The Force is strong with them, it is – Ovation Guitar US factory re-opens
When Fender closed the Ovation factory in New Hartford, Connecticut everyone thought it was the end of the road for made in USA Ovations. But now, in the 50th anniversary year of the birth of Ovation, the brand is born again under the stewardship of Chris Lombardi, CEO of DW Drums.
During a special presentation at the 2016 Winter NAMM show, Bill Kaman and a group of devotees were on hand to celebrate Ovation’s good fortunes. Lita Ford and Rudy Sarzo were on hand to offer their support as past and future endorsees. Darren Wallace, 20 year Ovation factory veteran and a driving force behind keeping the Ovation factory alive, was also in attendance.
I had a chance to try all the new US made Ovations and I can tell you that they are back in a big way. The fit and finish, the attention to detail, the playability and the sound are top notch and reminiscent of the golden age of Ovation. It was also great to meet, in person, some old friends from ovationfanclub.com.
About The Author
I worked for the company in the 70s but lost my job through a messy divorce. Loved the guitars then and I own 6 guitars from that time with 2 of them being 12 strings and a custom legend 6 string. The only thing I did to them was change the Electronics on 3 of them. They still sound great and I would not want any other guitar
Great that they they are not being lost.
I remember seeing Charley at least once a month on the production floor and Glen used to be with him on many occasions