In brief: Tokai LS-101

There are many Japanese Les Paul copies out there that would make Gibson tremble when it comes to craftsmanship & tone. Tokai makes such guitars. These Japanese manufacturers are not tied down by historical / period correct details. They prefer to manifest details that propel their goodwill above all else.

LIKES

• craftsmanship
• tone
• playability

DISLIKE

• weight

This is definitely not my first time handling a Japanese Les Paul copy. I've been through Burny, Orville & Edwards among others. The LS-101 on appraisal here is a cut above the rest to say the least. The quality control is mesmerising. Just by handling this guitar, we could see that dedicated time & effort were invested into this instrument to make it feel upscaled. 

The neck carve on offer is a round '50s profile, enough meat to propel a good grip & facilitate bends. Some appraisals out there mentioned an overkill of finish done here to make it too processed. This audition model did not show any signs of excessive finishing, especially the final lacquer overcoat. I'm not a fan of finished necks but this one is downright playable & addictive. Frets were also well polished & seated so no issues here to fault the attention to details. 

We certainly do not expect a guitar of this pedigree to propel high gain / extreme distortion. These were manufactured to replicate (at best) a certain vibe often associated with the charm & lure of yesteryear. The default pickups here are GOTOHs, the PAF-Vintage MK2 to be precise (both positions). What do they sound like? To summarize my experience after hearing both the clean & driven settings, they are as good as Gibson's 57 models. 

Would anyone go all out to invest in a Tokai copy of a much celebrated singlecut model? It depends on what you embrace. At this price, many of us would check out what Epiphone has to offer before forking out extras to go Japanese.

Rating: 88%

Tokai LS101 ($1,850)

• bag included
• available at Davis GMC

USED: Jan 2026 - April 2026

Not much re-stringing this time round. Only a small cookie container full.

TEJ

After some digging, I found out this is a Fernandes TEJ-75 model. I am the third owner of this guitar, the second owner had scant info that he gladly shared with me. The body's previous finish was stripped down & re-finished with what looked like a gold top. There were numerous scratches on the guitar body so I gladly re-finished it in blue with a light glitter coat.

Here are the scratches, evidently, I didn't use a filler before applying the blue coat. This was intentional because I used whatever colours I have in the mean time, I obviously did not have any fillers 😅 The glitter coat was meant for another guitar but it made its debut here. The pickups in there are DiMarzio Distortion S models. Was told the previous pickups were active units but I am not a fan. I prefer angry passive pickups.

Will continue to use Olympia strings as long as they are still available. 

Labour

In every economy, labour continues to be the spine of progress. Disrespecting labour is telling them to exercise restraint in an economic downturn for the greater good without toeing the line with them. 

Happy Labour Day, everyone. Your blood, sweat & tears define your country. Onwards!

Ibanez April 2026: B

Ending April in the knowledge that Ibanez actually added more to the AZES lineup instead of doing away with this series entirely. We would have thought the AZ Standard would be the new spruced up entry-level models for the AZ family but heck no. The AZES are still active in the mean time. There is an AZES40 already in the lineup, the AZES40B - that B there denotes black pickguard.

Pics: Ibanez

Resolved

The pickups in this SML721 are a pair of DiMarzio Fusion Edge. I've had both bitter & delightful episodes with the FE & in this guitar, it's the former. The neck humbucker is especially disappointing; darn muddy & quite pointless for my kind of music / tone. It took me a while to finally replace the pots of these guitar.

Pics: ESP

That's right - pots. The default pots were working fine & required no replacement but they were suspiciously under-performing. I came to this realization after looking at the specs of my guitars with FEs in them. Those guitars did not sport the default pots as I did away with them due to corrosion / oxidation. I bought a pair of BOURNS pots from Davis GMC which are currently the OEM for ESP & they are indeed the rightful solution to this issue.

I asked Beez what could possibly be the issue with the default pots as they were working fine since Day 1. He told me budget pots might sometimes be labelled erroneously like in my case, the default pots might be a 250K version instead of the preferred 500K for humbuckers. That might be the case here & it turned out to be a simple fix. Beez fixed these into my SML521 a few days ago. After hours of playing, I must say that BOURNS is living up to its reputation for being good. As good as GOTOH & CTS, to name a couple which are benchmark brands for this purpose.

