Why I Like Parlour Guitars

LesbianWithAGun · April 2019

They're small yet big....

They're great for lounging around on, yet their full sized necks make them great for practicing on and even writing on.

I'm not going to lie, before 2018, I never even heard of 'Parlor/Parlour guitars' and when on a GAS, I got 2 antique ones in a short time in early 2018 (one 1951 Stella Harmony H929, one Catania Carmelo from the early 1950's).

If I play on one of these for a night, coming back high end guitar like a Gibson VOS Les Paul or American Fender Deluxe, is great.

p90fool · April 2019

They are great "sofa" guitars aren't they? Welcome back btw.

proggy · April 2019

I've got an Eastman E20P which is an amazing little guitar and I could never see myself parting with it.

Creed_Clicks · April 2019

I just play my regular sized Martin on my sofa.............. ha

I am also intrigued by the parlour sized guitars. Was thinking of picking one up but am still considering a big baby taylor.....

BRISTOL86 · April 2019

I’m really going to miss my 12 Fret Taylor 322 but I just can’t justify keeping it when I play electric 95% of the time

McSwaggerty · April 2019

proggy said:

I've got an Eastman E20P which is an amazing little guitar and I could never see myself parting with it.

….and I've got an Eastman E10P which is an amazing little guitar and theres no way I will ever part with it .

GTC · April 2019

I've got three parlours - an all-solid Mahogany Alvarez MPA66, An all solid spruce / rosewood Aria 19C guitar replica (both beautifully made despite the China origin) - and a recently acquired Mad Dog parlour which knocks the spots off a Taylor GS Mini. I've also just sold an all solid spruce / rosewood Washburn parlour on eBay which was very nice too.

All the above have been professionally converted to left-handed (bridge/saddle, nut and fretboard side dots) without any impact on the tone or playability.

drofluf · April 2019

I went shopping for a parlour recently but ended up with a Baby Taylor - which I know is not a "true" parlour, but it was the one that work best for me. Was finding that my Dreadnought was giving me shoulder pain and the smaller body was more comfortable

Creed_Clicks · April 2019

Any of the "cheap" Tanglewoods I've played have been really nice.

Andy79 · April 2019

are people referring to parlours as anything up to 00 size? If so there’s a huge swathe of guitars covered. Not to be pedantic but parlour guitars are tiny 19th C affairs.
Couldnt really call an L00 a parlour but people seem to have no problem calling a , for example Oscar Schmidt grand concert, one.

drofluf · April 2019

Andy79 said:

are people referring to parlours as anything up to 00 size? If so there’s a huge swathe of guitars covered. Not to be pedantic but parlour guitars are tiny 19th C affairs.
Couldnt really call an L00 a parlour but people seem to have no problem calling a , for example Oscar Schmidt grand concert, one.

When I was researching the one thing I found is that there is no agreed definition.... Wikipedia puts it anything smaller than 0 size.

Guess at the end of the day it will depend on what the marketing department think is the best niche to put it in.

earwighoney · April 2019

Andy79 said:

are people referring to parlours as anything up to 00 size? If so there’s a huge swathe of guitars covered. Not to be pedantic but parlour guitars are tiny 19th C affairs.
Couldnt really call an L00 a parlour but people seem to have no problem calling a , for example Oscar Schmidt grand concert, one.

I was about to write something similar. The term 'parlour' guitar has seemed to be used for any guitar which isn't a dreadnought or an OM! Of course one can call whatever size they want but it used to be that a true 'parlour' guitar was something with a lower bout narrower than a 0 sized model.

When it comes to lower bouts and widths, according the Martin sizing and models it's as follows

D/0000 - 16"
000/OM - 15"
00 - 14"
0 - 13"
Parlours - less than 13"

FWIW, I think there are a huge differences when it comes to playability and sound when it comes to models of different lower bout widths eg between an OM & 00 or a 00 & 0.

icu81b4 · April 2019

I have a Faith Trembesi Mercury parlour guitar which is really nice and sounds much louder than I thought it should do.

GTC · April 2019

Interesting - based on that definition only my Aria 19C guitar replica is a true parlour - the Alvarez is very nearly an 00 and the Mad Dog is an 0 despite both being described as parlours by the manufacturer.

GTC · April 2019

Just had a quick look on the Parlor Guitar blog (What is a Parlor Guitar) https://parlor.guitars/blog/what-parlor-guitar . It says this:

Size

Since there was no legitimate standard for parlor guitar building, luthiers varied the size of their creations to a degree. Even when there is no standard size imposed, many consider having a lower bout that is smaller than 13.5", or smaller than Martin Guitar's "0" shape, to be the historically correct size for parlor guitars. However modern day production parlor guitars don't necessarily follow this size limitation and are much more varied, with some guitar manufacturers labeling even bigger "00" size guitars as parlor, including those with a lower bout of 14". It should be safe to say that "00" size and below are viable parlor style guitars.

merlin · April 2019

LesbianWithAGun said:

If I play on one of these for a night, coming back high end guitar like a Gibson VOS Les Paul or American Fender Deluxe, is great.

I have a really good Larrivée Parlour guitar, sounds amazing and plays like a dream. Coming back to a high end guitar is the same. Get a good one!

