Solid Body Electric Guitars

Hi all! Let me share my opinion on this Gibson which i’ve now been a lucky owner for a little over a month. The overall presentation of the guitar can be found almost anywhere else, so I’ll concentrate on what its pros and cons are, at least according to me. So let’s start with the good news: - I really love the satin goldtop finish, so the color is really beautiful, nothing to find fault with in that regard, and the natural wood color, satin-finished back andneck are also beautiful (please note that the headstock is also in a satin finish). - The black pickup covers, machine heads and toggle switch really get along well with the goldtop finish. - The 490R and 498T pickups are Gibson’s legendary set, which is also to be found on the Custom model. The sound is here, nothing to say about it! I’ve used in in the studio (DI) and with amps (Fender Blues deluxe reissue and Marshall JCM double stack), it sounds incredible! No doubt abouth the sound, this can only be a Gibson! =) - The machine heads keep in tune, no problem. So here are the good points, and soundwise I’m very, very happy with this guitar! Now, let’s get to the not-so-positive points: - the finish is only so-so… I’ve seen worse, but the lack of a binding mcaused the goldtop finish to spill slightly at the cutaway. No catastrophe here, but not a good publicity for the brand either… - the 3-position switch often causes a small “poc” noise in the amp when you use it to switch the pickup position… If need be, you can have it repaired or even changed. - Gibson’s “protection” softcase is rather shitty, not well-thought and really unpractical. I’ve owned Tobago softcases which were way better than that. :8O: But that’s still a way for Gibson to spare money, considering a Gibson flycase costs in the 150€ range. It is also to be considered that the – less expensive – Gibson Les Paul Junior comes with a hardshell softcase, so, what’s going on!?? Well… - and finally, the one most problematic point: THE SHITTY QUALITY OF THAT GIBSON LACQUER!!! Yeah, sure it looks good… but I’ve only owned it for a little over a month and the lacquer is already starting to chip on the top, right under the pickups O.O (just where my right hand’s last two fingers rests on the guitar when I play). First this had caused the finish to shine, but now the lacquer has gone away and I can almost see the top’s maple wood!!! And I’ve been a guitarist for over 20 years and own several guitars, which means I’m in no way playing exclusively this one. If that were the case, I guess that would have happened in a mere fortnight... :8O: Oh, yeah, also I forgot to mention that this model comes without a pickguard which would have prevented the lacquer from chipping away there :oops2: (well, OK, when there’s one I always take it away, I hate playing with it ^^). This is really penny-pinching! Just as the lacquer’s thickness and quality… I know what you’ll say, it’s a thin and soft lacquer which allows the wood to breathe and so on, but I’ve owned another Gibson (a 2004 Les Paul Classic with honeyburst finish with a normal gloss finish which cost me 2000 euros) for over 10 years and it still looks brand new, which didn’t prevent the sound from getting better with time! And it’s seen many a rehearsal, show in violent and muggy situations, tours in a hot car, truck, train and so on… And it’s still like new…! So, what’s the reason!!!??? I can even add thay I also own a 1994 cherryburst Epiphone Les Paul Standard with a “normal” gloss lacquer, which is also like new!!! And it’s seen even more than my 2004 Gibson Les Paul classic..! That’s just crazy!! I bet that within a few months, my goldtop will be looking like an overused vintage guitar from the 60s… So no problem as to its sound, this guitar is great..! vI’m currently recording an LP with it and it sounds awesome! (almost better than with my 2000 euro 2004 Les Paul Classic!! :8O: ). But as to its finish, the manufacturer’s penny-pinching policy (such as the pickguard) is really what I’ll call f***ing up… for a guitar which costs almost 800 euros, it hurts! So, I’m satisfied with it, but I had to say my discontent as to this Gibson lacquer problem (sure it DOES let the wood breathe, as there’s almost no lacquer at all…) An advice if you’re after one (granted, it was a 2013 limited edition which is now almost impossible to find but who knows ^^): - put a Les Paul pickguard on it, or have it installed by a repairman as it takes drilling two holes for the screws in the guitar’s body. This way you’ll avoid what I’m going through… - Take great care of it using a Gibson polish and other cleaning products from them - Buy a solid flycase to protect it when travelling or storing it (or you can make one yourself like I did, buying parts from Conex) It’s a great guitar with a beautiful finish, but which is too fragile… I don’t regret buying it, but I have to find a way to stop this lacquer from wearing out (and hide the result from it) under the pickups (having the guitar relacquered would cost at least two-third of the guitar’s price :8O: )

(Originally written by karlos/translated from Audiofanzine FR) Stratocaster-type guitar. 