Studio trouble

Gibson now has the Studio version of the Double Trouble Les Paul (USD1,599). The initial version was a Standard, this time round, things get more affordable as the Studio version has no binding & it comes with a soft case. Be informed that modern weight relief (aka generous chambering) is a feature of this guitar.

Pic: Gibson

Beez @ basement

Dear friends, be informed that Beez is now located at B1-21, same building - Excelsior Shopping Center.

Pic: Beez

Explorer @ Davis GMC

A virtually unplayed / NOS Gibson Explorer '76 ($3K) is now available at Davis GMC. I believe it's a one-off acquisition. The current Explorer price is $3.8K...

 

Tokai @ Davis GMC

A trio of awesome Tokai guitars are currently available at Davis GMC: LS-101 ($1,850), LS-101F ($1,950) & SG-101 ($1,850). Please note, the images used here are not representing the actual finish in store. First impression - above expectations.

Pics: Tokai

Aria @ Davis GMC

Can you still get good guitars at reasonable prices today? Of course you can. These Aria Pro II guitars are now available at Davis GMC.

The 714 is a good HSS guitar to own if you require a repertoire of tones for contemporary music; rock, blues & cleans, the AE200 can handle these with ease. When I tried this one out, I'm more impressed with the single coils; very strong note definition. A quick check revealed them to be sporting Alnico 5 magnets so that explains things. 

The MAC here is a D600, meaning - it sports a fixed bridge. I believe the D600 neck is quite the highlight of this instrument. Feels sturdy as heck & very comfortable to handle but don't expect a Wizard kind of profile as this is not an Ibanez. Nevertheless, it is as appealing as the Ibanez (& maybe some LTDs) in this price range.

Pics: Aria

In brief: Ibanez AZ41B1

This is yet another April newbie in the Ibanez camp; the AZ41B1. It is only the second AZ model (discounting the AZS lineup which feature a fixed bridge mostly to propel the Tele vibe) to be featuring a fixed bridge. The blacker than black manifestation is an obvious attribute of the Iron Label series of which it is a member of.

Likes

• weight
• playability
• tone
• tuners
• fixed bridge

Dislikes

• blacked out theme impairs navigation for beginners

Upon handling, the weight was rather significant most likely due to the lack of cavity for a whammy bridge system. This adds to sustain & more bottom end even when strummed unplugged. Everything was tip top for this guitar & the default tuners were rather impressive. We know these are the likely compromised components when it comes to cost-cutting but the ones in the test model worked well. I somehow felt the neck was thicker than a Prestige version but it's spec'd to be identical according to the manufacturer's webpage. In any case, playability was brilliant all round, very easy navigation even for non-metal applications.

The default pickups here are DiMarzio Fusion Edge which is a hit / miss affair. I have these in some of my guitars, they tend to sound more appealing for lower tunings. In this guitar, these somehow sound brilliant for both clean & heavy distortion. I'm wondering if the instrument's overall weight has something to do with this. 

I am of the opinion that a blacked out finish hinders the beginner in terms of navigation & familiarity. In this case the electronics & absence of fretboard markers go against the player who is trying his / her best to get acquainted with the instrument. On the contrary, the seasoned lot will find these fundamental orientation very familiar & it won't mess up their playing in any way. Is black the de facto metal endorsement? Well, there are players out there who play non-black guitars & are oblivious to whatever visual implications there are to the music. At this price point, a bag should be included, yes?

Final rating: 82%

Ibanez: AZ41B1

• available at Swee Lee
• $1,399
• Bag not included

PS: Thank you Mr. Faizal & Ram @ Swee Lee Star Vista for letting me try this guitar & enduring my scrutiny 😁

April savings @ Swee Lee

April savings are now live at Swee Lee. 

The Starmaster is a good guitar, I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a quality offset model. As for me personally, I can't get along with the headstock... It's now sub-$2K for your considerations.

I also tried & liked this bass (Japanese) but I don't wish to own another sunburst instrument. Current discounted price: $1,360... very tempting.

