The Ovation guitar company, and the nature of the Ovation guitar's synthetic back are directly attributed to founder Charles H. Kaman's experiments in helicopter aviation. Kaman, who began playing guitar back in high school, trained in the field of aeronautics and graduated from the Catholic University in Washington, D.C. His first job in 1940 was with a division of United Aircraft, home of aircraft inventor Igor Sikorsky. In 1945, Kaman formed the Kaman Aircraft Corporation to pursue his helicopter-related inventions.
As the company began to grow, the decision was made around 1957 to diversify into manufacturing products in different fields. Kaman initially made overtures to the Martin company, as well as exploring both Harmony and Ludwig drums. Finally, the decision was made to start fresh. Due to research in vibrations and resonances in the materials used to build helicopter blades, guitar development began in 1964 with employees John Ringso and Jim Rickard. In fact, it was Rickard's pre-war Martin D-45 that was used as the "test standard." In 1967, the Ovation company name was chosen, incorporated, and settled into its new facilities in New Hartford, Connecticut. The first model named that year was the Balladeer.
Ovation guitars debuted at the 1967 NAMM show. Early players and endorsers included Josh White, Charlie Byrd, and Glen Campbell. Piezo pickup-equipped models were introduced in 1972, along with other models. During the early 1970s, Kaman Music (OvationĀ“s parent company) acquired the well-known music distributor Coast and also part of the Takamine guitar company. By 1975, Ovation decided to release an entry level instrument, and the original Applause/Medallion/Matrix designs were first built in the U.S. before production moved into Korea.
In 1986, Kaman's oldest son became president of Kaman Music. Charles William "Bill" Kaman II had begun working in the Ovation factory at age fourteen. After graduating college in 1974, Bill was made Director of Development at the Moosup, Connecticut plant. A noted Travis Bean guitar collector (see KamanĀ“s Travis Bean history later in this book), Bill Kaman remained active in the research and development aspect of model design. Kaman helped design the Viper III and the UK II solid bodies.
Bill Kaman gathered all branches of the company under one roof as the Kaman Music Corporation (KMC) in 1986. As the Ovation branch was now concentrating on acoustic and acoustic/electric models, the corporation bought the independent Hamer company in 1988 as the means to re-enter the solid body guitar market. In 2007, Ovation returned from nearly twenty years in electric hiatus with the VXT Hybrid model. This guitar has both acoustic and electric capabilities with two exposed humbucker pickups and a Fishman bridge pickup. In late 2007, the Fender Musical Instrument Corporation (FMIC) acquired Kaman Music, which included Ovation. In 2008, Kaman Music changed the name of their company to KMC Music. On January 31, 2011 Charles Kaman passed away at the age of 91. In June 2014, Fender closed the Ovation factory in Connecticut leaving only overseas production of Ovation guitars. Source: Walter Carter, The History of the Ovation Guitar.
Instruments previously built in New Hartford, CT between 1967 and 2014. Distributed by the KMC Music in Bloomfield, CT. Acoustics are currently produced in China, Korea, and Indonesia.

OVATION Electric Guitars Models

OVATION BREADWINNER (MODEL 1251) Image

OVATION BREADWINNER (MODEL 1251)

- "kidney"-shaped mahogany body, mahogany neck, 3-per-side headstock, dot fingerboard inlay, two large single coil pickups, master volume knob, master tone knob, midrange filter switch, three-way pickup selector switch, available in a textu...

OVATION MAGNUM I (MODEL 1261) Image

OVATION MAGNUM I (MODEL 1261)

- double offset cutaway mahogany body, graphite reinforced neck, humbucker pickup (neck position) and double coil pickup (bridge position), stereo output, string mute, mfg. 1974-1982.

OVATION DEACON (MODEL 1252) Image

OVATION DEACON (MODEL 1252)

- single cutaway body, diamond shaped position markers, master volume knob, master tone knob, midrange filter switch, three-way pickup selector switch, available in Sunburst finish, mfg. 1973-1982.

OVATION HURRICANE (MODEL K-1120) Image

OVATION HURRICANE (MODEL K-1120)

- 12-string configuration, double cutaway semi-hollow body, gold-plated hardware, two DeArmond humbucker pickups, master volume knob, two separate tone control knobs, phase switch on bass bout, pickup balance/blend switch on treble bout, av...

OVATION THUNDERHEAD (MODEL K-1360/K-1213/K-1233) Image

OVATION THUNDERHEAD (MODEL K-1360/K-1213/K-1233)

- double cutaway semi-hollow body, gold-plated hardware, two DeArmond humbucker pickups, master volume knob, two separate tone control knobs, phase switch on bass bout, pickup balance/blend switch on treble bout, available in Natural, Nutme...

OVATION UK II (MODEL 1291) Image

OVATION UK II (MODEL 1291)

- double cutaway Urelite (Urethane) material on an aluminum frame, set-neck design, two humbucker pickups, two volume knobs, two tone knobs, series/parallel pickup switching, three-way pickup selector switch on upper bass bout, mfg. 1980-82...

OVATION ULTRA GP/GS Image

OVATION ULTRA GP/GS

- single cutaway (GP) or double cutaway (GS) solidbody in a variety of configurations, one, two, or three pickups, available in various finishes, mfg. 1985-late 1980s.

OVATION VIPER (MODEL 1271) Image

OVATION VIPER (MODEL 1271)

- single cutaway ash body, bolt-on one-piece maple neck, maple or ebony fingerboard, two single coil pickups, 25 in. scale, master volume knob, master tone knob, three-way pickup selector switch, mfg. 1975-1983.

OVATION VXT Image

OVATION VXT

- single cutaway hybrid acoustic/electric design, one-piece chambered Honduras mahogany body, solid spruce top, one-piece Hounduras mahogany neck, 22-fret rosewood fingerboard with pearl dot inlays, standard Ovation headstock with three-per...

OVATION VXTS Standard Image

OVATION VXTS Standard

- similar to the VXT, except has a poplar body and two Seymour Duncan P-90 pickups available in Black or Titanium Silver finish, mfg. 2008-09.