Attributes of The Artist

[Ted]

Hello All,

I was wondering what were the attributes of The Artist Semi Hollow that set its tone apart from our other Hamer Guitars?

Ted from Evanston, Il

[ArtistOwner]

Hello All,

I was wondering what were the attributes of The Artist Semi Hollow that set its tone apart from our other Hamer Guitars?

Ted from Evanston, Il

Ted,

I don't have a Hamer solid body to compare my Artist GATASO to, but for me it really sings on the cleaner settings. I can totally rock out with it when I drive it and it has little to no feedback issues at full stage gain. Actually I can control the feedback on stage and that's a nice attribute.

Mine has the SD Seth Lover PUPS and it has a very vintage LP tone. Great sustain, nice creamy tone. Here are some pics. I'm actually looking to trade this for a solid body Hamer, LP or PRS.

Jim

[veatch]

Good question. Best bet is to run, not walk, to your nearest Hamer USA dealer and play as many guitars as they'll let you touch.

If you're like me, that may be a tough mission - no new Hamer USA guitars in Detroit the last time i checked... Actually, last three times i checked.

Anyway, i'll compare the Artist and the Studio. When i originally picked up the Artist, i was planning on launching the Studio. It didn't happen.

I'm sure the pups have a lot to do with it, as will the normal variances from guitar to guitar (although i find Hamers to be fairly consistent...), but:

The Studio has a more aggressive sound and simply kills on solos. Bar chords and triads sound great, especially over-driven. Clean sounds with "fancy chords" (ala Guitar George...) are fine, but not stellar.

The Artist is less aggressive, but still sounds very good on solos (just not as good as the studio...). Bar chords and such are tight, but the big benefit is the clarity on the "fancy chords". Even with light overdrive, i can still hear every string on the Artist. I don't get that on the Studio.

For full disclosure - the differences between the Studio and the Artist is about 5 years ('96 Studio vs '01 Artist) and the pups. I currently have Lollar Imperials in the Studio and underwound Imperials in the Artist. Everything else, including the finish, are the same.

Hope that helps, but as with anything, opinions vary: trust yer own ears.