CN would normally mean Cort (C) built and Nineties (N) manufacturing date. The first number after the N would be the specific year in the 90s, so a CN3 would be a 1993 model.
Cort and Samick are two of the biggest guitar manufacturers in the world and were both built guitars to Fender's specs. Obviously, the numbers on the neck only date it and the body could be who knows what. You will need to post a photo. The photo is my Fender Korea (Cort) built 1993 Tele, so you can see the serial number configuration. Jack I'm not at all clear what guitar you are looking at.
See reviews and prices for the Applause AA-31, as used by Tom Morello and others. Sep 02, 2012 I am trying to determine the age of the guitar as well as the country of origin, Korea or the U.S. There is a blue tag on the inside which says 'A Kayman Music Product Applause Model no. AA-31' There is also a silver tag above it which reads SERIAL # 023519'.
However, as a general rule, the values of equivalent models from the various countries of production would be as follows (from highest to lowest) USA Japan Mexico Korea India/Indonesia/China/Vietnam This is only speaking very broadly. Different models will sell for more or less.
Squiers are made in many of the same countries as Fender models, and typically sell for a lot less. You can buy brand new Squier Bullet models from Guitar Center for $90, but there are other Squiers that new will be $300+. If you can supply a link to the exact model you are looking at, then I'm sure others here can give you an idea of a good price to pay.
You can also look at Completed Listings on ebay to see what the model in question has sold for and which ones went unsold at the asking prices. Click to expand.I've actually seen people sand 'Squier' and 'Made In Korea' off the head to try and fool people. It's easy to do when there's no finish on the neck. And they are heavier because the bodies are made of laminated plywood so it's easy to fool someone in to thinking it's a better quality guitar than it is.
Some people equate heavier to better quality. The original bridges had the word 'Fender' double stamped on the saddles from what I gather reading on line.
I've also heard that you can't always go by the serial for dating. Some sites say you can, some say you can't. If I go by the serial on mine it says it was made in 93 but I'm almost 100% certain I bought it in 89 or 90. All that said, it plays great. Mine is 100% original. The pickups buzz a little, but all the original ones do.
I haven't played it in years so this past weekend I decided to put strings on it and set it up. Still plays like a dream, intonation still sets up dead on, no fret buzz, the neck and frets are still in great shape. I have no complaints. I think I paid around $375 for it new. I've actually seen people sand 'Squier' and 'Made In Korea' off the head to try and fool people. It's easy to do when there's no finish on the neck. And they are heavier because the bodies are made of laminated plywood so it's easy to fool someone in to thinking it's a better quality guitar than it is.
Some people equate heavier to better quality. The original bridges had the word 'Fender' double stamped on the saddles from what I gather reading on line.
I've also heard that you can't always go by the serial for dating. Some sites say you can, some say you can't.
If I go by the serial on mine it says it was made in 93 but I'm almost 100% certain I bought it in 89 or 90. All that said, it plays great. Mine is 100% original. The pickups buzz a little, but all the original ones do. I haven't played it in years so this past weekend I decided to put strings on it and set it up. Still plays like a dream, intonation still sets up dead on, no fret buzz, the neck and frets are still in great shape.
I have no complaints. I think I paid around $375 for it new. I did a bit of research a few years ago on got this from the experts on the Squier forum, this is some of the info regarding CN serial.
It is a bit long but you might find it useful CN5 and CN6 Gold Logo models. Cheap parts all around.
Trap tuners, small trem block and etc. Full width alder body and a rather nice satin finished MIK neck. These CN5 and CN6 gold logo necks were later used on the ProTone models once they changed over from CN6 Gold Logo to ProTone in 1996.
These make rather nice mod platforms, as they are basically a ProTone with cheap parts and an alder body instead of an ash body. With the crazy high prices of ProTones over there its usually a way better deal to buy a CN5 or CN6 gold logo model and then upgrade its parts.
Unlike the M2, S9, S10, E7, E9 and E10 models these guitars came with a satin finished neck instead of the old style gloss finish. Keep in mind that they also built black logo CN5 models. Along with the gold logo CN5 models. A CN5 with an all black headstock logo will be a completely different guitar then a gold logo CN5. A thin plywood body instead of full width alder. A different neck as well with 12 inch radius instead of a 9.5 inch and etc. The headstock logo.
