All guitars played today

I took the opportunity to clean some (moldy) bags & cases today because of the fine weather. I gave them a good wipe-down & left them to dry in the sun; what little sunlight was available today, actually. 

While waiting for them to dry, the instruments were played. First was the Grassroots G-LP-50S; felt like playing a singlecut but not a Gibson so this was the natural pick. The neck profile made this playing experience enjoyable. When I play a Les Paul, it's like OK, I'll play for 15min tops then switch guitars but not with this Grassroots.

Then there was this urge to hear some low & heavy riffing so I moved on to Schecter's Omen 7. The treble strings are dead by now, the guitar needs a re-string. OK, that will happen this weekend.

Finally, before my evening jog, the ESP M-II took over- simply love a single coil  tone which isn't coming from a Strat. This one's in need of a re-string as well. So 2 guitars to attend to this weekend... which would make an awesome New Year weekend engagement. At least to me...

Goodnight. Retiring early after a warm cup of tea & some reading. Bothered by that sinking feeling of having to start work. Wish my office disintegrates by the time I wake up.

Re-string: G-LP

Gave my Grassroots G-LP-50S a re-string- Curt Mangan .0095 set, which I'm running out of. G77 does have the CM strings in store but not the .0095s... I simply love the feel of these strings, very similar to the Pyramids but with extra crunch. Sometimes, all it takes is a fresh set of strings to enjoy playing.

Topless

You've seen my Grassroots G-LP-50S (otherwise clik HERE)- notice the flame top, yes? For lower tier guitars, despite the gorgeous flame top you see, it's actually a visual deception. Manufacturers equip these instruments with the thinnest cap material (referred to as laminate) for obvious cost restrictions. They just want to get the visual captivation going, oblivious to the fact that a substantial cap would do wonders to tone. Other manufacturers don't even bother including a wooden laminate, they make do with photo tops- yes, it involves the photographing of a gorgeous flame/ quilt top & pasting this image on the guitar body to give an illusion of a wooden presence (back in the late '90s, some of the Japanese Fenders are of this make).

Back to the pic shown here, a quick look into the pickup cavity reveals no real maple cap/ laminate for that matter so the implication here is rather obvious.

Dry

I was re-stringing my Grassroots G-LP-50S & chanced upon the opportunity to share how a dry fretboard looks like.

A closer look at the extent of dryness; the white patches/ bits there are dry spots. Note the overall hue of the fretboard wood before treatment.

The dry spots are given 2 coatings of Beemis Wood Conditioner (the same fluid used for this proses: CLICK), a 15min drying time was observed after each application. It clearly benefited from this re-moisturizing process, the darker fretboard looked much 'healthier' thereafter: Love your instrument, it'll serve you well.

Still on the issue of dryness, my throat had been excessively dry lately- it's the haze from the forest clearings in Indonesia.

Rooting the MG

 

Had a great time with my Marshall MG10 & Grass Roots G-LP-50S. I lowered the guitar's action slightly but I am still unaccustomed to the .010 set of strings in there. Playing time was an endurance act, really, but the tone & neck profile of this guitar made me play on. The MXR Distortion + plugged into this amp also helped me maintain clarity throughout, especially when the neck humbucker is in use.There's no delicious LP-type tone to be heard, it's what I like to hear; lots of Marshall growl & individual note clarity. In fact, had some serious shredding going on & the picking hand gave in to lethargy & quasi-cramps on a few occasions. Nevertheless, a very satisfying day with some budget equipment in my possession.

The roots of tone

My new guitar is a Grassroots G-LP-50S, not an original Les Paul but a copy instead.

I'm not a fan of the LP-type incarnation due to some playability issues which are largely personal. However, I am not one to ignore a good guitar regardless of its make & nature. The G-LP-50S is a Korean production.

The build & finish of this guitar is simply impressive. There were several finishes in store but I walked away with the one which impressed me in terms of tone & playability. Despite being in the same range, the weight of these units differ slightly, the one I acquired is believably the lightest of them all hence giving off more top end which is rather crucial for this guitar type.

Having plugged the G-LP-50S into my amps (Marshall/ Sound Drive/ Peavey/ Black Heart), I actually like the default humbuckers so there are currently no plans to replace them except for the strings; I can do better with a set of .0095s in there. While playing it in store, several shoppers commented on the gorgeous flame top which annoyed me because people in general are still intrigued by looks instead of the instrument's intrinsic performance per se. I guess to many of us, external attributes are important especially for guitars because we are seen with them first & foremost, the lay people out there appreciate cosmetic attractions more than anything else because they don't know nuts about tone & playability importance. It's all understood.

PS: Thanks to the lads @ TYMC; I had a great shopping experience which led to this purchase. They were very tolerable to my try-outs & inspection quirks over several occasions. A worthy first buy for 2010 indeed.

Grass MG

 

It was my Grass Roots singlecut & my MG10 yesterday, played for hours. Despite the MG10 churning out top end excess, the amp's default distortion & my MXR Distortion + pedal did the job well to maintain single note clarity throughout. The Grass Roots had a set of .010s in there, I lowered the action a little bit & it was endurance play as I am not accustomed to this string gauge. I won't replace them that soon as they are still fresh, would do so after some wear.

Graasroots: G-LP-50S

Some of us aren't really interested in the real (Gibson) Les Paul, we are more appreciative of copies which mock the real deal, especially the impressive ones with alluring asking prices. I've recently re-tried the Grassroots G-LP-50S at Tymusic not because I'm an ardent LP fan; I find LPs difficult to play; they tend to muck up at the neck humbucker & really leave single notes definition much to be desired. However, the G-LP-50S sports a very appealing neck profile unlike the default, bulky LP necks of the originals. It sports this slim neck dimension but unlike Gibson's slim tapered '60s make, there's more width here to make the Eastern replication a signature presence of sorts. The overall craftsmanship of the Korean G-LP-50Ss are above average & do not manifest the haphazard craftsmanship of tired factory hands.

These guitars are currently on sale at Tymusic & they are recommended for us dweebs who embrace the LP outline & construction as a very charming handiwork.

PS: Thanks Tymusic for the hospitality! :-)

Grassroots G-LP-50S
Avaiiability: Tymusic
SALE: $499