tjon901 « Good entry Agile with P90s »
Published on 10/26/11 at 07:14Agile is one of the best entry level brands out on the market today. They are distributed by RondoMusic and they are quickly becoming well known for their quality well above their price range. The AL2000 is their lowest end LP based model but it is still a great guitar. These guitars typically come with a mahogany body and a maple neck but they have been made for so long there may be some variations in the model line. With this guitar you get the familiar setup. Mahogany body with a set maple neck. The maple neck is good for beginners because it is not as prone to breaking like a mahogany neck would be. Lots of Gibsons throughout the years have been made with maple necks for durability. The fretboard is rosewood with 22 jumbo frets. The tuners are Grovers and the bridge is a standard tune-o-matic. The pickups are two Agile P90s. The controls are the familiar layout as well with a volume and tone for each pickup. The pickups are selected with a 3 way toggle on the upper bout.
UTILIZATION
Out of the box these guitars can be hit or miss. Like all low end guitars made overseas it is a good idea to plan for a pro setup if you do not know how to set up a guitar properly yourself. A novice trying to setup a guitar can mess it up a lot worse than the factory setup. The big frets give you lots of feel and room to work. The necks on these guitars are bound now, they did not use to be so this binding helps cut down on sharp fret ends but there still are some occasionally. These guitars are pretty beefy. They are not chambered like Gibsons are nowadays so they feel like old school real Les Pauls. The weight helps the tone I feel.
SOUNDS
The P90s are really something different in a guitar of this level. There are not many 200 dollar guitars that come with P90s. This guitar may not really be made for beginners but for older people who have always wanted a nice P90 guitar but cannot afford it. Im not sure many beginners know of the great sound you can get with P90s. They are like humbuckers but with the bite and grind of single coils. They are super clear. If you are creative you can play just about any type of music on these pickups. The bridge pickup has a great crunch to it. It is perfect for classic rock. You can get a wide open ringing sound where you can hear every note in the chord clearly but they all ring together true. It is not harsh like a bridge single coil because the P90 gives it great fullness and body. The neck P90 is a classic blues tone. It is smooth but with the P90 bite.
OVERALL OPINION
If you have always been looking to try out P90s in a guitar this is a great option to get a guitar with P90s without breaking the bank. These are good solid guitars and are equal to 500 and 600 dollar Epiphones. RondoMusic is a great dealer and they will go out of their way to accomidate you if you want to return a guitar or exchange it for another. They answer all the questions they receive in a timely manner as well. If you are a beginner looking for a solid guitar or an old pro looking for some P90 crunch the AL2000 P90 model is a solid piece.
UTILIZATION
Out of the box these guitars can be hit or miss. Like all low end guitars made overseas it is a good idea to plan for a pro setup if you do not know how to set up a guitar properly yourself. A novice trying to setup a guitar can mess it up a lot worse than the factory setup. The big frets give you lots of feel and room to work. The necks on these guitars are bound now, they did not use to be so this binding helps cut down on sharp fret ends but there still are some occasionally. These guitars are pretty beefy. They are not chambered like Gibsons are nowadays so they feel like old school real Les Pauls. The weight helps the tone I feel.
SOUNDS
The P90s are really something different in a guitar of this level. There are not many 200 dollar guitars that come with P90s. This guitar may not really be made for beginners but for older people who have always wanted a nice P90 guitar but cannot afford it. Im not sure many beginners know of the great sound you can get with P90s. They are like humbuckers but with the bite and grind of single coils. They are super clear. If you are creative you can play just about any type of music on these pickups. The bridge pickup has a great crunch to it. It is perfect for classic rock. You can get a wide open ringing sound where you can hear every note in the chord clearly but they all ring together true. It is not harsh like a bridge single coil because the P90 gives it great fullness and body. The neck P90 is a classic blues tone. It is smooth but with the P90 bite.
OVERALL OPINION
If you have always been looking to try out P90s in a guitar this is a great option to get a guitar with P90s without breaking the bank. These are good solid guitars and are equal to 500 and 600 dollar Epiphones. RondoMusic is a great dealer and they will go out of their way to accomidate you if you want to return a guitar or exchange it for another. They answer all the questions they receive in a timely manner as well. If you are a beginner looking for a solid guitar or an old pro looking for some P90 crunch the AL2000 P90 model is a solid piece.