PO 1985

I believe these were released a couple of days ago. Jackson dug deep into their past glory & came out with these re-interpretations of their San Dimas models; the Pro Origins 1985. The FR bridge here is the 1000 model & the pickups are in-house J-90 / J-50 units which, according to them, re-visit the 1980s tone-wise. FYI, the off-white, maple 'board single humbucker version is already indicated as SOLD OUT on the manufacturer's home page. 

Reading between the lines, someone at Fender / Jackson finally realized re-releasing their back catalog is the right thing to do now because a close competitor had been doing so for a few years with positive outcomes. We know which other manufacturer this is, yes?

Pics: Jackson

Shimming adventure continues

Friday, indoors... re-string therapy was inevitable. I enjoy playing this Ibanez S621 but this morning, it felt a wee bit off maybe because I seldom travel up the neck to the upper frets which I did excessively today. 

Yes, the pocket there required shimming & it was done twice. As evident in the pic above, I had to add another layer of shimming material to get the action right. That non-aligned layer placement was intentional so that I know how many layers / how thick the shim is. 

A set of Olympia 9s for today's episode. Things are so much better after this re-set up of sorts. As mentioned previously, sometimes, this is necessary due to different factors. This S621 is an example of my preferred S-Series specs. These days, I don't whammy much so I prefer fixed bridge models. Also, a dual humbucking pickup configuration is my thing but I find a single coil in the neck position more likeable for solos. This S621 had the 5-way selector replaced with a 3-way version.

Wishing everyone a good weekend ahead. 👋

GT Deluxe

Kramer now has this Deluxe GT. A no-frills guitar aimed at similar conceptions by Charvel & Ibanez, among others. One more time, I do not wish to say much about any Kramer developments here because we know how indifferent & detached the Kramer dealer here is. They are doing well with music education which has a wider commercial reach as opposed to an acute focus on guitars. For the record, it's Cristofori Music. 

Pic: Kramer

Red re-string

In view of the recent limelight of new Japanese Ibanez models, I was aggravated to soak in the hype by taking this out to play - RG550DX. This was part of the Genesis line up which was not warmly received due to its rosewood fretboard variation. The proverbial RG550, regardless of its resurgence timeline, requires a maple fretboard to preserve the legacy & more importantly, the commercial traction.

Something felt wrong; the guitar playability wasn't as addictive as it used to be. A quick diagnosis revealed a slightly bowed neck & an action that required a wee bit of shimming. I used a discarded name card here to provide a non-intrusive elevation.

As such, an action adjust was required. A reminder to those embarking on a similar set-up adventure; there is a locking mechanism inside the stud post which requires attention first before raising / lowering it. That's why you see the smaller allen wrench being used here. When you are done, do lock it back in place. 

 

A set of fresh Dunlop strings. Sometime, a guitar's set up requires a re-visit as some aspects would be affected by temperature, for instance, over time. Some of us find this a put-off, we just wanna play because by the time we finished tinkering, the urge to play would be gone.

FRH20

The FRH20 is an existing model in the catalog. These two are mere finish iterations by the manufacturer. That top there is a flamed maple unit as documented by the specs sheet so there's no telling if it's a solid top. The FRH is the type of instrument with a triggered following; it's only hype as long as the factors driving this fanfare are still kept prevalent by Ibanez. To think that this model nearly didn't happen. 

PS: As at 12 Sept '25, the FRH20 is available at Swee Lee for $749

Pic: Ibanez

Nick's 10th

Didn't realize Nick Johnston's relationship with Schecter is now a decade old. This purple beauty here is a 10th Anniversary Nick Johnston's commemorative model that already available at Davis GMC ($1,899). Nick's initial infatuation with guitars saw him embrace a Fender (a Highway 1 if memory serves me right) & the Strat-esque features are firmly preserved here. Some say they prefer this bridge as opposed to the Fender's. 

Pic: Schecter