Pics: Fender / PG

Ibanez April 2026: Black Qs

Ibanez's obsession with black continues this April with these guitars offered in the Q-Series line up; the QX52B ($1,549) & QX527B ($1,579). These do not qualify for the Iron Label Series as they still feature in-house Ibanez pickups & the presence of dot inlays there are simply not Iron Label enough. These are now available at Swee Lee. EDIT: The 7-string version is out of stock.

 

Pics: Ibanez

Ibanez April 2026: AZ47P1

As it is, this new AZ47P1 is the only 7-string in the Premium lineup in the mean time. Not aware of any 7-string resurgence or the need for the AZ Series to manifest a 7-string; there are currently no ambassadors propelling a 7-string AZ Premium. In any case, it's the first AZ 7-string to feature a pickguard. Available now at Swee Lee: $2,099. The previous non-pickguard iteration was $1,899.

Pic: Ibanez

MoMM (64): Reality check

I pretty much bought this album because of a personal doom metal resurgence of sorts. I'm still not an Ozzy fan, I bought this for the music. Master of Reality is perhaps one of the pioneers of doom but music journalists deem it as stoner / sludge rock. Until a definitive music theory separates these genre comprehensively, I am happy to treat is as doom. The tempo & arrangement pretty much defines doom as we know it today. Mind you, doom itself was a term coined retrospectively; someone said it's doom then did a throwback trawl & realized Black Sabbath sounded like they pretty much started the movement.

In any case, I'm embracing how down-tempo plays a very big part in doom. In my metal domain, speed is essential so when speed plays a lesser part in this sub-genre, it doesn't sit well with me. Then again, doom has a heavy emphasis, not speed. Iommi's work here pivots on his magnificent riffing more than his solos; they sounded very bluesy but that's what you get if your ideas are rooted in the pentatonic scheme of things. Master of Reality is enjoyable. It could have been a blast if the fuzz was properly generated but hey, it's done in 1971.

Ibanez April 2026: S721

There is this series in the Ibanez lineup that supposedly caters to all things metal - the Iron Label Series. This new S721 is a new member in this Series of instruments & as you can see, it's blacked out. I totally understand the inevitable association of black with doom & gloom but there are some things in a guitar that should facilitate playing, not merely visual dominance. I believe such colour scheme does not help the beginners out there in terms of visual reference. The ebony fretboard has no position indicators & the dark colour scheme facilitates being lost more than being elegant. Black pickups against a black body - you'd be hitting the pickups while playing instead of being aware they are there in that particular playing space where you should avoid playing over to avoid hitting them. 

It's quite the opposite for seasoned players. Fretboard reference is second nature after years of playing. All this compounded by the dark stage presence; visual reference is nothing anymore. The instrument had become too familiar for you to mess up your playing fundamentals. Anyway, this blacker than black S721 is now available at Swee Lee ($1,299) & it sports my favourite DiMarzios in there - the D Activator.

Pic: Swee Lee

Price watch (104)

I do not know who these people / entity are but they are selling stuff at super inflated prices. This Ibanez RG421 could be had for less than $550 at Swee Lee.

Look at this very unreasonable pickup price; there is a whopping $118 difference. Please be careful when dealing with such people / entity, they might have received favourable reviews pertaining to buying / selling but it doesn't exclude them from being daylight robbers.

Futura RD

Epiphone just launched its Futura line of guitars & this made the defunct RD design (still available in Gibson's Custom lineup, though) more accessible for us lay people. The mere outline might not sit well with many of us, it looks like a failed high school design project more than anything else. Despite this peculiarity, mind you, there is a cult following.

The implication of this launch is rather obvious. Epiphone wants a bite in the lower midrange price pie & they need to offer instruments that reflect this price range. 

For the record, the original Futura is actually the name of a model (debut 2001) as depicted above. It looked like a deformed Explorer. The Futura re-surfaced in 2008 as part of the Prophecy collection before disappearing for good.

 Pics: Epiphone

Zen

Screen grab from Swee Lee's web store. It's sold out in the mean time. Didn't even know it made it here... Once something ascends onto mythical / legendary levels, the obsession is real. 

Ibanez April 2026: Classical 7 & 8

Would like to applaud Ibanez for the perpetual extension of the 7 & 8 string concepts unto non-solid body models. The GA3007 & GA3008 you see above are absolute beasts. I currently have issues fretting a 6-string classical guitar, that 8-string version there would be an absolute predicament. 

