Got a Guitar with the voice of God inside
The Blind Eternities forum
Posted on Oct. 29, 2015, 9:49 p.m. by aeonstoremyliver
Salutations to my fellow musicians, guitfiddle players, and gear heads! I recently picked up a Vintage, Japanese made, Contemporary Squire Strat from the 80's. It's painted Dakota Red, not sure of the body wood, maple neck with rosewood fretboard, SSH pickup configuration, Fender tremolo bridge, volume and tone knob, and toggle switches to turn the pickups on and off. The bridge humbucker has a coil tap... I can have ALL of the pickups on at the same time, or do some groovy stutter effects with one pickup.
This freaking guitar plays and sounds like a vintage Strat, makes Hendrix, SRV, and Gilmore tones easily. In fact, I'm willing to bet that it plays and sounds better than almost any modern American Strat you can pull off the rack at Guitar Center. Set me back an easy $300.00!!!
I play this through my many analog effect pedals (ask and I'll tell) and either through my favored vintage Marshall Artist 4203, coined the 'Mini Plexi,' or my Hughes & Kettner 20th Anniversary Edition Tube. Sounds absolutely amazing!
She has some dings here and there, mostly stays in tune (considering how I play), and has some minor rust on the bridge. I call her Rusty. Fitting, I think. Only mod I'd consider making is dropping some Schaller locking tuners in.
Whilst my main axe, a Godin Solidac (think Les Paul/PRS) is in the shop for some repairs and mods, I've had the chance to get to know Rusty. She almost plays herself. If you're looking for a Strat and can find one of these bad boys, BUY IT!!! I'll link some pics of the model in a future comment.
"Feeling sweet feeling, drops from my fingers, fingers..." - Jimi Hendrix, 'Manic Depression'
aeonstoremyliver says... #4
Caligula I had this feeling you'd comment lol!!!
Nighthawks are pretty breaking sweet! And 40 guitars?!?! Dooood! I mean, I have four and definitely want more. A PRS McCarty 24, Rickenbacher 360-12, Gretsch Duo Jet, Gold Top Les Paul 59 Reissue with P90's, etc. I'd like a few more amps too like a Vox AC-30 Top Boost, Orange 50w head, Hiwatt 100 watt head, Fender Bassman, Fender Twin Reverb, Marshal Plexi, and the Holy Grail Dumble Steel String Stinger. But you know, I have champagne taste on a craft beer budget lol. Then there's analog effect pedals... Sigh.
What kind of amp and effects do you run?
October 29, 2015 10:08 p.m.
Wow. This must be what non-Magic players feel when listening to Magic players talk.
October 29, 2015 10:14 p.m.
Of course I'm gonna comment. How could I not when it's involved with guitars.
That's a pretty slick collection still. I just have a digital state line 6 spider 2 and a little Vox tube amp to practice. Both amps have built in effects that are just awesome but I do have a digitek loop pedal that I love to mess around with.
Id highly recommend a looppedal for those who want to jam, without another guitarist, so fun hahaha
October 29, 2015 10:16 p.m.
aeonstoremyliver says... #7
vault you got it! Haha!
Spank you, Caligula! Line 6 makes some cool stuff, as does Vox. I really dig Vox amps, especially their AC-30 Top Boost amps. I've considered adding a loop pedal into my rig, mainly if I ever had a solo gig. EHX has some seriously awesome loopers, but are ungodly expensive. Boss makes one that's affordable, and I'm willing to check out. I'm not a huge fan of DigiTech, but their Jam Man looper seems legit.
What model of looper do you have and is it easy to use? Pros/cons?
October 29, 2015 10:26 p.m.
GreenGhost says... #8
I'm not much into the collecting piece, but good on you for getting such a good deal.
October 29, 2015 10:32 p.m.
That's exactly the one I got aeonstoremyliver the jam man looper, works pretty damn awesome, has decent storage to save some loops with the ability to layer your loops right on the fly. Pretty nifty for being a cheaper one on the market.
