Anyone use a Hollowbody II, or Hollow Singlecut for commercial music?

[clasbtenn]

I am working with my wife and another woman doing singing and I'm playing guitar. My wife wants me to use an acoustic, but due to nerve injury, it is too hard to play a regular acoustic.

I am thinking about getting either a P22, or an SC p245. then today I started looking at the PRS Hollow Body II and the single cut version as well.

My only thoughts are that they would start howling if we got too loud, which has happened to me with a 335.
Would I be better off staying with a solid body version of a piezo loaded PRS?

Thanks in advance for any input.
Stephen

 

[garrett]

A Hollowbody is a different beast from a 335. Mine doesn't have piezo, but it has never howled. My definition of that being non-musical, uncontrolled feedback. Also worth noting mine has always sported low output pickups.

If you're loud and running a bunch of gain, you just need to roll the volume back when you're not playing, or else it will bloom into feedback. When you are playing with a bit of gain, your notes bloom into that glorious Santana-esque infinitely sustaining controlled feedback.

 

[Huggy Love]

I'm in the same boat on the nerve damage issues and sold my acoustics for that reason, so I understand.

The HB is a great unit and doesn't have a ton of feedback issues from my experience, besides when strumming acoustic stuff you don't need to be real loud, just back up the vocals.
On top of that whatever shoulder nerve is bugging you will turn around and thank you for playing a guitar that weighs half of a solid body and is small and compact.
Get one in your hands and try it out, you won't be disappointed.

 

[dmatthews]

Not sure if neck carve plays a part in your decision. The P245 and HB are more wide fat I believe, where the P22 is smaller.

 

[bodia]

I'm in the same boat on the nerve damage issues and sold my acoustics for that reason, so I understand.

The HB is a great unit and doesn't have a ton of feedback issues from my experience, besides when strumming acoustic stuff you don't need to be real loud, just back up the vocals.
On top of that whatever shoulder nerve is bugging you will turn around and thank you for playing a guitar that weighs half of a solid body and is small and compact.
Get one in your hands and try it out, you won't be disappointed.

I'll +1 Huggy on this one.

 

[shinksma]

I play or have played live with my Spruce HB (with Archtop Pups), as well as my semi-hollow P245 SH and my solid body P24. I've never had an issue with feedback. Heck, acoustics feedback way easier! Now, I don't play live with tons of gain, but when I mess around at home I sometimes do and the HB is nicely controllable, and as mentioned, just roll back the volume knob when not actively playing.

 

[László]

I don't have any advice at all. I just wanted to say hello!

 

[Callan]

I've not had any issues using my HBII on semi loud stages.
Thankfully our stage volume has come down in the last few years.

The HBII is much better than any acoustic I've got in terms of unwanted feedback.

 

[clasbtenn]

Thank you all for the replies, and Hi Les.

 

[veinbuster]

The HBII is much better than any acoustic I've got in terms of unwanted feedback.

Good point. It certainly is.

I haven't noticed my HB being particularly prone to feedback.

 

[22Top]

I play with a moderate amount of stage volume. Amps aren't miked, and are turned up loud enough to fill medium sized pubs.

Feedback has never been an issue with my HBii in 5 months of gigging.

For bonus sound points: run that piezo through an IR loader (logidy ESPi in my case) with some of the 3Sigma Acoustic IRs. Really makes the piezo sound like a decent acoustic guitar. I'm playing an 'acoustic' gig next week where I'm taking just the HBii into the Logidy for the show instead of my Larrivee with the Baggs Anthem system.

It's that good.

 

[Callan]

3Sigma Acoustic IRs

Is there any particular one you recommend or use?
Looks to be a few guitar options on their site

 

[22Top]

Is there any particular one you recommend or use?
Looks to be a few guitar options on their site

I can only speak for the D45 one. I'm using just the files from the Piezo folder. There's 30 different IRs I think? Anyway they're all variations on a theme: a is no eq, b is bass cut, and c is bass boost, if I'm remembering correctly. I just play through them until I find one that's sounding good in the room.

I'm going to record some of my show tomorrow night. You'll have to excuse the playing... But it should give an idea of how they sound.

I wish the EPSi had midi, or some way of changing IRs without bending down.