Ovation Roundback
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Musical instruments |
| Predecessor | Ovation Instruments, a division of Kaman Aircraft (c. 1964) |
| Founded | c. 1965,New Hartford, Connecticut |
| Founder | Charles Kaman |
| Headquarters | New Hartford, Connecticut |
| Products | Acoustic guitars |
| Parent | Drum Workshop |
| Website | ovationguitars.com |
The Ovation Guitar Company is a manufacturer of guitars. Ovation primarily manufactures steel-string acoustic guitars (both 6 and 12-string versions) and nylon-string acoustic guitars, often with pickups for electric amplification. In 2015, it became a subsidiary of Drum Workshop after being acquired from KMCMusicorp.
The company's Ovation and Adamas guitars are known for their round backs, which gives them a recognizable shape. The latter are also well known for the use of carbon fiber tops (instead of the typically wood tops for acoustic guitars). Among musicians the relatively thin neck stands out as well, compared to other acoustic guitars.
Founder Charles Kaman (1919–2011) developed the first Ovation guitar in 1965–1966. Kaman, an amateur guitarist from an early age, worked on helicopter design as an aerodynamacist at United. Eventually, he founded a helicopter design company, Kaman Aircraft, in 1945.
The Kaman Corporation soon diversified, branching into nuclear weapons testing, commercial helicopter flight, development and testing of chemicals, and helicopter bearings production. In the early 1960s, however, financial problems from the failure of their commercial flight division forced them to expand into new markets, such as entertainment and leisure. Charles Kaman, still an avid guitar player, became interested in making guitars.
From 1966 to 2007 Ovation guitars, and later on Adamas guitars, were a brand of KMCMusicorp, which itself was a subsidiary of Kaman Aircraft.
In 2008 KMCMusicorp (and with that the Ovation brand) was sold to the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In 2014 Fender announced that they are closing the iconic Ovation guitar factory in New Hartford, Connecticut, leaving all production of Ovation guitars overseas. Before that announcement Fender established a U.S. production of various acoustic guitars in the New Hartford factory. Alongside Ovation and Adamas guitars, which have been produced there for decades, Fender started a U.S. production of other Fender-owned brands in that factory, as is known, Guild (Guild Guitar Company) and Fender.
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