Cyber

Swee Lee's Cyber Monday deals are now on. Before Fender focused on the Players & Vinteras in an attempt to elevate the Mexican models as value-for-money guitars, the Standard model had always been there to fulfil this aspiration. Good to see this on the CM deal list: $719.20 Quite frankly, this is a sleeper in plain sight. If you wish for a good Strat without paying excessively for one, this is a good consideration. Coincidentally, this was the last good Mex Strat I tried, hence the recommendation.

The Fender (Japan) Malmsteen is also on a good CM deal: $2,479. Between the Japanese & American versions, the former vibed with me better when I last tried one in store. Ironically, this CM price is currently higher than the Japanese MSRP: $2,246. Regardless of this difference, it's one of those signature models that I truly like for what it is - a good playing, good sounding guitar.

Pics: Fender

Standard 2025

Fender's latest Standard Series are touted to be their most affordable yet; USD599. These are made in Indonesia. What does this tell us about the Fender brand? Despite having a sub-brand, Squier, the manufacturer is some how wary of the fact that the brand name might become frivolous in a certain price bracket. To be more precise / blunt, the so called affordable Fenders have ceased to become anything but affordable. We all know how the Mexican models are listed for $2K +/- after being 'spruced' up in some ways & pushed as revised editions justifying the price hike each & every time.

I am now oblivious to where guitars are made, the country of manufacture is now not an important consideration for me. I look up to the quality on offer, more than anything else. I have never been enticed by the Mexican Fenders since the former Standard Series (yes, the Standard name is not new) left the catalog like 20 years ago. This might be a good time to renew my considerations for a non-American / Japanese Fender. Depicted above is the Mexican Standard in satin finish. I was attracted to one of these, the purple version, & always played it when I dropped by Swee Lee's Bras Basah outlet. 

The Standard Series being in this price bracket mean players are going to forgo the upper end Squiers along the way unless Fender has some revisions to ensure they are not competing against themselves. It would also mean Fender has a new room for a more affordable American range. The current Performer models are definitely not the epitome of affordability. Remember the Highway 1 models? Those were good, bona fide, American Fenders.

Pics: Fender / Fuzzzfaced

Standard melody

Gibsunday it is. Early start to the morning, doom laden, of course. It seems that I incline towards playing doom metal when dealing with SGs, not that it's an exclusive association but it  kinda happened. 

Just for the fun of it, I played these two, it's like dealing with two ends of the SG spectrum; the most basic version (Melody Maker) vs the industry standard (Standard).  It's not about pitting one against the other but hearing what each has to offer in terms of ideation. The Standard is the heavier between the two & naturally has more low end. The pickups there are Gibson 61 humbuckers which manifest a good midrange response but not overpowering. The Melody Maker, on the other hand, has a maple body & by the sheer size of it, we would have thought that it's lightweight but it's not too far off the Standard. Simple reason - maple contributes to the weight. On that note, the MM has an airy tone to it so the lone bridge pickup there isn't too bright sounding but clarity is assured. 

My preference? Both serve different needs. For prolonged play & distortion menace, the MM is much easier in the hands. For smooth legato passages, the Standard's neck humbucker is hard to beat. That's the Sunday morning in a nut shell. 

Bridging

Got that midweek itch to play a PRS so out came the S2 Standard.

 Managed to replace the default hard tail bridge with the adjustable version. The only reason for doing this - I have plans to have thicker gauged strings in this guitar & de-tuning. This is to complement the 57/08 humbuckers on board for its sonic potential. These pickups sound great for heavy stuff despite whatever vintage expectations PRS embedded into its profile. Add to that, some great clarity for single note definition. The immediate effect here is that palm muting feels more immediate. Maybe it's a psychological by-product of owning a new contraption coupled with high hopes of it transforming some playing aspects to become 'better'.

This is the final time a set of 9.5s are in this guitar, going forward, strings will get thicker.

Standard price

The new batch of Fender Standard Strat/ Tele featuring pau ferro fretboards are listing for the same price as their rosewood fretboard counterparts. Of course, the rosewood version had undergone a price revision before it was discontinued but it's good to know that no further induced inflation took place along the way...

Hello, November 👍

Standard & Pro

By now, you would have known that Chapman guitars are offered in Standard...

... & Pro versions. The guitars you see here are the ML3 Moderns.