22 frets One-piece maple neck with rosewood fingerboard (also available with maple fingerboard). Two-piece alder body (not a three or four-piece body like other US brands) Vintage Gotoh machine heads (same look as '57 tuners) but with locking system! Classic vintage tremolo. '63-type Fujigen pickup. Mine has a white finish with a brown tortoise pickguard like depicted. Aged knobs. Very authentic vintage finish. The wood selection is clearly visible on the neck and the fingerboard. Excellent wood quality. UTILIZATION Very comfortable neck. Exactly the same shape as a Strat. Nothing to say. Aged varnish on the back. I've played many different Stratocaster models and this neck is one the best I've ever tried. It's smooth, fast and not too thick. Its shape feels perfect in my hand along the whole neck. Excellent. Very low action without any fret noise... no noise (the shop assistant says it's normal for a vintage instrument)... only audible in recordings. Fujigen developed a manufacturing patent to perfect the setting: http://www.fujigen.co.jp/en/feature/technology.asp The pickups are very surprising... I thought I would have to change them, but the unplugged sound is so good. I never thought Fujigen pickups would provide this quality. These pickups have a very low noise. I played with a fully cranked Mesa Boogie Lone Star and heard no buzz nor noise. This guitar just sounds great... If you like Strat sound you won't be able to resist its sound. SOUNDS The Fujigen provides one of the best Strat clean sounds I've ever heard. This guitar has the same manufacturing and sound quality as a custom shop model. I'm not kidding. The Mark Knopfler and David Gilmour crystal-clear clean sound is perfect. The distortion sound has mellow lows and aggressive highs. Ultra versatile. The pickups are very responsive and they don't limit the dynamic range, unlike some Noiseless models (I played them three years). This guitar provides the Stratocaster sound of the 60's. OVERALL OPINION I've owned it for three months and I had been looking for such a guitar for years. If I had found it earlier, I wouldn't have bought and sold countless guitars that provided neither the looks, nor the playing feel, nor the sound I was looking for. Users normally exaggerate about their gear, but I honestly recommend every guitarist to give this brand a try. The value for money is great. The guitar is sold with a high-quality gig bag (its shockproof and also made by Fujigen). Japan makes great guitars. Fujigen should be better known. I believe they also make Steve Vai's guitars (the Jem model). They also have Jazz bass and Telecaster models. This Neo Classic is just excellent.

I discovered this little wonder by pure chance… and I essentially was conquered by its look ! I know, how weak of me… Now, you must admit that its flame top red finish and golden hardware do look great! You have to see and touch it with your own eyes and fingers to believe it. Before going further, a little bit of context : this was the very first time I’d touched such a guitar, as from my youth I’d always been used to humbucker-equipped and Les Paul-shaped instruments while never having an opportunity to have a Fender – whatever the model. So this is an all new trip for me - yeepeee ! :-D The first contact is a bit strange : le neck is narrow and somehow thick (not a pickaxe handle either, but clearly more narrow than a LP neck), with a very pronounced D-shaped (yes, I know they call it “Thick C”, but to me this is clearly more of a D as the middle flattens out). Needless to say I have to take my marks and learn how to play again! This neck’s main asset compared with what I’ve previously experienced is that it seems extremely rigid and sturdy, at least it seems really reliable and I believe this Strat to be able to be taken on a tour with no major problem. Plus, its satin finish makes your life easy while playing (even really fast). The only cons I could find to this neck is the way the medium-jumbo frets feel as they’ll slow you down… I must express my utmost disappointment to the Japanese luthers responsible for this betrayal that blocks the way to the Mountain of Ultimate Kawai Perfection! :oops2: :oops2: This guitar’s overall workmanship shows a great level of care, I found no fault in its lacquer or problems with the neck/body junction, no screw that juts out or anything like that, so no problem at all – except that with the aforementioned frets (which can easily be solved using a nail file). The ash body is covered with a maple flame top. Its resonance frequency seems to be lower than the usual alder used on many a classic Strat, which in the end seems to result in a mellower sound, at least playing it unplugged. The glossy dark red finish lets the maple’s grain show for a beautiful result, and what to say of the pearloid white pickguard which reflections remind of a spring morning with blossoming cherry trees… :8O: :bave: Well, you see what I mean, huh!? :bravo: The harwdware also seems flawless, though I’d prefer a more massive bridge: this one is the hyperclassic Fender model that seems quite correct and lets you set each string’s height and length, but I would have appreciated something more innovative – especially considering the price! The Gotoh tuners are not locking tuners, but so far I haven’t had any problems with the guitar’s ability to stay in tune. It seems to be able to stay in tune for a whole playing session, unless you use the vibrato to extreme length of course but even then for non-locking tuners the result is still quite good. Of course it won’t allow you the kind of extreme things a Floyd would, but it brings its own magic, just like the rest… Soundwise finally, I have hardly a reliable point for comparaison but the three DiMarzio single coil pickups seemed true to the sound I was expecting : that of David Gilmour, whom I’ve been listening to since I was 10 years old, but also that from early Dire Straits, and finally of course the immense Jimmy Hendrix. In a nutshell, I find the sound to have well enough bite on attacks, exactly as I like, plus the whole has a whole lotta punch in the mids – so no problem for playing solos, it’s help you stand out in the mix like a real guitar hero and now I understand why such a guitar made history, from Jimmy the great to Malmsteen and many others… I personally only go fingerplaying, and even then no problem, the sound stands out clearly even among a dozen pad synth sounds, a huge bass and a crazy drummer :-D. Each and every note can be heard even with a huge overdrive, which in itself borders to miracle. Special kudos to pickup position 2 for its clean sounds, arpeggios and even basic rhythm sounds, and to the last one for the ear-piercing solos it helps deliver! The DiMarzios are relatively silent, even if at the highest