Andy79 · April 2019

I think if I could only have one guitar it may well would be a ladder braced 0 size strung with 12s tuned down a half or whole step (depending on scale length)
That just gives the best tone for me

zepp76 · April 2019

Creed_Clicks said:

Any of the "cheap" Tanglewoods I've played have been really nice.

I haven't tried their parlour sized guitars but I do have one of their flagship models the X15 NS and it is fantastic, not what I'd call cheap at £650 but worth every penny, great guitars.

Legionreturns · April 2019

I have a relatively high end Takemine New Yorker, which is parlour sized and 12th fret joined. Absolutely lovely and I've gigged it comfortably because the electronics are fantastic.

earwighoney · April 2019

Legionreturns said:

I have a relatively high end Takemine New Yorker, which is parlour sized and 12th fret joined. Absolutely lovely and I've gigged it comfortably because the electronics are fantastic.

I'd say it's not 'parlour' sized but a 00, as it has a 14" lower bout, which is the same as a classical guitar. I have a couple of 00 sized guitars, one 12 fret and another 14 fret - it's my favourite body size for comfort and sound.

munckee · April 2019

Not a parlour but I tried a martin dreadnought junior which is 15/16ths of dreadnought size and I thought it was a lovely thing.

soma1975 · April 2019

I've got an Art and Lutherie Roadhouse parlour guitar and it is fabulous for the living room.

GTC · April 2019

If you see a Mad Dog Parlour come up then go for it. They sold at ridiculously cheap prices new and I'm pretty sure are no longer made (I believe they were designed in Ramsbottom and manufactured in China). I picked one up on eBay recently and it is a fantastic little guitar - as long as you are happy with the 610mm scale length and the 42.5 mm nut width.

I've had mine properly converted to left-handed (replacing the plastic nut and saddle with bone and the plastic bridge pins with rosewood in the process).

LesbianWithAGun · April 2019

For me and why I chose a '1940's spec' H929 by Stella was because of a lot of research on my part looking at all sorts of parlor/parlour guitars on YouTube and Instagram and listening to tones.

To quote Vintage & Rare of Bath, UK who at the time were selling a Pre War New Jersey made Oscar Schmidt Stella Parlor.
They said something like 'The Oscar Schmidts are nicer but the tone sounds like a rich white boy compared to the bluesy sound of the Stella Harmony's'

My H929 sounds like this:

...And this was the actual video that made me go 'I want that tone' in my quest to find a parlour guitar I wanted.
(I let my ears do the looking on this one).

I mean, that's why I like my parlor guitar, because of its cool tone/sounds cool.

LesbianWithAGun · April 2019

... it's also why I got a capo (Never had or used one until wanting what I heard in that video).

I'm sitting at my laptop now with my Stella H929 and capo playing that video I linked in the above that made me want this guitar, loving how the capo helps the action of this 1940's spec 1951 built guitar and loving how it sounds and that it sounds like that video does (as well as loving the feel of the action with the capo on this guitar).

LesbianWithAGun · April 2019

I guess it's worth a mention, the one guitar that made me aware of parlor guitars.

It was actually a hybrid, an electric parlor guitar, out of Springfield, Oregon.
The Rhoda handmade by Stahman Guitars.
https://www.stahmanguitars.com/stahman-made.html
The Rhoda
Base Price $3500
Designed to bring the vibe of vintage catalog guitars into the modern day with impeccable playability, the Rhoda is a brace-free, lively performer. It's also the best-selling Stahman design.
With a scale length of 24.625", a 1.75" nut, and a neck that joins the body at the 12th fret, it's a comfortable and familiar instrument. Light and resonant, the hollow body won't weigh you down in the studio or on stage.
As with any Stahman guitar, stainless steel frets are standard equipment. The neck is mounted to the body using machine screws and threaded steel inserts. This results in a strong, reliable coupling, and makes many repairs and adjustments easier on your local luthier.
Click the image to see more Rhoda pictures.

and I saw it, and read it and everything and thought
'Wow!'
'What's a parlor guitar?'

and then I heard other parlor guitars thinking 'well that's cool'...

Then I heard
'The Rhoda'
and, I actually got to hear one on the internet (though finding one now proves impossible) and my reaction to how it sounded was
'Oh no!'
'Ew!'
Like, it really wasn't for me, but I still wanted a parlor guitar.
So I went down the route I did (which meant finding a parlor guitar that I did want).

Andy79 · April 2019

Never head a Schmidt guitar described as a rich white boy compared to a Harmony. I have handfuls of both and the Schmidt instruments, in my opinion, are far more capable guitars for the genre.
Vintage n rare were selling a Harmony last year advertised as an OS so maybe they were confused over some things.
I think the fact that Harmony bought the Stella brand has a detrimental effect on the view of Schmidt guitars. By luck or judgment, who knows, put together simply and cheaply, they are magical guitars.
Put a ‘32 Harmony up against a ‘32 Schmidt and you will know where I’m coming from.
Love that Rhoda.

fretfinder · April 2019

I’ve got one of the Vintage Paul Brett models, great little guitar and sounds bigger that it’s small body would suggest and has a pickup and sounds good plugged in. But it’s been nabbed by my elder son and now resides elsewhere with him!

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