I Played a Full Acoustic Guitar in the Product Video

I usually take care of the repairs and other things in the technical department, but recently I have been asked to play some guitars for product videos! So, I ended up playing in some of them.

Since I got the opportunity, I thought it would be a good idea to blog about my impressions.
I myself am not that good at Jazz music and I am still learning, but I tried my best to make it sound like Jazz music. When I watch the finished video, I sometimes think “I should have used a different phrase here,” so I thought I would write about my side of the story. lol

Loar / LH-650 Vintage Sunburst　Full Acoustic

The guitar features Kent Armstrong mini humbuckers.

Mini humbuckers have a crispier sound than normal humbuckers. The mini humbucker reminds me of George Benson when I think of jazz guitarists. While the Ibanez GB10 has 22 frets, the LH-650 has fewer frets which are 19 frets. The pickups are placed closer to the neck for a slightly warmer sound.

The controls are simple since they only control the volume, so once you understand the sound of this guitar, you won't have any trouble finding the right settings. It has no Tone, so it is not really suited for firmer sounds.
The strings are round wound when shipped, but I personally would like to replace them with flat wound.
In the product video, I played it like a tribute to “So What”, but it's hard to play modal jazz like this…
A brighter sound setting would suit R&B and SOUL genres as well!

Loar / LH-309 Vintage Sunburst Full Acoustic

The guitar looks like a pickup attached archtop guitar, giving it a vintage look. In fact, it is designed to look like a guitar from a very old era, with a thick, triangular neck, and it has a thicker sound due to this.
This neck may be difficult to play if you are not used to it, but I hope you will learn to play it and become addicted to it.
I feel that the idea that “the lowest possible string height is better” has been spreading among guitarists in recent years, and while this is fine if you only play with a lot of distortion, if you want a fat clean or crunch sound, I personally think it is better to practice in order to play with a certain high string height.

In the video, I focused on a Jazz-like sound by narrowing down the tone a little. I improvised some jazz blues and built up the phrases and shot the video. (I re-recorded it many times.(;^ω^A）
I should have used a tensioned chord for the last chord instead of the usual 7th…

Loar / LH-700 Vintage Sunburst Archtop Guitar

This is the archtop guitar.
The archtop guitar serves a role in the jazz world, where before the development of the electric guitar, guitars were used in big bands to play rhythm.
Now it would be good for those who want an acoustic guitar with a different sound than a regular acoustic guitar!

I was wondering what to play when I was told “I want to make a video of this guitar around next week!” lol

Anyway, in the product video, I tried to pay homage to a typical gypsy jazz song and play it like that. Gypsy jazz uses a type of guitar called a McCaffery guitar and I think it looks like that with this guitar! Between you and me, I thought I should have included more harmonic minor scale phrases when I watched the finished video.

I think all guitars would be more jazzy if you put flatwound strings on them.

⇒ Flatwound Guitar Strings List

Many jazz guitarists are also playing on roundwound strings these days, so this area is a matter of preference.

I would be very happy if it makes you want to play jazz guitar after watching this video! I'm still learning jazz, so I've been practicing steadily, learning standards and going to sessions sometimes! For those of you for whom rock guitar isn't enough, pick up a full acoustic and start practicing!