Y & Y

This year's NAMM announcement saw the resurgence of the Korn-endorsed Ibanez guitars. Unlike its previous iteration, the models this time round are RGD-based despite featuring a 25.5" scale length. The Yin model comes in an all black finish, a pair of DiMarzio Blaze pickups (a very Universe vibe) & an ebony 'board. The body being nyatoh might be the obvious cost-cutting indicator since these instruments are not Japanese but we wonder how much more a mahogany body would add to cost for it to be excluded. The U-Bar whammy is an obvious nod to its roots.

The Yang model, living up to its contrasting symbiosis, comes in a white finish, featuring a rosewood 'board instead. This model features a fixed Evertune bridge, the pickups are also a pair of DiMarzio Blaze but is devoid of a tone control. 

I see the Korn act as being over & done with. It's making a return riding on a generous dose of nostalgia, the guitar brand being a large part of this resurgence. Do you see nu-metal making a come back, am I missing this? So the obvious implication here is that players won't lose their mind & rush to acquire these guitars come Summer. There is also the danger of these guitars being a pair of overpriced non-Japanese signatures & the fact that these are 7-string models mean they would only appeal to a certain cohort of players in guitardom. If there is a real interest in re-booting the Korn affair, then the guitars should be RG-based, not RGD. Further cost-cutting could be observed by re-instating the DiMarzio PAF 7s instead of the more costly Blaze; the PAFs were indeed the original pickups back in 2001 when the K7s were unleashed to the world.

Lest we forget, Brian Welch left Ibanez prior to this Yin Yang introduction & his LTD 7-string was awesome to say the least. We can see why the RGD was chosen for this come-back owing to the LTD Horizon's curved body top & chamfered cutaways. The forces that be at Ibanez might have seen something coming by facilitating the K7 return which we, the lay people at the buying end, do not. There's nothing to be too excited about these instruments as they are not in the upper tiers of the manufacturer's catalog. 

Goodbye, January...

Pics: Ibanez / L&M

Suitable?

Folks, this is the Gator GBE-EXTREME-1 bag. As the name suggests, it's made to contain guitars sporting the eccentric outline which are a little extensive & protrusive.

A case in point would be the Flying V. As depicted above, the bag has ample room to contain the instrument. FYI, it's also good for the Explorer, Firebird & Dean ML, among others.

Please be informed that the bag's interior does not feature a strap to hold the neck down. Why is this necessary?

When you strap this on, the guitar does not stay put. It will collapse to the front side of the bag. The stitches of the strained strap area might give way after repeated use.

When you handle it by the carrying straps, it will cause the instrument inside to neck dive & create that fold / crease there.

I believe that if the interior neck strap was included & the overall design of this bag was tapered more to prevent neck movements / displacements, it would be worth it. To answer the question will this bag fit a V / Explorer / Firebird / ML design? The immediate answer is yes. However, it might not be suitable for players who are constantly on the move.

Serpentine '25

No point commenting on the outlook for this year. Pretty much everyone is just sick of how things are here; prices going up with disillusioned people at the helm preaching belief in their brand of politics. Trash.

Instead, I would like to wish everyone a good Year of the Snake - best wishes, good health & prosperity always. Enjoy the deserving mid-week break with good company!

Thanks for your support!

Thank you everyone, for your kind support. 3.5mil hits as at 25th January is a huge achievement for me. My blog is unashamedly old school; limited videos & wordy. It was intended to be this way all along as I want my fellow gear enthusiasts to re-visit the lost art of reading. These days, we tend to be at the receiving end of information dissemination without making much effort to acquire knowledge instead. Reading is a form of knowledge acquisition & it should be perpetuated. Hope you understand.

If you appreciate my efforts & would like to make a contribution, it would mean a lot to me. This QR code would be good for this week only, I don't see the point of a perpetual validity as it's something to mark the occasion, nothing more. I sincerely hope to keep this effort going but at the back of my mind, I might succumb to what had hampered me before. Till that happens, I'm here to talk gear (& everything in between) - thanks in advance!

ESP 2025: 50th Anniversary

We begin the week with ESP's 50th Anniversary commemorative guitar announcement. The chosen model for this historical event is the Horizon CTM. This iteration features resin injected parchments in the body finish.

If resin & reverse headstock are not your thing, then this version features a flame top with a burst effect & of course, a standard, non-reverse headstock.

I'm actually looking forward to this announcement & had saved quite a bit to acquire a historical commemorative instrument but these guitars would be listed for more than $10K each so that's the obvious deal breaker for me. 

Dear ESP, there are people out there who wish to mark this event with you but they do not possess the purchasing power to acquire one of the above guitars. Moving forward, please be inclusive & acknowledge the fact that the lower income among us are equally responsible for your success as well. Happy 50th birthday.

Pics: ESP Japan

Jackson 2025

Jackson took this year to re-introduce the Surfcaster model (X-Series). That's right, the surfcaster design is not new. This simple, non-whammy bridge design should appeal to the offset camp.

Thank you, Jackson, for remembering us, the marginalised shallow pocket citizens who wouldn't want to miss out on the fun - a JS22 model is also available.

 Pics: Jackson