And it's quite easy to use, even has a built in click track to keep your loops tight and then you can adjust the loop interval from there. It's a slick little rig.
October 29, 2015 10:55 p.m.
It's so hard to find a good guitar. Congrats on getting the right one.
October 29, 2015 10:56 p.m.
I play tuba... -_-
I'm kidding (about not being amused) congrats on your bargain.
October 29, 2015 11:17 p.m.
And here I am playing Hendrix on a Epiphone Les Paul :P
October 30, 2015 9:09 a.m.
Strat keeps making me think of Stradivarius violins, and as a violin player, my mouth keeps watering.
October 30, 2015 1:03 p.m.
Gorgosaurusrex says... #18
Nice score, HNGD! That guitar has a very similar configuration to my 1987 Ibanez 540S - Bolt on, HSS, and individual pickup selectors. Mine has a mahogany body and floating trem though. I love 80s guitars.
I would definitely get some locking tuners, but otherwise that looks like one hell of a player's guitar!
October 30, 2015 2:08 p.m.
Ewwwww, floating tremelo systems make me sad. I love string thru guitars.
October 30, 2015 3:18 p.m.
Gorgosaurusrex says... #20
My main guitar is an ESP Eclipse with a TOM bridge. It's not string through though. I love my ESP but sometimes I just need some whammy bar wankery! (that sounds wrong)
I have two other Ibanez guitars (RGs) with floating trems and a 7 string RG with a string through hard-tail bridge. Guitars with floating trems don't sound good unplugged but if you know how to work on them they're great to have!
October 30, 2015 4:10 p.m.
One thing I do miss is my LTD Stephen carpenter seven string. Seven strings are just so much fun to play around on that low b adds such a dynamic to your playing.
Hard tales are always a good second choice for me. I loathe Floyd rose systems. Ibanez edge pro is far far superior.
October 30, 2015 5:50 p.m. Edited.
aeonstoremyliver says... #22
Thanks peeps, yeah I lucked out!
I prefer tremolo or locking tremolo bridges over stop tail, as I tend to use the whammy bar a lot. Floyd Rose are super nice, as they allow for extreme dives up or down, however changing broken strings and setting them up is a royal pain in the ass! The standard trem and locking tuners are a great way to go, as it allots for open tunings and such.
TehCoopeh Jimi also used a Gibson Flying V, although the Strat was his main axe.
Tibs, you can learn!!! I started wen I was 19, a little over 15 years ago. And good horn players are rare and in high demand!!
October 31, 2015 1:23 p.m.
aeonstoremyliver says... #24
Do you folks get into effects pedals? I'd like to brief you on what I run!!! :-D
I have a Godin Solidac, Canadian made, gorgeous axe, hard rock maple body, rosewood fretboard, mahogony neck, 22 frets, HSH pickup configuration, with piezo pickups in the bridge, tremolo system with locking tuners. Rusty, the Squire Strat, and a Washburn WG-580, basswood body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard, 24 frets, Floyd Rose w locking nut, HSH pickup configuration with coil tap.
These are my 'inline' pedals, that is, I plug my guitar into them and out to the input in my Marshall Artist 4203 30 watt 1x12 combo:
Catalainbread Octapussy (octave up fuzz), Electro Harmonix USA Big Muff (circa 2001), Vox Wah, Ibanez TS09 Tube Screamer, vintage Ross compressor, tuner, Morley Volume pedal, and Rocktron Banshee Talk Box.
My modulation I run through my effects loop on the Marshall, to maintain a 'cleaner' tone. For larger gigs, I run my delay in stereo to a Hughes & Kettner 20th Anniversary Edition Tube 20 watt 1x12 combo:
Electro Harmonix Electric Mistress (flanger), Ibanez Bi-Stage Phaser, EHX Small Stone (phaser), EHX Micro Synth (analog synth), EHX Stereo Memory Man w/Hazrai (delay), and EHX The Wiggler (tube driven vibrato/tremolo).
