Who all also plays a 12 string?

I have tried a dozen different acoustic 12s with no luck, seagull, Alvarez, Taylor 150, martin’s cheap one. Always had issues with either the belly lifting or the neck warping.

The only acoustic 12 I’ve played that could hold full tension was an ovation, a real one, belonged to a friend, but it only sounded good plugged in.

I have two electric twelve strings, both made by OLP. They were mid 2000s Asian MusicMan copies. One is a 6/12 doubleneck and the other is a single neck Axis / EVH body with a 12 string neck and bridge. A limited run. Both hold full tuning. I refuse to downtune, but I do play 8’s on my 12-strings, where I play 10s on my three US PRS and 9s on my strat.

I’ve wanted a PRS electric 12, but I want to make sure it will hold standard tuning, with my standard 2mm at the 12th fret setup.
 
I have a very inexpensive 12 that I paid $80 for in a FB marketplace purchase. Originally it was one of those brands found on Amazon, that also had really good reviews on YouTube. The tuners were junk, so I stripped them and put on 2 sets of PRS SE tuners that I had taking up space in a drawer. The bridge is lifting slightly from the top, but it's not terrible yet. I bought it after doing a repair for a friend of my wife's, on another 12. I like that chimey sound of the 12. I guess that goes back to listening to John Denver as a kid.

Ultimately I would want to capture a PRS Angelus 12 Core, if they exist, but I am not in any hurry, nor do I have that disposable funding at the moment.
 
If you limit yourself to covering the usual gamut of 12-string hits, you run out of songs pretty quickly.

They have a beautiful sound when used well, but you have to open your head up to different possibilities.
I definitely search out and fool around with various songs that I think might be suitable for my 12 string. Some are really nice, and others bite me right in the arse.
Usually I find that out when I record them and play them back...I should really record/video my reactions, some are pretty funny. Take that screwed up facial expression you get when you are in the groove and really rocking it and then imagine having a big gulp of vinegar along with it!:eek:😂
 
I loved the '90s.

Then again, why wouldn't I? I was 35 years younger when they started.

It's nice to be 35 years younger, unless you're 34, in which case your very existence is still chancy.
I was still touring and recording original prog. Ive played far more often and to far more people since, and had a lot of fun playing CCM, but I still miss the days of real amps, no computers, clicks, IEMs, and volume you can lean against ;). But I live a far better life now, and my Kemper is a lot easier on the old bones than 4x12s.
I definitely search out and fool around with various songs that I think might be suitable for my 12 string. Some are really nice, and others bite me right in the arse.
Usually I find that out when I record them and play them back...I should really record/video my reactions, some are pretty funny. Take that screwed up facial expression you get when you are in the groove and really rocking it and then imagine having a big gulp of vinegar along with it!:eek:😂
For me it’s originals, plus Wish You Were Here, Solsbury Hill (Peter Gabriel), some Triumph and Rush (Closer to the Heart), and even though I can play Stairway all the way through including the solo on my doubleneck, I prefer Zeppelins deeper 12 string stuff. I can play Dead or Alive, but choose not to 😆
 
@DBedard said: "For me it’s originals, plus Wish You Were Here, Solsbury Hill (Peter Gabriel), some Triumph and Rush (Closer to the Heart), and even though I can play Stairway all the way through including the solo on my doubleneck, I prefer Zeppelins deeper 12 string stuff. I can play Dead or Alive, but choose not to 😆"
Totally get that take on things. But I don't have a doubleneck, and likely never will. Way out of my pay grade and league really. Although if I were so inclined it would be a really cool conversation piece. Local buddy/school chum has one (he doesn't play at all really), and he just has a thing about Gibsons. At last count I think he had ~35 LP's and a few SG's along with his doubleneck. He also has 2 or 3 MIA Strats. He laughs at my mention of PRS. "Nobody perfect Daniel-san"...;)
Stairway is one of the songs I really haven't even attempted (other than a few licks) to actually learn. Not even sure why really. And I do play Dead or Alive on occasion. But me and Richie are polar opposites on the fretboard, especially on the 12 string. I do OK on a 6 with it, even an acoustic, But on the 12 I have some serious speed/tempo issues. I'm no virtuoso on the guitar, but I have my pride and I hate making a balls of a song. So I sort of avoid it unless I'm alone and feeling a tad saucy.😂
 
Sold it and bought a Rainsong 12. Plays like a dream never out of tune.
That is one of the things I really like my Seagulls for, they are incredibly tuning stable. The S12 doesn't require much at all unless something happens with the temperature or humidity in my room. Which occasionally happens if the filter in my humidifier needs replacing or the power goes off and my heater doesn't reset in the dead of winter.
 
That is one of the things I really like my Seagulls for, they are incredibly tuning stable. The S12 doesn't require much at all unless something happens with the temperature or humidity in my room. Which occasionally happens if the filter in my humidifier needs replacing or the power goes off and my heater doesn't reset in the dead of winter.
As long as they’re not trying to steal my fries when I’m on the boardwalk down the shore this summer.:p:D
 
I love them so much, I have two 12 string acoustics. My first guitar purchase in 1980 or so was my old Epiphone 12 acoustic. I still have it, and play it. It has seen better days though and has suffered a bit in its long life.

Also have a Taylor 456ce Rosewood Fall Limited Edition (12 acoustic) that is magnificently easy to play and always is in tune. I just enjoy the rich sound so much. With two, you can do some alternative tunings with one and leave the other with concert tuning.

I owned an Ibanez AR2640 doubleneck back in the day that was beautiful, and sounded great too. Wish I still had it. Still dreaming of a PRS doubleneck one day! The magic was playing the six string neck but only turning 'on' the 12 string neck, which picked up beautiful harmonics through the body...

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Seems to me nobody (or seldom anyway) talks about 12 string guitars. And I get it since PRS doesn't do acoustic 12 strings (that I know of anyway) and the double necks I've seen are always private stock/custom builds.
Obviously I don't have a PRS PS 12 string or double neck so I play a Seagull S12 Concert. Just wonder who might also play (or like me play poorly haha) a 12 string guitar.
What I have found is while I truly enjoy the unique sound and tones of the 12 string, to play them well there are limited songs that I find really suit these incredible machines. And the ones that were written for or with them (we all know the most popular/famous ones) are no brainers. Just every once in a while I find a song that I think would be great on my 12, turns out to sound like crap on it. I get that the octave pairings won't work for absolutely everything, it's the nature of the beast. I just get a tad frustrated when the song turns out that way.
Now I'm no consummately professional player by any means, but I really want to increase my repertoire of songs that are suitable for public (if small) performances with my 12 string. Especially for times when it's just myself playing a small solo gig. I use backing tracks but I try and keep it as simple as I can so that I can make them as pleasing and full as possible. And the recorded versions that are done in a slightly different pitch drive me nuts trying to tune to them to learn the damn song!
I know that playing a simpler song exceptionally well certainly outdoes doing one that's really intricate half a$$ed. Not that I'm above taking one on the chin up there, I'll never be past the occasional "oh s**t!" moment. I've seen far better players than I'll ever be eat it on stage. 😉
This cover blew open my idea of what you can do with your 12 string....
 
I write mostly 80's metal (no hair metal) and thrash. Any clean/acoustic parts are done on a 12 string.
 
Never played one before and considering buying a cheap 12-string. Perhaps choosing between the Ibanez AEG5012 and the D'Angelico Premier Fulton LS.

Anyone experienced these?
 
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