|
|
Post by Tony Ravenscroft on Feb 26, 2022 16:18:40 GMT -6
{as I posted to Wikipedia a few years ago}The following applies to almost all Washburn acoustic instruments, and to many electric guitars and basses. suffix — - C - cutaway
- DL - deluxe (generally, a standard model with a few upgraded features)
- E - electric (i.e., built-in pickup)
- K - kit (i.e., includes case or gig bag)
- LH - left-handed
- M - mahogany top
- Q - quilt maple top
- R - rosewood
- S - solid-wood top (rather than laminate)
- SP - spalt maple top
- SW - solid wood used throughout
- V - vibrato (on electric guitars)
This often combines with the prefix to tell a guitar's story. For example, the WLG110SWCEK indicates that it's part of the Woodline series (WL-), likely top of the line (110), Grand Auditorium (G) size, all solid wood, cutaway, piezo pickup, and originally included a case.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tony Ravenscroft on Oct 27, 2023 17:20:11 GMT -6
The upside of Washburn acoustic-guitar model numbers is that they often tell you a whole lot about the instrument. The downside is that they are often utterly baffling, especially to people who aren't gear nerds -- which tiny group, one would hope, includes very few people who would rather be actually playing music.  However, it certainly WOULD be nice if more sellers would know what in the hell they are doing. I found a Reverb.com listing for a nice-looking WSJ60SCEKELITE (Samick China 2013). It's got a couple of moderate edge dings, otherwise looks nice... but is it worth it? For <$500, sure, probably - so long as it's going to be actually played, not merely hoarded by yet another flipper. Bound neck, bound head, wood body binding, inlaid logo, diamond inlays - in all, not a deluxe model, but lots of hands-on work so certainly not a low-end piece. But the question remains: What the heck is it? The tough part is the prefix. At a wild guess, "Washburn Southern Jumbo," though it could maybe indicate "W------- Series Jumbo." Maybe I'll dig into the catalogues some other day. In any case, it's properly a WSJ-60 -- more or less a midrange guitar. The rest tells the story: solid-wood top; cutaway; piezo; gig bag; Elite version. The only part that bothers me is calling it "Elite." It's probably like a "Special Edition" of anything from video games to my lamented Pontiac Grand Am SE: The company took a decent item, reduced some of the flashier qualities to save price, then emphasized some superficial cosmetic points. Sometimes this seems to play buyers as suckers who think they're getting the more valuable item at a reduced price. One source suggests this was for Washburn's "elite dealers," but I can guess that means their huge bulk buyers (like Musician's Friend or Guitar Center or Zzounds) so likely not rare. Conversely, it may offer the buyer an opportunity to give up features they aren't particularly interested in - or maybe would rather avoid! - and/or get something they want that's not available on the "proper" model. |
|