I use an EBow on occasion. I'm looking into picking up the Catalainbread Echorec, an all analog tape delay, which is a damn good replica of the Binson Echorec (think Pink Floyd). I'm also considering adding a 'Klon Clone' via the EHX Soul Food, a fantastic transparent OD and top boost.
October 31, 2015 2:29 p.m.
Gorgosaurusrex says... #25
That's quite the collection of pedals, aeonstoremyliver. I've always been more of a "guitar-into-amp" guy and never used more than a wah or a noise gate. I do love me some OD pedals though (mostly used for boost).
How do you like that Godin? I've never played one but I've heard very good things.
My rig:
ESP Eclipse II in Snow White: Mahogany body, maple neck, ebony fretboard, Seymour Duncan Black Winter pickups (H-H). This is one of the thickest sounding guitars I've ever played, and the new(ish, 2013) Black Winters really push the tone over the top. Super full sounding with plenty of bite.
Then there's my Ibbys: 540S (mahogany/maple) with H-S-S DiMarzios (Tone Zone, Chopper, Air Norton I think), RG570 (basswood/maple) with H-H EMG 81/60, and my RG7321 (7 string, basswood/maple) with H-H Seymour Duncan JB/'59. If you can't tell I really like swapping around pickups, lol.
Pedals: Ibanez TS09 (used for an always-on boost on my amp's lead channel), Dunlop Crybaby wah, Fulltone Fat Boost (used to boost lead sections), and a ISP Decimator Noise Gate (my amp needs one).
My amp is a Peavey 6505+ 1x12 combo. Love this thing, especially with the TS09 boosting it.
Man, I could talk gear all day!
November 2, 2015 12:19 p.m.
aeonstoremyliver says... #26
Gorgosaurusrex, thanks! It's taken me quite a few years to acquire them. I also have a few I'm not using...lol.
My Godin plays like a $3,000 guitar! It listed for a grand (US dollars), and I picked it up for around $650.00. Looking at it, it's quite simplistic with a single cut away, bolt on neck, and non-carved top. BUT, the stock pickups, tone, sustain, and so forth are amazeballs! It very much has the feel and tone of a Les Paul/Paul Reed Smith, but with a unique voice. People comment and inquire of it often. I haven't played a Godin I haven't liked.
Those sound like some killer axes! I've played through a few ESPs and couldn't get past the active pickups; I don't much care for them. Mayhap I played through the low end models, as many had some fret buzz and so forth. But hey, Metallica had something right lol! I can almost say the same of Ibanez, however I've had the pleasure of playing the Satriani and Jem models. Those things played themselves!!!
I LOVE little tube amps! The headroom and natural OD you get from them are extremely appealing. Plus, in most venues, you don't NEED a 100w tube head and half stack. The point of a tube amp is the tone you get from it by cranking it and overdriving the tubes. Anyway, I digress. Is that Peavey 6505 a 'Fender' like or Brittish amp? What kind of tubes?
I've been looking at getting a 'Klon Klone,' as previously mentioned. They're almost a "tube screamer on 'roids," but a bit more. As a transparent OD, they push your amps tubes and work with your tone, also functioning as a top boost. Lead guitarist from Pearl Jam uses one, for example. It may replace your Fulltone... I highly recommend scoping out the 'Klones.' EHX has a very affordable one, others are around $150-300. The OG Klon fetches $2,000...
You may also like a compressor. My Ross adds 'pop' and color to my lead sections. Trey Anastasio from Phish uses one. The MXR Dynacomp is a fairly decent reproduction, and there are multitudes on the market.
And long live the Tube Screamer!!!
Caligula says... #2
I got a Gibson nighthawk limited edition that just plays like gold.
I've heard from my supervisor (has well over 40 guitars) old Strats are amaaaaaaazing for their tones.
October 29, 2015 9:53 p.m.