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Pinayoos « I had a dream, PMC helped me realize it ! »
Published on 03/10/14 at 07:20Everything began during the autumn of 2013 at the reading of a dossier on French stringed instrument makers, in a specialized magazine, Guitarist & Bass magazine. The Waukesha photographed was a real shock at first sight. I then visited Pierre Marie Châteauneuf’s internet site, he’s a young “ luthier “ based near Montpellier. A first mail to ask him how to proceed, and this was the beginning of the adventure. I had a first trip in November, and started my visit testing the prototype pictured in the magazine. Then I had the honor to visit the Master’s workshop. No CNC machines here, everything is done by hand or with traditional machines (band saw, router ...). A heated room whose hydrometric is continuously monitored is used to store wood and for the instruments final assembly. In the same room begins a long and passionate discussion in order to specify the guitar and the choice of hardware, microphones, electronic components, where potentiometers, jack and toggle switch sould be located, with an eraser and a pencil, directly on the the naked neckless guitar’s plain mahogany body resting on a padded workbench.
The delivery is agreed to occur on December 9, and will be honored. Meanwhile Pierre-Marie allowed me to follow its progress with pictures of the various stages of the manufacturing process, that he sent me by mail almost on a daily basis. These pictures will be compiled on a CD that will be provided to me along with the instrument and its flight case + a Tee-Shirt a PMC logo & a few PMC picks.
UTILIZATION
Three months have passed, and the almost daily use of my PMC Waukesha Legacy confirms that the choice I made was the right one. I must say that this is a dream I had since something like forty years and Pierre-Marie succeeded in making me realize it. For the price of a top of the range industrial guitar, I play on a single model whose qualities have nothing to envy models crowned by an artist’s signature or a custom shop. Both aesthetics and sound, everything is as expected as expressed in my specifications, even more, Pierre-Marie convinced me to reason and with gentillessse regarding the choice of such a component rather than another. Many technical explanations were brought to me, we are dealing with a true professional.
SOUNDS
The Waukesha Legacy is a very nice guitar to play, comfortable and light, just over three kilos, which for a Les Paul type guitar is a feat. The name of the guitar is a tribute, since it is in the city of Waukesha, Wisconsin, that someone called Lester William Polfus was born... I find this idea quite bright too. It was designed, like all PMC instruments, to be as easy to play as to maintain. The technical specifications are on https://www.pmcguitars.com/fr/creation/guitares-electriques/106.html?task=view website but I want to clarify some specific characteristics to the Waukesha Legacy and other PMC models that leave me speechless : The plate housing the electronics is of the same essence as the body and the neck, and it is fixed with… magnets. No need of a screwdriver no more, a thumb pressure and Sesame opens the cavity whose interior is brushed with a graphite paint, which gives it the properties of Faraday cage (avoiding noise interferences, the signal is clean and pure).
The choice of SP Custom pickups (a humbucker in the bridge position and a P90 type near to the neck) gives free rein to several styles, I particularly appreciate their power.
Two carbon reinforcements and a double action truss rod with tuning access at the heel of the neck, not at the head avoiding to weaken it.
The head is completely straight and an embedded machine heads system associated to the trussrod reinforced up to the tuners allow maximum rigidity of the head. This also results in an enhanced sustain, a better chord holding + increased longevity.
The choice operated on HIPSHOT locking head machines makes tuning with a precision that I have never known before. They have a " gear ratio " of 18:1 : it takes 18 turns of the key to make the hole where the string is threaded make one turn.
No inlay on the fretboard , they are in its edge and are phosphorescent.
The translucent black finish dyed and " tru - oil" varnish is not only beautiful to the eyes, it also makes my Waukesha Legacy pleasant to touch while playing and helps to give it a very characteristic sound.
The strap locks are inlaid, another aesthetic success because when removing the strap, the body shape is not " broken " by traditional attachments that exceed, one more idea that makes the Waukesha a real original single cut solid body guitar.
OVERALL OPINION
Well, that’s real happiness for a Rock-Blues guitar player, who also affects, funk, in other words with sounds ranging from clean to good old crunch. The Waukesha Legacy is a fabulous guitar, wonderful, fantastic. Thank you to Pierre-Marie Chateauneuf for his welcoming, listening and great expertise.
The delivery is agreed to occur on December 9, and will be honored. Meanwhile Pierre-Marie allowed me to follow its progress with pictures of the various stages of the manufacturing process, that he sent me by mail almost on a daily basis. These pictures will be compiled on a CD that will be provided to me along with the instrument and its flight case + a Tee-Shirt a PMC logo & a few PMC picks.
UTILIZATION
Three months have passed, and the almost daily use of my PMC Waukesha Legacy confirms that the choice I made was the right one. I must say that this is a dream I had since something like forty years and Pierre-Marie succeeded in making me realize it. For the price of a top of the range industrial guitar, I play on a single model whose qualities have nothing to envy models crowned by an artist’s signature or a custom shop. Both aesthetics and sound, everything is as expected as expressed in my specifications, even more, Pierre-Marie convinced me to reason and with gentillessse regarding the choice of such a component rather than another. Many technical explanations were brought to me, we are dealing with a true professional.
SOUNDS
The Waukesha Legacy is a very nice guitar to play, comfortable and light, just over three kilos, which for a Les Paul type guitar is a feat. The name of the guitar is a tribute, since it is in the city of Waukesha, Wisconsin, that someone called Lester William Polfus was born... I find this idea quite bright too. It was designed, like all PMC instruments, to be as easy to play as to maintain. The technical specifications are on https://www.pmcguitars.com/fr/creation/guitares-electriques/106.html?task=view website but I want to clarify some specific characteristics to the Waukesha Legacy and other PMC models that leave me speechless : The plate housing the electronics is of the same essence as the body and the neck, and it is fixed with… magnets. No need of a screwdriver no more, a thumb pressure and Sesame opens the cavity whose interior is brushed with a graphite paint, which gives it the properties of Faraday cage (avoiding noise interferences, the signal is clean and pure).
The choice of SP Custom pickups (a humbucker in the bridge position and a P90 type near to the neck) gives free rein to several styles, I particularly appreciate their power.
Two carbon reinforcements and a double action truss rod with tuning access at the heel of the neck, not at the head avoiding to weaken it.
The head is completely straight and an embedded machine heads system associated to the trussrod reinforced up to the tuners allow maximum rigidity of the head. This also results in an enhanced sustain, a better chord holding + increased longevity.
The choice operated on HIPSHOT locking head machines makes tuning with a precision that I have never known before. They have a " gear ratio " of 18:1 : it takes 18 turns of the key to make the hole where the string is threaded make one turn.
No inlay on the fretboard , they are in its edge and are phosphorescent.
The translucent black finish dyed and " tru - oil" varnish is not only beautiful to the eyes, it also makes my Waukesha Legacy pleasant to touch while playing and helps to give it a very characteristic sound.
The strap locks are inlaid, another aesthetic success because when removing the strap, the body shape is not " broken " by traditional attachments that exceed, one more idea that makes the Waukesha a real original single cut solid body guitar.
OVERALL OPINION
Well, that’s real happiness for a Rock-Blues guitar player, who also affects, funk, in other words with sounds ranging from clean to good old crunch. The Waukesha Legacy is a fabulous guitar, wonderful, fantastic. Thank you to Pierre-Marie Chateauneuf for his welcoming, listening and great expertise.