Spending the midweek with my AZ2204. Ibanez did a smart thing by moving away from the shred-esque neck profile with the AZ Series. The AZ necks are nothing like the ones in the RG / S-Series. It's not trying to mimic any competitors' proprietary care either but some are hinting at the Suhr / Fender elements which, in my opinion, are dismissively convenient. Despite this different neck profile, I am still able to do my thing so that speaks a lot about the AZ holding its own in terms of playability appeal.

Would like to thank all my gear for keeping me occupied throughout the uncertain days of unemployment. Nothing beats the anxiety of not knowing where / when your next paycheck comes from. It would mean desperate times for some of us but it comes with consequences.

Charvel Evertune

Looks like Charvel has joined the Evertune camp with this Pro MOD Plus So-Cal Style 1HH Evertune E. As it is, at least for the local players / musicians here, we are doing OK with non-Evertune equipped guitars. Yes, the Evertune systems has some plus points when it comes to tuning stability (especially for pro live performances) but there are some set-up technicalities to deal with before being ready to play. Personally, I don't have a need for my instruments to manifest such tuning stability so there's no desire to own one.

Pic: Charvel

Away

I love spending time in Malacca; the laid back feel, the food & the riverside night-ivities. I've been here countless times but keep coming back for more.

One of the dining places we went to showcased some in-house music & I got a chance to chat with the musicians pertaining to gear & stuff. They were kind enough to let me document their gear. This is the guitar set-up. All songs were played on acoustic guitar, even if the original numbers have distorted electric guitars in them (eg. Bon Jovi / Scorpions).

The bassist had a bare-bones set up; just the bass into the mixer; the reason you only see a D/I box here. By the way, there were no instrument amplifiers used, both of them were hooked into the PA system & they sounded good throughout.

Snaking through

Not too long ago, it's VH (CLICK). Today, it's Whitesnake. Don't see too many people who are keen to  manifest their rock affiliations on their rides. 

Pink Saturday

Another indoor Saturday but I'm not complaining. Spent time with my AZ2402. I remember being asked if I would want a non-pink finish, it's available on Swee Lee's inventory back then but I prefer this pink one. It was a conscious choice, of course. I went with something off beat, focusing on tone & playability more than visual appeal. You'd read in countless Ibanez / guitar forums everywhere of how 'true' Ibanez fans express displeasure by virtue of a non-DiMarzio pickup in the early stages of the AZ Series production. The default Seymour Duncan Hyperion are fantastic pickups. Just because one is a DiMarzio fan, one need not castigate these pickups for their inability to fulfil one's tonal requirements. It's like dissing the electric car just because you drive a petrol driven vehicle. Choices are aplenty out there, if something doesn't float your boat, exercise your choices.

Strings were oxidized when I took it out of the case. The .009 snapped & I'm still trying to figure out why this happened since the nut & bridge saddles were devoid of sharp contacts. I'm not going back to Ernie Ball, of course. I still have bonus point with Swee Lee, just using them up before they expire. I still prefer D'Addario but I'm not buying them due to price issues. 

Hard drive

Another good one by JHS - the Hard Drive distortion. I'm definitely a fan if such voicings; a hard hitting distortion without crossing into the metal domain. For the metal end of things, I usually leave this to the amp. The pedal's job is to spice things up, the spicier, the better.

To be continued...