Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: Scotty477 on July 26, 2008, 10:26:23 PM
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I've been absent a lot from this forum, due to work and gigs. It's good to be back.
Anyways ... I got myself a new guitar.
It's a 1979 vintage red sunburst Yamaha SG2000 and I love it :D
Piccies.
(http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee245/Cobra_999/AV45420.jpg)
(http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee245/Cobra_999/AV45408.jpg)
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excellent, looks very nice. I must try one of those some time, i'm sure they're great (most yamahas i've tried have been). :)
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Awesome - how much did that set you back?!?!?!?!
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that's real nice I like it
Dave there's a real nice 3 pickup version down in Blackrock (I think it's a 1978)
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Awesome - how much did that set you back?!?!?!?!
I had to part with £750 for it. They are quite rare and the store owner knows that.
I could have got a new reissue for just over £1000 but I went for a vintage one instead.
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Nice! I love my SG1000 in my avatar. Mine is made of light mahogany and is a joy to play. Hope you enjoy your 2000!
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The weight of the SG2000 seems to be it's only drawback, but I suppose it's all part of the whole long sustain thing.
God knows what they put in them to make them so heavy :?
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Very nice :)
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The weight of the SG2000 seems to be it's only drawback, but I suppose it's all part of the whole long sustain thing.
God knows what they put in them to make them so heavy :?
Sustain block? I dont actually know how heavy those blocks are.
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I think that you've done fine for seven hundred quid. I'd have paid that - they're one of my favourite guitars.
Well done, you.
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Nice one - and for cheaper than I would've guessed.
They're not really my thing, but back in 82 or so a guitarist in a rival band had one - I tried it a few times, and it was obviously a class instrument.
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That's a very nice find. It looks like it's in good condition.
How are the tuners? The only weak spot of these guitars.
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that's real nice I like it
Dave there's a real nice 3 pickup version down in Blackrock (I think it's a 1978)
cheers rob :) i'll look into that if i ever get round to it.
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Nice buy. I had a play on one once and enjoyed it a great deal.
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That's a very nice find. It looks like it's in good condition.
How are the tuners? The only weak spot of these guitars.
The tuners seem to be very stable. They appear to be the original Yamaha 15:1 ratio tuners.
(http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee245/Cobra_999/AV45404.jpg)
It has a massive bridge, which is very stable. You can see the brass sustain block below it in this pic.
(http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee245/Cobra_999/AV45413.jpg)
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Nice catch! :D
You know what I'm going to say... too heavy for me blah blah blah :wink: , but they are seriously nice guitars.
I don't know exactly why they're so heavy, but I do remember that back in the late '70s/early '80s extreme weight and chunky brass hardware were regarded as the keys to the kingdom of tone and sustain. So where a modern builder would look for lightweight mahogany, in those days Yamaha and Ibanez were looking for the heaviest stuff they could get. :)
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Nice catch! :D
You know what I'm going to say... too heavy for me blah blah blah :wink: , but they are seriously nice guitars.
I don't know exactly why they're so heavy, but I do remember that back in the late '70s/early '80s extreme weight and chunky brass hardware were regarded as the keys to the kingdom of tone and sustain. So where a modern builder would look for lightweight mahogany, in those days Yamaha and Ibanez were looking for the heaviest stuff they could get. :)
I think they found all the heaviest stuff and threw them into this guitar Phil :D
Mind you, it only weighs 11.5 pounds, although it feels heavier.
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I think they found all the heaviest stuff and threw them into this guitar Phil :D
Mind you, it only weighs 11.5 pounds, although it feels heavier.
That's still a scary weight for me! :lol:
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Nice carpet. :D
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VERY GOOD CHOICE!!!!!!!
One of the most under aprechiated instruments in my opinion.......
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Great detail pics. Those tuners look very different from the ones I had. The pegheads were more square and the gear enclosure looks different too. Yours look like Grovers while mine look like Schallers.
BTW, I swapped my tuners for Rotomatics.
Mine doesn't have the sustain block either but I do have the same bridge and tail piece.
Interesting guitar.
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VERY GOOD CHOICE!!!!!!!
One of the most under aprechiated instruments in my opinion.......
I agree entirely. I first came across this guitar when I started listening to early Santana and I loved the tone he had then; better than the PRS he uses now imho. As luck would have it my guitar tutor was using one for a while that I tried and I fell in love with it instantly. When I win the lottery it is certainly one of the guitars I'll buy. Plenty people here seem to recognise what a top quality instrument they are but generally I think they are vastly under-rated guitars.
