Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: Slartibartfarst42 on March 03, 2015, 07:22:37 AM
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Now that I've upgraded the amp and have all the pedals I want, I'm left pondering over my guitars. I'm not like most players as all I want is one acoustic and two electrics. I'm perfectly happy with my acoustic and my Les Paul is perfect. It's exactly what I want and can cover the entire set by itself. That leaves my PRS. I love the SE Custom 24 but I've never bonded with this one and for the extra couple of hundred it cost me, the Gibson is significantly superior so I think I'm inclined to change the PRS. Three options leap to mind:
1) Gibson SG - different flavour but essentially like the LP
2) Sterling JP100D - Looks like a lot of guitar for the money and more of a solo guitar
3) Strat? - Versatile but more on the lighter side. HSS?
Any thoughts?
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I am biased but the Gibson SG would be my choice. Really they are not much like a Les Paul except for the neck. They have a very distinctive sound and are highly resonant. An SG would also be the most comfortable guitar to play, unless you get one with really heavy tuners (e.g., Grovers), a fat neck (also adds weight), or are just a small guy who feels like the low frets are too far away due to the strap button and neck placement. They are finicky with pickups but there is more than enough help on here with regard to advice on that.
I would also highly recommend a P-90 equipped SG.
Small pickguard would be easier in terms of changing pickups. Large pickguard SGs have the bridge going through the pickguard, and the pickups mounted to the pickguard. You can change that with a large pickguard P-90 SG if you want to but more difficult (and ugly) on a humbucker one.
Sam Ash have been doing amazing deals on the 2013 Tribute models recently. The '70s Tribute has Dirty Fingers.
I would have gotten one if I was based in the USA. Maybe someone has a good deal near you
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I'm biased too:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5PRwWJCzFY (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5PRwWJCzFY)
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I simply still want you to try a P90 guitar, especially one with BKPs, so my judgement is a bit clouded. As you know I imagine they could be a big hit with you.
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Much as I love the specification of the Sterling JP, I'm not convinced it's for me as I'm moving to a more melodic style than the mindless noodling I've done in the past so that's out. That Fret-King really looks interesting. It's not a make I've even remotely considered before, probably due to its association with Vintage guitars. Are they really of similar quality to a Gibson Les Paul Studio?
The SG is a safe bet as I love Gibsons but an H-S-P90 Strat style guitar sounds like a guitar you could do a LOT with.
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Depends what you want.
SG - different sound but still humbuckers, similar neck to LP.
Strat - quite different playing feel, single coil sounds should be one of the major reasons to get one. I never warmed with the playing feel.
Sterling - this seems to be more of a superstrat to me. There's nothing wrong in having one of these to contrast the LP, plus it has a tremolo that is probably more stable than any strats.
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Much as I love the specification of the Sterling JP, I'm not convinced it's for me as I'm moving to a more melodic style than the mindless noodling I've done in the past so that's out. That Fret-King really looks interesting. It's not a make I've even remotely considered before, probably due to its association with Vintage guitars. Are they really of similar quality to a Gibson Les Paul Studio?
The SG is a safe bet as I love Gibsons but an H-S-P90 Strat style guitar sounds like a guitar you could do a LOT with.
I think Fret-King is a secret among the guitarbrands. They are nice, wellmade guitars for sure. The same goes for Reverend.
But it will feel and play totally different from an SG. A Gibson will be a better resale, but imho the lower Gibson-line is not that convincing (anymore) compared to other, equally priced, or even cheaper brands. I thinkt that vid is good food for thought.
Another really nice guitar for little money is the Yamaha Pacifica 611VFM.
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Hi Slar, out of interest what pups have you got in the prs ?
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If you get an SG it's worth chasing down an old stock 2013.
The last two years (2014 and 2015) are nowhere near as good IMHO. Very gimmicky. Especially the tuners and now they have widened the nut and installed a brass nut / zero fret which has had very mixed reviews.
Gibson SG Buyer's Guide for 2013 Guitars - Gibson SG 2013 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmEcLQ6ApSM)
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Hi Slar, out of interest what pups have you got in the prs ?
Not sure I can say as I moved away from BKP but the nearest BKP would be Holydivers.
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Hi Slar, out of interest what pups have you got in the prs ?