The Standard is a bolt-on make with a non-angled headstock, pickups are ceramic. The Pro features an angled headstock, a set-through body-neck attachment. Pickups are Alnico 5 & for Pro versions, the instrument comes with a hard case. Both versions feature ebony fretboards so that's something out of the CITES grip & buying online should be issue-free. 

ESP: Standard

It's a little belated but here's what ESP has to offer for 2013; the Standard. The 'Standard' tag is clearly visible at the headstock so it'll leave us fans a little beleaguered as to how different this standard is to its predecessor. If it's a mere migration of that label from the rear of the headstock to the front, then why do it at all? With the new LTD Elite models in the same price bracket as the previous Standards, it's interesting to see how much these newbies will cost.

Do I have any plans to acquire the new generation of Standards? I need to see, feel & hear them in action first... as soon as they get here, of course.

Gibson: SG Standard (2)

These are the default pickups in my Gibson SG Standard- the 490R & 496T. As you can see, they had been removed from the instrument. Gibson fans might like them for their rounded, creamy tones (especially the neck pickup) but they are not my kind of pickups.

Once again, the Gibson pots & PCB. If your Gibson is a post-2010 model & isn't one to recreate a vintage original specification, it will be fitted with one of this. It makes perfect manufacturing sense in the production line when things would get a little speedier with a ready PCB inserted into the guitar body & final non-solder pickup wires attachment, but if you choose to mod your electronics selectively, you have to forgo the entire assembly. Bummer.

Gibson: SG Standard (mine...)

Occasionally, I will acquire something not really to my preference but a worthy inclusion in my tone arsenal. The 'Gibson' brand name is an indisputable icon when it comes to tone & that's not just for show. The instrument presents itself to be of certain indigenous character, well-vouched by people in this industry. So I thought, since the SG Standard is given a cosmetic make-over come 2013, I'd spend some good money (since there are no more Ibanez/ ESP distractions in the mean time) to own one pre-2013 model & this cherry-finished version was it.

That said, I am not obliged to embrace & forgive the manufacturer's instrument-making philosophy; I still deem the SG a forgiven reject (that neck dive, let's not get into that) but it's something I can live with.This isn't my first SG, mind you.

Carl Martin Tuner

Carl Martin has a fresh, sleek tuner in their offerings. The new CM tuner offers 2 modes- standard or strobe. The MUTE switch you see above means you can have your tuning moments muted & rely just on the visual read-outs or hear yourself in action if that makes you happier while making sure your instrument is not out of tune. Neat.

No standard

If you weren't quick enough to get hold of UNO's Standard, be informed that these fantastic instruments are discontinued. I sincerely hope the manufacturer has something else to offer in the same price bracket, not to mention the equivalent QC standards. Gee, it's like they say- good things don't last forever.

UNO!

My UNO- I've chosen the Standard; slimmer neck & body dimensions are what I've always wanted from a Les Paul-like guitar.

 

UNO guitars sport a matching body-headstock finish. It's equipped with D'Addario strings at the factory, as tagged.

A pair of Custom Tesla pickups. Great cleans (neck) & lots of clarity under intense distortion. I seldom play clean so these pickups are very likable.

Here's a look at the neck-body fitting. The slimmer body dimensions allow for a fit binding which almost intrude into the neck but there were no bleeding of this nature. Everything's kept neat & tidy by the manufacturer.

UNO: Standard

We get excited upon seeing a Les Paul-like guitar because the instrument's reputation precedes everything else. UNO's Standard isn't a Les Paul, it just looks like one. The Standard is my most likable UNO singlecut design & it's the most affordable in its range- it's Indonesian. However, the manufacturer took measures to make this guitar (very) attractive- stunning looks as depicted above, custom TESLA humbuckers & superb construction; the model I tried was faultless. However, the other attraction is the guitar's thinner body akin to what ESP has to offer with the Eclipse models but the extra seduction here is that slim neck. Imagine a Gibson slim taper profile but only slimmer (nothing Ibanez-thin though...). You like distortion? The Standard performs well with loads of that. Nice cleans for you? Just engage the neck humbucker & listen. Sub-$1K budget for you? Well, it's only $590...

String retainer (Ibanez)

The current Ibanez JEM make still features a string retainer behind the locking nut...

...while its Prestige counterpart is retainer-free...

...same goes for the standard RG headstock. I'm committing this to record because someone asked me if he's dealing with a fake JEM7V due to this string retainer issue.