volume settings on a tube amp you tend to get interference here or there, but nothing too problematic. Plus, what would an electric guitar be without the accompanying noise? This is part of the sound’s “life” if I may say, of its dirty, vulgar, naughty and unpredictable aspect that no sampler can ever dream of capturing! Of course, the pickups will never deliver as much power as humbuckers, so the overdriven sounds won’t ba as heavy-sounding as they would with humbuckers or active ceramics pickups such as EMGs, but frankly, who cares? If you want a huge overdrive, just use a transparent booster (if you like your amp’s natural overdrive and don’t want to change anything to your sound), or a preamp or overdrive, and here you go! :bravo: So, overall? I put one star away for the fret problem, the very classic and thin metal bridge (don’t worry, it will stand time but I would have preferred something more massive like those you find on some basses from the brand, the aptly-named HiMass)… plus, for the fact that the guitar is provided “as is”, without a case or even a bag, this is really stingy of you Mr. Fender! :oops2:

This model celebrates the anniversary of the very first Stratocaster model. It was manufactured with carefully selected materials and benefits from a "Heavy Relic" aging process that evokes decades of use, abuse and pronounced wear. Available once in a decade! I wanted this one at all cost! The one-piece body is made of ash (rare, just like in ’54), after that the bodies were made of 2 or 3 parts glued together (to cut costs, obviously). A bone nut (and you quickly see the difference with a plastic-nut-equipped standard strat – soundwise, regarding resonance and also visually). The body features an aged finish with nitrocellulose lacquer. The color is Dirty White Blonde – which is superb. The one-piece neck is made of quartersawn maple with a comfortable U profile (as was the case in 1954): finally a neck that perfectly fills your hand!!! It features a tainted lacquered finish. The maple fingerboard features a 9,5" radius and 21 “6105” frets for modern playing specs. The three, single coil, Custom shop ’54 pickups deliver a nice sound worthy of that time period. Other specs include a modern 5-position selector, aluminium “anodized gold” pickguard, (which was Leo Fender’s original intent, which he finally gave up for a cheaper plastic pickguard), a 6-saddle synchronized vibrato bridge with a numbered back plate, and vintage-style tuners with gold relic hardware. Comes with : Tweed Case with embroided « 60 anniversary » logo, custom shop certificate and all that comes with it ! In a nutshell, it’s Fender suctom shop quality (that is the best of wood and electronics), with an unbelievable tune keeping ! The neck is just a dream! I’d never played on a U profiled one before and I wonder how I could live all this time without playing one of these. A real man’s neck, you feel the wood. The best neck I’ve ever played!!! If you like ultra-thin, shredder necks ala Ibanez, this is not for you! The finish of the back of the neck without the (relic) nitro lacquer is still covered with an ultra-thin satin lacquer, which allows to slide very easily – really good custom shop work! It provides different feelings, a bit disturbing for a start but which soon turn pleasant and soft, you’ll love it. Addiction comes fast! It doesn’t stick nor catches on, the touch is very natural, as close to the wood as it gets and believe me, you soon develop a taste for it. Now, hyper-lacquered necks look to me as if they were made of plastic! The jumbo frets are thicker than on a usual strat (but it perfectly comes along with the neck). The original 5-position switch is perfect for a wider sound palette. The woods involved for the body and neck are of an excellent quality, and most important they’re perfectly dried. Hence, the guitar is rather on the light side (and doesn’t hurt your back). Perfectly ergonomic, like all good old stratos. Excellent dynamics on a tube amp (I play a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe 3 and it’s great !) I feel that I’ve finally found THE sound I’d been after for over 20 years!!! I mostly play Blues, Rock and Funk. (no metal) Effectwise, i only use an Okko overdrive, a slight delay and here we go! It delivers heavy sounds for Blues and on sounds ala Dire Straits, Gilmour, SRV, Hendrix (of course) and all these good ol’years! Now I’ve sold all my guitars except for two: my new ’54 Relic Strat and my ’96 Gibson Les Paul Standard – I need nothing else now! (I’d always dreamt of saying this!) Original ’54 Strats are impossible to find now, and even it you chanced to find one it would cost a good 150,000 bucks! This answers the question, at least it does for me. I’m no Jean-Pierre Danel to own an original pre-production ’54, but I’m quite happy with this one! This reissue model is an ideal compromise, plus it won’t get lost in the (long) list of custom shop models (you could get lost in it!) as it’s a limited edition custom shop strat made only for 2014, for Fender’s 60th anniversary! And I can tell you that for this 60th anniversary, Fender has been particularly attentive to each and every detail! A very good value for money, it’s worth more than its original 4,300€ price tag. In Canada in 2014, it was worth 5,500€ ! I totally understand not everyone can afford it, but after waiting for 20 years you can give yourself a treat ! (I’m 41). I’m in love with the ’54 model since I’ve turned 18, for me it’s THE ONE model to own for all Stratocaster fans and collectors. The relic is surprisingly realistic, you either like it or not, my wife was even frightened looking at the guitar ! Well, I like it, and for others you’ll just have to play it to love ot! Now i can finally say “stop”! Let’s stop goofing around, this is the realm of REAL guitars, those you keep a lifetime, those that make your hands shake when you open their case and remind you how much you love it each and every time you play it.

