Lets look at our guitars thread
Discussion
Raoul Duke said:
Very nice! Keep looking at Faith when in the local guitar shop, they're great value for money - it's only a matter of time before the temptation becomes too much...
Mines was a B stock, because the case is a bit knackered... I've been over every square mm of the guitar and can't find a blemish on it, so the already reasonable SSP of £759 became £529 and that was that 
Driller said:
Nice one! A Les Paul Studio is definitely on my list of must have guitars. I love the inpretentiousness of them, guitars made to be picked up and played 
In the meantime my JP-2C just arrived. Got band practice in Paris this evening (singing and go on the bike) so can't play it until later. Rather frustrating!
Interesting! Aren't these Mark II C+ clones with a bit more flexibility? Would love to have a go at one as the Mark II is a fantastic amp.In the meantime my JP-2C just arrived. Got band practice in Paris this evening (singing and go on the bike) so can't play it until later. Rather frustrating!
Ganglandboss said:
Finally ordered one!
Status Kingbass Paramatrix, 32" scale with bendwell and 16.5mm string spacing. I'm having it in Masur birch with aqua blue sunburst tint and white LEDs, so it will have the same finish as this Series 3, but with the blue tint on the back as well, and with gold hardware.
And she's here!Status Kingbass Paramatrix, 32" scale with bendwell and 16.5mm string spacing. I'm having it in Masur birch with aqua blue sunburst tint and white LEDs, so it will have the same finish as this Series 3, but with the blue tint on the back as well, and with gold hardware.
I'll post some better photos later, as these are taken off my phone and don't do her justice!
Edit:
I have posted the above off my phone; I am on my work computer at the moment, which blocks uploading of images to websites, so I have had to upload them from my phone. I'll get my SLR and personal laptop out later and take some better photos!
I have been a little nervous about this order; it is the most I have ever spent on an instrument, and the only time I have bought a bass / guitar / banjo without playing it. It has a 32" scale, whereas my other four string basses have 34" scales and my five sting has a 35" scale. It also has narrower string spacing than my four strings (16.5 instead of 19), but it is the same as on the five string.
There are a few reasons for this choice. I wanted the 'bendwell' (a space between the nut and the string anchor that allows you to bend open strings as you can on a conventional headed bass); this is not possible on a 34" scale. This is also how Mark King has his basses configured, and they are more desirable in the unlikely event I ever sell her. I also read an interview with him where he said he wanted something a bit more guitar-like, which suits me as I have played guitar much longer than the bass.
I don't have my amp at home at the moment, so I've yet to hear her in all her glory, but my first impressions are one: she looks beautiful, and two: she plays really well. It was an unusual feel at first, but after a couple of minutes, it feels really easy to play.
Anyway...less yapping, more slapping!
Edited by Ganglandboss on Tuesday 21st June 10:33
Driller said:
Just received my first seven string, Ibanez Prestige (nothing less will do!).
Fixed, string through body because I can't be doing with tremolos. Got a free hour so will take it home and stick it through the JP-2C.
This is a normal scale length, might go for a baritone next time.
Baritone certainly adds to what I believe is the "7 string feel". And it has to be strung with the biggest gauge possible.Fixed, string through body because I can't be doing with tremolos. Got a free hour so will take it home and stick it through the JP-2C.
This is a normal scale length, might go for a baritone next time.
I do like a prestige, I've been floating between whether to pull the plug on one or just wait for a perfect J Custom to come on the market (I am pretty fussy so it could take a while!)
JoeCastle said:
Baritone certainly adds to what I believe is the "7 string feel". And it has to be strung with the biggest gauge possible.
I do like a prestige, I've been floating between whether to pull the plug on one or just wait for a perfect J Custom to come on the market (I am pretty fussy so it could take a while!)
Despite having played for over 40 years I'm not really sure exactly what a Baritone is other than I suspect it is tuned lower and perhaps a longer scale? I'm probably too old to start trying 7 strings, but I believe that 6 string Baritones are available, so it could be another to add to the list if I knew what I'd need it for. I do like a prestige, I've been floating between whether to pull the plug on one or just wait for a perfect J Custom to come on the market (I am pretty fussy so it could take a while!)
OldSkoolRS said:
Despite having played for over 40 years I'm not really sure exactly what a Baritone is other than I suspect it is tuned lower and perhaps a longer scale? I'm probably too old to start trying 7 strings, but I believe that 6 string Baritones are available, so it could be another to add to the list if I knew what I'd need it for.
Basically, yes. Much more suited for whole step down and so on. Fender done a great Blacktop Tele baritone which sometimes comes up at a good price. Normally used for heavier music, but there's something about a baritone played clean with the right delay and right reverb that is great for ambient music. a Fender Bass VI is always worth a try if you find one aswell!JoeCastle said:
Baritone certainly adds to what I believe is the "7 string feel". And it has to be strung with the biggest gauge possible.
I do like a prestige, I've been floating between whether to pull the plug on one or just wait for a perfect J Custom to come on the market (I am pretty fussy so it could take a while!)
