1973 (or 1975?) Ovation Viper

We were sorry to hear that Ovation’s American factory is closing. For a period in the 1970s Ovation guitars were ubiquitous and in retrospect some of their designs, particular their acoustic-electrics, were years ahead of their time. Ovation is best known for their round-back acoustics, but for a decade or so, starting in the early 1970s, they made some interesting solid-body electrics. Today’s Catch is a 1973 Viper, one of their more conservative designs. (Matt Umanov is listing this as being built in 1973 but from my research is looks like Ovation started making the Viper in 1975.) The Viper sports two single coil pickups, a single volume knob, a single tone knob and a three-way selector switch, very much like a Fender Telecaster. Ovation made their own pickups and they designed these to have a higher output than a regular single coil. They were also well-shielded and had very little hum when plugged in. (Click here to read the Viper’s original owner’s manual.)

I have to say that the body shape is a bit blah to my eyes and it has the blobby, rounded look that plagued mid-1970s design. (Does anyone remember Earth Shoes?) But mechanically, the Viper is extremely well thought out. I’ve played a handful of these over the years and the intonation is always spot-on, the action is always great and they just feel solidly built. The pickups sound quite good to my ear, with a bit of a crunchy P-90 vibe rather than a stinging Fender Tele tone. Ovation stopped making the Viper in 1982 and these days they are a bit forgotten. Which is actually good news for a guitarist looking for professional gear on a budget. This Viper, for example, looks to be in excellent condition and it’s priced at $695 at Matt Umanov Guitars. I don’t think you’ll find a better built guitar at the price anywhere.

Click here for the original listing.