Disclaimer : I’m writing this review although I’ve only owned this instrument since September 30th, I’ll come back to edit it in the future with a little more perspective. Ergonomy : it’s a LES PAUL with traditional weight relief, which still makes it a rather heavy guitar. Like all LES PAUL it’s not comfortable to play sitting, a strap is required or it loses balance. The new neck slides very well, very easy to play. What surprised me is the very, VERY LOW action. And no buzz!!! It will take me a little time to get used to it I guess, as I’m used to higher actions. The fingerboard is soft, seems like it’s been waxed or something. I like this flat neck, not really rounded in the back, it reminds of my first, Korean-made EPIPHONE NIGHTHAWK. Gibson claims it to be a SLIM TAPER 60 profile but I own two other guitars with that neck profile and they’re obviously not the same. The neck is wide, a real pleasure to play bends. Pickups are very close to the strings, especially the bridge one. The Stop Bar is very high. The Vintage Cherry finish is PERFECT. Beautiful binding. The top is not exceptional but it looks great. The lacquer’s not sticky – great! The volume and tone knobs seem a bit light, shaking quite a lot when splitting, I’m afraid they won’t last long. Time will tell. G Force tuners. A great thing to me, but I’m gonna be called a heretic… Anyway, one must admit it does the job in an impressive manner. Unlike other users, I didn’t have to change the strings, they are fine and match my usual (regular) gauge. No problem getting in tune. Yellow-brownish case… ‘nuff said: Gibson is a real contender for a bad taste medal. At least, it seems sturdy. CLEAN SOUNDS: splitted, the 57s sound good on my Fender amp’s clean channel, doesn’t sound as bright as my STRAT but not bad, I’ll give it 7 ouf of 10. Special kudo for the mid position, not exaggerated. Rhythm sounds CAN be considered – for real. CRUNCH SOUNDS : I love the neck pickup, it sounds deep and fat, it’s not sharp but that’s not what he’s expected to be anyway. In the mid position, you’re starting to get a little more precision and highs, starting to boost. In bridge position, lower the highs, sound is a bit shrilly for my taste. OVERDRIVE : watch out ! A real kill, and an overkill with the BOOST added. Everything gets sharp, deep and biting. Great ART. The LES PAUL sings, harmonics whistle, BEAUTIFUL and quite hard to describe. Special kudo for the neck pickup which I didn’t expect to be that good. The bridge one is VIOLENT – be warned! THE FINAL WORD : to me this 2015 edition is just exceptional, the appearance is good but nothing special, yet the whole keeps its attractive features and even adds some (G Force). In my opinion, it has one of the best value-for-money on the market, especially when considering resale price.

Guitar made in Korea. Mahogany body 3-piece Mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard, ESP Locking Tuners (based on Schaller M6) and Earvana compensated nut for better intonation Abalone "flags" inlays 24 frets 2 humbuckers: 1xEMG81 bridge and 1xEMG60 in the neck Gold hardware with TonePros bridge and T3B-T TonePros T1Z tailpiece 3 positions switch , 2 volumes and a common tone BUILT QUALITY The neck is a very playable, pretty flat and rather wide but not too thin. Diapason is 24 3/4, and the guitar has 24 frets. I do not have huge hands, but with the cutaway, it's easy to get to the last frets. The action is very low (if the guitar is properly set up!). Also it's not too heavy, but it is not light either.The body is comfortable in a sitting position and overall the guitar is relatively well balanced. The two volume knobs and the tone knob are easy to reach. Note that the volume knob of the bridge pickup is set before the one of the neck pickup (since we supposedly use it more often!). The tone control is shared by both pickups. These knobs are very progressive and of very good quality, just like the 3 positions pickup selector. When you do not play, the EMGs are dead quiet, which is a nice change from the DiMarzio and Seymour Duncan I have mounted on my other guitars! TONE I tried this guitar on quite a few amps, not to convince myself of its built quality, because if you play it unplugged you'll hear it has a very good sustain, but to test the versatility of the EMG 60/81. So I played it alternatively through a Fender Twin, a Vox AC30, a Marshall JCM900 and finally a Dual Rectifier :-D. Honestly, to my great surprise, it sounded better than I expected ... So to all those who say that EMG is only making pickups for metalheads, then perhaps they should get their head round the use of volume and tone on a guitar! ESP did a great job in that respect in the sense that the knobs truly react to minute adjustements and allow players to make these very subtle variations that make all the difference. Obviously on a Rectifier with the distortion