N(old)GD: 1983 D212

[Cougar]

But maybe that's the good thing about 12 strings: while the extra string tension can over the years cause some problems, they also seem to be played less by those who buy them and never really take to them.

Ha! Could be. Not in this house though.

 

[stevendv]

Ha! Could be. Not in this house though.

You're just doing your part to offset all those folks who don't much care for 12 strings. As someone who prefers to buy used, I really appreciate those folks though--and at least they gave 12ers a try!

Actually, I've only ever tried 4 different models of 12 strings since I started playing guitar about 8 yrs ago--all of them Guild. I just haven't lived anywhere I could go someplace and try them out. But I instantly took a liking to them.

And considering their price, it's probably best I've never yet come across a F-412 or F-512. But i do look forward to when I finally do, despite the danger to my finances.

 

[rmoretti49]

My 1981 D212, purchased new, has the soundhole reinforcement described in a post above. It sits back from the soundhole perhaps a quarter of an inch, and covers from 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock, as also previously described.

I have kept this guitar tuned down to D with standard strings, and tuned down to D# with lower tension strings (Newtone Heritage). The neck has not budged over the last 30 years that I've done this.

RM

 

[jeffmac]

For people that don't like the 12 stringers.. I took the bottom 4 octave strings off leaving just the top 2 strings doubled up and its worked really nice. chords still have a chime to them and single notes are just like a normal 6 stringer on 4 of the strings. food for thought

 

[wileypickett]

For people that don't like the 12 stringers.. I took the bottom 4 octave strings off leaving just the top 2 strings doubled up and its worked really nice. chords still have a chime to them and single notes are just like a normal 6 stringer on 4 of the strings. food for thought

I do the opposite -- the four sets of octave strings I leave alone and I remove one of the two top Bs and Es, so those are both single strings.

I find that most of my string bending is on the higher strings and it's easier to "blues" the high E and B if they're single strings rather than paired.

 

[jeffmac]

I do the opposite -- the four sets of octave strings I leave alone and I remove one of the two top Bs and Es, so those are both single strings.

I find that most of my string bending is on the higher strings and it's easier to "blues" the high E and B if they're single strings rather than paired.

thats interesting too. My 12 is a 76' takamine martin copy and the low end is way over the top.

 

[wileypickett]

thats interesting too. My 12 is a 76' takamine martin copy and the low end is way over the top.

It helps the playability a little bit, and since the octaves are where you get "the 12-string sound," it still sounds right -- at least to my ear. Works for me anyway.

 

[jeffmac]

It helps the playability a little bit, and since the octaves are where you get "the 12-string sound," it still sounds right -- at least to my ear. Works for me anyway.

Im gonna have to try that !

 

[stevendv]

My 1981 D212, purchased new, has the soundhole reinforcement described in a post above. It sits back from the soundhole perhaps a quarter of an inch, and covers from 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock, as also previously described.

I have kept this guitar tuned down to D with standard strings, and tuned down to D# with lower tension strings (Newtone Heritage). The neck has not budged over the last 30 years that I've done this.

RM

That's very good to know. Do you use the Newtone Heritage 10-43 set, the 11-47, or the 12-51 for your D212?

And, just curious, is your soundboard color natural, or "mahogany," or even red (I think I've seen).

 

[HeyMikey]

So now that you have it back and it all checks out tell us more what you think. How does it play and sound? Have you gotten used to the wider neck yet? I know with my first 12 it took some getting used to, but man it was like a breath of fresh air on the first strum.

 

[stevendv]

This reply is months delayed and overdue, but it turned out that much as I liked aspects of the D212 I ended up selling it to someone nearby after a couple of months.

Every time I picked it up I'd play it for a good long time, and its sound seemed a perfect match for the kind of jangly crashy sounds of the 12 string on old Faces' songs like "Cut Across Shorty," but I could never finally get comfortable with the neck. Much as I practiced with it I struggled to play it as cleanly and without undue effort as I'd been able to play the F-1512 (2018 model yr I think) I'd had to sell a yr earlier before we moved back from overseas.

I realized I preferred the Guild jumbo 12 string sound--at least that was the sound I had in my head.

I also realized I feel most comfortable having 3 acoustics. With 3 it seems I get plenty of practice on each guitar, and the 4th just seemed for me to be one too many.

And lastly, I think I missed the 12 string sound more when the dread I owned was a Gibson J-45 granadillo. I had to sell that before the move as well and the 2014 Martin HD-28V I ended up replacing it with has all the sonic richness and power I think I'd turned to a 12 string to find.