cobra hollow vs. solid

[physicshammer]

Hi Everyone,

I'm looking at getting a normal (fully solid) or hollow Cobra...

It is to be my heavy guitar - it should cover all bases from heavy, heavy (should be capable of metallica black album sounds) as well as "other" heavy sounds - but be as beautiful as possible.

I'm hoping to find the "heavy" guitar that Beethoven would have chosen!

Which one - hollow or solid - do you think would better fullfill that function?

Or... what are the important differences b/w the two?

Thanks!
Jeff

[rockjock]

Jeff,

I can't say much about the hollow/solid question, but I would suggest that you consider a solid rosewood neck for that type of music. In my experience, this option gives a faster attack, more presence, and an overall 'stronger' tone.

Best Regards,

SS.

[pipedwho]

Welcome to the forum!

I have a Hollow Cobra S that does that kind of music very well - but I primarily use it for it's sparkly clean tones. Mine has an all rosewood neck and I really like the punch and slightly lower frequency emphasis that it has over a mahogany neck.

A solid body would probably be better again if all you need is high gain sound. And for that sort of high gain, you don't want too much low frequency sound coming out of the guitar. A HN3 pickup in the bridge would be great for that. If you want a wider bandwidth output, then the H3 is a great choice - although, you may getter better results from the narrower bandwidth of the HN3.

I have two Andersons. The first is a maple/basswood Drop Top with SF1/SF1/H3 pickups and I LOVE that pickup combo in this guitar. The other is the Hollow Cobra S and it has M1/M1/H2+ pickups that sound great in that guitar. It's hard to go too wrong.

Your best bet is to call Anderson and speak to Roy. He is the man when it comes to accurately describing the sounds that different options will give you.

[schofnsteen]

I'm into more classic rock and some 80's. I play through a Marshall Jubilee and have recently aquired a Hollow Cobra and a Solid Cobra S. I can get some nice Zeppelin tones out of the Hollow Cobra with Ho1-/Ho1+ pickups. I can get some nice AC/DC ,Cult tones out of the Solid Cobra S with H1-/HO2 pickups. I think the H02 sounds better to me than the H2+. I have a Hollow classic aswell with the H2+ so I have all of my bases covered. There does not seem to be a big difference in weight. The hollow seems to have a openess to it. I have always had solid humbucker guitars. I currenty own a '68 Reissue Les Paul Custom VOS plekked and a Goldtop Les Paul Classic. I feel these 2 guitars are very limited at what they do but do it well. If I had to choose one I would take the solid Cobra S ALL DAY LONG. You will not be diappointed with either choice. I wasted alot of time and money chasing sounds and have come to appreciate the quality and uniqeness of Anderson guitars. At one time I converted ALL 6 of my collection to Andersons. Then I sold off all but the hollow classic to replace with a variety of others. Recently acquired the 2 mentioned above. I feel the 3 I have will keep me content. I'm considering selling the others because they do not get played.Hope this helps.Chuck

[Dave K]

For heavy tones I wouldn't even think about a hollow. My solid Cobra with a solid rosewood neck does killer high gain metal tones. As mentioned you get a faster,tighter, more focused attack, with tons of clarity and balls.

[Dave C]

Your best bet is to call Anderson and speak to Roy. He is the man when it comes to accurately describing the sounds that different options will give you.

+1 as far as calling Roy. He is the man!

[SonicGator]

...a solid rosewood neck...you get a faster,tighter, more focused attack, with tons of clarity and balls.

Wonder if Tom would use this description on his site :eek:


;)

[Dave K]

Clarity and balls ©

We can work out a licensing agreement. :D

[Barry]

Roy was a big help with speccing my cobra 07-17-06N . Mine is the solid version . Its the dogs bollicks ! Dont know much about the hollow variety but I'm extremely pleased with mine .

[Stys]

Hollow all the way. Loud, articulate and toneful......

[physicshammer]

holy cow thanks everyone. I thought I had turned on email notification when responses are posted. It's coming down partially to what I can find on craigslist/ebay now - but I'm leaning towards solid (maybe with a rosewood neck if possible :) ) I feel pretty comfortable with any anderson though.

[mbrown3]

In theory, I should like hollow better (based on aural description and what it's supposed to do to the tone). But in practice, I seem to always like the sound/response of solidbodies better. I like the immediate response of the fundamental in solid, versus the bloom of notes in hollow. Crisp, clear, clean, solidbody all the way for me.