crancked, even a muppet chas no problem unleashing the sonic violence of the uni-finger power-chord of death! :facepalm: If you play clean tones, backing up the volume on the EMG 60 a little will somewhat bring you back into the passive pickup territory, though tone wise it's going to remains way more "articulate" or clinical, in the typical fashion of active pickups. Honestly fiddling with the tone, and two volume controls, and of course the EQ on the amp, one can really get almost any type of tone! you can go from a single coilish type of sound (a mix of the 2 pickups) that is good for funk or soft passages to a jazzy type of sound, and I even managed to get tones quite reminiscent of a folk guitar! When I played on the Vox, again, using the volume and tone, I got very good crunch tones that were quite vintage sounding, while maintaining a clear attack (EMG inside!). To put it in a nutshell, plug into the proper amp (that certainly does help a lot!), and it's really not that difficult to get the tone you're after! For the sake of clarity though, the guitar is mouted with EMGs, so it is obvious that it will never sound as vintage as guitars that were made for that purpose. And yes, EMGs excels on distorted tones. That being said, given the built quality, just mount a pair of Alnico II pro on it and you'll get a very different type of beast at home! OVERALL OPINION When I walked in the shop, it was initially to buy a Gibson Les Paul Custom or Tokai Premium. I had the budget for it, and was looking for intrumentsa in the 3000 to 4000 euros range ... but like any other guitarist out there whenever I see a cool looking guitar, I juts can't help but trying it! I have been playing for almost 20 years now and I have owned many good to excellent guitars (to name but a few: Fender U.S. and Mex, Jackson Soloist, Gibson SG Standard, Godin LGX and Artisan STVI, Lag Roxanne and Hardmaster etc.). All this to say that I expect a certain level of craftsmanship and quality. Through the years I've also learned to see beyond the famous names in the industry. Actually on that day, I played two Fujigen/Japanese FGN that sounded absolutely awesome ... but they were a little too heavy for me unfortunately. I had never ever paid any attention to LTD before playing that EC-1000. Actually I assumed LTD was on par with Squier, Epiphone and the likes, meaning instruments of rather poor built quality. Well, what a surprise, I had it all wrong! :oops2: So for those of you who are wondering, no offense intended to all Gibson fanboys , I have spent some time comparing the LTD and a Gibson Standard side by side and my verdict is that quality-wise, they are in all respects comparable. The chief difference is that the LTD is nearly half the price of a Standard! And even if we were to compared it to her bigger sister, the ESP Eclipse, it's still very, very close (some slight "embellishments"). Tone-wise, the EC1000VB sounds a bit less "fat" that a Gibson mounted with EMGs but on the other hand it offers a clearer and more articulated tone, which is good thing if you down-tune your guitar. The Eclipse still refines this feeling a tad further (probably due to quality of the woods used), but in the end it's rather subtle and if we leave the aesthetics aside, tone-wise I don't think it's worth an extra 500 euros for it ... unless you have bat ears maybe ...or if you spend a lot of time recording in studio! So to sum it up, the LTD EC1000VB is a "weapon of choice", and it proved very versatile too. It's a tad lighter than a Les Paul (and it feels so after a few hours playing it). It has 24 frets and a simple but excellent built quality. Mine is flawless. All this for 900 euros (or 600ish if you get it second-hand)! With my initial budget I would certainly have been able to buy a nicer looking guitar (but not necessarily with a better finish) but I like to keep my feet on the ground. For what I had in mind, unless I had decided to go down the luthier route, there was no justifying spending that much more on an industrially made guitar! It seems that these days Korea & Japan offers similar deals to Japan & U.S. a few years ago. To put it simply, with this EC1000VB, ESP/LTD brings you a (nearly) high -end guitar, when competitors only get you one in the mid-range ... Hey! For once we're not being taken for fools! :8O: So unless you buy a guitar thinking about its resale value or to hang it to a wall and watch it illuminate the room ;), in which case you should clearly get your hands on a Gibson Custom or something equivalent, if you're like me and need a flawless instrument that will be played and carried around, this LTD is a super deal! And when your budget is well above its price tag like it was for me, with what you have saved, you can just splurge on a few pedals or even a nice new amp! ... And you have absolutely no excuse to skimp on a flight case! Thank you Mr. ESP!

