'Bucking Ashburn

If there's a guitar out there which successfully re-capture the Fender elegance without being a clone, it has to be the John Page Ashburn models. This year, the Ashburn has a double humbucking sibling & it's still made in Japan. 

Construction/ fit/ finish

We have to give it to John Page for not merely re-hashing the outline of his ex-employers when churning out the Ashburn models. Yes, his Fender DNA is still present in his current instruments but it's an extension of other considerations as well; playability is certainly one of those. The standard of production is top notch, nothing distressful to report. It's worth mentioning the fact that Mr. Page entrusted the Japanese to handle his hardware- Gotoh. So for your money's worth, you get a custom shop grade finish for a non-custom shop price tag.

Tone/ Playability

I would opine that the highlight here would be the instrument's playability. Joh Page manifested his practice with very progressive considerations in mind. The treble side cutaway is proof enough. If you have been hampered by your Strat's inability to offer a higher register access, Joh Page got that covered without removing balance or resonance. The neck profile is a rather beefy C but the flat-ish radius (12") means it's easy on the hands, especially for speed freaks if you wish to extent such abilities here. The instrument is Fender-y without leaving other applications in mind.

Now coming to tone, the JP-2 humbuckers are not high output players. In fact, the lower frequencies offered by both units fell short of a good impression when it comes to high gain settings. These pickups thrive on crunchy, Marshall-ian push. With this said, I'm of the opinion that the midrange on offer won't disappoint any genre considerations. However, expect some wooly tones coming from the neck exclusively & this won't appease the prog fans who prefer some bite in this mode.

Conclusion

The John Page brand of guitars won't disappoint you. There is a need to approach both the HH model & its SSS sibling with the proper perspective. These are not contemporary shred-fest instruments you'd grab for your Dream Theater or Scale the Summit antics. They are great guitars in fine form bearing the overall performance where pickups play a great influence in what you hear. Everything about the Ashburn is a familiar affair but once handled, we know it is an extension of fine improvements which the reference influence failed to venture into. 

Rating: 79%

John Page: Ashburn HH

Availability: Davis GMC

List: $2,450