potential NGD...

[HTH AMPS]

tried a Music Man AX40 today and its a really nice guitar, crackin' neck and smooth to play - like this one...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Sterling-AX40-Trans-Blue-/260688234822?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item3cb23ac946#ht_913wt_905

my ONLY reservation is the trem being 'down' travel only - I'd want to have it routed out to be floating which seems excessive on a brand new guitar.

anyone else had one of these?

[tekbow]

I have an axis and and a wolfgang in the past to be honest i was the same having only had floating trems. i wouldn't go back now, i prefer a floyd set up like this, also means you can use a dtuna if that's your thing

[HTH AMPS]

thanks for the feedback man, I'm really digging the AX40 and could play a full set on it no problem, very comfortable neck.  can't say the same for other guitars I've played recently with the aim of having something just for whammy bar work.  I did like the USA-made Charvel I tried, but it was £899 and thats just silly money for a 'parts' guitar, imo (the neck was really nice though).

[Andrew W]

I have an axis and and a wolfgang in the past to be honest i was the same having only had floating trems. i wouldn't go back now, i prefer a floyd set up like this, also means you can use a dtuna if that's your thing

I like the Floyd set flat now too.  I recently sold a Charvel that was set up that way with a D-Tuna and, were I to have another super-strat, I'd have it set up that way again.  I find it makes things like palm muting easier and I felt I got a more robust tone too.  My two cents.

[HTH AMPS]

when I was playing the AX40 and the Peavey EVH, the floyd set back on the body was weird - I automatically want it floating for some whammy bar pyrotechnics and warbles.  think I'd get it routed to be floating when I get round to buying one.  crackin guitars for the cash, especially the Stering one.

[Philly Q]

I had an Axis Sport, but it was the hardtail version.  The Sterling range looks interesting as a budget alternative, but I haven't actually tried any.

Lost interest in that G&L then?  You seem uncharacteristically GAS-crazy recently, HTH, if you don't mind me saying so. 

[tekbow]

when I was playing the AX40 and the Peavey EVH, the floyd set back on the body was weird - I automatically want it floating for some whammy bar pyrotechnics and warbles.  think I'd get it routed to be floating when I get round to buying one.  crackin guitars for the cash, especially the Stering one.

Do you mean the peavey wolfgang or the fender one? i know what you mean about going for the trem to pull back, but seriously, once you get used to it, you don't miss the floating trem. with a little practice you can pull off hte same manouevers via prebending a string.

also with a flat set floyd you're getting more sustain, the capacity (as i said) to use a dtuna which i genuinely believe is on of the single greatest guitar gadgets invented, and also, if you break a string, everything else stays in tune.

the sterling guitars look great yeah, i have a beautiful great sounding axis and i'm still tempted by one.

on the subject, i had a chance to a/b some full fat wolfgangs and some specials the other day, and you know? what i would go for a special over the full fat. specials are made in japan with a flat top versus the u.s. made mild arch of the full fat. obviously the jap one is a maple veneer also but there just isnt 1400 quids worth of difference between them. i would buy the special. its a lot closer to the axis anyways and the japanese workmanship is beyond reproach.

i also miss my peavey wolfgang.. wish i'd never sold it.. awesome awesome guitar.

All in all i'd say if you want a floating trem buy a guitar with a floating trem, don't go routing a sterling or whatever because to be really honest, and people may disagree, but i think a big part of the tone your liking on the sterling is coming from the fact that the trem is flat set..

[HTH AMPS]

I had an Axis Sport, but it was the hardtail version.  The Sterling range looks interesting as a budget alternative, but I haven't actually tried any.

Lost interest in that G&L then?  You seem uncharacteristically GAS-crazy recently, HTH, if you don't mind me saying so. 

The medication generally keeps my GAS under control, but I forgot to renew my prescription  :lol:

I would still like a G&L and will keep my eye on the £/$ situation since you can pick them up for £350 in the US.

The Sterling has just got me excited as I'm really only looking for something that I can use on the few hair-metal whammy bar songs we do, but I'd happily play the Sterling for a whole set - usually I'm chomping at the bit to get my Les Paul back in play.

[gwEm]

those dirty fingers are great, sound like dynamite through a 2204/2203!! they may lack subtlety, but they have a good clean, so lets get on with it :)

[HTH AMPS]

those dirty fingers are great, sound like dynamite through a 2204/2203!! they may lack subtlety, but they have a good clean, so lets get on with it :)

gonna have to check the Dirty Fingers pickup out when it gets here, might have been messed with - got two single-core braided wires coming out of it, which I assume are for each coil.  that would mean that the coils would be running in parallel, unless its had a coil tap fitted.  the guy I bought it off said the shield and 'hot' for both leads were connected together.

will get a DMM on it and have a poke around when I get it.  this will be going in my new BC Rich Shred-machine.

worst case scenario, I need to strip the pickup down and reconnect the two coil connections (per coil) to make it humbucking.

they're supposed to be really nice and grindy these pickups, so I'm looking forward to hearing them.  Gibson were making some nice pickups in the early 80s, I remember the epoxy-potted humbuckers that were in my '81 SG being GREAT - hot, fat and loved gain.