Korean models with an all black headstock logo with always be thin plywood body. They will also be the lowest of the low among MIK models. These black logo models were built between 1992 and 1995. Models like the CN2, VN4, CN3 and etc.
So when ya see all black headstock logo on a Korean Squier there is no need to know anything more on it. Just pass and wait for the next one to pop up. Then there are the other 2 colors they did MIK headstock logos in.
Silver and Gold. They only used Silver headstock logos on MIK models built in the late 80s and then on the CN2, CN3 and VN3 Fender Squier Series strats built in 1992 and 1993. These CN2, CN3 and VN3 Fender Squier Series Strats will have a silver Fender logo on the headstock with a small Squier Series in black near the end of the headstock. So if it says Squier and not Fender in Silver on the headstock logo and its Korean it HAS to be an 80's model. Now there is the plywood vs wood body thing again. While all black logo Korean models will be plywood most silver logo MIK models will also be plywood.
Except 1 lineup. The 87' E7 and E10 models built by Young Chang. The other silver logo Squiers would be the CN/VN Fender Squier Series stuff(full width plywood body), the E9 models(full width ply), S9 models(full width ply) and S10 models(full width ply). Then you would also have the Squier II models as well that also came with silver headstock logos. They also came with E9, S9, M1 and J1 serial numbers. These Squier IIs were the only silver logo Squiers to come with a thin plywood body.
The other plywood body silver logo models are all full width body. Then there is the gold logo Squiers built in Korea.
If it has a gold logo it will be a full width alder body or it will be ash if its a ProTone. They didnt start building MIK Squiers with gold logos until mid 1995. So starting in 1995 you see the CN5, CN6 gold logo models.
VN5, VN6 VN7 gold logo models. KV97 and KV98 models and the the ProTones. All have gold logos. All have full width wood bodies.
I'm still confused greatly not that it matters because I really don't mind when it was made. I just know I bought this no later than 1990 brand new from a dealer. It's 100% original right down to the hairline crack in the finish by the neck. It's a really nice guitar though no matter where or when it was made. I've been playing it all afternoon and it was in tune when I pulled it out of the case and it's still in tune now. The pots don't crackle, the jack is still fine, so is the switch. I got no complaints.
My Tele as shown above is also a CN3 manufacture date. Although it is a plywood body, it has awesome resonance and is the most acoustically lively solid body I own.
I can see why some consider these MIKs to be the hidden gems in the Fender family. It is a thrill to buy a cheap guitar and have it sound much better than expectations. I note your guitar does not appear to have the bullet truss rod adjuster shown on mine.
It is kind of surprising that guitars in the same serial number range would be manufactured differently. Maybe others will chime in about this point and the manufacturing date. Click to expand.Not necessarily.
Made an account to post here since this was high on my Strat info search and I have a little to add. While giving my old teenage guitar a once over to start playing again, I found out my CN3 silver logo Squire series strat appears to be solid wood. Either that, or it's a hell of a thick ply on top. Still has the wrong pots on it though.
My crappy beginner soldering also wasn't helping, as well as what appears to have been a stripped wire in an old unshrunk wrap for a ground (what was I thinking?!). This was bought new and only owned by me, original everything but the strings and 5 way (failed). Anyone happen to know what woods the neck (maple?) and body (no idea) are? Any info on the exact model?
Why was there a 7 written on it?
In the year of 1966, the guitar world had no idea who Charlie Kaman, the successful helicopter manufacturer, was. Or that he would become part of the history of guitar making.
They also had no idea that the History of Ovation Guitars would become part of music history. The Innovative Mr Kaman However, the people that knew him were not surprised by this at all. Kaman was a “free spirit pioneer” that built the Kaman Aircraft from scratch in 1945 with only $5,000 in equipment and $2,000 in cash. In 1965, he wanted to diversify his product line and finally decided on guitars, especially since he had loved playing the guitar for many years. After turning down a job as the guitarist for the Tommy Dorsey and being turned down when he tried to purchase the Martin D.
![Applause Applause](/uploads/1/2/5/3/125396580/209998936.jpg)
Guitar store, he decided to open his own guitar business that would be his own and would never belong to someone else. This was a humble beginning for Ovation Guitars and also the start of their history in the music industry.
Forty years after this business got their start, famous musicians such as Glen Campbell, Al DiMeola, and Melissa Ethridge have played an Ovation guitar, which is considered by some to be the strongest guitar in the world. The Early Ovation Guitars Ovation Balladeer Guitar (1968) The first guitar that Ovation produced was the Ovation Balladeer, which was named after a local folk group that got a standing ovation. The first reactions that musicians had to this guitar were that it was “smooth, full, rich, clear, and mellow.” This guitar was very different than any other guitar.
