NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
User avatar
mgeek
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1436
Joined: Mon Mar 17, 2014 1:03 pm

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by mgeek » Sat May 16, 2020 3:53 am

good video but what the hell is that Grover tuner doing on there? Did you have to widen the hole to get that on?

+ *love* dive bombing on old trems. Loads of them are waaaaay better than internet chatters normally let on. I can do that kinda stuff with the bigsby on my Hofner verithin!

User avatar
Kinx
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 389
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2017 6:27 am
Location: Czech Republic

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by Kinx » Sat May 16, 2020 7:44 am

mgeek wrote:
Sat May 16, 2020 3:53 am
good video but what the hell is that Grover tuner doing on there? Did you have to widen the hole to get that on?

+ *love* dive bombing on old trems. Loads of them are waaaaay better than internet chatters normally let on. I can do that kinda stuff with the bigsby on my Hofner verithin!
Fortunately I didn't have to drill anything, the Van Ghents have "modern" width bushings. I just can't find a single Van Ghent rugby ball for sale anywhere, so there goes the Grover - it took just a single extra hole for a screw in the back. Same with the 5 way, the switch was already there :)

I think that replacement bridge helped a lot with this one (again, no excessive routing needed, it was pretty much a drop in replacement).
Check out my band, The Atavists ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG-HZtrljMg

User avatar
mgeek
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1436
Joined: Mon Mar 17, 2014 1:03 pm

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by mgeek » Sat May 16, 2020 7:47 am

hahah ok good, was worried for a moment! ;)

One *will* turn up, I'm sure.

Great demo! It's a super cool guitar

User avatar
will
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1113
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 3:36 pm
Contact:

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by will » Sun May 17, 2020 9:42 am

I liked your video quite a lot - I think you did a very good job of talking about what makes the guitar unique in sound and construction, and showed the sound with a lot of different styles of playing - the video was nicely produced too!

One thing I'm curious about when I see a video like this is, have you encountered a guitar that just sounded bad in an unusable way? Your playing skills are really excellent (it was nice to see your techniques with microphonic pickups!) So I'm curious - have you encountered a guitar that made you think "there aren't any possibilities here!" when you plugged it in?

User avatar
windmill
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 4404
Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2007 4:31 am
Location: South Eastern Australia

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by windmill » Sun May 17, 2020 3:34 pm

Thanks for the video

It was very good the way you just played a lot of different things on the guitar, even when you weren't being serious, and showed off the differences in sounds.

:)

User avatar
Kinx
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 389
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2017 6:27 am
Location: Czech Republic

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by Kinx » Mon May 18, 2020 6:26 am

Thanks a lot for all the comments :-*
will wrote:
Sun May 17, 2020 9:42 am
I liked your video quite a lot - I think you did a very good job of talking about what makes the guitar unique in sound and construction, and showed the sound with a lot of different styles of playing - the video was nicely produced too!

One thing I'm curious about when I see a video like this is, have you encountered a guitar that just sounded bad in an unusable way? Your playing skills are really excellent (it was nice to see your techniques with microphonic pickups!) So I'm curious - have you encountered a guitar that made you think "there aren't any possibilities here!" when you plugged it in?
Well, that's really subjective. I believe that you can make anything sound musical - however, some guitars are just tough to deal with :) I am more intrigued by personality of an instrument and the way it's inspiring me to play it than general playability. For example, my Jolana Diskant archtop is deemed unplayable by most of my friends and it is indeed objectively hard to play (high action, worn frets, unstable bridge, super microphonic pickups), but I find it inspiring and enjoyable. Playing this guitar payed off many times in the studio, because it sounds really special. On the other hand, 99% Ibanez RG guitars I've ever played are very playable instruments, but they just don't inspire me and tend to be very "general" sounding. And then there's third categhory of "uninspiring and unplayble" :D amongst the worst one I can remember are Jolana Galaxis (original bridge moving all over the place, because it's not mounted to the body and just rests on a plastic pickguard, dull sounding and unbalanced pickups), Orfeus Hebros (cool looks, but overally a dreadful instruments, however few of my friends loved it's sound) or any entry level Cremona archtop from late 60s/early 70s - however, I know of people who really love these guitars, these are just my opinions :)
Check out my band, The Atavists ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG-HZtrljMg

User avatar
will
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1113
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 3:36 pm
Contact:

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by will » Tue May 19, 2020 7:50 am

Kinx wrote:
Mon May 18, 2020 6:26 am
Orfeus Hebros (cool looks, but overally a dreadful instruments, however few of my friends loved it's sound) or any entry level Cremona archtop from late 60s/early 70s - however, I know of people who really love these guitars, these are just my opinions :)

Totally understand - I fixed up a few Orfeus guitars - they were really awful when they arrived in the mail. ...enormous necks, worn brass frets popping up all over the neck, no fretwork, unstable bridges, etc.

Kinda nice after a bit of work, but definitely not easy to play as they are from the factory.

User avatar
VPO
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 127
Joined: Mon Jun 30, 2014 1:31 pm

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by VPO » Tue May 19, 2020 11:12 am

Kinx wrote:
Sat May 16, 2020 2:41 am
I just started a youtube channel with my buddy and the Eko featured in this thread is thoroughly reviewed in our first episode, check it out :) We deffinitely appreciate any kind of feedback.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeElq7kWSH0
Stunning guitar and nice episode. Junkyard Gear is a great concept. Hope you keep filming these!

You could use more back light but that's a small thing to improve.

User avatar
volhoo
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 131
Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2016 12:53 pm
Location: SoCal

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by volhoo » Wed Jun 10, 2020 6:09 pm

Wow - sounds great - surfs up dude

-

User avatar
whitewatersky
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 304
Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2013 7:52 pm

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by whitewatersky » Tue Aug 11, 2020 7:38 pm

love this giuitar - the video is really cool. great playing !

User avatar
Kinx
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 389
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2017 6:27 am
Location: Czech Republic

Re: NGD: '63 Eko 500-3V

Post by Kinx » Tue Aug 25, 2020 12:37 am

thanks guys :)

after playing the Eko for couple of months, I can really say I am very much in love with it. The vibrato is nothing but phenomenal - it just doesn't go out of tune and the range is pretty extreme !

I would love to find another vibrato equipped 500 or 700 in poor condition and restore it with different pickups - I like the original pickups, but the bridge pickup is just too weak and microphonic to be used all the time - I actually love it for surfy sounds and italian western twang, but I would really like to use that guitar for more than few songs in a set and that would require a new pickup. If it wasn't for the pickups, it would be my no. 1 guitar for live use (replacing my trusty '72 JM).

Only real disadvantage I see in this guitar is the neck material - it is some kind of soft african timber and it is still pretty much "alive" after 57 years - that's why lot of Eko guitars from this era have nasty neck twist (I had mine sorted out).
Check out my band, The Atavists ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG-HZtrljMg

Post Reply