My second PMC Blast! My sweet 667! Finally, instead of being a clone of my Blast 666, itself being a variation of the Blast "series" (see my review on those two guitars) is a variation of the Blast "Black Maple": the neck is made of flamed maple, oiled, translucent black dyed, and H/S pickups configuration. Since about 2005, I had in mind to have two almost Siamese twin guitars, with fixed bridge, one with EMGs, the other with a sustainer and something other than EMGs. Yes! This project was frozen for a lot of reasons, but then, about a year ago, we gave it a go again. When the Blast model came out, it was decided, I'd get twin Blasts, and nothing else! Almost one year later, the 666 and 667 are in! The specs: -1 piece African mahogany body, with a rather very cool shape, sizing roughly like a Washburn N4. -Black finish-dyed, waxed and oiled. -Top notch ergonomics and body contour (heel carved for easy access to the upper frets, tummy and forearm cut). -1 piece bolt on flame maple neck, with two carbon fiber rods, two way adjustable trussrod, volute reinforcement. -Neck in see through black finish and oiled: ultra comfortable, nothing can compare to the outstanding feel of the wood. And this see through black finish is rather unusual, though definitely cool, on a neck! -Thick ebony heel, this is uncommon too, and soooo cool! -Thick ebony board, round fretboard end. -Scale 25''1 / 2. - Electronics back cover in mahogany, closing with magnets: farewell screwdriver to change batteries! -Medium jumbo frets with hidden feet (that's attention to details!). -Grover 406BC locking tuners. -Fixed Hipshot.125 string through bridge. -SP Custom hand wound Chaosland 2.5 bridge, Fernandes Sustainer FSK-401 neck. -One volume knob ,one 3 way toggle switch, placed further away from the bridge, and the Sustainer controls: intensity pot, on off switch and mode selector switch. -Flushmount Dunlop Straplok and output jack. -Metal pickup rings. -Graphtech Tusq nut. -Luminlay side dots (it's cool, it glows in the dark). -"JG667"carved at the back of the headstock, and filled with padauk, the little goodie PM made! Plenty of challenges for PM for this guitar. - I had in mind a replica of Jackson / Caparison. PM managed to convince me it was better to get one of his own model, and I must admit the Blast looks gorgeous in any way.! This design is gorgeous, PMC has given a real personality to his instruments. - Have a no thrills though classy look: Success! - Have flawless ergonomics: Success! - Have a comfortable neck, which immediate handling: Success! - Slap all the electronics, and there’s a lot with the sustainer, and the battery in a standard electronic route, leaving the knobs quite away from the bridge, so that everything falls to hand, but without interfering with my right hand when playing. I hate when controls are too close to the bridge: Success ! UTILIZATION For this section, I'll do a copy paste of my review of its twin, the 666. Well yes, they're both Blast! The neck is to die for: immediate handling, no adaptation in sight. That's superb job. Flat without excess, neither too thick nor too flat. An incredible compromise, far from the Ibanez Wizard ruler, far from Gibson's log. A bit like my good old Lag (I can blame them for a few things, still the comfort of their necks is exceptional),Washburn N4, or USA Jackson (not the horrible MIJ rulers like the DK2). The ergonomics are flawless: between the bevels, contours, the flat bridge, knobs are not stupidly too close to the bridge, there's no mistake here. The guitar is well balanced, with a rather small body (a bit like the Washburn N4, the ESP Horizon). But rather thick (that's for the good vibes!) In short, well balanced, flawless ergonomics, incredible woods, you literally become one with the guitar, I had not felt this way since ... wow ... in fact, I never felt that with a guitar! That's it, I'm just über satisfied and happy with my Blast! I dig my Blast! SOUNDS So there is the difference between my Blast 666 and my Blast! And it was the idea :o) Currently, I play on a Fractal Audio Axe Fx Ultra (which replaces with no regrets a Engl E570 and a floor full of pedals), either straight into Fostex PM-0.5 mkII monitors or plugged into a VHT / Fryette 2/50/2 and a VHT / Fryette at Bottom 2x12. Holly cow, what a sound! The 666 and 667 differ from the wood used for the necks (padauk vs maple) and the pickups. Where I am on a familiar ground with the 666, its EMGs, the 667 was a little unknown. SP Custom Chaosland 2.5 is an excellent surprise. A revelation. I've had (and sometimes suffered) a whole lot of passive pickups. To always go back to EMG. Not this time! SP Custom know their job! Oooh yes they do! This 2.5 is the same as the one installed on Scarve's axeman's Blast (yes, I am a groupie). Output level is rather high (more than a EMG 81)! On PM’s Bogner Extasy, the Chaosland had such a high output the clean channel crunched, where the EMG passed without difficulty. On my Fractal, it remains clean (ok, I moved the Chaosland down in its route to have less output too). The Chaosland is absolutely organic, singing, where the 81 give hand, even in 18v. Harmonics all the way, you get artificial harmonics very easily, way more easily than with my usual EMGs!!! This pickup is just awesome! Its clean is ok, though you fell it just want to bark in high gain, but, again, on my Fractal, it works well. In crunch, we feel that the pickup is at ease. Organic, singing, while remaining sharp. In heavy distortion, omfg! I am totally conquered! Still, the Chaosland is not as sharp as the EMG 81. Still, the Chaosland owns the 81 on all other domains. To the point that I’m going to replace all my axes equipped with EMGs by SP Custom pickups! Oooh yes!! I can not believe I just said that ... Now the FSK-401 sustainer. As a simple single coil, it is not as bad as I expected. This is not best single coil ever, far from it, there are way tastier single coils on the market. And yet it is obvious that I'm not a reference in single coils. But it is still usable. An attack that’s typical of single coil, with no awful hum. It suits me, although I always grin when I listen to a good old Duncan SSL1 for instance, or most Kinman. Ok I’m just learning how to use the sustainer! So for now, either I'm playing with larsen (5th harmonic) on demand, or I am experimenting pretty funny sounds using my Fractal’s presets, giving eerie atmospheres, synth like sounds, etc. Uber funny! But I am far from mastering the sustainer! OVERALL OPINION Oooh well, I can't say anything else. I dig this guitar! A simple guitar, yet beautifully done, full of little details (like the gorgeous flamed maple neck with its ebony heel, black is beautiful!). Hyper selected woods and rich, without frills. The feel of the wood, that you can't have on any mass production guitar. The body plank come from the same timber as body of the Blast made for Scarve's guitarist, Patrick, my idol and a cool mate! PM's follow up, with an impressive package of pictures, throughout the creation of my guitars, the visits to the workshop, PM's warmth and friendliness, and those incredible BBQs at PM, duck breast grilled on maple and mahogany embers! (it's an option hey :o) ). Wow, exceptional moments, to end up with an equally exceptional guitar! Well I got to go playing with my guitar now! I want more PMC now!

