Larrivée RS-4 80's

These Larrivee guitars are straight out of the handbook/ playbook of the 80s guitarist. These look sound and feel exactly like someone from the 80's would play. It has a defined 80s look and 80's sound which isn't bad but it is very particular to the 80's style of music that you would think or believe to hear this guitar.

UTILIZATION


These guitars features a humbucker pickup in the bridge and then a single coil and another single coil in the middle in the neck positions. It also has a volume control knob any tone control knob as well as a pick up selector. I really like the headstock on this guitar because it's a pointy head stock which makes me really think about the 80 styles of hair metal music. It has 22 frets and is a pretty long scale length neck. Overall it is a very impressive looking guitar to me.


SOUNDS


This guitar is a cool guitar when you play with the nice high gain amplifier such as a Marshall amplifier or something like that. Also and ADA preamp would work well with his guitar. I'm mentioning those amps and this preamp primarily because the 80s sound is in these heavily used pieces of that equipment that they were in the 80s. This is it going to be a guitar that you can play Coldplay music with, this is something that you're going to rip out some Van Halen type of tones or some Motley Crue with.

OVERALL OPINION


I recommend this guitar to anyone he's in love with the 80s and really likes just likes to style and look at the 80's sound. These guitars are fairly hard to find, but if you're so lucky at a decent price but certainly not the prices of some modern 80s guitar style builders or custom shop builders. It is a cool guitar and something that would be an alternative to a Kramer or a Charvel.

Made in Canada by Jean Larrivee in 1987. Model RS-4
22 frets, one humbucker near the bridge, two single coils, three switches, one volume knob, tone knob
Floyd Rose tremolo with locking screws at the nut, Schaller tuners;
Through neck;so no screws or plate, ebony fingerboard

UTILIZATION

The neck is ;a dream come true. Very comfortable and fast. I have small hands. I also have a strato L series, and the neck of the Larrivée is faster.
Access to high notes is more comfortable than a Start, 
It is great to hold, well balanced the body is like a strat, comfortable. It is heavier than the strat, which adds the sustain (in addition to the through neck).

SOUNDS

The sounds are very diverse. The switches have several positions. We can go from jazz;to "Heavy" 80 years like Van Halen and others. On a Fender Deluxe and a Marshall distortion, it sounds heavy on the Humbucker. The humbucker can be switched to "single coil", and with the the middle pickup, we get a clean sound like a strat. Each pickup has an "off" position, so that you can play with the switch for a variety of sound . Tne neck pickup is very sweet, it sounds jazzy with the tone know turned down.
Because of its look, it's still a Heavy Metal guitar.
I have to say that my Start still sounds more like a 64 Start than the Larrivee!

OVERALL OPINION

I bought it new 19 years ago.
My favorite is its neck,its tremolo, and the wide range of sounds.
What I like least is its  "Heavy Metal" look. I am probably getting old.
I fell in love with the guitar when trying it in the store ( I am definitely getting old).
Excellent value for money. Selling for the equivalent of 800 euros at the time.
Today, I would not choose to buy this guitar, because I am nearly fifty and I prefer the look and the clean sound of my Start! Moreover Larrivée only produced that range from 83 to 89, the era of "guitar heroes" and 24 notes per second, so it is very rare on the second hand market. I allowed myself to comment on my instrument, because there was an input for Larrivée electric without any comment. Now there is one.