Secret Agent

This is a Brad Paisley - Seymour Duncan collaboration, a Telecaster neck pickup. It's is supposed to be there in an Esquire, tucked away under the pickguard hence no mounting flap seen here. That's the reason why it's called the Secret Agent - presence unseen. It's unfortunate that the sound bytes / demo videos only showcased a certain genre application, for all we know, it might be just as good for heavy metal.

On that note - goodbye August 👋

PIC: PG

Red boomers

GHS boomers are now red. If you purchased them online & received this version, know that it's legit. Like D'Addario, they are packed well with very little chance of rust spottings unlike Ernie Ball.

Skyline cover

If you grow up listening to 80s pop music, A-HA would be a familiar name. Take on Me is easily one of those memorable MTV moments. Manhattan Skyline here is their less catchy take on pop fodder with a generous serving of melancholy. 

Fast forward 2020, some 30+ years later, Manhattan Skyline re-surfaces as a cover by, of all people, Ihsahn. It might be an attempt to keep the Norwegian flag flying. It's an interesting metal/ prog slant but the guitar tones here are not my thing; lacking bottom end.

OWB

Just another new finish for the Ibanez AZ2204 - Off White Blonde. Nothing much, folks. Move along, now.

Reconciliation

Once upon a time, I had my mind set on a gold top Les Paul. It was a '57 reissue & available at Swee Lee's Bras Basah branch (the unit is now occupied by Art Friend's rear extension). I tried it in store twice just to confirm it was what I wanted but that fat neck made me re-consider my options. At that point in time, Ibanez & Fender were what I was used to & those neck profiles were nothing close to what the '57 felt like. Then the PRS happened.

At that point in time, Davis GMC was still fresh with the PRS dealership & there was a McCarty in store but it was flame-y & sunburst-y which was not my thing. I like flat colours & embraced a non-distracting top early. My idea of owning a guitar is one that would propel my talent & artistry, not something that distracts others from my incompetence. Playability & tone above all else; it's like this from the start.

The LP consideration was called off because my wife-to-be back then offered to get the McCarty for me if it could be customized to my specs & that was an easy feat for Davis GMC to handle. I have no further custom specs in mind as I already liked how the McCarty plays & sounded so I opted for a gold finish as the only 'custom' option. Back then, the McCarty was indeed offered in a gold finish but limited to its P90 version (above). I finally took ownership of this guitar in 2003, it didn't make it on time for the wedding.

Sixteen years on, the gold top Les Paul made it to the fold. I avoided getting one any earlier because the price was just wrong. One would have thought that a gold top would continue to manifest an inflated price tag but the Gibson CEO change in 2018 led to a deserving price cut. I see this as the coming of age; I couldn't erase the gold top memory totally. Some distractions happened along the way but handling the gold top way back then left a haunting mark on me. It became a bucket list item & rightly re-visited now when I am more financially stable to review what I missed. It took a while to understand that one instrument could not be a perfect replacement for another. 

Tribute (Part 2)

This Gibson selector switch label is conveniently referred to as the poker chip by the Les Paul community. It looks worn & could have seen better days so a replacement was acquired. Whatever surface it covered got cleaned up as well as seen here.

Please be informed that there is an adhesive cover on the underside that needs to be removed. It's an included feature because:

1. Majority of the Les Paul surface is curved so the adhesive ensures a definite adherence to the surface
2. When fixing the selector back into its slot, tightening might displace the chip so the adhesive ensures it stays put.

Before putting it all back together again, I managed to take a look into the cavity & the wood shavings were all there. I wondered why these were not blown away at the factory but it seems the finish was applied with these bits still there - yikes! They were scraped out in no time. This confirms the fable of  manufacturers hiding imperfections & ineptitude in discrete places. I believe this won't be the case for the higher end Gibsons but we won't know for sure.

Alright, everything back in place.

To be continued...

Snarling fool

Exalt this guitar as much as you like but that tiger graphic there looks retarded. PRS has a marked reputation when it comes to detailed aesthetics but this one is a total failure to me. This is a private stock model & definitely beyond reach for majority of us (USD21,990 for this Snarling Tiger). Yes, those highly flamed maple & gorgeous finish are to die for but that tiger there is a deal breaker. I have no idea why the individual(s) behind this design could not have excluded the spastic body & paw out leaving just the tiger head to dictate attraction.

They did extremely well here with the dragon design so that tiger manifestation there is unforgivable.