Not sure I can say as I moved away from BKP but the nearest BKP would be Holydivers.
Hmm, now you made me curious.
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PM sent to satisfy your curiosity :smiley:
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PM sent to satisfy your curiosity :smiley:
Thx, I'm satisfied now! :wink:
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As far as I'm concerned, there are two guitars any (electric) guitar player should have: a LP and a Telly. You already have the LP so you know what's next ;) (hint: the BG52 are amazing, and with a 4-way switch you do cover a lot of ground).
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For some reason, a Tele has just never appealed to me.
I've been finding that an HSH guitar that isn't 'Metal' is relatively rare so instead, if I go that 'Strat' route, I was told by a friend of a guy who can build me a singlecoil-sized P90. I'm just waiting for a reply to confirm that this is the case but I don't see why it shouldn't be possible as I know he's already done a very impressive Tele-sized P90. That nicely opens up anything that has an HSS layout to be used as either a H-S-P90 or H-P90-P90 guitar. The other option remains a Gibson SG with a humbucker in the bridge and P90 in the neck. The next step I suppose is to try a few guitars and see what feels right as well as consider what will best suit what I'm after. My gut tells me that getting an SG would be the path of least resistance but I am intrigued by the tonal possibilities presented by the Strat option. Due to the woods, I imagine the SG would be a bit closer sonically to my Les Paul.
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Due to the woods, I imagine the SG would be a bit closer sonically to my Les Paul.
While SGs are mahogany they really don't sound like any other mahogany guitar (even an ESP Viper) due the the specifics of their construction, especially the thinness of the body and the type of neck joint. SGs are generally more resonant, brighter, and more mids-focused. A humbucker with a decent amount of bottom end helps a lot, as does a bit of a mids scoop. For some reason though all P-90s seem to work really well in SGs. I'm very happy with the Stockholm, Cold Sweat, and Warpig pickups in my SGs
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Well, it looks like it's decision time as I have a buyer for my PRS. The SG I'm looking at is a 60's Tribute so am I being silly changing the PRS for this or is it genuinely a really good guitar?
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Haven't seen any recent bad reviews on the Strattish Chapman ML-1 and in trans-black... looks pretty nice... Mahogany body and a maple neck with a 25.5" scale... not too shabby, shreddy or metally....
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I've pretty much decided that if I'm going to change, it will be for the SG. Looking at it more closely, it seems that for much the same cost I have the choice between a 2013 60's Tribute and a 2014 Special. The Special is actually about £60 cheaper but doesn't have the Min-Etune system on it, though that's not a huge deal as my LP doesn't have it either. Other than that, I'm unsure what the difference is between them. Does one model stand out as better than the other?
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The 2013s don't have that horrible 12th fret marker that the 2014s have.
No Min-Etune I would consider that a plus. The '60s Tribute has it? Most of them don't
Compare the necks. The '60s Tribute has the '60s slim taper D-profile neck (my favourite). Not sure what the Special has, sometimes they have the fatter 'rounded' profile or even the '50s baseball bat type. Fatter necks also tend to be heavier. It looks like the 2014 Special has the same neck profile as a 2013 '60s Tribute.
Maybe the '60 Tribute has trapezoid inlays? Specials generally have dots. The 2014 Special has a 24 fret neck
http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/SG/Gibson-USA/SG-60s-Tribute.aspx (I like Vintage Sunburst)
http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/2014/SG-Special.aspx
Would depend on the finish too. I really only like those funny pickup rings on the 2014 Special with Desert Burst or Fireburst
Pickups on the Special are 490T/490R (not a fan myself). It has the Kluson tuners, which are now made by TonePros and are quite nice.
Pickups on the '60s Tribute are Burstbuckers. Standard tuners are Grover rotomatics, but I think you are saying this one has the robots.
All things considered I would probably go for the 2013.
My fave of the Tributes is the 2013 '70s though. Slightly fatter neck with a volute and the Dirty Fingers pickups. Although I tend to go for the '60s neck the '70s one is thin enough for me and the whole guitar just feels nice.
