, and do a all the necessary fine measurements and checks. But in all fairness the guitar shops have always replaced the guitar or given me a full refund. 😀

Buying blind does impart more risk, but of my current acoustic guitars, two of the three I've bought used and unplayed -- a Guild F212 12 string via our own FloridaGull, and a Seagull Artist Studio via an eBay ad from someone I didn't know but who had excellent feedback from other buyers.  In both cases, I've been very happy with the purchases and love both guitars (heck, I paid $900 for a year-old Artist Studio with a usual brand-new price of around $1,500.)  My other current acoustic is a 2007 Seagull Performer that I also bought used, but my son was working at the music store where it came in as a trade, and he called me immediately.  I went there, tried it, and bought it (it's not the usual Performer: solid cedar top and laminate wild cherry back and sides.  It's essentially an S6 with a gloss finish and Q1 electronics.)

Sometimes, you just need to cross your fingers, ask lots of questions, get lots of pictures, and hope...

The agents for Alvarez in NZ are Music Planet, and they have a number of stores countrywide.It's a small country!

The ones I would be interested in, that they actually have "in stock" on the website, is the ADA1965 (square shoulder dread, solid sitka/laminate acacia, no cutaway, no electronics), the AD66ce-SHB (dread, solid hog top, laminate hog back, cutaway, Baggs element ust pup), or the MGA66e-SHB (all solid hog GA size, no cutaway, B-band dual source pups).

All of them are way more than my budget, but on a similar par. The AD66ce is $NZ700. The MGA66e is on special for $NZ800, and the ADA1965 is also $NZ800.

Amazingly, I was given a gift of about NZ $600 from a lady in our congregation to say thank you for all the years I have led in the worship team! I felt guilty even accepting it, but it certainly would up my initial budget of about $200 (intended for a banger while my Larrivee is in a container) to get something better.

I'm not sure I'm crazy about just the Stagepro element. It's a great UST, but would far prefer dual source. The ADA1965 will cost me more in the long run, as I'll need to install an aftermarket pickup. But I might actually prefer this option, and I don't need a pickup immediately. At least not for a few years.

The MGA66e makes the most sense in terms of bang for buck, but I am looking for brightness in a stage guitar, and am wondering how this will stack up to the 1965 series, which on research and comment is a naturally bright guitar.

Only one way to find out. Get over there and start looking for them! Perhaps narrow it down to these 3, put down a deposit, get them all in one place, A/B/C them, and then pick the one I like. Or ask the store if they can order me what I want, based on research and sound clips etc. The AJ80 maple jumbo still calls my name!  Or buy another brand. Crafter? Pre-owned Takamine?

Let the search begin!