Pics: Willywood/ PRS

Myung Bongo

This is official - EBMM did a signature for John Myung & it's based on a Bongo. It's a 6-string bass but  spec'd like a 5. That's right folks, the neck width was compressed to feel like a 5, meaning, it's narrower but still accommodates 6 strings. It's definitely aimed at those rapid fire moments for his Dream Theater needs. That fretboard there isn't an anomaly, they call it the split board, combining both rosewood & roasted maple. There are currently no details as to why John prefers EBMM to Yamaha as the latter brand name saw him through the greater part of his music career as he's mainly seen strapping on a Yamaha through DT's rising years.

PIC: EBMM

Tribute (Part 1)

I was in the market for a P90 equipped Les Paul & I wasn't willing to invest in a spanking new guitar, it's just not the right time to do so (read - economic downturn). I chanced upon this one in the after-market. It's covered with that custom graphic & it's not exactly enticing. The former owner cited a preventive measure for doing so; he knew the white finish would cream off so this is a way to mask that out. By the way, this is a 2011 Les Paul Studio '60s Tribute.

The custom graphic was easy to remove. It's an industrial strength sticker so it came off in one piece & did not leave any torn bits on the instrument's body. What it left behind were patches of adhesive.

It's no use fighting industrial stains with regular guitar polish, even the fabled WD40 didn't prove to be effective. I have this adhesive remover for an art project not too long ago & it was the answer to fighting stubborn stickiness; imagine stepping on chewing gum & being at your wit's end in trying to get it off. OK... the Millenials & Gen Zs here might not know what chewing gum is. 

I hope this is a better picture of what I'm fighting with. Many scrubs & more than an hour later, those stains were off. It covered about 2/3 of the body surface so it's not an easy feat. A non-abrasive scouring pad (the exact one featured here: CLICK) was used & I won't recommend doing this if you are dealing with the same problem on a gloss finished body. It will definitely scratch the surface. This Studio Tribute sports a satin finish, while being very susceptible to knocks, it proved to be more tolerant to scouring. 

To be continued... 

Wayne 2020

Fender's recent release; a Kenny Wayne Shepherd signature model. His last signature Strat was in 2013, this recent manifestation is quite a departure from its predecessor. Visually, the block inlays & painted headstock are the obvious changes. The body is now ash & chambered & that neck there is bound, not quite visible from this angle. A very big difference is the radius; from its former 12" manifestation to the current 7.25" so he now favours a curved profile. I think it would look killer with a 70s style headstock but that's just me. 

Blue & purple

New colour for the Ibanez Altstar - purple iris - while still maintaining the burst concept.

Otherwise, the other new finish is this metallic blue.

Despite being an Ibanez fan & the Altstar touting playability rivalling that of its electric solid body counterpart, I'm just not drawn to these models. Ibanez is making headway with the AW & AE models but these, in my opinion, could have at least a solid top to lure more acoustic purists into the camp. People are particular about tone when it comes to acoustics, a solid top is the least Ibanez can offer which won't add much to costs.

Single V

Darn - Single pickup V-type by Solar Guitars (V2.6AG). Darn - Solar Guitars dealer here has next to zero interest in updating their current line-up despite the recent addition (of older models). 

Mega ordinary

Trying this out in my Duo Sonic. Many of us would get excited over how slinky these feel upon immediate handling. I find these very ordinary. To me, fresh strings, regardless of the brand name, always feel good to the touch. Here's a summary of what I have in various instruments with reference to the respective scale lengths:

• 26.5" = 11 - 49 (11 - 59 for 7-string)
• 25.5" = 9 - 42 (9 - 54 for 7-string)
• 25"/ 25.1" = 9.5 - 44
• 24.75" = 10 - 46
• 24" = 10.5 - 48

Tele sonic

This happened last weekend. I actually prefer a dual single coil feature in a guitar which is not a Strat. In the Fender range, there are a few selections, the Telecaster being the most celebrated amongst them. The rest are in Fender's offset range. 

The Tele offers that unmistakable twang that's a winner for country music applications more than anything else. And then there are prolific Tele champions that removed the instrument from that country  exclusive domain - Albert Collins & Danny Gatton, two of the best Tele purveyors who had sadly left us. Personally, I don't pay too much attention to the Tele twang, I set mine up for high gain stuff but keeping the pickups strictly single coil. My American Standard Telecaster is the only one with a humbucker in the bridge (Seymour Duncan Hot Rails) & I do not intend for it to leave its residence as I hear a wonderful, scratchy bridge tone, the kind of abrasive distortion that's very suitable for black & doom metal. 