People have also said that the Tribute series have a nice low action and the neck angle is less steep than some older ones
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Right, I've played both the 60's Tribute and the 2014 Special and while they were both good guitars, I really didn't find they inspired me. Frankly, my PRS is better. I was going to just keep the PRS but then I did find a couple of guitars that interested me. One is an EVH Wolfgang Special and the other is a Sterling JP100D. The EVH played really well and felt like a quality instrument but the Sterling wasn't in stock and nobdy around me has them. Does anybody know anything about these guitars and which would you say is better?
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Not really but the EVH Wolfgang is the same design as the old Peavey Wolfgang, isn't it?
I would expect it to be darker than an SG.
A maple fretboard one might be tempting.
Also, wang or no wang? Personally I'd go for wang, just because at present I don't have a wang.
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Your experience with the cheaper Gibsons confirmed my idea about them.
The Sterling is a decent guitar for sure, so is the Yamaha Pacifica 611VFM. In that pricerange you've had a lot of choice like Ibanez's, Jacksons, ESP Ltd, Fender Lonestar, Guild Polara, Reverend, Fret-King Eclat, PRS SE, EVH, Eastwood, Hagstrom Swede etc.
I just wouldn't rush things as you didn't make up your mind what you really want and need.
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My Les Paul Studio is a 'cheaper' Gibson and it's incredible for the money. It feels like a quality guitar in a way that the SG options just didn't. I was very disappointed in them for sure. I was all set to just keep the PRS until I tried the Wolfgang but that one really did speak to me. It's a beautiful guitar. All except one of the Wolfgang Specials have the maple fretboard. The odd one out is the option of Stealth Black, which has an ebony board. I think I'd get a maple board for sure and I'd also get one with the whammy, just because I don't have that on my Les Paul. It's a shame the whammy will only move downwards but I don't suppose that's the end of the world and despite the locking trem, it doesn't look an obviously 'shredders' guitar, which appeals to me as I'm in no way a shredder.
http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/products/evh_wolfgang_special_maple_fingerboard_burnt_cherry_burst.asp
Despite that, the Sterling is still there as an option but unfortunately, so far I've come across nobody who can tell me what it's actually like in comparison to the Wolfgang.
http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/products/sterling_by_music_man_jp100d_john_petrucci_ruby_red_burst.asp
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Cheaper Gibson can be hit and miss, there's probably less time that goes into selecting the woods and more variance.
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Cheaper Gibson can be hit and miss, there's probably less time that goes into selecting the woods and more variance.
+1. I think the best thing to do when it comes to a good price-quality ratio is to look for a nineties Studio.
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I think I have this down to two possibilities. The First one is the EVH Wolfgang Special:
http://www.thomann.de/gb/evh_wolfgang_special_bch_2.htm
I've played this guitar and I really liked it. It was comfortable to play, felt very well put together and the pickups were great so I could sell the excellent pups I had installed in my PRS. It did, however, strike me that it is essentially a Mexican Fender with a different name on it and as a result I started to look at this:
http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/products ... 10-552.asp
I could easily change the scratchplate on this to turn it into an HSH configuration and as such, use the pups I had in the PRS. I could also have a P90 pickup made that is Strat-sized that I could fit into the middle position. Add coil splits and all of a sudden it seems like a very versatile guitar indeed. Unfortunately, this one is only by special order but I assume it feels and plays much like any other Strat.
The EVH would involve no messing around, has an extra fret and the compound radius neck; all of which appeals. Conversely, the Fender would end up more versatile and I'm wondering if it might hold its value a bit better, simply because it's a Fender and can be easily made to be all things to all men.
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the second link didn't work
personally though I would go with the Wolfgang. Maple fretboard, Floyd, good pickups, sounds like it could be a lot of fun.
They have a lot of fans out there on the net from what I can tell, as did the old USA made Peavey version
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Ah, sorry about that. The link is supposed to take you to a Fender Standard Strat Plus Top with a Floyd Trem. It's in Aged Cherry Burst with a maple fretboard so quite the looker. Stock, it's HSS but I'd change it to HSH if I got that one. I can get it for £82 less that the EVH but in reality, that difference would shrink because I'd have to use the pickups I took out of the PRS rather than sell them and I'd need to change the scratchplate. I'm sure it would end up very versatile but it also seems like a lot of hassle when the EVH is fine just the way it comes.
