I've added two antique parlors to the family since my last post in this thread.
The evil looking parlor on the far right is an old B&J Serenader that both sounds and plays much better than it looks. It still holds its tuning, the action is still very playable, there are only 1 or 2 dead frets, and the body is made of solid birch which is something I've never come across before. Doesn't sound like any other acoustic I've ever owned, very dull and dark tone, and there's something wrong at the bridge causing the D string to produce these eerie harmonics that actually end up adding to the sound, it's great for slow fingerstyle blues. I found an
old Reverb listing for the exact guitar online that says it's 20s-30s, glad I found it elsewhere because I only paid $100 it.
Here's what it sounds like:
Playing: B&J Serenader.mp3 - picosong
On the left, propped up on the chair, is an old Kay that I picked up for $30. It's almost unplayable, many (if not most) of the frets above the 5th are dead and buzzing. It doesn't sound all too great either, but oddly enough, for how cheaply built it is, it is one of the nicest looking guitars I've ever owned, here's a
better picture up close. The finish is a veneer but man, it has to be the nicest veneer I've ever seen, beautiful figuring. I haven't been able to find out the age of this one, it's ladder braced so it should be at least pre-40s.
Here's what it sounds like:
Playing: Audio recording 2016-09-29 21-56-12.mp3 - picosong