I use it with a Toneking Imperial and a blackstar Ht1R. I mostly play blues, rock and Jazz with it. It’s just excellent for theses styles. The satin GoldTop finish is up to anyone’s taste, I really love it. The P90s pickups sound awesome, I can’t believe mye ars. To me, these single coil pickups sound way better than the Casino Elitist’s doghears. As a fan of my Gibson 339’s 50SR / 50TR humbuckers, I find these pickups particularly expressive in clean sound and very, very convincing on crunch and overdriven sounds. The bridge and neck pickups are just plain great to me. Plugged on a small 1-watt Blackstar amp, it’s already terrific. On the ToneKing… I’m left speechless! The sound is very organic. It twangs really hard, even though the word is usually reserved to describe the Telecaster sound. Its “Slim 60” neck is very comfortable to my average-sized hands. I immediately felt at ease playing it. You can feel the paint won’t last long. But it’s almost new, and that ain’t a problem to me considering the instrument’s sound. It’s very light, which isn’t to be taken lightly when you play for several hours. Apart from the paint, its main cons is its tuners. They don’t keep the guitar in tune very well. I’m to replace them very soon. Overall, it’s a really comfortable instrument with a great expressiveness, for a used price which is quite reasonable. I’ll put 5 stars to it as the most important is here. I recommend it with no hesitation. It’s comfortable and generous, with a guaranteed thrill!

I was lucky enough to own this guitar for a few weeks ; not long after, I sol dit ! Specs: asymatric mahogany body, black painting with golden effects as if it had been painted carelessly (a custom painting typical of the late 80s!!), three Seymour Duncan pickups (Trembucker humbucker & Tremstack humbucker in single coil format), Floyd Rose-style “Hamer” tremolo bridge made in Germany by Schaller, a 24-fret maple neck with ebony fretboard and boomerang-shaped moter of pearl inlays (I’d been looking for one like this for ages!), head reminiscent of that of a Gibson Explorer, 1 volume, 1 tone, 1 5-position selector. The guitar is very well-made, from the screws to the neck and from the head to the boomerang inlays!! Since it has no maple top to compensate for the heavy, dense sound of mahogany, this guitar offers a very typical sound, heavy and dense. In clean sound on the main pickup positions, is sounds very midrangy (even a little too much to my taste!!), on the intermediate positions you get the typical sound of a Strat!! This guitar sounds good for studio takes, but I didn’t like its sound, either too midrangy and heavy with a lack of highs, or too dry and Strat-like. To me, this guitar didn’t sound balanced enough. I prefer guitars with a mahogany body and maple top, a construction which provides more balanced sounds in the attacks and a more defined sound. But to say the truth, I prefer alder which is sonicwise much better balanced than mahogany: no neef to add a maple top, alder sounds naturally balanced!! To get back to this test, the neck is very easy to play – rather thin, and with a very good fretwork. The electronics’ wiring was well executed. Just look at the picture, I didn’t change a thing!! This guitar dates back from the 90s and you can see how carefully it was crafted. The wiring and quality of the onboard components (with even “hamer”-stampes pots!!), the carving to rest the neck within the body (even on the Korean-made Slammer model it is very well done!), the boomerang-shaped fretboard inlays, the back protection plates are made of aluminium, the 3-part neck typical of U.S.-made Hamer guitars (2 of the parts go in the same direction with the middle-part going the other way to ensure a perfect stability!!). After clean sounds, let’s see the distorted ones: fat and rocky. The Trembuckers spread saturated sounds very well, it sounds really fat!! Even too much!! All in all, it’s a good guitar, well made with a quality you can’t find nowadays, except on guitars twice that price. But if I sold it, it’s because it didn’t match my needs!! I found it lacking sound balance, and for me, that was already too much!! Otherwise, it remains a legend to me – and one I was lucky enough to own !! :-D