Moving on to the offsets, I used to dislike them for their shorter scale length until I heard a friend's Jazz master in action. Two things: 1) Those Jazzmaster single coils are really something 2) The Jazzmaster is a 25.5" guitar so it didn't put me off like its other offset counterparts. It triggered me to listen to Dinosaur Jr & I must say that the Jazzmaster pickups are some of the best when it comes to high octane fuzz applications. Then Sonic Youth & My Bloody Valentine got onto my listening pleasure as well & I moved on positively from there. Along the way, I became more agreeable with the other offsets after swallowing some pride & invested in a Mustang. It's all about familiarity & tweaking some details that suits my quirks. 

DC stuff

These are the bird's eye maple spotting on my Kiesel DC400H fretboard. I have no idea what's the fixation on bird's eye maple, personally, I don't find them attractive. Then again, I'm not a fan of such features, flame stripes & quilts included.

Top marks for this - look at how well the nut slots were cut. I prefer these V-profile nut slots, strings rest better this way, very little room for nut materials from the sides to choke the strings during tuning. Yes, I remove all strings during re-stringing regardless of the guitar's bridge type. This way, I have better access to the fretboard surface for cleaning. 

New reference

This year, D'Addario has a new coloured ball end reference chart done on their plastic packaging (right). If the one you bought a pack & it's still showing the older version (left), it's a legit pack & not a counterfeit product. 

Return of the RGB

This was a summer release by Ibanez but the coverage was next to non-exixtent. The RGB is back. Ibanez is keeping it in the entry level range in the mean time (Model 300), there are only two models in the mean time; this 4-string version & a 5-string counterpart. We'll see how this would pan out at the turn of the year. 

HB

Since I last updated these Ibanez EHB basses back in January 2020, I didn't realize they are now in stock at Swee Lee. There's something particularly alluring about headless basses after my personal experience with headless guitars. These might look too quirky for some of us. Ugly seems to be the immediate adjective for that body outline. (Above: EHB 1000 - white / EHB1005MS - black)

However, that design borrowed heavily from Ibanez's own RD bass. I might be checking them out soon but many models are selling out fast. On that note, I might be exploring ideas on the bass more in time to come. For someone with poor chord knowledge, I rely on the boomy bass single notes to back me up.

70th Esq

Current GAS - Fender's 70th Anniversary Esquire & it's a recent release. This particular blonde with the black single ply 'guard is really the works. OK if you are a Tele fan & you got that vintage vibe going in you, it might make sense. Listing for USD1,999, it's definitely an 'affordable' piece of collectible; that's right folks, there are only 2020 pieces out there for grabs. Aw, darn. 

NAMMless winter

No surprises here as the official cancellation announcement was made recently. In lieu of this disappointment, the organizers are moving things into cyberspace with the Believe in Music event to be held over the same week as the original Winter NAMM schedule. Initial details disclosed cited the inclusion of lesson-based activities in addition to mere product release announcements. Better than nothing, yes?

PIC: Musicradar

MPB

You've probably read about Squier's mini Jazzmaster recently (CLICK) & here's the mini P-Bass joining the family. It's a 28.6" scale instrument & should cater to the junior learners among us or those in need of a smaller, no fuss back up unit. The thing to note here is that no bag is provided & looking for one from other brand names might prove to be a challenge. 

Discolouration

Long weekend, had some playing time last evening. It was Strat-y.

Just wanna bring this to your attention. We often complain about white finishes yellowing off over time. This isn't obvious but the pic above is my (poor) attempt to show you that all finished would yellow off in due time, the darker based ones would display a less obvious change. Is there a definite prevention measure to avoid this from happening? No. Sweat, condensation, light & bag/hard case interior, among others, contribute towards this. If it's a relic finish, we wouldn't mind at all but if it's a well-taken care instrument, it's painful seeing something deteriorate; slowly but surely.

Trad Pro

It's a new release by Gibson but it's US exclusive for certain stores there. There's a slim chance of these making it here but it's worth noting that 1) It's a full mahogany body, even the cap is mahogany 2) Satin finished - that's right, no gloss whatsoever 3) Locking Grover tuners - tulip style (I personally prefer this) 4) Pickups are Gibon's Tradbucker

There's a slim chance that these would make it here as a few successfully crossed over to the UK. It all depends on the distributor & if Gibson deems them worth the trouble - that's how I see it.

55th

It still carries on despite these strange times. A subdued celebration but a celebration nevertheless. Many happy returns to my beloved country, may we move on & out of this charade - we deserve better.

ND @ City Music

If you are in the mood to spend this long weekend, City Music might have something in store for you. Head over to their promo page: CLICK

Single solar

A new batch of SOLAR guitars are in. This GC2.6 singlecut is one of them (SGD1,379). It's like a year's worth of wait (June 2019) for some new SOLARs to make it here but it's a scant affair. Disappointing, to say the least. We could have bought these new models online, direct from the manufacturer's homepage but some of us chose to support local enterprises by buying from them instead. Time to re-consider.

