JWL.Freakwitch.net

Does Annabelle need a mate?

Maybe so. The folks who make Annabelle have started making a new line of guitars. The Pathmaker line (what Annabelle is) is a custom design by Abe Wechter that is made in a guitar factory in China. Abe discovered, however, that due to economies of scale, the factory can make more traditional acoustic designs even cheaper, simply because they make so many more. So he decided to import some of these designs, and give them the "Maple Lake" moniker, since they're not Abe Wechter designs.

Annabelle is a great guitar, esp. for live performance. It's pickup system is top notch, and the guitar plays like a dream. Its only weakness is that its acoustic tone is not as loud and full as other guitars, due the hybrid design (some of the guitar is solid wood, and doesn't vibrate as easily as a normal acoustic). So I've been thinking about getting a 2nd acoustic, both for those kumbaya moments around the campfire (ie, playing acoustically with others and without amplification), as well as for recording with microphones in the studio.

Since Annabelle is a small guitar, it makes sense for my 2nd guitar to be a large body instrument, a "jumbo" guitar. And it just so happens that Maple Lake has a jumbo, with the exact same pickup system that Annabelle has. Very cool. I want to get this guitar. I'll have to sell my old acoustic to do it, but the Yairi is in the same category as Annabelle, and of the 2 Annabelle is better suited to my needs at this point.

There is some amount of trepidation trading in a guitar I've had for nearly 15 years, but in the spirit of Buddhist non-attachment, it's clearly true that a large-bodied acoustic would better suit my needs.

UPDATE: It's a done deal. I sold my Alvarez, and ordered the Maple Lake 2614 Jumbo. Looking forward to playing it! Hopefully it will tell me its name in a timely fashion.

posted by JWL at 11:02 AM |