Godin 5th Avenue Kingpin P90

(Originally written by zjulos/translated from Audiofanzine FR)
Made in Canada

UTILIZATION

Features:

Top: Canadian cherry wood

Back and sides: Canadian cherry wood with cream bindings

Neck: silver maple with profiled black glossy headstock

- Rosewood fingerboard

Adjustable Graphtech Tusq bridge

Finish: polished finish

One Godin Kingpin P90 single-coil pickup

Volume and tone controls

Radius: 16"

Scale: 24.84"

Nut: 1.72"

Colors: Cognac burst, natural and black

SOUNDS

Made out of Canadian cherry wood, the body of this 5th Avenue has a curved top and a molded back, an adjustable bridge, standard F-holes, profiled glossy headstock, floating pickguard and cream bindings. The beautifully polished finish looks great and it reminds me of superb 19th century French finishes.

The new Godin Kingpin P90 single-coil pickup produces a classic Vintage sound with strong presence, clarity and character!

OVERALL OPINION

I tested the 5th Avenue model without a pickup and I would like to meet somebody who owns the version with pickup to hear how it sounds...

Canada already described by other opinions

UTILIZATION

The neck is great (it is a feature of Godin)
The ergonomics are excellent, the guitar is small and light
Access to acute is obviously way without cutaway, but for the music to which it is intended very well.
Sii you need to make bends in the 20th box is that you need a strat archtop not ...

SOUNDS

I use it with either Amplitube or acoustic or with a Laney Cub 10.
In all cases it is very well, but we must be careful it is sensitive to feedback.

OVERALL OPINION

I will not rewrite everything that everyone has already written very well, just add another point of view.

Judged solely by the term "archtop" 5th Avenue a little niche in the niche "reserved for jazz players," while it may appeal to a wider audience really.
I'm an old eternal beginner, I do not play jazz, I love my 5th Avenue, one can do blues, picking .. all we want is (mostly secondhand) a small instrument extremely endearing.

Of course that is a folk folk and archtop archtop one, each produces a different sound, no dispute on this point, it prevents the 5Th Avenue is constructed as a folk who have a union less thick and of course a different table.
The rest is the same (I also have an Art & Lutherie Folk Cedar, the similarity is amazing, the handle is the same, finishing the same box etc ...).
From a perspective construction, the 5th Avenue is built on the basis of a folk Godin and feel (not sound) are 98% identical. Pass from one to the other is done seamlessly (instrument side once again, not the side)

Someone who plays on an acoustic and love handles Godin Kingpin could see as an alternative to an original and enjoyable electrified acoustic with a magnetic pickup (which gives a sound anyway far enough from the noise in general)
Similarly, the low projection (compared to folk) of the 5th Avenue makes it a great tool for the home.
Anyway, I love this guitar, and I find amazing that Canadians are able to produce this kind of thing with people normally paid in arriving at a final rate not delusional.
I know it gives concert, but at home it is a super versatile option, rather than what the term "archtop" may hint

Made in Canada
Adjustable Tusq Bridge by Graphtech
Table: Canadian Wild Cherry
Back & Sides: Canadian Wild Cherry
Neck: Silver leaf maple
Fingerboard: Rosewood
Scale: 24.84 "(63 cm)
Microphone: 1x Godin Kingpin P90 single-coil
1x Volume, 1x Tone

UTILIZATION

The handle is very nice on geometry. I found him one drawback which is repeated on my other two Godin electric. This is due to a specific treatment of wood? I do not know. The strings are very sensitive to oxidation and neck (including the back) lost after a few moments game its "slippery". We can certainly blame my sweating, but I have other guitars (Duesenberg, Hagström, Gitano) which, with (regarding electrical) the same strings (and my own hands!) Do not exhibit this phenomenon. A retailer Godin me also of himself (although I mentioned the issue with him) mentioned the thing. I avoid my side but Fastfret regularly cleans the strings with product maintenance for Strings Gibson Luthers Choice (sometimes with Dunlop 65 String Cleaner, which unfortunately feels the penetrating oil with molybdenum used in mechanics!) And the default is diminished.

Without cutaway, this guitar does not allow easy access to acute, this is not very annoying for genres which it seems naturally oriented.

Surprisingly light on the door very easily with a strap long hours and I think its nice shape to play seated.

Regarding getting a good sound: on branch (on a good tube amp preferably) and it sounds now! One microphone, a volume knob and a tone (which might deserve to be more progressive): nothing complicated to draw the right sound.

