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Published on 11/02/11 at 11:44This review is for the single pickup version Intrepid guitar.
Made in Korea
Ash Body
3 piece maple bolt on neck with 15” radius. Width 2 ¼” at the nut
No inlays on the neck. Position markers on the side of the neck only
Scale Length: 28.625” 24 Jumbo Frets
Cepheus "Alpha" passive pickup with master volume. Cavity has been routed large enough to accommodate additional electronics
Cepheus "Bridge 8" Bridge
String through body
Die-cast Grover sealed tuners model GH305-18 with 18-1 ratio for fine tuning
Graphite Nut
Polyurethane Finish
Neck profile (thickness): 7/8" at the nut and 15/16" at the 12th fret
String gauges: .009, .012, .015, .022, .030, .040, .054, .072
UTILIZATION
As large as the fretboard is, it is surprisingly easy to play, and it actually sounds pretty good. The hardware is not top-notch, but it is quality designed, and with good materials. The upper fret access is good, and the string spacing is such that I can get my hands all the way to the bottom string with ease. One thing that might throw some people off is the 28.625 inch scale length - it helps a ton with clarity on the low end, but the added length might cause difficulty with people with short fingers or smaller arms.
SOUNDS
This thing can absolutely djent with the best of them! It has a great, thick rumble, but with the scale length, all chords and notes have a good separation and are well defined. The fact that the body is ash with strung through body, and the neck is maple bolt on, certainly helps the clarity overall. That's actually my favorite wood combination, so I was stoked to get this guitar! The pickup is actually something I would take off and use in something else - as a budget pickup, that surprised the heck out of me.
OVERALL OPINION
This guitar performs solidly. It can do the Meshuggah, After The Burial, Animals As Leaders-inspired djent metal tones with ease. It may be a bit too different-looking to pass for jazz, and the fact that it doesn't include a neck pickup doesn't help that fact. But, all in all, this is an absolute steal for anyone that wants to be more experimental with their music. I highly recommend this guitar for metal/experimental guitarists.