I bought the Tokai Explorer! (Updated with pics!)

[dave_mc]

Bairds on York Street & the Guitar Emporium both stock them in Belfast.

Their Firebirds are real nice too

Rob...

2 mac music in banbridge stocks them too...

:drink:

[HTH AMPS]

Yeah, i'm finding it hard finding one in the UK, especially in west yorkshire area.

Really want to try out one of their Les Paul types now, i've always loved the LP shape but not really so big on the gibson name.

Anyone got any ideas on who stocks 'em?

Sound Control / Academy Of Sound stock Tokai - theres a one in Leeds, that would be the way to go.

 :twisted:

[blue]

Bairds on York Street & the Guitar Emporium both stock them in Belfast.

Their Firebirds are real nice too

Rob...

2 mac music in banbridge stocks them too...

:drink:

just how close are you to me?  is that the place opposite the police station?

(not that i can think of another music shop in banbridge )

[lp_man]

Yeah i am saving.

By the way i played the Tokai up against the Gibson Explorer, and i have to say the Tokai blew it out of the water!

Japan+Guitar=Gibson should have been put out of business by now.

I pretty much exclusively play Japanese guitars now!

-Will

[Dakine]

Yeah i am saving.

By the way i played the Tokai up against the Gibson Explorer, and i have to say the Tokai blew it out of the water!

Japan+Guitar=Gibson should have been put out of business by now.

I pretty much exclusively play Japanese guitars now!

-Will

As should Lotus and Colt and Triumph and ...........etc.

It's ALL about TRADITION!

Sure Gibson is Hit and Miss ALOT. And sure the Japanese make great product.
BUT, the Japanese are great at taking an idea/design and running with it/making it more reliable/complete.

However, Gibson/Fender etc. invented sooooooooooooo much!

I for one HATE and I mean HATE losing old tradition. Mass produced, same ole same ole, NO character is GREAT for everyday, but where's the feel, the passion and the mojo?????????????

Want somthing sterile but useable, fair enough. But stop bashing a pioneer or ALL that this world once was will be lost forever.

Sure, as I said, Gibson and others are slipping. However, look what they are up against. Politics, workforces, rising costs etc. I have lived in US and UK and both are f**ked in many respects when it comes to competeing with many other countries with less restrictive laws etc.

All am saying is, PLEASE stop bashing pioneers. Least till you can prove that ALL the product/service sucks. And I am here to tell ya I have 2 amazing Gibsons.

In fact every one of my 5 guitars are american (Till can afford a Jon/Feline) and ALL kick ASS! (Not that I would pas up a Custom ESP or nice Tokai).

Rant over, for now.

[lp_man]

As should Lotus and Colt and Triumph and ...........etc.

It's ALL about TRADITION!

Sure Gibson is Hit and Miss ALOT. And sure the Japanese make great product.
BUT, the Japanese are great at taking an idea/design and running with it/making it more reliable/complete.

However, Gibson/Fender etc. invented sooooooooooooo much!

I for one HATE and I mean HATE losing old tradition. Mass produced, same ole same ole, NO character is GREAT for everyday, but where's the feel, the passion and the mojo?????????????

Want somthing sterile but useable, fair enough. But stop bashing a pioneer or ALL that this world once was will be lost forever.

Sure, as I said, Gibson and others are slipping. However, look what they are up against. Politics, workforces, rising costs etc. I have lived in US and UK and both are f**ked in many respects when it comes to competeing with many other countries with less restrictive laws etc.

All am saying is, PLEASE stop bashing pioneers. Least till you can prove that ALL the product/service sucks. And I am here to tell ya I have 2 amazing Gibsons.

In fact every one of my 5 guitars are american (Till can afford a Jon/Feline) and ALL kick ASS! (Not that I would pas up a Custom ESP or nice Tokai).

Rant over, for now.

I'm just different in that way, I dislike tradition in most respects as you can easily get trapped in a circle going round and round and not making progress.

I don't however, understand your argument about mass production...Gibson are just as mass-produced in fact probably more so than Burny or other Japanese makers, because they sell more - just because of the name, not of the guitar quality or feel - and that is what bugs me :)

Politics, workforces, rising costs; they still manage to sell their guitars in the £1000's range, and for that price I would wan't a guitar that is right first time every time. The problem is, Gibson dosn't have to compete - so it wont. As long as there are a few good ones floating about being played by famous guys practically everyone will want one - the limited run in Japan sold out in 2 hours!

And I'm not saying that all Gibsons suck - that isn't true, but you can get better if you look past the name of the headstock. It is just bad business ethics undertaken by Gibson at the moment - if they wanted they could make every guitar at least decent, but as it is an incorporated business, profit comes first and they can get away with the level of hit and miss because Gibson is desirable to a lot of people. Burny isnt, so it has to make good quality stuff for cheap to compete.

My main point is; just because they made the original designs dosn't mean they have more 'mojo' or not 'sterile'. Gibson make mass produced guitars http://www.gibson.com/products/gibson/plant_tour/pt1.html

I realise I am probably going to offend a few people here, so I apologise in advance! I will say no more on the subject because I feel like I am just going to start this argument up agiain!

