Price watch (78)

Folks, this is another blatant fake still available in the after-market despite an authenticity red flag submission to the platform owner.

Just look at this rubbish headstock - Prestige?? But labelled as a GRG, selling for less than $250? Gosh...

This is the authentic GRG170DX as documented at the official Ibanez website. We should not be tolerating this nonsense. If you visit this buy-sell platform, do us all a favour & submit a fake product report.

Pic: Ibanez

Price watch (77)

This ESP George Lynch guitar is an outright fake. That price tag there is a downright red flag. From this picture alone, we see the wrong bridge being used plus there are no markings on the humbucker (the original version has a Seymour Duncan label on the pickup). The fact that it has ESP on the headstock is an invitation into legal trouble. 

The platform administrator has issues when users submit a fake item report. The authenticity of an item is according to their absolute assessment. It's very much like how the POFMA law in this country works; a piece of news is considered fake at the absolute assessment of the minister. The seller in this case did not hint at a possible authenticity issue. There's outright misrepresentation & the fact that the platform owner does not exercise due care on the matter are disturbing indeed.

Obviously

Once again, I have contested the authenticity of this 'Ibanez'. On two previous occasions, the platform admin chose to believe the seller, let's see what entails after this episode. It would be interesting to know who they referred to, with regards to product authentication, in deciding what unfolds next.

If you are an Ibanez enthusiast, the RG7XXX is a 7-string reference, it's clear the listed instrument is not one. Also, an RG7320EX is clearly listed at the manufacturer's webpage & for ease of reference, I've included it here. 

Pic: Ibanez

Price Watch (40)

 

I've reported this 'Gibson' for obvious reasons. This should stop.

This is a good one if that finish crack isn't a deal breaker for you.

What...?

I think this is rather obvious even if you are a novice when it comes to Gibson stuff. From this headstock alone: 1) Wrong headstock outline 2) Wrong split diamond inlay 3) Wrong tuners 4) Wrong truss rod cover label (bound headstock for a Standard?). 

Had prompted the seller to be more upfront with the listing- no reply. Expected. All the best to the buyer who will be paying good money for something that might be possibly worse than a Chinese knock off. Buyers - you need to make more effort in knowing what you are buying. It's the cyber age, plenty of stuff out there to help you out with this. Seller - please be more upfront with your stuff, if you can't, then don't sell, it's not worth the (legal) trouble. If you are acting on someone's behalf, do re-think.

I'm not the after-market police, but I do not wish for a fellow guitar enthusiast to be duped especially this easily. There are dishonest people out there, the least we can do is to look out for one another.

59?

I think many of us are aware that for both Seymour Duncan & DiMarzio pickups, supplies had been hit by the COVID-19 situation. As such, we resort to cybershopping looking for whatever's available in the mean time. Someone asked me if the SH-1 above is a good deal considering it's less than USD50 per piece. The Seymour Duncan '59 (SH-1) comes in two versions; the 2-conductor, vintage type (has no brand label on it) & the contemporary 4-conductor version (bottom right in pic). In both cases, the pole pieces are the slug-slot combo. The budget SH-1 you see above is a pirated article; the black hex pole pieces are a dead giveaway. Folks, be careful buying from online re-sellers, some of whom are unauthorized entities, others are simply fake-mongers preying on the uninitiated. Before you commit to buying, it's best to ask around first unless it's your every intention to buy fake stuff - there are indeed people like that.

JS?

Someone's selling this Ibanez JS in the after-market.

This is how a JS looks like. Seen here is the JS100.

I tried to clarify & this was the reply.

Let's look at the disturbing details:

1. Cutaways. These look wrong from the start. From the pic itself, we note that the edges are not rounded off like the JS design.
2. Neck. Re-look at the first pic & then this one - noticed the seller had swapped necks. The first one features a 24-fret neck with no JS inlay, this one has it. However, if you look at the JS100 closely, for the discontinued 22-fret version, there's a gap between the fretboard & the neck pickup but this one has none. 
3. Alignment. Bridge pickup is slanted. Volume & tone controls are in a straight line which is not the case as seen in the JS100 above.

Then again folks, let's give credit to the fact that it's a Santriani model, not Satriani. It's as original as it gets so it's $400 to the good. 

EDIT: Thanks to bro Hotaru for pointing out that all necks featured here are 22-fretted, not 24. It must be the chemo meds. I'm leaving the entry as it is.

On the way home today, I asked a friend to take a second look at this guitar. For $400, does the Santriani model actually have a genuine neck at least (consolation, perhaps). He highlighted some misalignments as indicated above (Right - JS100 headstock for comparison). Even the strings do not travel straight to the posts. Hmm...

Not original

Someone's selling fakes in the after-market & labelling them as CUSTOM ORIGINALS. The last time I checked, these are Chinese knock-offs which you can buy direct so why bother going through a third party. My take is this- even if you are selling turd in the after-market, it's really up to you. However, do not label them as some glorified products with a possibility of misrepresentation because you're treading legal grounds there & the repercussions might be severe.

PS: According to the seller, guitars feature genuine parts so they aren't fakes but bit part assemblies. From what are documented visually, these parts contain doubtful features. Seller seems firm in representing these items and do not see how transactions could be disputed under certain disclosure. I'm not asking you to believe but exercise caution/ discretion when dealing with such stuff.

Pirated

Thanks to the good guys at Wampler Pedals for the pic here- beware of imitation. That's right folks, there are now fake Wampler pedals out there but we still trust our authorised distributors here with their inventory. This is just a heads-up to you if you deal in the after-market.