It had a composite, Roundback design and was perhaps the strongest ”back and sides” design world had seen. The headstock was sculpted and sleek and the understated dot inlays on the fingerboard were made out of ebony. A dark walnut bridge sat in contrast to a light spruce top. These guitar parts were married to a slim and fast-five piece laminated neck that, even now, people look for when they purchase an Ovation guitar.
Even the bracing, that is not visible to the eye, was a very pretty sight. The first person to endorse this guitar was Josh White. Josh White Signature Model Josh Whites 1966 Custom Ovation Acoustic Guitar Blues singer Josh White was the first musician to officially endorse this guitar. He loved the prototype of the Ovation and how its rounded and synthetic back had a full-bodied sound. He worked very closely with Charlie Kaman.
The Josh White guitar that Mr. Kaman made with him in mind had fewer frets because that is what he was used to playing as a folk singer. White’s name was on the peghead and this model was part of the Ovation line until he died in 1970, but they later brought it back in his honor. It is called the Josh White Signature Model.
Growing Ovation Guitars With the Balladeer and Josh White models, Ovation was slowly becoming more known in the guitar industry. In 1967, the Model #5, a 12-string Ovation, was introduced. With these three guitars, Kaman had a product line to send out to guitar stores. Even though they were great guitars, retailers did not buy many of them because they didn’t know what to think of Ovation guitars. They were unsure about making these guitars part of their inventory, but that was about to change. Glen Campbell was going to help these guitars become very well-known. Glen Cambell and Ovation A young entertainer, guitarist, and singer named Glen Campbell quickly became very famous with his song “Gentle on my Mind” and his appearances on the Smother Brothers Comedy Hour.
He also was well-known for his songs “By The Time I Get to Phoenix” and “Wichita Lineman.” However, it was television that made his career take off. He had it all with his All-American looks, a welcoming personality, distinctive vocals, wicked guitar chops, and an Ovation guitar.
Campbell championed the Roundback that has a shallow “Artist” bowl that was debuted in 1968 along with the Glen Campbell model. After his signature model was made, it seemed like everybody wanted an Ovation and the retailers could not get them into their stores fast enough. The musicians that were the most well-known of that day were on the doorstep of Kaman Music Offices trying to get a guitar. Glen Campbell helped change the future of Ovation guitars. In 1971, Ovation helped innovate the acoustic guitar. Acoustic-Electric Innovations In the year 1971, Acoustic guitars were limited in a lot of venues because they could only produce so much sound and could only project so far.
In the late 1960’s, musicians could either be limited in their mobility with a stationary microphone or a primitive pickup device that really colored the sound of the guitar and neither one of them were good options. Glen Campbell needed mobility on stage, but he also wanted an acoustic guitar. Charlie Kaman and his engineers worked hard to create a guitar that was the very first acoustic electric-prototype well before his show went off the air in 1972. Ovation is presently one of the leaders in acoustic-electric guitar technology by providing the most sophisticated preamps, piezo pickups, onboard EQ, and microphone imaging available in the industry. Modern Day Ovation Plenty of musicians have played Ovation guitars (Josh White and Glen Campbell just being the beginning of the long list of musicians) that include Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue, Godsmack, Blasko from Rob Zombie, Rex Brown (that has played with Pantera and other bands), and Vince Neil of Motley Crue. Even with being popular with all of these musicians, the demand for the Ovation guitar is currently slowed. Some people say that they are “not real guitars” and do not appreciate that this guitar’s sound is different than other guitars.
They have a unique sound and that sound is not what every musician is looking for. Since this type of guitar is truly one-of-a-kind and is different from a traditional guitar, is what makes this guitar a bargain in the market of used guitars in the world today. It is surprising because these guitars were so popular with musicians from the 1960’s to the 1980’s.
There you have a piece of the history of guitars, the Ovation guitars history, that have truly had their place in the history of acoustic guitar music. Have you owned or do you own an Ovation? What’s your opinion on Ovation’s guitars? Feel free to leave a comment in the comments section below. Image Credits By Easter2816 (Own work), CC, By Urbankayaker or , By doryfour (Flickr: Back of Ovation Balladeer guitar (1968)) , By ThatPeskyCommoner (Own work).
