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June 12th, 2012, 10:30 AM
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#1 (permalink)
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Gretschie
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: England
Posts: 133
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A Gretsch at Last
Hello! Pleased to meet you all,
After admiring them for years I finally got myself a Gretsch today. I've played a Strat, a few Tele's and a Ricky for the last 20 years or so and have always seen Gretsch as something of an unattainable dream. Without ever giving them a second glance i've foolishly avoided the Electromatics until now. I guess I just always looked at the price and walked away thinking it couldn't possibly be any good for that money. Yes I was an Idiot. Anyway someone made me take a second look at them today and the upshot was I walked away from the shop with a 5120 in deep cherry finish.
I was just completely blown away with everything about this guitar. I played it for all of about 30 seconds in the shop before I knew it was the one.
Looking forward to picking up some tips on all things Gretsch, especially the idea of putting some different pick ups on it.
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June 12th, 2012, 10:36 AM
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#2 (permalink)
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Synchromatic
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Davidson, NC
Age: 56
Posts: 818
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Welcome to the forum! IMHO, the Holy Grail of pickup swaps is a set of TV Jones. I love the classics. Other folks swear by GFS pickups. You'll find lots of info on both here on the forum.
Beautiful guitar you have there.
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June 12th, 2012, 10:36 AM
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#3 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Central MO
Age: 54
Posts: 1,213
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Congrats on the new Gretsch. Let the mods begin!
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June 12th, 2012, 12:34 PM
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#4 (permalink)
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Synchromatic
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Grayslake, Il
Posts: 873
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Welcome to you AND your spankin brand new Gretschitude! 
Consider also Gretsch HiLo Trons and HS Filtertrons
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Gretsch G5135PS CVT & G5445T Dbl Jet, Gibson GT & Hnybrst 60s Tribute LPs, Faded Stdio LP, Agile Tobac Brst Flame & LPB AL3200 LPs, Schecter BlckJck Tmpst, Ibanez Talman, Squier M-80, Taylor 210e
AMPS: Rivera Chubster 55, Marshall DSL15h, Blackstar HT-1RH
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June 12th, 2012, 01:21 PM
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#5 (permalink)
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Synchromatic
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Maldon UK
Posts: 996
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 Welcome. Nice strum box! Rare colour too.
You don't have to rush to swap the pups as the later versions are upgraded, and have a good tone of their own. Wait till you've had a chance to settle down with your amp and power train as you may get a nice surprise. There's lots of good advice here, but only you know the sound in your head.
The best bang per buck is probably a stainless Compton, as the stock bridge can rattle a bit. Nice tonal improvment too. Stick the bridge down with some cello roisin, especially if you prefer a lighter string set.
These are great guitars, well made with a good finish. Use a right-angle jack at the body, especially if you play sitting down as the body is thin, and may crack if you lean on a straight jack. Some folk reinforce the body with a Gibbon plate.
Twangy twangy TWAAAANG!
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If it ain't broke......don't break it!
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June 12th, 2012, 01:42 PM
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#6 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Wrexham, North Wales
Posts: 1,530
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Welcome Mr Swisher, nice colour, it's nice when you just know a guitar is for you, well done and good move!
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June 12th, 2012, 03:24 PM
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#7 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Teesside ENGLAND
Posts: 1,741
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Welcome to the forum Mr Swisher!
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If you don't know where you're going
Any road will take you there.
"Tone is in the ear of the beholder"
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June 12th, 2012, 04:10 PM
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#8 (permalink)
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Gretschie
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: England
Posts: 133
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Uncle Daddy
You don't have to rush to swap the pups
The best bang per buck is probably a stainless Compton,
Use a right-angle jack at the body,
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Thanks for the welcome's and advice.
Off to get some right angle jack plugs in the morning. Changing the bridge for a Compton seems like the sensible thing to do from the off but I think your right and I should keep the pups stock for a month or two and get a feel for guitar as a whole. Learn about what i've got before making changes.
I have day one Gretsch enthusiasm. I need to get a grip on myself and block ebay from my internet browser until I calm down......deep breaths.. |
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June 12th, 2012, 06:24 PM
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#9 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Sydney, Australia
Age: 65
Posts: 3,586
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Hi Mr Swisher, welcome to the forum, and congrats on the 5120!
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Music is the only universal human language
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June 12th, 2012, 06:40 PM
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#10 (permalink)
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Gretschie
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Hot, Very Hot, USA
Age: 55
Posts: 278
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Glad you're a Gretsch owner at last. Welcome and have fun with that beautiful 5120. I did replace my 5120 stock bridge with a Compton stainless steel as mentioned already. Good, simple and inexpensive upgrade Took care of some tuning issues and improved the sound.
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DesertFox4
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June 13th, 2012, 12:28 AM
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#11 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Lynnwood, WA
Age: 52
Posts: 2,081
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Welcome to the forum. Congrats on the new guitar. You're in deep doo-doo now!
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--"Res ipsa loquitur, sed quid in infernos dicit" (The thing speaks for itself, but what the hell is it saying?)
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June 13th, 2012, 12:51 AM
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#12 (permalink)
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Synchromatic
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Cornwall, England
Posts: 697
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Welcome to G-T Mr Swisher and congratulations on your new purchase and such a nice colour.
You're right to settle in with your Gretsch before modding it. There's a massive amount of helpful information here to help you make considered changes and don't be afraid to ask
See you around
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June 13th, 2012, 01:08 AM
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#13 (permalink)
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Friend of Fred
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Norway
Age: 52
Posts: 5,000
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Cheers! 30 seconds? What did you play?
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Manual gearbox, 3 x Double Espresso
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June 13th, 2012, 03:07 AM
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#14 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: May 2011
Location: belgium
Age: 23
Posts: 1,874
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hurray!
+1 on the compton
and after a month or two i suggest hs filtertrons
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June 13th, 2012, 07:29 AM
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#15 (permalink)
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Country Gent
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Toowoomba, Australia
Age: 47
Posts: 3,257
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Greetings Mr Swisher!!!!..welcome to the forum!!! congrats & enjoy your 5120!!! cheers!!
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June 13th, 2012, 10:37 AM
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#16 (permalink)
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Synchromatic
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Welsh Wales
Age: 71
Posts: 900
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Greetings Swish. Lovely colour. Arf
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June 13th, 2012, 01:50 PM
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#17 (permalink)
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Gretschie
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Bradford, UK
Posts: 149
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Eyup to the forum from Yorkshire. Where about's in the UK are you based?
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June 13th, 2012, 03:28 PM
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#18 (permalink)
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Gretschie
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: England
Posts: 133
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 6stings
Cheers! 30 seconds? What did you play?
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Some Girls are bigger than others by The Smiths... 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mortis
Eyup to the forum from Yorkshire. Where about's in the UK are you based?
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Just a few miles south of Northampton. Picked up the Gretsch in a local store in town. |
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June 13th, 2012, 03:41 PM
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#19 (permalink)
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Gretschie
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Ontario, Canada
Age: 44
Posts: 455
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Congrats, welcome and I will say the SS compton was the best upgrade I could do to my 5120.
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If everyone worried about the really important stuff...there would be a shortage of guitars.
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