In any case, this is absolutely not the way to promote an 8-string instrument - please keep track of how many times the 7th / 8th strings were fretted.

Pics: Ibanez

Ibanez April 2026: RGR431

The thing about Ibanez, it does not neglect the more affordable range for the masses. This RGR431 here lists for $629 (in stock at Swee Lee). There's nothing really special about a fixed, bridge RG with a reverse headstock but a closer look reveals a matching poplar burl top for both the body & headstock. Just wish that the finish of this guitar was not black (Ibanez calls it charcoal gray) as this failed to accentuate the burl top. 

Pic: Ibanez

Misha's baritone

This ragged Jackson guitar is a signature baritone for guitarist Misha Mansoor (Periphery). It's referred to as a Surfcaster but we know that's not how a Surfcaster headstock looks like. But it doesn't matter, a signature interpretation lets the endorser dictates how his instrument should look like. If you like the guitar, you just buy it. This one's listed for USD8,999...

Pic: Jackson

SOLAR: S1.6H-RSO

The new SOLAR S1.6H is not just a neck-through model; the neck rear had been satin-ized as depicted above. There are players here who prefer a glossed over body but not the neck. They want the neck to retain the matching hue but dislike that lacquer overcoat as it makes the surface sticky when the fretting hand gets sweaty. Love the fact that the SOLAR fretboard inlay had been darkened to blend into the ebony.

Pic: SOLAR

Mango

PRS is currently doing a limited run of instruments featuring a mango wood top. Mr PRS himself, in a recent dialogue at the launch of this lineup, did not mention any tone-related benefits of this wood type save for the fact that they look good as guitar tops. Waiting for any coconut, durian & perhaps a jackfruit top in time to come should they decide to extend this oriental wood interest.

Pic: PRS

Black Crane

Belated congratulations to Ms Janet & Davis GMC on their official launch of Black Crane guitar store. This unit is located at Level 2, Peninsula Shopping Center, just next to the escalator (Lavanita used to be here).

BC's focus is the offering of boutique Japanese guitars; ESP, Momose & Headway are currently on the list. There will be a selection of pre-loved instruments in the near future. Please visit their webstore: CLICK.

Incantation @ SG

If you enjoyed their 2018 performance & would want to re-live another crushing episode, they will be here mid-year (June). At the time of this posting, tickets are not on sale yet. Updates soon.

Pic: Vent Box

Pro-M Jake

Was looking at this new Charvel Jake E Lee model, the Pro-Mod version. Unlike the American take, this one does not sport a matching body-headstock finish which I thought looks more appealing. This is one of those guitars that combined Seymour Duncan (JB, bridge) & DiMarzio (SDS-1, middle / neck) tonalities to give the player the best of both worlds (aggression vs smoothness). The previous Pro-Mod (featuring a pickguard) listed for slightly more than $2K, hope this one doesn't stray too far off this mark. 

Pic: Charvel

Ibanez April 2026: 5111

This is my kind of guitar (RGR5111); single pickup + fixed bridge. Wish that humbucker was a passive unit. Looks like Ibanez had gone big this April (spring). Good additions to the lineup in various series / tiers.

Pic: Ibanez

Ibanez April 2026: Solid AE

The people at Ibanez must have been reading my aversion for their non-solid top acoustic instruments because the new AE140 features a solid (okoume) top. The AE Series are for those of us who dislike excessive body depth but still insists on something substantial in terms of sound projection. It's now available at Swee Lee ($499).

Pics: Ibanez

Price watch (103)

Just to be clear, the objective of doing this is to give fellow gear enthusiasts a heads up when they are dealing with certain individuals who offer certain instruments at a certain price under the impression of perceived value. Take this Fender Modern Player Tele for instance. Just because it's a Fender & it's discontinued, doesn't mean it should sell for a fortune. It's a case by case consideration at best. Yes, the Modern Player Series had been discontinued but these were made in China. I've nothing against the Chinese Modern Player Series - I own three. These instruments were not even $800 when they debuted. An asking price in excess of $2k is a scalper's valuation.

