Chuck told me this morning that he had been asked for a size reference for the Improv. I with I’d thought of taking a photo of an Improv and an AT together!
I’m going to try to composite a photo so that it shows both, if I can get the scale just right. If it does the job, I’m going to post it to the blog. Otherwise, I’ll post a wireframe drawing.
The best I can do as of right now is to say that the Improv is 1.5″ wider and 1.1″ longer than an AT. The headstock is also about 10% larger. The f-holes are similarly larger, but the proportions and placement are different.
The AT is 1 3/4″ thick at the edge. The Improv is 2 1/8″ thick at the endpin, and tapers to 1 3/4″ at the heel. There is a side-on shot of guitar #0282, which shows the taper really well.
There’s a story behind the taper. The guitar was originally designed, like a typical archtop, to be the same thickness from end to end. But, when Chuck assembled the mockup, he thought it looked too clunky in the heel area; so he disassembled it and took a belt sander to the parts. When he re-assembled it, it looked like a completely different instrument.
Because of the taper and careful design of the interior, the weight of the 1 pickup version is about 1/2 lb less than the Professional Acoustic, and the 2 pickup version weighs about the same.
Rich
September 23rd, 2011 at 9:45 am
What’s an “AT”?
Also, what are your thoughts on using a wooden bridge vs. tone-pros style?
September 23rd, 2011 at 10:47 am
AT is my shorthand for our semi-hollow Archtop guitars. I hadn’t realized it had gotten into the post.
I don’t know Chuck’s thought on using a wooden bridge. I’ll ask him this afternoon.
Rich
September 24th, 2011 at 1:53 am
I have a pic of my Improv #281 unassembled and side by side with an AT. Really shows the difference. I took it back in May when I visited the shop. Tell me where to send the image.
September 25th, 2011 at 7:28 am
I have posted some images of my Jazz Elite & Improv at http://jaysjazzboxes.shutterfly.com/pictures/33 for a slideshow and some side-by-side visual comparisons of headstock and body size differences.
September 25th, 2011 at 10:23 am
Jay, thank you. I’m up to my ears here and it was going to take another day or two to get it done.
Rich
September 26th, 2011 at 1:24 pm
Nice job Jay.
The comparison really gets one to understand the size difference between the other model arch tops and the Improv. Good side to side comparison.
Amazing also is the head stock size needed to keep the proportion in regard to the body size.
A larger sound chamber and a lot more top-surface area should have a big impact on the over all volume (unamplified) and tone.
There is a lot more wood in the Improv build so I imagine Chuck has to get some good size pieces of wood to meet those dimensions. The depth of the guitar is also interesting. Dimensionally is doesn’t sound like a lot of difference form the standard arch tops but visually and if calculated in cubic inch area, it is a whole different chamber size paradigm.
I appreciate the side by side comparisons. I think it really brings home the point that the Improv really is designed to live in the Jazz/Blues box world.
Now let us know how it sounds through a Fender Super Reverb as a FSB can be loud as all get out, but I know it’s all about the massive amount of clean head room a FSB offers.
Good Stuff
October 3rd, 2011 at 10:33 am
Well, after 2 weeks of getting introduced to my new Improv, our love affair is deepening. Lou D is right, that extra amount of chamber size creats even more stimulation to the ole drool glands. And as much as I’m absolutely loving the sweet, sweet tones jumping off this thing, I’m also enjoying how it feels like my other CpT other archtop models when I play it. I feel NO difference in the neck area, and of course there is no difference in weight. In fact, the Improv is actually lighter than a couple of my other CpT semihollows. And somehow, the body size just doesn’t seem noticably different even though I can see that it is larger. Maybe it’s just me, but the Improv actually seems to play easier. The neck is so comfortable and the action could not be more perfect. Compared to a couple of other hollowbody archtop brands I’ve owned before, the Improv plays like a comfortable computer keyboard vs. an old manual typewriter.
Speaking of tone, I stand behind my earlier statement that the soundscape of jazz has been changed with the Improv. Even though I have still not located a Fender Super Reverb to play it through as recommended, I’m VERY thrilled with what I’m hearing on my Fender Deluxe Reverb, Dr Z, & Chicago Blues Box. Those are the amps I’m most familiar with and most used to. Now I can add one more amp that is just thrilling the hell out of me with the Improv – my Fender Jazz King. Solid bodies & humbucker guitars sound good on it, but this Improv sounds awesome. This amp cannot be overdriven at all & only has reverb; so when I add just a touch of ‘verb to this rig, man I’m set. Nothing but clean at any volume, which means I can dial back the Improv volume & tone & crank the amp. oooooooohhhhheeeee! That’s what I was looking for!! I’ll believe it when I hear a Super Reverb sound any better than that!! Not sayin’ it can’t happen; I’m just sayin’…………….
Learning for me: My search is over for THE guitar for my Fender Jazz King amp to get the jazz sound I wanted.
Yeah, Chuck!! Yeah, Rich!! Yeah, Fender amps!!
It’s Sonic Nervana!!
Jay W.
October 21st, 2011 at 4:25 pm
I am the one with the two pickup version of the Improv. I run it through a Henriksen Jazz Amp and a Super Reverb. The strings are 13-56 steel flats.
The workmanship on the Improv is perfect. It is balanced and comfortable. I love the finish.
My goals were more sustain than a traditional archtop and more tonal range without sacrificing warmth. The Improve achieved these. I can comfortable venture into fusion and new age then flip over to bebop. Feedback has not been a problem either, although one has to be reasonable.
My 17″ and 18″ archtops are getting little playing time these days, but they still have a niche.
I don’t think I could tire of the comfort, beauty and tone of the Improv for the next few decades, if ever. While I’m in the minority in having the bridge pickup, that was the right choice for me.
October 21st, 2011 at 6:32 pm
Hi Mark,
Good to read your thoughts on your Improv.
I just posted in the other blog about my Improv (Big-Red).
I was wondering how the 13-56′s feel to you on the Improv versus your other instruments. My 12′s feel almost like 11′s to me. I thought I would feel a larger difference with the 12′s but not at all.
I would agree that the large archtops will always have their place.
Time will tell but I think the Improv will attract a great deal of attention once some players can get their hands on one to see for themselves. Good to read your post.
Lou D.
October 26th, 2011 at 9:48 am
Frankly, the Improv is the only instrument I can comfortably get away with 13′s on. That’s because the action is low and the frets are leveled perfectly.
Certainly I’ve used 13′s on some other guitars and can play them, but I tend to not pick them up as much due to the extra effort needed to fret them. So I keep 12-54′s on them.
There’s no doubt that heavier strings create a wonderful tone. The Improv is a marvel.
There was a little jingling from the ResoMax bridge at first. Apparently the saddles needed to settle in. That quickly resolved without intervention. I hear that this is not atypical for a ResoMax. It’s worth the temporary slight annoyance however. The acoustic tone is sweet, in part due to the light bridge that transmits a full sonic spectrum to the sound board.
Mark
Mark