Post by earwighoney on Oct 10, 2014 19:21:08 GMT
This is my second attempt at writing this review, the first time my internet crashed as I pressed the post button and the review disappeared!
Not a really a NGD in it's strict interpretation as I've had the guitar for just over a month but I've only got around to appreciating the guitar after the upgrades were made. I have no idea who the person behind the signature is though.
This is what the guitar looked like before I took it to the repairman. (not my pic but one of the web)
The guitar itself is quite an interesting model in some ways, it's a customised Telecaster Deluxe in some ways with it's Strat headstock and it's scratchplate, but it also has a Strat SC in the middle position and a contoured body like a Strat and a sharper cutaway. The contour and the cutaway are nice features. It has a 1 11/16" wide nut, 12" radius neck and a very smooth and ergonomic neck profile make it a very comfortable guitar to play for the fretting hand. It came with 9-42's which are far too thin though!
One of the more esoteric aspects are it's electrics. It has a 5 way rotary switch where the neck volume for a Tele Deluxe would be, and a kill switch where the pickup selector switch usually is. Having a look around the web, I'm not alone in finding the 5 way rotary switch cumbersome and unsatisfactory in usage. I found too overcomplicated and it produced a loud clicking sound every time it was used The kill switch however was quite a nice feature, I used it as an on/off switch.
The stock pickups themselves were fairly underwhelming, I presume they are ceramic magnets for the humbuckers that are possibly best suited for high gain amps but for clean tones and medium gain they were fairly flat. The humbuckers lacked depth to the midranges, the trebles were thin and brittle and the bass had no character.
This is what it looks like after (need to put a sticker over the hole in the pickguard)
It took me a while to shop around for replacement pickups and eventually I settled on Tonerider Alnico 2's humbuckers, with no pickup in the middle position. I've never been massively comfortable with 3 pickup selector switches, so for the time there's a hole in the pickguard that I will temporarily cover with a sticker or something. With the pickups, the other electrics were replaced with 500k CTS pots, Sprage Orange Caps, Switchcraft jack socket and a 3 way pickup selector switch. The pots to Logarithmic taper instead of linear taper; they have quite an interesting contribution to usage. I'm planning to upgrade the saddles the next time I change the strings.
With the new pickups and electrics, it produces a sound in the avenue of lower gain/vintage Les Paul of sorts. The pickups themselves produce a warmer, midrange rich tone with sweeter trebles than before and more sustain, which make them more suited to clean tones than metal/high gain ones which suits me. The Tonerider pickups impressed me a lot more than I expected, they really pack a punch greater than their price.
Overall I'm really pleased with the guitar after it's upgrades. It took me a while to research the electric upgrades but in it's early days so I'm enjoying the results.
Not a really a NGD in it's strict interpretation as I've had the guitar for just over a month but I've only got around to appreciating the guitar after the upgrades were made. I have no idea who the person behind the signature is though.
This is what the guitar looked like before I took it to the repairman. (not my pic but one of the web)
The guitar itself is quite an interesting model in some ways, it's a customised Telecaster Deluxe in some ways with it's Strat headstock and it's scratchplate, but it also has a Strat SC in the middle position and a contoured body like a Strat and a sharper cutaway. The contour and the cutaway are nice features. It has a 1 11/16" wide nut, 12" radius neck and a very smooth and ergonomic neck profile make it a very comfortable guitar to play for the fretting hand. It came with 9-42's which are far too thin though!
One of the more esoteric aspects are it's electrics. It has a 5 way rotary switch where the neck volume for a Tele Deluxe would be, and a kill switch where the pickup selector switch usually is. Having a look around the web, I'm not alone in finding the 5 way rotary switch cumbersome and unsatisfactory in usage. I found too overcomplicated and it produced a loud clicking sound every time it was used The kill switch however was quite a nice feature, I used it as an on/off switch.
The stock pickups themselves were fairly underwhelming, I presume they are ceramic magnets for the humbuckers that are possibly best suited for high gain amps but for clean tones and medium gain they were fairly flat. The humbuckers lacked depth to the midranges, the trebles were thin and brittle and the bass had no character.
This is what it looks like after (need to put a sticker over the hole in the pickguard)
It took me a while to shop around for replacement pickups and eventually I settled on Tonerider Alnico 2's humbuckers, with no pickup in the middle position. I've never been massively comfortable with 3 pickup selector switches, so for the time there's a hole in the pickguard that I will temporarily cover with a sticker or something. With the pickups, the other electrics were replaced with 500k CTS pots, Sprage Orange Caps, Switchcraft jack socket and a 3 way pickup selector switch. The pots to Logarithmic taper instead of linear taper; they have quite an interesting contribution to usage. I'm planning to upgrade the saddles the next time I change the strings.
With the new pickups and electrics, it produces a sound in the avenue of lower gain/vintage Les Paul of sorts. The pickups themselves produce a warmer, midrange rich tone with sweeter trebles than before and more sustain, which make them more suited to clean tones than metal/high gain ones which suits me. The Tonerider pickups impressed me a lot more than I expected, they really pack a punch greater than their price.
Overall I'm really pleased with the guitar after it's upgrades. It took me a while to research the electric upgrades but in it's early days so I'm enjoying the results.
Jo whoever he is.