Same seller but now a Gibson. Once again, riding on brand name & discontinued status, this asking price is unfounded to say the least. The Gibson Tribute Series, back in the day, was the more affordable version of the Studio range. The Studio remains to be Gibson's most affordable range to date. The Tribute was more affordable than the Studio because the manufacturer subtracted some finishing processes that added costs to its upper tier range. An obvious exclusion was the final lacquer overcoat. The current LP Studio lists for $2,399 (35 Guitar Avenue) & that's very close to this used Tribute which is at least 5 years old.

At the end of the day, it's your money. If you don't mind paying caviar prices for cod roe - it's your money.

Carcass now

This was in my SM feeds. We sometimes forget that our idols grow old over time & seeing them in their current condition could trigger denial. This is the legendary Carcass trio (L-R): Walker, Owen & Steer. 

Ken Owen suffered a brain haemorrhage in 1999 & was in coma for some time. Following his recovery, he was unable to drum due to neurological issues. He is currently still active making music via software assistance. Gentle reminder - we are mere mortals who are subjected to ageing & decay. Do manage expectations when we look forward to rediscover the status of our idols who, by now, have aged quite significantly. We tend to forget that back then, our heroes were already nearing mid-life & time didn't stand still for them. 

Lest we forget how good these people were (they are still amazing today), do take time to listen to Heartwork. Stay healthy, everyone. Let's age gracefully & not become a burden to others during our sunset years.

Pic: Amazon

More 75th

More Fender 75th Anniversary goodness from Japan, this finish is bona fide attraction. The burst effect was done on the pickguard as well as the headstock. By the way, the Tele feature a 4-way selector in case you're interested. Currently offered only as an online exclusive for the Japanese market. Bummer.

Pics: Fender

Ibanez April 2026: 8540PIII

Aw, darn... Ibanez elevated the 540P into its J-Custom tier. This gorgeous version is the 8540PIII with the rather obligatory gold hardware & TOL inlay. I guess these are obligatory details of a J-Custom which I personally do not fancy. Pickups are DiMarzio's Air Norton S (n) & Tone Zone (b).

Already, the beef with this one is that block heel; fans are asking why such a hindrance was preserved when everyone is looking forward to venture up to the 24th fret these days. Anyway, this one is currently not available in this region.

Pics: Ibanez

Hamer

If there is a big miss along the way, then it's my failure to check out Hamer guitars while they were still available here. Hamer guitars used to be available at City Music once upon a time. This was a long while ago when the ZOOM 505 was everyone's gateway to enjoying multi-effect goodness without spending a bomb. I don't recall seeing a V back then but I remember there was an Explorer-type as well as a DC-type models on display. Subsequently, the Californian was available albeit briefly. What a miss. Anyway, Morbid Angel's Trey used to play this absolutely cool Hamer Vector (depicted above) but some say it's not a real vector as the headstock there mimics the Gibson version more than an in-house Vector design.

Pics: C Martinez FB

UC update

Fender's new Ultra Core strings are now available at Swee Lee. Prices are as follows:

• Regular ball end (1250): $15
• Bullet end: (4250): $19

We can get a non-Fender ball end set for $9. We are paying more for the brand name, yes?

Pic: Fender

 

KOBA

I discovered this electronics spare store after talking to an acquaintance who used to work for Telecomms. That's right, before Sigtel was known by its current name, it used to be called Telecomms. Met him during the festive season gathering at one of my relative's residence. The conversation turned into gear talk when he found out that I play & maintain my instruments myself. He told me, back in the day, guitar spares were hard to come by as the guitar stores back then did not inventorize spare parts readily. According to him, this store depicted here used to be located in the Sim Lim area & had moved out to its current location at People's Park Complex (Chinatown). 

I decided to drop by & was surprised they have many electronic parts that are suitable for guitars / amps. There was a slider switch that's definitely compatible with Fender Jaguar / Jazzmaster. Many pots available for cheap. The catch here is that these are brandless & highly likely originated from China. I don't mind buying / using such items as long as they work well. Output jacks are available as well & these look suspiciously like some of well-known brands selling for way more at the guitar stores here. If you are interested, this store is located at LEVEL 3 & very proximate to the washroom. It's closed on Sunday.