Big strings, oh man that was the thing about 15 years ago on the seven string scene. The advantage of having a longer scale is that you can use thinner gauges of strings for improved tone without a loss in playability, the longer scale giving the boost in tension to stop them becoming floppy. Big strings just give big fat tone, it kills the attack and reduces note definition and clarity, which is great if you want to play Korn, but not great if you want to play fast or technical styles of music. I could talk about 7 strings all day, I've been primarily and almost exclusively a 7 string player for the vast majority of the time I've had guitars.I do like a prestige, I've been floating between whether to pull the plug on one or just wait for a perfect J Custom to come on the market (I am pretty fussy so it could take a while!)
I've always maintained that Ibanez Prestige are fantastic guitars and for a long time they punched well above their weight in terms of price - 10 years ago you could get a UV777 or a K-7 (since we're talking 7 strings) for about £1300. When the economic crash happened in 2008 the prices skyrocketed to £2000 plus for those top-end models and while biting for the UK customer, it felt like they'd taken their natural place in the order of price vs quality. The Premium line was spawned as a way to fill the void left by the global price hike on the Prestige models, they're still great guitars too but they're not on the level of the old Prestige stuff.
I've always used pretty thick strings for majority of the time I've played. The past 5 years I've been 12s minimum, but I've stopped playing more tech stuff. However I still sometimes can't resist the occasional self indulgent shredding session!
I remember being disappointed by some later Ibanez models, but the premium line the past year or so has really caught my eye. Alongside a J-Custom I'd love an original RG550 and one of the original petrucci models, but I have a feeling they're getting way to expensive now.
And the K7! I haven't seen one of them in years. They were great if you could get past the Korn association and much more versatile than the band would have you think.
I remember being disappointed by some later Ibanez models, but the premium line the past year or so has really caught my eye. Alongside a J-Custom I'd love an original RG550 and one of the original petrucci models, but I have a feeling they're getting way to expensive now.
And the K7! I haven't seen one of them in years. They were great if you could get past the Korn association and much more versatile than the band would have you think.
Edited by JoeCastle on Thursday 23 June 23:36
The K-7 was a great guitar and still the only production Ibanez 7 with a mahogany body and it had some nice Dimarzios in it too. I got mine new about 11 years back, changed the bridge pickup for an X2N-7 but never really got on with that, I was forever dialing out the harshness of it. I can't recall ever playing Korn on it, I bought it mainly to do Steve Vai impressions, the guitar was never the limiting factor, it was always the player behind it!
I can't bring myself to get a J Custom, I bought a (very) limited edition USA Custom Graphic in 1992 when I was playing loads more but I couldn't justify it now.
Aside from more beautiful wood and fantasy inlays etc I don't think a J Custom adds much froma playing point of view.
All of my Prestige Ibanezs (I've got 5 now with the 7 string) are beautifully set up and a real pleasure to play. The criticism is have is the Ibanez QM2 pickups on an S Prestige model and on the new 7 string it has Dimarzio PAF7 which are way under powered. I've just ordered a D Activator 7 for the bridge slot though so that should fix it without going too mental on the distortion and losing all the tone.
Like Mastodon I put X2N in an RGA Prestige which I'd strung down to C but it's overkill really for anything other than fwub fwub fwub. Now there's the 7 I'll put it back to the way it was perhaps with an Evolution or something
Aside from more beautiful wood and fantasy inlays etc I don't think a J Custom adds much froma playing point of view.
All of my Prestige Ibanezs (I've got 5 now with the 7 string) are beautifully set up and a real pleasure to play. The criticism is have is the Ibanez QM2 pickups on an S Prestige model and on the new 7 string it has Dimarzio PAF7 which are way under powered. I've just ordered a D Activator 7 for the bridge slot though so that should fix it without going too mental on the distortion and losing all the tone.
Like Mastodon I put X2N in an RGA Prestige which I'd strung down to C but it's overkill really for anything other than fwub fwub fwub. Now there's the 7 I'll put it back to the way it was perhaps with an Evolution or something
Mastodon2 said:
The K-7 was a great guitar and still the only production Ibanez 7 with a mahogany body and it had some nice Dimarzios in it too. I got mine new about 11 years back, changed the bridge pickup for an X2N-7 but never really got on with that, I was forever dialing out the harshness of it. I can't recall ever playing Korn on it, I bought it mainly to do Steve Vai impressions, the guitar was never the limiting factor, it was always the player behind it!
Aren't the RGA 7 and 8 string guitars mahogany bodies? The RGA 220Z and 420Z are mahogany. And almost impossible to sell on it would seem.
I've been a naughty boy again. It's my first "proper" acoustic and I'm loving it! Wanted a good acoustic for some time as my original dreadnaught being my first guitar wasn't exactly top of the range. Also been contemplating a smaller travel type guitar for a while so I thought I would go take a look and try some Martin vs Taylor minis this morning. The budget went out the window and I came home with this. It's really really lovely. Far too good for me.
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