Just admit it (authenticity discussion)

Ladies & gentlemen, the Ibanez Fireman (shown above: FRM100).

Ladies & gentlemen, the Ibanez Fireman, custom version going for an unbelievable price. What's that? You are saying it's fake? Hell, no. It's custom made in Indonesia, it's original. Would you even present a glimmer of belief to this seller?

Just moments ago, I was talking to this seller. As you can see here, despite being firm, I am a nice guy :-) I don't even know him so I wouldn't expose his i/d to you for a simple reason- he's not here to defend himself. Evidently, we can tell it's not an authentic item. The seller insisted otherwise saying it's a custom deal. In my attempt to understand this seller, I would interpret it as such; it was indeed made in the likeness of an established model by an unauthorized individual & not issued or commissioned by the manufacturer. I think that's a fair interpretation to it.

In this day & age, open info enables us to realize this situation. If you are trying to pass off something as authentic, please re-think. Heed the advice of people around you who have your legal interest in mind instead of opposing them as intruders. For goodness sake, it's an open platform!

If you wish to sell pirated products, tell your buyers the nature of your wares. At best, we will leave you alone but it doesn't equal us NOT telling others about you.

*Sigh*

Gee... really hope you didn't buy any such Ibanez...

Not quite Fender

Friends, for those of you who frequent Plaza Angsana at JB, this store should be a familiar sight (@ Level 4). It has a good collection of desirable guitars but be wary of the used collection on offer (near cashier area, displayed on multiple-guitar stand on the floor), one of the Fenders there (reverse headstock) is not an original article. This is not an implication that the store is a front for pirated instruments but I have a feeling the store personnel themselves don't quite know what came their way when they acquired it from its owner.

If you are the store owner & you are reading this, I have absolutely no intention to disrepute your business; your store chaps are friendly & obliging, I give them my thumbs up for that. However, if we are dealing with major brand names in our premises, we should be wary of what's in store as this might hurt our business' goodwill upon discovery regardless if it's a bona fide mistake in offering it for sale. Peace.

D'Addario fakes

I'm a firm D'Addario fan despite trying out other brand names, so here's my bid to alert some counterfeit strings which are making their way round through online purchases. Thusfar, none are sold here off-the-shelf, the implication being, it's definitely safer to buy them from the local dealers.

Blatant piracy

I am at it again, despite the previous backlash but my concern here is primarily the exposing of fakes. This is not an exercise in proving a fake, the product concerned IS a fake. If you wish to believe otherwise because it sports your beloved brand name on the headstock, it's all up to you. I'm not here to breed any dissent either, I just don't want buyers out there to be duped.

The pic above shows a fake Ibanez JEM77FP2. It's rather difficult to tell but the cutaway would trigger some suspicions if you are already familiar with an Ibanez RG/ JEM design.

 

The current JEM77FP2 features an Edge whammy bridge, the model above is not an Edge unit.

 

We know this because an Edge bridge does not have the 'Overlord of Music' stamped on its parts... tsk, tsk, tsk.

The same store offers a fake Gibson Les Paul whose authenticity I would not bother discussing here because the store owner made this declaration:

All of my product are 100% same as the photos,
what you see is what you get ! !The products are MADE IN CHINA however with good quality and best value you can ever find. You will receive brilliant products that worth what you have paid. so please feel free to put order with us .

Fake: Gibson LP Supreme

This used to be an entry about a fake Gibson Les Paul Supreme. The guitar was indeed a fake there's no doubt about it but since it's a Gibson, there were retaliations pertaining to how I put forth its pirated nature. We need to be wary of used products with a too-good-to-be-true asking price. We need to assess the item in question in whole, which include the assessment of supplementary accessories, in addition to the instrument per se. 

Sometimes, after we read such entries, we are moved to re-inspect our possessions, especially when we purchase them in the after-market & the revision of our understanding & acceptance of the item as well.

Worthy quote: Slash

This was what Slash said recently about the guitar used for the recording of his new album:

"I used the Derrig- the same Appetite guitar I've used forever. On this record it was simple; just one guitar. I'll adjust whatever to make it right for the song. So that was it."

'Derrig' here refers to Chris Derrig who copied a Gibson '59 Les Paul which Slashed used for the recording of Appetite for Destruction (GnR)- if you've been following this blog for a while, you know it's mentioned here before (not once).

It's interesting to know what Slash used on grounds of preference, I'm saluting this man for just that. We know Gibson released a signature model based on that copy but Slash thought the Derrig guitar should make the recording because he likes what he hears from it, despite it not being the real thing.

Celebrated fake: Slash's '59 Les Paul

When GnR exploded in the '80s, Slash was always seen with his Gibson LP pictured above (circa Appetite for Destruction); to the unsuspecting, it's unquestionably the real deal but in truth, it's a fake (ok... it's a 'copy' to put it politely to you Slash/ LP purists- no offence, I own LPs too) as documented by Guitar World magazine (above).

Slash favoured LP copies made by luthier, Kris Derrig, who copied the '59 LP to immaculate accuracy. However, he also played copies made by Max Baranet at the same time so it's still unclear who was responsible for this celebrated fake.

So do we pay due respect to copycats who manifest their sage-like expertise in replicating popular models as mentioned above, or should we despise them for defiling intelectual properties?

Even here in Singapore, people feel better having Fender decals on their Frankenstein, project Strat-type guitars. We must be careful when displaying established brand names on our tinker products; we could be paying tribute to a great label through a bona fide association when there are legal implications to our actions.