On a side note, would I be correct in thinking I couldn't sell my pickups on this forum because they're not BKP? I can't recall if I've ever seen other pickups being put up for sale here before and I don't want to do something wrong.
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I'd say, get something totally different.
Seems like you're quite fond of your LP, so whatever you end up getting, you'll always compare it to that............
So my 2 cents would be: Get a Tele, I know, they are ugly as !#$%^@#!# but are quite useful and a lot of fun.
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The other guitarist in my band is a mad keen Fender man and he insists the Fender would have a wider market and a better resale value but I'm just not convinced. Fender buyers aren't usually that fussed about fancy tops and aren't usually bothered about Floyd Rose bridges so at £600, it seems to me that I'd have a guitar that's either £200 more than a normal Mexican HSS Strat or a Strat that isn't a kick in the teeth away from the price of an American Strat. As a result, this model would inevitably get squeezed and that's probably why nobody stocks them and they're only brought in by special order but I accept that the EVH is perhaps quite a specialised market. The thing is, try as I might I can't find anything that I'd prefer when I think of the specification I'm after.
1) Around the £600-£700 price bracket, though I'd happily have something a bit cheaper.
2) I'd prefer a trem unit and an OFR would be nice, though not a deal breaker but if it has a locking trem system, it needs to be a good one. I don't want a licensed Floyd or a 'Special' Floyd system. It has to be either OFR or an equivalent that's as good.
3) Either HH or HSH configuration.
4) Not an obviously shredding guitar.
5) A maple fretboard would be nice but again, not a deal breaker.
6) At least one volume and one tone control.
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The wording makes it sound like the trem in the EVH is a original floyd branded as EVH like the old Jackson floyds. That might be the case. Even if it is, there are Asian OFRs (Gotoh?) and German OFRs (Schaller). Not sure which it might be.
Then again it might be a licensed trem but in that case the ad is very misleading.
http://www.evhgear.com/en-AU/gear/subpage/?partno=5107701592
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^ Nah the Asian OFRs aren't made by Gotoh (at least as far as I'm aware :laugh: ). I think they're made in Korea. Ping maybe? But don't quote me on that.
There's a good webpage explaining the differences between the Schaller-made one and the Korean one: http://dellus.net/updates/original-floyd-rose-german-vs-korean/
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I contacted Fender who were very helpful. The one in the Wolfgang Special is apparently the 02000, which is exactly the same specification as the one made in Germany except that it's made in Korea.
I had four possible guitars selected that I will try at the weekend and with the different deals I can get, there is only £75 between the cheapest one and the most expensive.
Schecter Banshee
I've never played one of these before so it should be interesting. The headstock doesn't scream 'shred' but I think it still looks like a Metal guitar. The one in stock is Vintage Sunburst and unfortunately, I can't see my black/white zebra pickups really suiting that colour but if I like it, that wouldn't be a deal killer. I really know NOTHING about these guitars at all so if anyone can shed some light on them I'd be grateful. As I'd realistically have to sell my existing pups, the net cost of this guitar would be £525 so it would be the cheapest here, though I would probably end up buying new pups eventually, thus pushing the price back up.
Jackson DK2MQ Pro Series
The specification and look of this one is excellent. The main thing that puts me off is that it absolutely screams 'shred' and as I discovered when I sold my Soloist a couple of years ago, guitars with pointy headstocks are a pig to sell. It has a 4A quilted maple top, maple fretboard, decent Floyd, compound radius neck etc. There's no logical reason to knock this guitar and I feel silly saying the headstock puts me off but history suggests that the time will come when I sell this guitar and I suspect this will be the hardest one to shift and lose the most money. This one would come in at £575 and my existing pups would go in it beautifully, though if I did sell the pups this would then come down to £500.
EVH Wolfgang Special
I had a quick play on one of these last week and I'd like to try it again. It felt VERY solidly put together and surprisingly for me, I'd certainly not change the pickups as the stock items are superb. The neck is thicker than I expected but certainly not unpleasant to play and I love the Burnt Cherry Burst finish with the flame maple top, though I wish they offered a quilt option. I also like the fact that it doesn't look as obviously shreddy as the Jackson or Schecter, though it's not the prettiest guitar here and the headstock is fugly in my opinion and while the guitar sports a D-Tuna, it's not a feature I'm likely to use and the trem only goes down as it sits on the body. Even factoring in the sale of my existing pickups, this still comes in as the most expensive option here at £600. I love the build quality and the sound and the fact that it's not obviously shreddy but in terms of looks, I think it's a bit of a Marmite guitar and I'm unsure if I would find the restrictions on the Floyd a pain.
