Ovation Breadwinner
| Ovation Breadwinner | |
|---|---|
 Solid body electric guitar, mahogany | |
| Manufacturer | Ovation Guitar Company |
| Construction | |
| Body type | Solid |
| Woods | |
| Body | Mahogany |
| Hardware | |
| Pickup(s) | S-S or H-H |
The Breadwinner was a solid body electric guitar made by the Ovation Guitar Company. It is one of the few solid body electrics they ever made. It has an unusual ergonomic body made of mahogany and shaped something like an axe, although that is not the only reason for the body shape, the designer also used considerations of balance and ergonomics. [1]
The guitar has either 2 toroidal single-pole pickups (early models) or 2 mini-humbucker pickups, volume and tone knobs, and a three way pickup selector and a phase switch.
There were 3 distinct models based upon the Breadwinner's exotic shape - the Breadwinner, the Deacon, and the Breadwinner Limited. The main difference between the Breadwinner and the Breadwinner Limited was an odd additional cutaway in the upper body and a "Tuxedo" gray to black finish. The difference between the Breadwinner and the Deacon was in the finish and hardware used. The Breadwinners were coated in Kaman Industries' "LyraChord" material and were available in a number of colors including Blue, White, Black, Tan, Gray, and Red while the Deacon was available in either Natural Sunburst, Clear Mahogany, or a clear Red finish - all three were glossy. The Deacon also had Mother of Pearl diamond-shaped inlays and an ivory binding around the fretboard.
Artists of the day using the guitar included Glenn Campbell, Steve Marriot, Todd Rundgren, Dave Lambert (Strawbs), Ace Frehley and Paul Stanley (Kiss), Colin Newman (Wire), Robert Smith (The Cure but used with Siouxsie & The Banshees in 1979 & 1984) and David Cassidy in The Partridge Family, also Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello uses a Breadwinner on some songs.
Early models were equipped with Ovation's toroidal single pole pickups while later models were equipped with humbuckers. Most collector / players prefer the sound of the original toroidal pickups.
Regardless of the model, the guitar was one of the first to come equipped with an active FET preamp on board. The active electronics allowed guitarists to get a very wide range of sounds out of the guitar. In fact, Ovation published a guide to sounds where they listed various band and song "signature" sounds and the settings to use to achieve those sounds with the guitar's electronics.
References
- ^ "Interview with Mike, the designer of the breadwinner". Breadwinnner Fan Page.