Note: I put 8/10 ("very good) and not 9/10 (" excellent "simply because of the propensity of the instrument oxidation of strings)

SOUNDS

I enjoy playing jazz on this guitar. I mounted with "sausages" Thomastick JS 112 (I am tempted to put Thomastick GB 114! And I guess the sound come out of a Hot Rod Deluxe!)

In POWER, I played on a Palmer Fat Combo 50 and a Laney Cube 12R. Excellent on both amps. The sound is warm and rich across the spectrum. Note: This sends lots of bass guitar strings on Mi and La. Thomastick JS strings have the advantage of reducing the invasion of that was low on this type of guitar with other brands of strings (net flat) even pulling.

Overall, there is a beautiful combination of wood roundness and warmth of P90. The clear seems obviously beautiful, very typical "swing" or "bebop" (listen to recordings of Barney Kessel with Charles Parker) If you push a little gain, you get a nice crunch sound reminiscent giving quite the Gibson ES300 sound of bebop in the records of Django Reinhardt. However, this guitar has never tempted to be tested with the effects of overdrive or fuzz! With a little further gain on the amp, you can (I think) to find sounds that stick well to the Chicago blues.

Do not wait for this instrument against long sustain, but the warmth of the sound offsets.

Failure of the guitar (seems inherent Does all P90 "classic"): 1) the feedback comes quickly to medium or high volume, 2) the microphone is very sensitive to magnetic fields and the amp it hums quite easily - to avoid these snoring just find ideal orientation and distance relative to the amp.

In ACOUSTICS, it is far from the project as Gibson ES130 (1953) from a friend with whom we are engaged in comparisons. But the sound is not bad. With ropes Thomastick she lost in projection with respect to the original strings are round nets.

OVERALL OPINION

I have this I Kingpin for over a year. I'm still as much fun playing it and I think I will not tire of its sound.

I have not tried many models before buying. At the time of purchase, I simply store compared with a Gretsch Synchromatic G100CE. I preferred the sound of the electric Godin. Matter of taste ...

If we compare with the price of the "must" of this kind of guitar "electric spanish" value for money seems to me excellent. However, if you want to consider buying in terms of price / versatility, so it is important not to turn to the Kingpin I seems to me purely jazz oriented "mainstream" and "bebop".

With my back more than a year, if I had to redo the acquisition, I would choose the same guitar!

Note that I have another 5th Avenue Kingpin: model "II" (with two P90) mounted with a draft less (Thomastick JS 111), with similar qualities, complements and expands (for versatility larger) the possibilities of sound Kingpin I. But I must say that I Kingpin with a set of 12 sounds pretty darn good pulling power in its price!

Already said by colleagues below. Nothing to add.

The color is beautiful and the excellent violin. Everything is mounted above, nothing is sticking, (fairly thin frets), really nice work, to see a finish that level, it is the comparison to my trad LP without problem.

Mine came with a box TRIC, but surprisingly light weight makes it a little polyester.

UTILIZATION

The handle is of type Gibson ES335, rather then a handle power. It is light (normal ... it is hollow), reasonable body width (half case). Access to Acute not ideal, because no cutaway, but it does not need to go below the 15 so it's good.

SOUNDS

Then there is the question.

In acoustics: it sounds good but careful not too fall action to let the notes ring. The mids are very good, as the treble, I find that it lacks a little low (at the same time it is not a dread or jumbo ...) perhaps by changing the strings ... I would tell you that later. The strings are the strings for electric factory assembled and I think that we should not put acoustic strings on it because once plugged ca sound worse.

In éltectrique: the knobs are very responsive. With the tone at the bottom was the impression of playing with an electro-acoustic. The tone in the middle, it sounds terrible blues, the tone to 0, it sounds jazz. This versatility is remarkable.

The microphone has a high output level on mine, no noise.

So it is neither a sound nor a eletric, it is a hybrid guitar.

This is exactly what I wanted.

All good.

OVERALL OPINION

It's been a good two years so it interested me but now at 800 euros, AC made me think ...

So, as balances are gone through it, I jumped on it.

I tried an Epiphone ES175 (bof. ..), an emperor regent epihone (very good but very typical jazz), a perless (good but too expensive) before taking it.

She is very beautiful and is incredibly versatile. I have never imagined filled play acoustic blues, jazz and even rock with a shovel.

Caution, however, supports the microphone through the crunches or very light.

Even at 800 euros it's worth it.

Two years of hesitation ... I should have to buy it before. Really a good guitar!