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Very nice MH.
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VERY GOOD CHOICE!!!!!!!
One of the most under aprechiated instruments in my opinion.......
I agree entirely. I first came across this guitar when I started listening to early Santana and I loved the tone he had then; better than the PRS he uses now imho. As luck would have it my guitar tutor was using one for a while that I tried and I fell in love with it instantly. When I win the lottery it is certainly one of the guitars I'll buy. Plenty people here seem to recognise what a top quality instrument they are but generally I think they are vastly under-rated guitars.
Under rated is a good description of the SG2000. I can't believe the level of build quality on this guitar. I'm having a ball right now exploring the tonal variations of the guitar. The neck pup is awesome and has a great sound when split as well.
I'm still not fully convinced on the bridge pup. It has decent punch but is maybe a little bright for my taste. I'd be interested on what BKP would go well in one of these?
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Mules perhaps?
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Lovely Guitar MH. I've played these a few times over the years and they are great. I'd like one myself!
A pair of Cold Sweats would go well in that!
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I'd love to try a set of RY's on it but I'm just not sure if they would be too bright as well.
Either that, or I turn it into an all out rock machine and go for Holy Diver pups :twisted:
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I think Ratrod has Crawlers on his Yamaha SG - I reckon they'd sound really good, and they'd offset some of the extra brightness from the maple/mahogany through-neck.
RYs would be too bright (IMO, of course).
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I'd love to try a set of RY's on it but I'm just not sure if they would be too bright as well.
Either that, or I turn it into an all out rock machine and go for Holy Diver pups :twisted:
I think this just has to be one for Tim. We all know what great pups Bare Knuckle produce and I love the Cold Sweats in mine. I think they'd sound fantastic in your SG2000 BUT to me, the beauty of your Yamaha is that remarkable tone that comes from the factory. Personally I'd be tempted to stay with the stock pups; that's how much I love that guitar but if I were to change them, I'd be asking Tim for a pickup that would give me essentially what it was always meant to have. Why change a winning formula? If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
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Decent advice doadman.
I bought the guitar primarily because of the build quality, the way it played and the neck tone was very very good.
I did hear that perhaps the bridge was a little bright in the shop but it didn't put me off buying it, as I knew that putting a BKP in it could be the way to go.
I'm not in a hurry to change anything right now. I'll give myself time to see exactly what it can do.
It's just that I like what I hear in many of the Player section clips and I know from my experience with Emerald pups that a BKP can make a good guitar even better :D
My whole reason for buying the guitar was to have it for lead work. I want it to be able to deliver everything from smooth to screaming and back to bluesy stuff. It'll be fun seeing if I can get that.
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I had a '76 SG 1500 which is similar to the SG 2000 except the it doesnt have nice inlays & binding, and coil-tap options on the pups. I swapped out the original pups for Mules as soon as I could and they stayed in the guitar for about 8 months. But it just wasnt right.
I then put the originals back in and WHAM! The guitar came back to life. As much as I respect BKP (been through a few sets of BKP pups) and other pup manufacturers, IMHO, a lot has to be said for the expression "If it aint broke, don't fix it".
Personally, the pups in the SG1500 I had were really, really good and that guitar absolutely rocked. Bloody heavy mind, and the first thing I did was invest in decent strap locks...
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I think Ratrod has Crawlers on his Yamaha SG - I reckon they'd sound really good, and they'd offset some of the extra brightness from the maple/mahogany through-neck.
RYs would be too bright (IMO, of course).
Crawlers are great in these. They will round off the brightness. They give the guitar a very fat and compressed tone. Mules are very nice for these too. BKP's closest to the original pickup's sound would be Abraxas V's
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Ratrod beat me to it, I was going to suggest Abraxas's too. They work very well in neck through guitars and sound great with a lot of gain. I have AIV magnets in mine in my Hamer, AV would make them drive a bit more, but would also make them a bit brighter. I think Tim was originally thinking that the AV version would be for SG's.
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I did consider Abraxas but I really haven't heard enough of them to take the plunge.
I'm still at the stage of getting to know the guitar right now. Whist the bridge pup feels a little bright, I will give myself time to get used to it. It may just be that I'm comparing it directly with the Emerald bridge in my Les Paul - which I love.