Ovation 1711 Standard Balladeer

Bought this guitar in the mid '90's, had owned another Ovation previously and liked it. The Balladeer was the best I could afford at the time - offered in natural finish, tobacco burst, and a dark green top. After literally polling friends and people I worked with, decided on the green and haven't been disappointed. When most people first see the guitar, they assume it's black, but after a while I'll hear a "Hey, your guitar's green!" It's the deep bowl body, and has a satin finish neck (mahogany) that I really like. Under the bridge pick-up, and as another reviewer mentioned, an on-board three band equalizer that can pull different moods out of this box. A friend just bought a new Ovation and it includes an electronic tuner - kind of jealous of that.

This is currently my only acoustic guitar, and the one I play 90% of the time. I play a wide range of stuff, mostly a folk/rock/pop mix. Everything from Cream to Neil Young and America, R.E.M., Joni Mitchell and Tom Petty. When I do plug it in I use an old Peavey keyboard amp that only serves to supplement the richness of the tone. I've used a variety of strings through the years and have found Martin Marquis to hold out well and they give it a real bright sound.

Have had few problems with the action - other players who play the guitar are surprised at the playability and remark on the low action, something that I guess I 've just taken for granted over the years. I did at one time get a slight buzz, corrected that by placing the flat end half of a toothpick under the bridge. This hasn't occured lately. I've recently noticed a kind of small ridge forming on the neck near the body, between the wood of the neck and the neck binding (glue being forced out?). It's not a problem and with care I could probably take care of it with an X-acto blade, but until it draws blood it's not a problem.

When I bought it, I was playing in a band - we hardly ever played out, but would practice regularly one or two nights a week for several hours. It got put through its paces. After a few beers we'd start to get louder, and I'd be rattling the strings pretty hard. Never faltered. I think the one of the reasons you saw a lot of Ovations in the 70's and 80's was that this was a very durable guitar with a great sound and could take the physical strains of touring. I have knocked it against tables and doorframes quite a bit. Short of laying it in the driveway and running the Jeep over it, it can take it.

No dealings with Ovation directly.

I've been playing on-and-off for 25 years. I've had an Epiphone 12-string (my first guitar) which is now just a wall hanging due to some non-repairable warpage. I had an Ovation Legend, which I had to give up, but which influenced me buying this Ovation. I also own a Telecaster, the '52 re-issue, which I've had since the early 80's; and a Dean acoustic-electric bass that I recently purchased. Currently this is my only acoustic guitar and I want to start exploring alternate tunings. I've just ordered a new Gibson - I hope that when I have the Gibson that I can keep one guitar in standard tuning to play with friends, and have the other one in an alternate tuning to mess around with on my own.
I honestly can't say that if this guitar were lost or stolen I would replace it with another Ovation, I'm at a point in my life where I could afford to throw a little more cash out for new guitar, so I would shop around some more to see what was out there. But I believe this guitar is a very great value, and would have to consider Ovation if I did not have this one. If I did get another Ovation, I'd probably be considering the shallower bowl, since as I get older my "bowl" is becoming a bit deeper, and as the guitar gets farther away, it becomes more of a challenge to play.

this baby is usa made with a sunburst top and generally great looks.balance is great as well as the action. I've changed the strings to put the elixir extra lights and at the beggining they sounded funny but now they are cool(bought guitar one month ago at guitartrader-fantastic deal) i like the classic shape and the deep bowl very much.
it comes with no competition op 30 pre-amp, with precise tuner and unbeliveble worm eqvilizer options.

the sound is bright and the base section is strong and deep.acustic projection is overwhelming and it echooes forever.really unique sound.very modern; like high end speakers which replaced the wooden materials. so when i plugged in the budget aplifier couldn't take it out of my hands.the spectar of the beautiful tunes from the byrds humming to the deep ocean waves started dancing in front of me. no need for the effects-the eqvilizer has so many options.
i was playing the stones 'as tears go by' and was amezed that my eyes got wet from the sweetness of the sound beyond my will.
the mistics of the hand made instrument.

the finish is classic with computeriesed bracing and the a class specially nuriched spruce top. smells pretty. Tremendoues craftmanship.very solid tough robust guitar.

the ovation baladeer 1711 is the iconic american product for all kind of gigs, street protest songs and caffes, for rock'n'roll stage(cat steven's usa tour 76-dvd-same baladeer like mine),and blues for plugged or unplugged for the sixties and for no direction home, if your'e tough coocky...come join the godspell and the street corner, as well, with dylanesque scream...

sent my registration form to caman,heard all the best of them

i comppered it with many guitars with much higher tab and this one is the best. i have fender dg11e and hondo electr. and copy of 12 string fender and the classic, but this one is fareout of any wooden compperisson. i've been playing for long years and this baby stick to my hands and pierces through my heart. i cannot get off her beautifull body..

This Standard Balladeer was bought new around 1993. The model # is 1711. It doesn't seem to be that popular as I'm the first person to write a review.

The guitar has a deep bowl, non-cutaway, with what appears to be an unfinished mahogany neck (though it might be a different wood. It's definitely not maple). Simple dot inlays appear to be plastic, top is solid spruce, tuners are chrome, made by Ping. Finish is Cadillac Green. (This is a very dark green, it almost looks black onstage).
Built in piezo pickup under the bridge saddle with onboard eq featuring Treble, Mid, Bass and Volume. Seperate battery compartment holds one 9 volt battery.
Built in threaded screws for strap buttons is real cool. I currently have strap locks that work nicely with this guitar.

If you know Ovation guitars, you know that they have a certain sound and this one doesn't disappoint. I feel this Ovation sounds better than most due to its deep bowl and lack of cutaway.
Every Ovation I've played with a mid to shallow bowl, especially with a cutaway seems to sound thin.
It all comes down to moving air and getting that top to vibrate. The new shallow bowls sound good when plugged in, but in my opinion, don't sound as good as the deeper bowl models. The trade off is feedback resistance. My deep bowl non cutaway will feedback sooner.

I still wonder why Ovation does not currently offer a deep bowl non-cutaway model. They sound better plugged in, and much better unplugged.

Also note, I'm comparing the sound of this guitar to other ovation models. It does hold its own very well. When compared to my Guild D-55 or other Dreadnought size, solid wood guitars... forget it. My Guild sounds better in every possible way. High end Martins and Taylors sound better as well.

Lets face it, Ovations are made to be plugged in.

The action was about medium when I bought it. I lowered it a little by shaving down the saddle. Haven't touched it since.

The top has not bowed up or sank down. It does move a little with the change of seasons, but action remains pretty consistent.

The guitar is now about 11 years old and seems very stable. The truss rod was adjusted twice in the last 11 years, and that was due to changing string gauge. Even when using alternate tunings, the guitars action remains pretty consistent.

Ovations are tough. One of the best guitars you can use plugged in onstage.

Never dealt with the company.

I've been playing over 20 years and own a boatload of stuff. This Ovation 1711 is a great all around guitar for stage or just messing around. It blows away the cheap imported Celebrity series (junk) and compares favorably to the higher end models. The only Ovations I've played that I liked better were the Adamas series, and the Legend series, particulary the newer Al DiMeola model. (These guitars cost ALOT more than any Standard Balladeer).

If your playing live, this is a great guitar that I would recommend, especially at the right price. If your doing studio work, go for a high end all solid wood guitar... and be prepared to open up your wallet.

Good Luck