PRS SE Custom 24 Floyd
I feel a little stupid including this one as with the exception of the trem unit, this is EXACTLY the same as the one I just sold, even down to the colour. However, I know it's well built, I love the quilted finish, the Floyd is good and it's probably the least shreddy looking guitar here. It actually looks quite unassuming even with the Floyd. I would certainly put my existing pups in here as I don't like the stock items at all. Having said that, I would end up with a great guitar with great pickups and at £550 it's cheap. To end up with pickups of my choice, this is the cheapest guitar here so there really isn't a lot to find fault with. I would rather have a Maple fretboard or possibly ebony but being rosewood isn't a deal breaker and the only other thing I can think of is that this would be my third PRS SE CU24 so it feels a bit like I've already been there and done that but perhaps I keep coming back to them because they just suit me.
I really hope that something really stands out and grabs me on Saturday because at the moment, I have absolutely no idea at all which one would be best. As usual, experience and opinions would be welcome.
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Well I'd cross the EVH off the list if the Floyd doesn't have the full range.
I'd be looking more closely at that Banshee.
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That doesn't bother me much about the EVH as I doubt I'd need the trem to move up much anyway. It also seemed like a VERY solidly built guitar with superb pickups and without looking that shreddy. Despite the fact that I find it quite an unattractive guitar, I do find it very appealing as an instrument. Even though I still know very little about the Banshee or even Schecter guitars in general, I haven't been able to find anything negative about them so I'm really looking forward to giving it a try. I think the Jackson would have to be really special for me to get over my dislike of having a shreddy guitar and the PRS is rapidly taking on the role of the 'safe' option in all this.
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how about a "real" PRS?
although the SE ones are good guitars, the USA made ones feel completely different and have quite superior construction and materials
I'm not too fond on the CE bolt-on models, as they seem to have a different neck angle
I had a CE-22 that sounded great, but I didn't enjoy the neck feel
you can still find used Mccarties and Custom 22s for fair prices
totally worth the extra cost if you can buy one under US$1800
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I think you also should have a look into Reverends. They have bolt-ons and set-necks, bodies made from korina, good stockpickups and some cool features like the basscontourknob. They're put well together.
http://www.reverendguitars.com/category/guitar/ (http://www.reverendguitars.com/category/guitar/)
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I went to play these guitars today. The more I thought about the PRS, the more I thought that it was perhaps time for a change so I just left that one as a backup. The Schecter was lovely but it was the most expensive option there and the stock pickups (Nazgul and Sentient) were horrible so that was out. The EVH was just as lovely as I remembered with excellent pickups, though I remain surprised at how relatively chunky the neck is on that guitar. I then tried the Jackson and that had a lovely neck and surprisingly, the JB/59 pickups actually worked really well in that guitar. This surprised me a bit as when I had my Soloist, the JB wasn't that impressive. Perhaps it just works better in alder than maple. This was the scenario I'd most dreaded because I liked both of these guitars but the Jackson had the better neck for my tastes and it was £100 cheaper. Eventually I decided that to hell with it having the pointy headstock and I'd just call it another of my mid-life crisis episodes and go for the Jackson. This leads me to my final question in this long saga. The DK2 plays really well and the stock pups work well in it but I'm wondering if paying the extra £55 for the Soloist version would be a better investment. The Soloist seems to be made in Indonesia while the Dinky is made in Mexico and I suspect the Soloist might therefore not be of the same ultimate quality. From what I can gather, the Soloist has a maple veneer top whereas the Dinky has a 4A quilted maple cap, albeit a thin one at 1/8th". There's also the concern that I'd have to upgrade the pickups on the Soloist if my last one is anything to go by and while that's not the end of the world for someone like me, it does mean that the Soloist then becomes at least £80 more expensive. A lot of what I've just written suggests the Dinky is the better option but I thought I'd seek other opinions just in case, for the sake of some pickups, I'd have been better off in the long term with a Soloist.