Larrivee Acoustics

[Algonquin]

Just curious if there are any Larrivee owners floating around here at the Fret. I went out the other night for strings and such and spent about 20 minutes or so in the acoustic room and was really taken by the Larrivee's they had. I mainly checked out the L-03 series, and one stood out above the others. I'm not sure if it was the strings, or if it was the rosewood back and sides model.

Looking forward to hearing from those who have, and have tried these guitars.

Cheers :beer:
David

[markb]

I have one of the early "plain jane" parlour guitars. It's excellent. Spruce/mahogany with an ebony board (bound with ebony!), bridge and headstock facing. There is no plastic anywhere on this guitar except for the fake bone nut and saddle and it's got the tidiest internal construction of any acoustic I've seen. The early parlours were a way of using up wood sets that didn't cut it for the more expensive guitars and were sold cheap. I paid £400 for this one new. You can see the grain flaws but that doesn't hurt the tone and playability at all. I'll try to find some pictures or, failing that, shoot a few later.

[markb]

Pictures as promised. This is a 24" scale guitar. The body is about the size of a Martin size 0. Strung with 13s it's surprisingly punchy.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3464/3390506997_47d6a4771c.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3575/3391319352_367385e4db.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3625/3391319190_e15543a24c.jpg

[Algonquin]

Very nice indeed. You may say 'plain jane', but I imagine it sounds wonderful!

Thanks for digging up and posting the pics :AOK:

[sunvalleylaw]

I am not an owner but wanted to chime in. I really, really wanted one of these and almost bought it. I could have had it for 8 or 9 hundred. Now look!

http://elderly.com/new_instruments/items/D03R.htm

As you know, I jones for a solid wood rosewood/spruce dread. This larrivee seemed as good or better than the Martins in the same price range. I just couldn't swing it at the time. A little different sound than the Martin D-28 sound I was really going for, but a really nice guitar with its own sound. I really liked the neck too.

Here also is a good site selling them that has a nice clip of the guitar being played. Very nice I think!
http://guitaradoptions.com/store/product.php?productid=17448&cat=257&page=1

[Algonquin]

I've heard some good feedback on having Rosewood back and sides... I'll have to look (listen) into that.

I found some sound clips in a post at a Larrivee Forum.

http://www.larriveeforum.com/smf/index.php?topic=5947.0

Nice to listen to and identify the difference between models and the woods used.

[tjcurtin1]

David, you have my PM response... My experience is that the rosewood (as in my Tacoma) gives a bigger, warmer, more ringing tone, and that mahogany (or cherry, in the case of my A&L cedar top) is drier and woodier (if that makes sense).

[markb]

In general mahogany guitars are warm and woody with a punchy midrange while rosewoods are more top and bottom focussed. All my acoustics are mahogany, I really must get something in rosewood one of these days.

[Tone2TheBone]

Ahhhhhhh rosewood. Keep looking and playing my friend you will find yours.

[Algonquin]

Worked a few extra hours here and there through the week so I think I'm going to head into the Big Smoke tomorrow and check out what's in stock. I think I like the idea of having an onboard pickup, so I'll be checking out a few of those as well. Definetly going to compare the various 03 series such as the D (Dread), L, and the OM. I'm really going to try and let my ears be my guide... should be fun.

[tjcurtin1]

Nothing that's much more fun (well, in my book anyway!) than going out and trying guitars - have a blast!

[Algonquin]

Ohhhh there were some nice guitars to be had at this shop :bravo:

The entry level L-03 with the Spuce top and Sapele back and sides sounded wonderful. The OM-03R with the Rosewood back and sides had a nice punchy sound to it. The D-03 (Dread) was nice too, but I was drawn more to the L and OM versions.

Some of these are available with LR Baggs acoustic pickups, but I'm not sure I want a hole cut in the side of a guitar for the sake of electronics. I posed this question on the Larrivee Forum and received some responses that an aftermarket pickup that was hidden to the eye may be the way to go. Some mentioned this way is easier to keep up with the ever improving pickup technology, and I can't argue with that.

I did compare the Sapele and Rosewood backs of the OM-03 model, and did notice a bit of difference. The L-03 was not available in the Rosewood for me to compare to the Sapele, so I'll have to wait for one to come in.

I spent almost 2 hours in the shop trying this and trying that. It's a smaller upscale shop compared to the larger chains, but the staff is more knowledgeable, and the prices are usually better too. There's one Gent there that I've always found open and helpful. He openly states he's an electric player, but I trust and value his opinions (Thanks Mike)

I guess I'm looking for a quality piece of gear I can hand down to my son or daughter in the years to come. Oh crap... maybe I should have two for that!

[markb]

I'm quite fond of the L body too. It manages the balancing act between dread' and OM very nicely. M. L'arrivee designed it to be the best all round guitar. His OMs are geared towards fingerstyle while the dreadnoughts are big, bashy rhythm machines. Of course, my J45 can do this too ;) .

Try the site below for pickup options. There are lots of models these days with controls tucked into the soundhole. Just say "no" to ugly preamps :) .

http://www.maurysmusic.com/

[Algonquin]

I'm quite fond of the L body too. Just say "no" to ugly preamps :) .
I'm with you on that one 110% Mark!