hollow drop top & drop top classic

[shea cobra]

hello everyone,
this is my first post.like the rest of you, i am a complete `andeholic`.
i have 4 andys,and am considering closing a deal on a beautiful dt classic.
i need a bit of advice from anyone who has both.
are they too similar,or are they different tonally.wood(maple/alder),scale length,trem,pickups are the same on both guitars.
i am afraid of making the purchase and then finding i have a duplicate guitar.
your advice is most welcome.
thank you.

[dannopelli]

Hey welcome to the forum!!! Good to have you.

I think you need to re write you post. You say you need advice from anyone who has both. Both what? There are quite a few models in the Anderson line. There different scale lengths available, wood options, PUP options, neck carves, fret sizes, etc.

So we would need the specs on the guitar you want vs what you are comparing it to. Otherwise its hard to say.

But even if you had two exactly spec'd guitars there would be certain differences in tone and weight due to the organic nature of wood. I have five Andys', two Andy with identical PUPs, and they sound totally different.

Dude it is just kind of hard to comment without more background info. Give us some more info and folks will fill up this topic in no time!

[tom]

having spoken with shea, i'll pop in. he has a hollow drop top and is considering a solid drop top classic, equipped with all the same woods and pickups. so he's concerned about hollow vs solid and rear loaded vs pickguard. and i believe he's left handed ta boot(not that that will affect anything:) )
let him know what ya'll think.

[guitarzan]

Hi Shea,
welcome!
I think Danno probably hit on the truest statement by accident. You can spec out two identical guitars and they'll each have their own thing happening just because wood is wood. I think the hollow is gonna squish more where the solid will have a faster attack. I also think the hollow is gonna have a wider perceived frequency range where the Classic is gonna feel more focused.

But even after all of these descriptive phrases, unfortunately it's gonna come down to whether or not the guitar has magic mojo to it. I took a guitar up to Tom last week that on paper should have sounded pretty different than it actually did. So the specs get you in the ballpark but God defines the output. :)

[dannopelli]

Well said Corey.

Shea, I think you'll be quite happy with the difference in sound. I think the DTC will be a bit tighter, but due to pickguard , maybe not as much as if the guitars were identical spec with only solid vs hollow as the difference.

I'm wondering if the neck shape is identical? That can have a MAJOR influence on tone. Bigger necks to my ear make a beefier sound.

For reference:
I have four Fender 60's NOS CS Strats. In terms of specs, the only difference is the color and the build year. I have Two CS Teles, same deal. They all sound and feel different. It really is weird.

So I tend to like the blue Strat and the Red Tele! (LOL!)

[shea cobra]

hi guys,
hollow drop top serial no. is 01-17-07 n
dt classic serial no is 10-30-08 a

both are very similar as you can see,but i am looking for a more classic `stratty` sound .
i find he HDT a modern take on this sound,and i love it.
would you say the DTC would be similar but with a more vintage edge?

playability not an issue,as you are all aware.

many thanks

[tom]

closer for sure, but that same dealer has an alder classic with VA5's. that would be the "most vintage".

[dannopelli]

closer for sure, but that same dealer has an alder classic with VA5's. that would be the "most vintage".

Yeah that's the ticket. I have a Swamp Ash on Alder Classic with rosewood fretboard and VA5's that nails the 60's vintage sound. I barely play my Fenders since I got that.

If that is what you are looking for you will be happy with it for sure!

[mdrs]

having spoken with shea, i'll pop in. he has a hollow drop top and is considering a solid drop top classic, equipped with all the same woods and pickups. so he's concerned about hollow vs solid and rear loaded vs pickguard. and i believe he's left handed ta boot(not that that will affect anything:) )
let him know what ya'll think.

Lefty?

What's that?? :)

[mdrs]

In a more serious note, I'm with Tom. My Andy Classic (Alder, with the VA5 pu's, serial number 06-06-07N) is sublimely classic Strat.

Only, it plays MUCH MUCH better than my classic Strats.

Tonewise, they are very close.

BTW.......WELCOME!!

[shea cobra]

definition of a lefty: some poor sod afflicted from birth and taken advantage of by unscrupulous guitar firms who only offer the lowest quality instruments in black and then have the cheek to upcharge for it!

[mdrs]

The best thing to do, if you are a natural born lefty (no, NOT suicide :eek: ), is to learn to play righty. IF possible, right from the start, is best.

Anyhow....................

[shea cobra]

thank you for the warm welcome.
tell me,what effect does the maple top have on the sound,does it make it tighter?
i looked at the classic and think its great,but i like having a tappable hb in the bridge position,and also love the look of the dt classic.
i am still undecided.
cheers

[shea cobra]

i can play righty .....................in the mirror.

