Anyone have access to really state-of-the-art resolution-enhancing software?

[Monkeyleg]

My typical OCD. For months I've been working on building a reproduction of Stevie Ray Vaughan's white "Charley" guitar. It's finished, except for a couple of details.

One of the details is the text on the engraved chrome neck plate on the rear of the guitar. I've searched through hundreds of thousands of images, and there is only one that shows the text at all. It's pretty much illegible except for the words "Stevie Ray Vaughan". No software I have will sufficiently enhance the one or two lines of type below his name.

According to various sources on the internet, the plate reads:
Stevie Ray Vaughan, More In '84
To Stevie Ray Vaughan, More in '84
To Stevie Ray Vaughan, More in '84, Charley
Presented to Stevie Ray Vaughan, More in '84, Charley

This is the photo. If you know of a way to get even a hint of what the other two lines say, please speak up.

[TommyGunn]

All I can see is a drawing of a pretty gal.......sorry, maybe someone else can help.

[Nick1911]

Best guess from giving it five minutes as a millennial with a comp sci degree?

Contact Charley's Guitar Shop in Dallas and ask them.

[Nick1911]

Second best guess, figure out what print publication that picture originated from, and see what else they have.  They may well have a better copy of that image then something someone scanned onto the internet.

And finally, whenever you do figure it out definitely, document it online, with exactly how you got there. 

[Monkeyleg]

Charley's doesn't have the original. They have a reproduction with nothing on the plate.

I can find out which publication, but the photo is over 30 years old. Slim chance.

There's a couple of people I could ask, but they're not really very approachable. Jimmie Vaughan, for one.

[zxcvbob]

Interesting.  I see people selling reproduction neck plates, and they don't look anything like the original.  Font is all wrong, as is the method of engraving.

Just blowing up the picture in my browser window, it looks like STEVIE RAY / VAUGHAN / <unintelligible> 84 / <unintelligible but might say CHARLEY>

[Monkeyleg]

Interesting.  I see people selling reproduction neck plates, and they don't look anything like the original.  Font is all wrong, as is the method of engraving.

Just blowing up the picture in my browser window, it looks like STEVIE RAY / VAUGHAN / <unintelligible> 84 / <unintelligible but might say CHARLEY>

They're selling plates that read what most people say is on the original, and their engraving style is obviously what they thought looked good. They used this photo to make reproductions of the hula girl decal, so I'm surprised they didn't look closer at the plate.

I had a plate made for $15 that just says "STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN - MORE IN '84" for now. I'm going to continue my research. Maybe the guitar will go on a traveling exhibit sometime soon.

[HankB]

Even the best image enhancement software can't enhance or create information that just isn't there. And . . . it's a .jpg image, and .jpg is a "lossy" format anyway.

Suggest you do a web search of images using terms like "Stevie Ray Vaughn" or "Stevie Ray Vaughn Guitar" just in case there's a higher resolution image out there somewhere.

[KD5NRH]

There's a couple of people I could ask, but they're not really very approachable. Jimmie Vaughan, for one.

Wish I could remember the name of the photographer I used to work with back in the late 90s; she had spent some time covering SRV's shows and doing some interesting artistic shots of his guitars.  I'd bet she still has negatives that would be worth their weight in gold to people doing repros.

[Devonai]

ENHANCE!