NSBD

[gwEm]

Very nice Dave, I was meaning to congratulate you on your new acquisition. Would like great in Oxblood and with binding I think!

(not that black is bad :) )

[Andrew W]

To be honest I'm liking minihumbuckers or firebird mini-hbs as a good middleground.

;)

Or even...

...from the old school.

Having almost given up on humbuckers as just not really being for me I've been converted back to the fold by the mini humbuckers in my mid 60s Wilshire: very raunchy but no flab or mud.

Very nice looking Strat body you have there gwEm.  Do you have a neck yet, I'm intrigued to see the overall plan?

[38thBeatle]

gwEm, that looks good and I like your idea of the Cherry finish.

[AndyR]

gwEm, that looks good and I like your idea of the Cherry finish.

+1

How hard can it be? Get some cherries, rub them in, let it dry, then oil it :lol:

Seriously though, except I'm worried whether I'd like a mahogany strat, I believe a dark cherry strat would be most splendiferous...

[Ian Price]

I'm worried whether I'd like a mahogany strat

Worried to the extent that you can't eat or sleep?  :)

I do like that Gwem - nice score. My tele build project is lagging due to lack of funds and motivation!

[AndyR]

:lol: nah, it never gets me that bad...

[gwEm]

Thanks for the comments guys  8)

With the mahogany, I thought it might bring out some more warm mids.

I have a neck in mind - watch this space!

[AndyR]

some more warm mids.

I hate to say this now, having obviously been slightly instrumental in your choice of Sultans... but I think you might need to investigate Apaches one day! :lol:

To my ears, they have more a more "nasal" (in a good way) oink or spank to them, and I believe that this is down to slightly "more warm mids" than some of my other strat pickups.

I will be very interested how this mahogany body lark turns out though :)

[gwEm]

i appreciate your second thoughts Andy.. i reckon the sultans will be more my thing, if they don't work out, i'll go for another hot strat set again (probably those Paul Gilbert Injectors).

i do like apaches, but i have the feeling that sultans will have more character. i have actually played both sets (well, not bridge position for sultans).. my memories are very very hazy though, but i think that i leant more towards them based on that. i seem to recall the sultans had a bit more character.

Tim was saying Sultans would be a good option for me also, though he did suggest trilogies or apaches too. I was asking him for a 'mellow and flowing' strat sound.

and finally, though i don't play much clean, i do like knopfler's clean tone ;)

but yes, your clip and praise were also an vital part in the decision!

[AndyR]

Ah, I wasn't aware that you had some experience of the Apaches - phew! In that case, you have a better idea of where it's going than I realised :lol:

I've been listening to early Scorpions, especially Tokyo Tapes, on the trying commutes through the snow the last week or so... and I was thinking "hmmm... that is the strat rock sound I used to crave many years ago, more so than Mr Blackmore even...". And I realised that now I'd probably try to use my Apache'd strat as a base for it rather than the Sultan'd strat. Of course, a (real) big sod-off Marshall running at a satisfying volume probably has as much to do with it

I'm still tweaking both guitars at the moment, but they're both giving me gorgeous stuff now. In fact, I've just bust a string on the CIJ with the Sultans. A couple of months ago that would have been "Oh well, put it back in it's case for 6 months while I play the others...". But with the Sultans and the BKP bridge it's heading back to being where it was before I found BKPs a few years ago (#1 favourite for picking up and playing). So now it's right back up in the pecking order for who gets first dibs on the "new string" resources...

[gwEm]

tim was saying trilogies would be the best for a tokyo tapes tone.. it probably depends on the guitar. although i have trilogy neck and middle pickups, i don't think they sound particularly like that, though it is my favourite guitar at the moment.

i almost think blackmores tone has got worse over the years :)

its funny but uli claims never to have used a booster, just a c--ked wah at times. the giant marshall was probably vital then.. but anyway i'm finding getting that tokyo tapes tone to be impossible. but then clearly uli has great technique, sense of melody and feel as well!!

i have played around with all the pedals in my collection anyway, and my three strats. the closest i can get to tokyo tapes with my gear is with my slowhand strat, a coily lead, and a treble booster. i'd be the first to say jcm800 master volume marshalls aren't ideal for strats though, but you can get it cooking very nicely with thicker sounding ones.

edit:
anyway, all that rambling basically means this: i am trying a 'vintage' strat set for the first time. if it doesn't work, i shall go back to the hotter sets i know :) humbucker wise, with BKPs I do find that the vintage styled ones are fine for even quite heavy drive (more than i'd use). so i'm hopeful it will work out.

[gordiji]

'blackmore's tone's got worse over the years', funny you should say that 'cause i think so too.end of the 70's
rainbow with stock strats and marshalls for me was the pinnacle tonewise.that low gain 'boing' in the d,a & e strings is so characterfull & musical.rainbow onstage ,the album, showcases this tone and for me good taste in
in how to do 'lead' guitar.
good luck with your project.