View other reviews for this product:
mooseherman
Published on 03/05/10 at 05:18
This is a guitar based on blues hero Buddy Guy's polka-dotted Stratocaster. It's made in the USA. The bridge is an American Vintage tremolo bridge, one that is often seen on Strats. The body is ash, and the neck and fretboard are maple. The guitar has 22 frets, has Gold Lace active tone control pickups with mid boost and tone control knobs. The guitar also has a master volume knob.
UTILIZATION
This guitar is actually pretty awesome. There is a ton of control to be had over the sound because of the active pickups. I've never used this type of pickup before on a guitar, so it took some time to get used to and adjust. Eventually I figured out how to effectively use the mid boost and get a good sound. The guitar plays fantastically, and is great for rock and blues, as well as some Jazz and country stuff as well. Playability is great for rhythm and soulful leads. You probably wouldn't want to shred on this guitar, but that's not what it's for anyway.
SOUNDS
This is a pretty in-your-face, raw-sounding guitar, albeit in a pleasant way. The active pickups really bring out the character of your playing to an interesting degree. The mid boost is great for changing that tone up and getting that rich, bluesy lead tone. Putting it on a Twin with a good distortion pedal (like a tube screamer) gets you a great electric blues sound, and actually does come sort of close to Buddy Guy's tone. Heavier distortions are actually a little too intense with these pickups, so I wouldn't recommend this guitar if you are going to play a louder, more intense rock music. Stick with light rock and roll and blues, or even jazz and country, and you'll be fine with this. I'm not a hundred percent sure that I would prefer this kind of sound to a regular strat (the sound really is worlds apart), but I know that there are many people who would.
OVERALL OPINION
I think that this guitar is actually pretty good for the price (usually less than a grand). I tend to be really skeptical about guitars with famous people's names attached to them, but this one was pretty impressive. While not the greatest Strat I've played, and not quite as versatile as my favorite Strat, this one has a unique character that can mostly be attributed to the active pickups, which are really a game changer. This one might not even be worth buying for most people, but I think picking it up and trying it is worth it, it's actually a pretty cool experience just to hear the difference.
UTILIZATION
This guitar is actually pretty awesome. There is a ton of control to be had over the sound because of the active pickups. I've never used this type of pickup before on a guitar, so it took some time to get used to and adjust. Eventually I figured out how to effectively use the mid boost and get a good sound. The guitar plays fantastically, and is great for rock and blues, as well as some Jazz and country stuff as well. Playability is great for rhythm and soulful leads. You probably wouldn't want to shred on this guitar, but that's not what it's for anyway.
SOUNDS
This is a pretty in-your-face, raw-sounding guitar, albeit in a pleasant way. The active pickups really bring out the character of your playing to an interesting degree. The mid boost is great for changing that tone up and getting that rich, bluesy lead tone. Putting it on a Twin with a good distortion pedal (like a tube screamer) gets you a great electric blues sound, and actually does come sort of close to Buddy Guy's tone. Heavier distortions are actually a little too intense with these pickups, so I wouldn't recommend this guitar if you are going to play a louder, more intense rock music. Stick with light rock and roll and blues, or even jazz and country, and you'll be fine with this. I'm not a hundred percent sure that I would prefer this kind of sound to a regular strat (the sound really is worlds apart), but I know that there are many people who would.
OVERALL OPINION
I think that this guitar is actually pretty good for the price (usually less than a grand). I tend to be really skeptical about guitars with famous people's names attached to them, but this one was pretty impressive. While not the greatest Strat I've played, and not quite as versatile as my favorite Strat, this one has a unique character that can mostly be attributed to the active pickups, which are really a game changer. This one might not even be worth buying for most people, but I think picking it up and trying it is worth it, it's actually a pretty cool experience just to hear the difference.