Tell me about your late 60s M-75

leonc

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I'm curious about the hollow-body models with what I assume are HB-1s.

- Neck shape?
- Do you know the fretboard radius?
- What is the size and shape of the frets like?
- How well does it play? Do you do much string bending? Any issues?
- Integrity of fretboard at neck / body joint. Any issues or did they get it right so that you can still play up the fretboard, bending and not fretting out?
- Feedback - any issues, i.e., does it spill into harmonic feedback too easily (like many hollowbodies with F-holes)?
- Pickups - these are HB-1s, right? How microphonic are they? What's your overall impression of them in terms of clarity, richness, output level?
 

matsickma

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Late 60's hollow body M75's have the "mini" or "little" humbuckers. Their is a short period of time in the early 70's where full size HB-1 are used. Assume '70 and early '71. By late '71 early '72 Guild began to experiment with "semi solid" M75's where they would take a hollow M75 and bond wooden block into the lower half of the body starting in the area of the bridge and lower. For my money these guitars are the better if the breed.

Very early 60's M75 guitars called "Bluesbirds" in 1967 were made from left over M75 Aristocrats. The ensuing M75 "Bluesbirds" starting late '67 or early '68 were redesigned guitars with the neck A# fret attaching at the body instead of the "Aristocrat" G# fret at the body. The new M75 "Bluesbird" had a maple top instead of the Aristocrat spruce top, slimmer neck and a double bond body (ie, front and back).
The hollow body guitars were prone to howelling feedback where as the later semisolid versions eliminated the problem. I particularly don't care for the sound if a hollow body M75 with Guild mini humbuckers. Suprising the mini humbuckers tend to sound "boomy" at the low notes. However you should know that I don't like the sound if Guild mini humbuckers on ANY hollow body guitar but love them on a semihollow SF 5 and Thunderbird.
M
 

matsickma

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Another point of note...
Early in the 70's Guild issued the solidbody M75. It's introduction may have overlapped the semisolid M75's. These new solidbody M75's are a completely different and new guitar. The necks are very slim, the body is a solid mahogany and the top is carved maple ( and maybe mahogany on some models) with top binding. This version is similar to a Les Paul in construction.
M
 
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No maple top on my 1971 M-75. Solid mahogany body and neck with an ebony fretboard very similar to a Les Paul Custom. As for the neck, it is more round or C shaped and it is the same width as my newer MIM Telecaster.
Thanks John
 

leonc

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matsickma - yeah I love the little mini hums in my Thunderbird too. Really great sounding pickups in a solid body. That is odd that they'd be boomy in a hollowbody...but howling feedback is definitely something I'd need to avoid. I was afraid of that. Thanks for the info. And thanks for your input powerwagonjohn.
 

Quantum Strummer

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The hollow Bluesbirds do feed back if you’re not careful, but that’s how it is with hollowbodies. Mine has the snappier, janglier (~5.2K DC resistance) anti-hums and sounds terrific. No low end woof, just a nice & rich warmth. To my hands and ears it’s a better guitar than the ES-350T, a ‘60 with PAFs, I once owned.

-Dave-
 
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NEONMOONY

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One man's meat is another man's poison. I have a '69 with mini hums and I think it is very special. It has a clear treble with a reverb like sound to it that I can't really replicate on any of my other guitars. As far as the fit and finish, it plays very nice with good action.
 

swiveltung

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I used my 69/70 M-75 Bluesbird in a loud rock band back in the day. I liked the neck a lot, not too thin, not too thick. Mine was full hollow and had the large humbuckers. It was labeled "Bluesbird" on the truss rod cover. Bought new at Seattle Music.... 2nd ave?. It would only feedback when I wanted it to... in front of a Marshall stack! But you could get it to go on for days on the start to Hendrix's "Foxy Lady".
Several years ago I picked one up on Ebay trying to re live my youth. I loved how it felt /played also, but frankly it was very woody thin sounding when not playing full tilt rock n roll anymore. Felt light a feather. i think it weighed something like 5.4 lbs.
 

adorshki

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I used my 69/70 M-75 Bluesbird in a loud rock band back in the day. I liked the neck a lot, not too thin, not too thick. Mine was full hollow and had the large humbuckers. It was labeled "Bluesbird" on the truss rod cover. Bought new at Seattle Music.... 2nd ave?. It would only feedback when I wanted it to... in front of a Marshall stack! But you could get it to go on for days on the start to Hendrix's "Foxy Lady".Several years ago I picked one up on Ebay trying to re live my youth. I loved how it felt /played also, but frankly it was very woody thin sounding when not playing full tilt rock n roll anymore. Felt light a feather. i think it weighed something like 5.4 lbs.

I whip out this chestnut periodically in Bluesbirds discussions because it's one of my favorite tones of all time: sustain forever.
I'm positive you'll remember the tune but don't know if you know the guitarist favored Guilds:
http://www.vintageinstruments.com/thumbnails/53m75sfulpage.html
It turns out he's mis-identified the '53 as a Bluesbird since for one thing the designation wasn't even used until the '60's. (Thanks to Ralf SFIV1967 for clueing me in on that)
Whether or not he used an actual Bluesbird (which would have been available in the same configuration you had when this was recorded), or the '53 M75 shown on his site is unknown to me, but I got a sneaking suspicion it's an actual 'Bird and maybe why he describes the '53 that way, what do you think?:

 
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swiveltung

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I whip out this chestnut periodically in Bluesbirds discussions because it's one of my favorite tones of all time: sustain forever.
I'm positive you'll remember the tune but don't know if you know the guitarist favored Guilds:
http://www.vintageinstruments.com/thumbnails/53m75sfulpage.html
It turns out he's mis-identified the '53 as a Bluesbird since for one thing the designation wasn't even used until the '60's. (Thanks to Ralf SFIV1967 for clueing me in on that)
Whether or not he used an actual Bluesbird (which would have been available in the same configuration you had when this was recorded), or the '53 M75 shown on his site is unknown to me, but I got a sneaking suspicion it's an actual 'Bird and maybe why he describes the '53 that way, what do you think?:



I actually played that tune back at that time as well as that other hit they had! I had no idea the Youngbloods used a Guild though.
 

hansmoust

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It turns out he's mis-identified the '53 as a Bluesbird since for one thing the designation wasn't even used until the '60's.
Whether or not he used an actual Bluesbird (which would have been available in the same configuration you had when this was recorded), or the '53 M75 shown on his site is unknown to me, but I got a sneaking suspicion it's an actual 'Bird and maybe why he describes the '53 that way, what do you think?

I believe that he used one of the last M-75 Aristocrats that were done around 1962/1963.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl
 
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