Euro satin

OK... PRS CE 24... Standard... in limited edition satin release (125 units only... sigh). Like I've said before, it's always the good stuff being elsewhere & not here. These are Euro exclusive FYI. I have a difficulty understanding how big the Euro market is for such peculiar but desirable models. Hmm...

PIC: Music Radar

3P

It's pick-hopping day featuring the trio seen above (L-R):

• DAW Man - Shred Line glitter edition (limited run) 2.5mm
• Gravity - 003 Custom 2mm
• V-Picks - Mummy special edition 3mm 

When I play guitar, it's my ritual to have more than one pick out. I'd switch between picks during play out of necessity; some playing styles are better done with a certain pick & that's a fact, yes? You can't do grinding black metal with a 0.5mm nylon pick. It's madness. Anyway, these 3 have been giving me the best results based on the intentions. The DW is my most efficient shredder. It's not acrylic & gives off the least clicking sound making individual notes sound true. However it's the least effective when it comes to grip & won't be ideal for fast & intense riffing. The Gravity 003 is the in between-er. I usually have it done in 3mm but this time it's a 2mm. Gravity uses acrylic & the picking tones are sharp & to my ears, riffs could sound super crunchy at times instead of being deep & doom-laden. Despite this quirky response, I love it for single coil tones. Finally, the V-Picks Mummy is a special edition 3mm version (factory default - 2.75mm) & has 2 grip lines as opposed to the usual 3. This is my preferred pick form, outline & feature. I'm too used to this one after quitting the Dunlop Stubby. Despite being equally acrylic, the Mummy has a less sharp response & it gives off a balanced tone for both solos & riffs. It's my go-to pick. 

Folks, if you think guitar picks do not contribute to tone then you need to re-think this belief. A simple but extreme reference is to hear your guitar tones using a rubber & acrylic pick; it's a day & night difference. It's about the material more than the thickness but the latter does play a part as I have discovered after customizing different pick thickness of the same model (thank you, Gavity custom shop). My take on this is to try as many different picks as possible & note the ones you like.

Pulse

Shout out to the DWE camp - they emailed me about two weeks ago pertaining to the release of this Pulse pedal which is a rotating speaker emulator. If you've been browsing this blog diligently, you'd know that I own the DWE Diktator overdrive which is easily one of my most engaging unit in terms of drive saturation. The Pulse pedal is not available at Davis (yet) so there's no chance of trying this out in person but here's the next best thing:

Also, more details here: PULSE @ DWE

Swinging in

If you are into estranged outlines as seen here, this Fender Swinger is now in stock at Swee Lee (List: $1,329). Just keep in mind that it's a 24" scale instrument; rather disturbing that it's strung up with a set of 9s from the factory.

Order 66 (2)

No surprises here as the first mod to the Sixty-Six are the string guides. No, the default version is not inferior by a good measure but I prefer smoother string travel for Fender instruments.

Antigua (4)

This is my first set of DiMarzio pickups in a Fender. That's right, I have no DiMarzios in any of my Fenders since the start but this is my embrace for good tones regardless of the brand name. I have my Seymour Duncan inclinations but every now & then, some others would make my like list. Anyway, the pickups you see above are DiMarzio True Velvet single coils for Telecaster.

I have never tried this duo before & had initial reservations due to the wide difference in output between the neck & bridge counterpart. I am dealing with a hot bridge response but a polite, vintage-like response from the neck. What made me proceed was the EQ; these are exactly what I wish for in this guitar in the mean time. The default neck single coil suffers from a very weak midrange & has a nasal overall voicing that threatens to thin out any time. The boost in midrange here is what I was looking for. The default bridge pickup on the other hand sounded too darn honky but someone reminded me of the Tele's true nature; a honky, twangy guitar unlike the girth of a Strat. Despite being a metal fan & thriving on a commanding dose of bottom end, I opted for more treble instead. It's the D'Activator approach in a single coil format so to speak. 

Once again, the services of Master Beez was rendered to make the swap happen. After about a week of True Velvet-ing, I must say that it was a deserving switch. More importantly, it serves my embrace for gobs of distortion with clarity & surprises on two fronts: 1) The bridge pickup was not  treble excessive at all despite the anticipations. It all boils down to my amp settings & I believe the EVH 5150 has a good working low end to begin with so no major upset there. 2) The neck pickup did not wimp out in terms of output, it barks & roars as fiercely so the true measure of a pickup performance, in this case, is its actual adaptation to the player's set up. I'm a happy camper.