[mdrs]

Well, if you want the classic strat tone, it's the Alder Classic swith the VA5's..........

[tom]

if all else was equal, the maple top pushes up a bit of the bottom and top, kind of extending the range. the maple tops are hard for many to resist, and i understand that. i have had people that came in wanting vintage and got lured over to the dark side of the maple only to later wish they had gotten the solid alder. there have certainly been plenty that are also very satisfied with what the maple tops adds to the picture.
as for pickups, at least with a classic you can change your mind later.

[shea cobra]

thank you for that informative answer,tom.
let me throw something else at y`all.
you play in a covers band (elvis/beatles/abba/acdc/u2/kings of leon/police/killers etc.) and you can only bring one guitar to the gig.
which axe do you choose?
(this should be interesting)
shea

[dannopelli]

thank you for that informative answer,tom.
let me throw something else at y`all.
you play in a covers band (elvis/beatles/abba/acdc/u2/kings of leon/police/killers etc.) and you can only bring one guitar to the gig.
which axe do you choose?
(this should be interesting)
shea

I have five OD's and distortions in my pedal board. Granted I can't get the growl I like from a Cobra or something like that. But if I have to play one guitar its one I like.

So I bring my Classic with VA2 VA2R and VA3.

[shea cobra]

thanks for that.
why would you choose it over a HDT or DTC?
is it that the brige/middle pup sound is better,not as `honky`?
good luck

[tom]

to answer your previous question, whichever one i feel like playing that day. i usually take a carve top and a short t. i seldom change guitars in a set. i can get what i need out of either one. i usually enjoy the challenge of trying to get the unexpected out of a guitar.

[dannopelli]

I have a DTC and a HCS, both with M's. Both are very pretty and sound glorious. Honestly I should really use one of them, if I were judging based upon logic.

But I love playing true singles.

The VA5's in my white Classic are dead on vintage sounding. The VA2's and VA3 in the sunburst are just a hair less vintage sounding, but cover a bit more ground. I like the neck just a bit more too. So I guess I am just going with what I like with a touch of logic added.
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b342/dannopelli/Anderson.jpg

[michaelomiya]

if all else was equal, the maple top pushes up a bit of the bottom and top, kind of extending the range.

While my Cobra is by far my most played Andy, I've got an armada of DTC's, DT's and a Classic (alder w p/g). As with tom, I too hear a lot more low-mids with the maple tops (all of the DT's and DTC's have maple tops). But IMHO, the p/g on the DTC's really have a profound influence on the overall 'thump'. No doubt, the solid alder classic has a very fundamental tonality. But the maple/alder with p/g really has a fullness to it when compared to the DT's and the classic. Additionally, the p/g adds overtones not present with the DT's due to the extra cavity cuts.

my experience with the hollow Andys are that they have extra warm tones, but not unfocused. I played a hollow T-classic and covered VH and Ozzy with out any problem.


the maple tops are hard for many to resist, and i understand that. i have had people that came in wanting vintage and got lured over to the dark side of the maple only to later wish they had gotten the solid alder.

ah ha! the truth!:D :p Seriously, that's why you buy multiple Andys!

[michaelomiya]

thank you for that informative answer,tom.
let me throw something else at y`all.
you play in a covers band (elvis/beatles/abba/acdc/u2/kings of leon/police/killers etc.) and you can only bring one guitar to the gig.
which axe do you choose?
(this should be interesting)
shea

lets see, we cover the Beatles, AC/DC, U2, Police, VH, Chili Peppers, Stevie Wonder, No Doubt, Johnny Cash, Skynryd, Justin Timberlake, Evanescence, Alanis....had to bring 1 guitar?

....my Cobra. 5 way switch, with push/pull on tone, H1/H2+...gets the jangle/bloomy cleans, the woman tone, and brown sound all with one guitar. 'course a good 2/3/4 channel Diezel head is also mandatory!:cool: ;)

[shea cobra]

i love this forum!
i too like to play 1 guitar all night. i am just afraid that if i dont have a hb in the bridge that i might be missing something.its funny,but i tend to use the bridge pup split most of the time,then kick in the full hb when i need a bit more ooomph.
tell me, on a classic fitted with va booster circuitry,would it have a similar effect?
thanks again.
shea.

[tom]

the booster gives the character change but does not give the volume boost the humbucker does. coupled with a clean boost pedal i think you could get where you want to go. i understand the fear of not having the humbucker in the bridge. the tm2 in my short t is the first time i've felt really at home without the humbucker.

[dannopelli]

I have M3 in the bridge of my HCS and DTC and it is very close to full humbucker land.