-Will

[Dakine]

Point is, they INVENTED alot and deserve at least kudos for that.
The Japanese 'steal' mostly. NOW, I myself applaud their stratergy and work but their 'free thinking' is lacking (ask Land Rover).
It's all to do with Market force. Gibson is a HUGE name so people want em. Smaller companies copy them and alot of times do better.
Another case in point. IMO cheaper Marshalls suck. Older and hand wired ones are great, but cost alot.
Supply and demand.
Japan mass produce reliable, working product (aka Datsun which def. helped kill the UK motor industry).
NOT knocking Japan (as said love their culture etc.) just hate knocking traditional pioneers. We may never have had Les Pauls, SG's,V's,Explorers etc. if it were'nt for Gibson or Strats/Tele's if not for Fender. ALL of which are COPIED by others.
Pay ya money and take ya choice. But with some patience a GOOD Gibson/Fender is somthing to behold/cherish.

[Searcher]

NOT knocking Japan (as said love their culture etc.) just hate knocking traditional pioneers. We may never have had Les Pauls, SG's,V's,Explorers etc. if it were'nt for Gibson or Strats/Tele's if not for Fender. ALL of which are COPIED by others.

Hmm.  Originality isn't well-rewarded.  Most people who are truly innovative are mocked and/or their products bomb.  People want what they're familiar with--why do you think Hollywood has done almost nothing other than remakes of old movies and TV shows for the last 5 years?  And big businesses actively squash new competition.  At least if you copy a well-known product it won't be criticised as being unworkable by the people with the same design.

[Bainzy]

The thing is, while Leo Fender played an active role in designing the classic Fender guitars, Orville Gibson died waaay before Gibson even considered making electric guitars. Who are we rewarding then by buying brand names?

The people who actually designed these guitars don't see a penny from sales of them, and the people who run Gibson today will see many people buying their guitars as a reason not to innovate further. Fender seem to be much more responsive to the wishes of players, and the quality control right now is excellent. I wish I could say the same for Gibson...

"So stop torturing yourself!" "Live in the now!"

[Muzzzz]

wow, nice looking guitar  :D:D:D  They're very comfortable too, which I found surprising. I have to agree in part with Bainzy. it may pay off to look more at brands who have to actually work hard and innovate to make sales and money, like Ernie Ball Music Man. Big companies like Gibson and Fender can get - and have gotten in the past - very lazy off their name.

[Dakine]

NOT torturing myself, just RESPECT classic design.
Have a custom Gibson 'knockoff' SG (way better than ANY SG ever played). A REAL Gibson Explorer and Les Paul. NOT saying they don't need a HUGE rocket up their arses in QC department but AM saying respect IS due.
Go buy whatever ya want but 'blanket bashing' is a sign of ignorance IMO.

I have 2 Ernie Balls and my Pet cost WAY more than a Gibson (in the states where bought it) and although have had NO problems they indeed have had MANY issues with these themselves.

In general, having lived in US (and worked there) for many years, IMO it is a 'workforce' issue and 'pride' in the job (coupled with greed/mass production etc.). For instance had a Special Edition 100th Anniversary Ford/Harley truck. Was it finished better? (limited run with Willie G having huge input into it), NO! Damn disgrace actually. But recognised and desired wherever I went?, Yes.

My folks have been in auto industry ALL their/ my life and can tell ya some HIGH marks are also WELL lacking. Seen/driven some horrendous Ferraris, yet they are a Massive name. Also, Morgan's are still made, yet their primary design has not changed in years.

Buy what ya want and bash what ya want. I agree Gibsons (esp. newer are hit and miss) but to run down such a pivital company/designs is pretty petty IMO.

I DON'T work for Gibson so gonna end this now.

I own two Gibsons and if found another great one would buy more.
However, every guitar I own felt 'right' to me. This is the important thing I think. Who cares WHO made the instrument if it 'feels' right to the player? Thats why a/b'ing the Ibanez and Tokai was such a good idea and is wonderful he is so pleased with his purchase!
Every company builds gems and cr@p. But someones 'cr@p' is anothers 'dream' no doubt :)

[Fubar]

The people who actually designed these guitars don't see a penny from sales of them, and the people who run Gibson today will see many people buying their guitars as a reason not to innovate further.

The main thing I have to say about Gibson is this: Although they do make some nice guitars, for about the same price as a Les Paul Standard I can get Jonathon at Feline to build me a guitar to my own exact specifications. I'd much rather (and intend to once i've got some cash free'd up) follow this route as, obviously, the guitar I would be getting would be completely as I'd wished with no need for me to even consider modifying it (which I would want to do with the LP) and also that Mr. Feline seems like a very nice chap and I would rather give my business to a smaller company with people who are passionate about what they do than line the pockets of shareholders and executives of a large corporation. Just my 1.1 pence  :)

[Philly Q]

However, every guitar I own felt 'right' to me. This is the important thing I think. Who cares WHO made the instrument if it 'feels' right to the player?

I buy Gibsons because I like the neck shapes, end of story.  No one else gets them right, although of course that's just a personal opinion.

I've owned Japanese and Korean guitars and yes, they're every bit as well made as American ones and better value for money too, but the necks are either skinny little toothpicks or strange "D" shapes with flat backs.  I've owned several Hamers too - beautiful designs, beautifully made, but I always ended up selling them because the necks never felt comfortable (and the guitars felt a little plasticky, a little too perfect).  And I've sold loads of Fenders for the same reason, although thankfully I'm very happy with my current Tele.

Dakine's right, feel is everything.

[JJretroTONEGOD]

I like the feel of 60's strat necks, and thats' what made me go for my JJ retro. It's feels so good to play. I like the look of this Tokai, and from my experience they're even better than the Gibsons in sound and feel I mean. I prefer the look of a real one though, but looks are not even important, it's about the guitars tone, sound, feel and if you like it or not. After all it's only gonna be for you, no-one else.