You're bound to either love or hate it. It’s heavy and conspicuous, not the kind to leave people indifferent. Two series: 1. Gibson Explorer II : made of either American walnut or maple. You’ll easily recognize its side chamfers and colored border on the edge. Some variations with an extra color: green, white, blue, black, transluscent red and various sunburst finishes. 2. Gibson Explorer E2 (CMT): chamferless mahogany body, white binding, and most important a one-piece maple top (CMT = Curly Maple Top). The neck is not reversed – another difference with the Explorer II. Available colors include cherry sunburst, tobacco sunburst, transluscent red and natural. Both series feature a golden hardware, a TP-6 fine-tuning bridge, a black pickguard, an ebony fretboard, 2 x volume and 1 x tone controls and two DirtyFinger pickups. Black or brown case included. It delivers a heavy, typical sound. Clean sound is nice, but the guitar really expresses itself in crunchy-to-heavily-distorted sound registers. Its wooden construction, electronics and instrument finish are all high quality. It perfectly stays in tune! Not a real collector’s item, not that much sought after but still rather rare. These series sold moderately from 1979 to 1983. They never were reissued after that. Used price ranges from 800€ to 2000€ depending on the instrument’s condition. Explorer sales started to roar with the 1984 model that features a simpler style, no pickguard and a much more reasonable weight… The one FB reference page : https://www.facebook.com/GibsonExplorerII/

I'm posting this review after several weeks of owning this guitar. This guitar is manufactured in Canada. The bridge is a simple floating type bridge (not a Floyd, fortunately). To tighten it you need a very fine Allen key (I'm a fan of this system because you can leave it open or, on the contrary, block it, while with some other systems with screws or other systems, the tightening of the tremolo goes down the drain...). It has 22 frets, and Godin HSH pickups for the magnetic part, a quality piezo and a built-in GK system. The neck is rather thick (similar to a folk neck), which might throw off persons used to slimmer necks à la ESP/Ibanez. The magnetic pickups do their job fine, even if they are a bit noisy with high distortions. The machine heads are normally auto-blocking, but the tuning on mine doesn't hold long, especially on the famous G string. Maybe an adequate adjustment fixes this minor issue. It comes with a Schaller Strap Lock, which forces you to update your strap, but I have been strap locking almost all my guitars for some time now... So I'd say the strap lock is a good point. USE The neck is quite pleasant, once you've adapted to its thickness. It's fairly well-balanced, not too heavy (despite everything that's inside...) and access to the upper frets poses no problems. In terms of sound, it has a very characteristic acoustic and overdrive sound, the distorted sounds could be better, replacing the Godin pickups with some Seymour, for instance. The piezo sound is...wow, better than good (that's a general rule for Godin guitars). As for the synth part, I'll edit my review once I have bought the GR system (I plan to get the GR55). SOUND I play mainly rock and I get a wide array of sounds, even a pretty convincing "shredder" sound. I play mainly with a KORG multi-effects or a Blackstar pedal (directly into the console). I think once you change the pickups for some Seymour, you can play anything with it. OVERALL OPINION I've been using it for several weeks and I've had lots of different guitars. I like especially the instrument's versatility (and its three voices). On the other hand, the machine heads and the pickups are the guitar's weakest points. I bought it secondhand for €700, but it usually goes for €800-€900, and the price is quite reasonable for a guitar of this level. If I had a little more money, I would've gotten an LGXT, the model right above, to have Seymours by default and a more polished finish.

Just last month I received my Iceman inspired Helldunkel model. First impressions couldn't be better, It looks and plays exactly as you'd expect a high end guitar to. Very comfortable, plays effortlessly, has a well balanced tonal range and has all the aesthetics, hardware and extras of a premium instrument. Playing through clean, low gain or high gain tones it sounds amazing and very well defined. The pickups sound massive and the sustain is something else. It also came set up in standard tuning but had no issues tuning down to Drop C. String tension is great and tuning stability is exceptional, it handles heavy riffage and wide vibrato easily. The guitar itself is completely handmade by Patrick ( no cnc ), from a one piece Sapele Mahogany body + neck, with a beautiful Crelicam Ebony fingerboard. A Polyetheretherketone ( PEEK ) Nut. Cryogenically treated frets. It has red fingerboard block inlays ( which glow red in the dark ) and are stunning to look at. Handmade 12 poles Humbuckers, a Killswitch and Hipshot hardware. Also worth a mention how clean and meticulous all the wiring work is, all surrounded by copper shielding! In summary It's everything I expected, a handmade work of art that is as visually pleasing as it sounds. From crystal cleans to aggressive heavy gain tones! I've been a fan of Patrick's builds for some time now and I'm always blown away. He is a true pioneer in the guitar world and is every bit worth a commission if you have a custom project in mind. I've provided a few audio samples below. Clean, rhythm and lead tones for reference. As well as a full song on Youtube via the Hufschmid Guitars or Matt Tera Youtube channel!