Interesting article, A readers digest version of the history but basically accurate. Do I own Ovations? They do what they do extremely well. They are not a prewar Martin sound but were never intended for that. Charlie did have a vision with using fiberglass and the bowl shape since thee was going to be a shortage of Brazilian rosewood in the late 60’s. That didn’t quite happen but it got the ball rolling.
His second step was the Adamas (1975) using carbon grafite for the top material. After that he went back to helicopters but the groundwork was set and the company took off grew. In the 70’s, 80’s and early 90’s practically every major act used Ovation. I do have an Ovation 1127-4 E kind of unusual and I’ve been asking questions about it since before Jerry Reed’s death??? On the little plate on the headstock where I think it should read Glen Campbellit reads “Jerry Reed” AND it’s fitted with a Baldwin Prismatone.it’s seen better days, but is still playable and the pickup works.I’ve talked to several local guitar gurus and the gentleman at Baldwin Prismatone on fb.it’s been told to me that it very well may have been owned at one time by Jerry Reed??? Any thoughts?? I bought my first Ovation Applause in 1976 followed over the years by a Balladeer, Custom Balladeer, Balladeer 12string, Legend, and an easily Adamas.
Obviously a love affair with the Ovation sound and awesome neck for many years. Still the only guitars I use professionally. Recently I found a pristine 1985 Ultra Deluxe hanging lonely on a pawn shop wall and scooped it up for almost nothing – what amazing sound came out of this beauty! Yes I own or have owned the other big name acoustic/electrics but I keep coming back. Only Ovation gives me that beautiful “wall of sound” behind me that as a finger picker or hybrid picker makes all the difference on stage. Ovation Guitars are UNIQUE & The Original Composite Roundback Acoustic Guitars In The World?
No Doubt The Most Advance Acoustic Guitars In The World. I owned an Adamas 1687-8 30th Anniversary Reissue Series which i admired since i was only 13years old back in 1988 when a Worship Leader from UK?? Dave Bilbrough came ro our church in Miri, Borneo. I was amazed by the looks & the sound of his Vintage Adamas 1687-8. Only after 25years that is in 2014, i managed to buy my dream guitar as a young boy The Amazing Adamas 1687-8 30th Anniversary Reissue Series ( the same exact guitar as Dave Bilbrough,?? I’m so blessed to own this magnificent guitar! I will hand over this guitar to my lovely baby daughter when she gets older.
Previously i owned Elite C2078AX-4, C2078AX-4 & Celebrity Limited Edition MT37-5, sold in order to acquire the Adamas 1687-8 30th Anniversary Reissue Series. I bought my first Ovation Balladeer in 1973 and still have it, love to play it, and sing along with it. In the last 15 years I have been “rescuing” early Balladeers and other early Ovations that have been mistreated /neglected. I have several projects in the works now, doing restoration work on these “rescued souls” and then using them to perform in public.
In the process sometimes proving that great sounding “rescue” guitars do not always look as good as they sound. Thank you to Charlie Kaman for following his dream and consequently inspiring dreams of some many others. Santa and my wife offered me on December 2017 a Celebrity Contour Elite Plus C2078AXP-TE (Tiger Eye) Collectors Series, crafted in Korea (K16080877). Not my first Ovation though, as I played an acoustic Balladeer during the early 80ies in my little band. Now that I’m 70, this is my ultimate guitar. She”s a beauty and a real pleasure to play.
For me, there’s no conflict between “real” or “not standard” instruments. The OP Pro Studio electronics renders so well, but opn the other hand, this guitar can be played unplugged in front of a good PA mike.
Cristalline vibes, good bass and mid tonality. I’m not ashamed to play Irish Pub Tunes with her and my two friends!!
Love her absolutely!! Have owned and played all USA Ovations since my first in 1977. Classic story I guess. There it was, hanging on the wall at Mountain Music in Gulfport Mississippi.
I was a teenager then; and the images of Roy Clark, Glen Campbell, Mac Davis, and of course Nancy Wilson, were fresh. I still have that balladeer, and have added more balladeers, elites, and a legend to the mix. I don’t think it was ever for the sake of the guitar(s), but for the sake of the song. Whether a lonely boy who just wanted girls to like him, or in a worship band as I am today; I always had something to express. These guitars were always part of that expression and, consequently, part of who I am. The look, the feel, and the sound.love it.