All About Guitars

There are a few guitar companies that are well known for their quality and their list of celebrity players. PRS guitars is one such company. Paul Reed Smith, owner and creator of PRS Guitars, made his first guitar while he was a student at St. Mary s College in Maryland. He continued to build guitars after college and after he d complete one, he would bring it to concerts and convince the musicians to try them out and give him feedback.

Smith eventually encountered Carlos Santana. The end result of this meeting was that Santana ended up trying out his guitars. (He tried three total.) Santana was impressed, and this ultimately changed the direction of Smith s life. Santana put Smith in touch with a man named Ted McCarty, who eventually became his mentor.

Ted McCarty is a veteran of the guitar industry. He was the president of Gibson for a number of years and he created the Gibson Explorer, the ES-335, and the Gibson Flying V. Like Santana, McCarty also realized that Smith had talent and took him under his wing. The two collaborated and developed a series of guitars together. These guitars are now included in the PRS Guitars line.

Perhaps it was due to McCarty s collaboration with Smith that ultimately lead to the trouble. But, Gibson sued PRS Guitars over their Singlecut guitars, which they claimed were remarkably similar to the Gibson Les Paul style. Eventually Gibson lost the case, but PRS could not make the guitars while the court case was going on. But the case was resolved in Smith and McCarty s favor.

PRS Guitars have a list of current stock models and private stock guitars that are all listed on the website. There are the Singlecut guitars that were previously mentioned, the SE Series which is a lower end model and slightly less expensive, the Santana SE, and the 513 Rosewood Guitar. However, these are just a few examples of the extensive list provided on the site.

There have been a lot of famous artists who have played Paul Reed Smith guitars. These include Carlos Santana, Al DiMeola, Peter Lindgren, Tim Mahoney, Dave Navarro, Mark Tremont, Larry Hanson of Alabama, Larry Lalonde of Primus, Neal Schon of Journey, Rich Williams of Kansas, Steve Stevens with Billy Idol, and Vince Neil of Motley Crue. For more information on the artists who play PRS guitars, visit the website.

Here is what one person has to say about their PRS Guitar:

About the PRS Custom 20th Anniversary

I love the way this guitar looks. I had wanted a quilt finish, but the exact spec would have taken 3-4 months on a special order and cost lots more, so I got this one, and haven t regretted it for a second. Fabulous rich sounds – as soon as I took it to the first rehearsal, everyone in the band could tell the difference (had previously been playing US Standard Strat and Les Paul Studio). Lighter sound than the Les Paul, but so versatile. The tone control is useable and the choice between single/double wound pickups makes a real difference. Magical.

William McRea
http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/a-brief-history-of-paul-reed-smith-guitars-55014.html

The history of Ovation Guitars is unique because its founder, Charles Kaman, was actually an aeronautical engineer designing rotor blades for helicopters. It was this experience that caused him to contemplate standard guitar structure and eventually lead to the development of the round-backed composite body. Traditional guitars have wooden backs and sides, so this feature differentiates Ovation Guitars from the competition. This revolutionary move came about in the 1960s.

Kaman was unique because he was both an engineer and a guitar player. He not only understand the instrument from the perspective of a player, but also his observations related to helicopter blades and materials and how they related to the guitar caused these innovations. So, he approached what he perceived as standard guitar design problems from an engineers perspective- to define the problem and find solutions. To him, guitars and helicopters were related because in helicopters, you want to remove vibrations but with guitars, you want to keep the vibrations in to generate the sound.

Ovation has a long tradition of using modern materials in standard guitar design. For the most part, guitar design has remained relatively unchanged since the 1800s. Kaman wanted to develop a guitar that transcended and improved upon that tradition. His die hard fans believe he succeeded. Starting in 1966, Ovation released a line of guitars at a pretty standard rate, starting with the Balladeer.

Now, Ovation boasts a complete line of acoustic guitars, most of which include the Ovation standard and unique design features. These include the LX Series, the Celebrity, the Celebrity Deluxe, the Elite, the Legend, the Custom Elite, and others. You can also find vintage models through shops and on the internet.

There are plenty of artists who love the unique qualities of Ovation guitars. These include Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue, Al DiMeola, an accomplished solo player, Godsmack, Melissa Ethridge, Blasko from Rob Zombie, Rex Brown, who performs with Pantera and others, and Vince Neil with Motley Crue. There are actually a lot more artist that use Ovation Guitars. If you want more information you should visit Ovations web site.

Here is what one person has to say about their Ovation guitar:

About the Ovation Magnum 3

This bass puts out a beautiful tone. When I mix the two pickups just right it s either a low growl or a crunchy bite. Put together they sound just great. The output can be a bit lower than I am accustomed to, but easily overcome with a decent amp.

William McRea
http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/a-brief-history-of-ovation-acoustic-guitars-55113.html

The B.C. Rich Company has its roots in a classical and Spanish style guitar repair shop owned and operated by Bernardo Chavez Rico. He later expanded to guitar making and his early models were inspired by the Les-Paul guitars. Some of these early styles include the Mockingbird and the Eagle.

Over time, B.C. Rich, then called B.C. Rico, desired to make more mass produced and inexpensive guitars. The name was eventually changed to B.C. Rich after a lawsuit. The guitars manufactured were known to have exceptional quality and they developed a following of devoted players.

But, Rico made a business move in the 1990s that nearly damaged this reputation. He gave a manufacturer named Class Axe the rights to make guitars under the new brand name. These guitars were a disaster because they were of poor quality. Once Rico learned of this, he stopped the production of these guitars and went into hiding until the issue was sorted out. Because of this, they lost a lot of their loyal following.

Despite this brief disaster, B.C. Rich will always be known for the many innovations they contributed to guitar manufacturing. They became one of the first companies to construct using a neck through body setup and they included pickups and other hardware inside the guitar to enhance the sound and tone. They also have a guitar that is made of acrylic and is completely see through.

Today, the Class Axe disaster is in the past. And though they hardly make the neck through construction guitars any more in favor of the bolt construction (to appeal to a different audience) they are once again a more respected company.

Some of the brands of guitars you can find now include the Assassin/ASM, Dagger, Mockingbird and Mockingbird II, Zombie, Widow, Wrath, Seagull, Jazzbox, Nighthawk, and the Gunslinger. For a complete listing of all the guitars check with your local dealer or look online.

Over the years, B.C. Rich guitars have made quite an impression on professional artists. These include Kerry King, Steve Smyth, Tracii Guns, Craig Ross, Dearborn, Acey Slade, Christy Kane, and Terrence Hobbs.

Here is what one person has to say about B.C. Rich guitars:

Seems like it should withstand live playing. I will be sure to get straplock though. The tuners don’t look really sturdy. Probably as good as old Les Paul tuners, bridge, tailpiece, etc. I think I would need hotter pickups or a preamp for live since I usually play loud musics.

The finish seems to be a tough polyurethane. Would I use it without a backup? Probably not. But then I always bring a backup no matter what I am playing.

Excellent aggressive thundering tone with plenty of top end bite & cut thru. Best suited to heavier metal and such music. Good variety of useful tonal range by adjusting each pups volume. Neck thru body design gives excellent sustain, attack & fullness to the voices. Balances well on strap with no neck dive.

Want to Rock like there is no tomorrow. B.C. Rich may be a good choice for your guitar.

William McRea
http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/a-brief-history-of-bc-rich-guitars-55007.html