tsp17

I am truly enjoying this guitar. Proportions make it very comfortable and playable. I’ve discovered what I’ve been missing all these years in a floating pickup. About ten years ago i played and fell for a vintage Guild Artist award with a Dearmond Rhythm Chief but it was pristine, blond and very expensive. Spending a few days now with my Sweet 16 i can tell that the immediacy and organic feel of the floating pickup that was part of why i loved the Guild so much. There was more to it, how the neck fit my hand, how the body sat just right in my lap and put the fretboard in the perfect spot for me…. This Sweet 16 is pretty close at less than half the price of the Guild (10 years ago). I’m ordering the Armstrong single coil today. We’ll see what that brings with it in terms of tone and feel. More to come…

A very special instrument arrived yesterday. My pics aren’t as good as Wolfe’s but,….so what. Plays wonderfully easy and sounds full and lush. Floating Heritage #3 pickup is good, maybe a little thin/bright for me on the high E and B strings. Kind of like a Joe Pass tone with amp at lower gain. A little more electric sounding at higher gain/volume, but still has more brightness, pick percussive sound and treble than my guitars with built in pickups. Even with a smaller body, the acoustic tone is still pretty full and bass is plentiful. The 25.5 scale neck adds a lot of snap and articulation to the sound. I thought I might miss some bass at 16 inches, but it delivers tight articulate bass on the low E and A strings. I’m very happy. I did notice a couple of small surface dings (not through the finish, and you really have to look to see them) that the guys at Wolfe may not have caught or worthy of note. But like i said - small and not noticeable unless you are really looking. Grain on the top is super tight, finish is beautiful and the back, sides and neck are all super flamey. The ebony board and bridge are gorgeous. The Heritage floater is fine (my first floating pickup and I love the way you get a completely different tone-feel than with built-in). I like it better than I thought I would, but I know what sound I am after (fatter, more organic), so I am going to put a Kent Armstrong single coil on it to get a closer to a Dearmond Rhythm Chief vibe.

Thanks! Reverb was on board on the Mesa Boogie Express 5:50+ that you see in the second picture above. Neck pickup. Lollar imperial low-wind. Cab is a closed back ported 2x12. Mic was Heil PR30.

I had a similar problem with the H tailpiece on my 550. I replaced it with a Benedetto style ebony tailpiece, and the problem vanished. Neck on 550 is a little wider and chunkier than most and i love it. I think the ebony tailpiece suits it well. I also added ebony volume and tone knobs. Below is before and after…

Thx all. Arrived yesterday. Will post a NGD topic later..but I’m happy. It is great.

Probably my favorite guitar to play live. Of all my H guitars it has the best neck/nut width combination for me. Just feels right in my hands. Sounds great through just about any amp and super versatile. Straight ahead jazz KB tone, getting jazz-rock/funky, it really can do it all. Rarely feeds back even at volume/loud drummer/horns. Looks good too! Anybody else have a crush on your 550? I love my other Heritage and other guitars too, but for playing in a band that does a lot of different things, this one gets the call most often. Indoors, outdoors, even in the studio I’d put it up against just about anything for tone and feel. Link to a recording: https://on.soundcloud.com/6SVD2MkCr2E14HyaEE

Thanks all. I’m excited about it. It has to go from Florida to California now so ….tick-tock. Hopefully by Saturday I’ll be able to report on its safe arrival.

For the record I did not pay that reverb asking price in the screenshot photo. Did not mean to display that in the post. Admin - can you delete it? Bought directly from Wolfe with some negotiation to get to a number I could afford and was also fair to them. always good to work with the team at Wolfe. But…it was still a good chunk of change so something now needs to be sold….stay tuned.

2001 Sweet 16 photos courtesy of Wolfe Guitars

fantastic. thanks for posting @rwinking Great stuff.

I remember you! welcome back.

I’ve had some good experience with TrueFire. Especially when i need a quick primer on a technique or style that is not in my toolbox.

Spot on. I might be on the low end of the long-timers at here at HOC, but I’ve acquired around 10 or so H’s. I currently have four. There’s the one that “got away” but such is life. @mugsy1pm you will find plenty of empathy on that front from other members. Most of us have at least one that we wish we could have back.

Nice! …and welcome. Good group of people here.

It is amazing. Wonderful through any amp but extra special through my mesa 5:50 + into a 2x12 ported cabinet. Like a slightly darker 50 watt twin reverb, wonderfully big, clean and warm 6L6 goodness.

Multiple favorites for different reasons, but here’s one (if i have to pick just one):

LOL

Really nice. Congratulations.

Custom inlay does nice work. That will spruce it up..

+1

Does exactly what it claims to do. Super transparent overdrive. Simple - three dials, no fuss. Works best at 18v. I’ve got it in front of my Lovepedal Blackpanel Deluxe pedal. They sound great together. Or i can use either as an always on. Trying to decide which one. Great combination. I think i like the Lovepedal always on, then use the Lightspeed to push it sometimes, but i’ll keep tweaking and see how it plays out. Excellent pedal.

Same here. Different times I like different combinations. With this particular guitar and pickups - as of now I hear a more complex, dynamic and interesting sound with round wound strings. it feels a little presumptuous of me but I’m going to start bringing both my 575 (or550) and the chambered Millie to gigs for different vibes. We typically do a mellower classic jazz set then a more upbeat groove second set, so a move to the Millie between sets seems fun.

New favorite pedal, at least for today. Bought used and as with many Lovepedals, no control labels and no manual. Couldn’t find a manual on line either. But - Simple to dial in once you figure out which dial does what. Works great in front of my Mesa California Tweed 40 at low gain (both pedal and amp) for “always on” tone enhancer then a a little hair and grit as you dial up the guitar volume and dig in a little. With guitar volume at 10 - Doesn’t take much pedal gain to get a nice dark and complex breakup kind of like the lead guitar part on the Beatles “I Want You” from Abbey Road. Nice not expensive, fancy or complicated “amp in a box” for a pretty good approximation of Black Panel Deluxe Reverb base tone and breakup. No reverb on the pedal, but my amp has that, so no problem. Add a little delay and it is great clean for jazz and rhythm playing, dime the guitar volume and play a little more aggressively (doesn't take much) and you’ve got a great lead tone with some hair around the edges and more sustain. Definitely a keeper. I’ve got a Greer Lightspeed on the way and thinking to pair the two together and see if there is good synergy between them or maybe run them separately for different flavors, or both.

After a few weeks with this pedal, pairing it with different tube and solid state amps: I’m finding it most useful in front of a tube amp. Very warm overdrive. Thickens tone and gives it more weight, with just a bit of softness around the edges. Really nice. Not “transparent”, definitely colors your tone in the way intended. I’m sure I have not explored or mastered all it can do, and I haven’t used it as a “pedal in a box” straight to interface or PA, but I like it a lot used simply. Maybe because I’m an effects simpleton.

Very happy with the results with round wounds. Definitely more of the pickup character comes out. Especially with guitar volume at max or close.