New Background, New Gear

So you might have noticed the new background image. That is Al Casey from the mid-40's playing with drummer Denzil Best. He appears to be playing a Epiphone Deluxe with a DeArmond FHC Guitar Mic.

Oh, and I was pretty bad on ebay the last couple of weeks. So I got two things: 1) a DeArmond FHC Guitar Mic - I'm guessing its mid-40's based on the black bakealite volume knob, and 2) an 1937 Gibson EH-150 amp - the earliest version with square corners all around and a 10" speaker.

And speaking of a 10" speaker, the one in the amp is shot! If anyone has any leads on getting a replacement 10" field coil speaker, let me know!!!

The guitar mic is really awesome. I was getting tired of an electric tone that was just too modern sounding, and I was considering the crazy step of getting another Eastman and putting a Charlie Christian pickup in it. I was also looking at the Kent Armstrong single coil pickup on archtop.com, or the Tom Short Western Swing Pickup. The problem for me, at least, was that the Tom Short could not be used with Bronze strings, and the Kent Armstrong needed to mounted to a pickguard. Moreover, I released that vintage gear gets vintage sounds a lot easier, and that it was the modern pickup that I didn't like in the first place.

The guitar mic is great - its gets that vintage sound because it is really vintage. Plus, I can move it from guitar to guitar really easily. I put flats on my 810CE so I could get a more vintage sound, and the guitar mic sounds great on it. Sometimes, however, I just want to bring one guitar to a gig, and in that case I can put the pick up on my 805.