| Author |
Topic: Magnatone Multimatic? |
James Mayer
From:
back in Portland Oregon, USA (via Arkansas and London, UK)
|
Posted 1 Jun 2009 8:21 am |
|
Link to auction on eBay.
I'd like to hear comments on this monstrosity. How well do these work? How do they sound? |
|
|
|
Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
|
|
|
|
Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
|
Posted 1 Jun 2009 10:36 am
|
|
I played one of these many years ago (decades ago). The pushbuttons to change tunings made an audible THUNK each time you pushed one, with the sound coming through the amplifier as well as on the guitar. Other than that, and the Allen head tuning keys, it sounded like a typical Magnatone student grade instrument.
I would stay very far away from this particular beast unless you want to spend a lot more time being mechanical than being musical. And if you want to carry an Allen wrench to change strings or tune up.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
|
|
|
James Mayer
From:
back in Portland Oregon, USA (via Arkansas and London, UK)
|
Posted 1 Jun 2009 2:31 pm
|
|
| I wasn't going to buy it. I was just amazed that something like was attempted in the 50's. It looks like a pain in the ass. |
|
|
|
Danny James
From:
Summerfield Florida USA
|
Posted 1 Jun 2009 5:28 pm
|
|
It's a shame it didn't work as advertised "smoothly" and efficiently. I can see where a lot of hard work and engineering went into building this guitar with the knowledge and materials available in the 50's.
The idea of pushing buttons to change tunings in and of itself isn't a bad one in my opinion. 
Getting it to function properly is another thing though.
Even if the underneath side does look like a Rube Goldberg nightmare. 
This thread might possibly get some engineers to thinking about how to build one with push buttons that would function properly.  |
|
|
|
Anthony Locke
From:
Texas, USA
|
Posted 2 Jun 2009 6:23 am
|
|
| I definately wouldn't play that on a gig, and I would probably have a qualified electrition take a look at it, so I wouldn't plug it in and end up with my hair looking like Don King's. But, that is an extremely rare guitar, and even though the functionality of it is above questionable. It sure would be a shame if someone bought it, and took it apart and ruined it. That guitar is really cool, and piece of history showing a different approach to pedal steel guitar when it was still relativley at it's infancy. |
|
|
|
Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
|
|
|
|
Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
|
Posted 2 Jun 2009 4:44 pm
|
|
| They say every guitar has it's perfect soundmate in a matching amp. Maybe the Mag Multi is a perfect match for the old VoluTone death trap amps... |
|
|
|
