best guitar set-up

[jimothyg]

im gonna go for my gibson xplorer with humbuckers and a jackson neck as the best ive played...or a maton...what do you think? :

[stockNAfairlane]

I bought an old Ibanez, absolutely chomps anything ive ever heard has the nicest sound. Seriously i have had a Gibson SG, a few other Ibanez's and played lots of different guitars but i would take my cheapo '76 Ibanez over them all! I don't know why but it sounds good through every amp ive played it on.. just a freak guitar.

[SpooN XL]

My favorite guitar is my Belman Double cutaway. Hand made in Melbourne the coolest sounding guitar I have ever owned. http://www.belmanguitars.com/



My Peavey Wolfgang ranks pretty high as well.


I will try and take some pictures of my other toys over the weekend.

[HLC]

Originally Posted by jimothyg

im gonna go for my gibson xplorer with humbuckers and a jackson neck as the best ive played...or a maton...what do you think? :

OMG DONT.

well the Explorers come standard with humbuckers. but PLEASE DO NOT swap the neck for a jackson one. The gibby's go fine. if you want a jackson neck, buy a jackson.

that being said, my SG is absolutely badarse.

[muppet]

Well what is the ultimate guitar set-up is a bit of a subjective thing . It depends on what sort of music you want to play . I mean my set-up is not going to be much use to anyone that is playing acoustic ballads . I also think that you get used to the guitar you have , and when you play any other guitar for the first time it feels a bit strange . I have picked up guitars that cost $4000 before and thought they were rather ordinary compared to my guitar that cost $1500 .
But anyhow here is my set-up .
Jackson dkmgff (Japan) double locking Floyd rose with emg hz's
ada mp1 tube preamp with a 3tm mod (there are only 3 of these in Australia , it only cost me $550 )
Marshall 9005 50 + 50 watts tube power amp (this only cost me $450)
peavy 4x12 5150 quad box ($400)
Now I play metal so that means distortion is the main thing I am after . The amp set-up I have cost me less than $1500 and I would gladly put it up against anything that you can buy now that would cost 5 or 6 grand more . I am not saying that it would sound better than these amps that cost 6 and 7 thousand dollars , what I am saying is that it sounds just as good for far less money. I get a lot of comments about how good my distortion sound is and people cant believe me when I tell them how much my rig cost .

[The Monty]

Even though I play Bass, Ill add my contribution. My chosen Combo is:
Guitar: Ibanex SR500
Head: Nemesis 320 Watt Amp
Cab: Nemesis 410 500W RMS Quad
Pedal: Zoom BFX708II


I played some really expensive stuff when going to buy this setup, and honestly, at the price of this stuff, it held its own rather well. Very happy with it.

[normxb]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

I bought an old Ibanez, absolutely chomps anything I've ever heard has the nicest sound. Seriously i have had a Gibson SG, a few other Ibanez's and played lots of different guitars but i would take my cheapo '76 Ibanez over them all! I don't know why but it sounds good through every amp I've played it on.. just a freak guitar.

No, not a freak guitar , what you have is a "1970's Japanese Gibson" ....In the mid 70's , Ibanez "procured" a couple of Gibson guitars and stripped them , and COPIED them . They copied the density of the timber and the way Gibson layered these timbers together , copied the density of the metal in the bridge/tailpiece , the metal of the frets , the curvature of the fretboard , the curvature and shape of the body . Now this one will get you ! they even copied the gauge , number of windings of the wiring and strength of the magnets in the pickups .

The problem was , none of this was sanctioned by Gibson themselves . Gibson sued and won , it was at this time that Ibanez brought out the ""PF" series ( I think it was the "PF" series , it was a long time ago ) . Ibanez altered them "just fractionally" to avoid the Patient Laws . To people who know, those mid 70's LP's/SG's are still much sought after .

With Fender guitars , you will find some purists (if that's the word) will kill for a pre-64 Fender . This was the year Leo Fender sold the brand to CBS , in his contract , Leo wasn't allowed to produce guitars for 20 (or 25) years , hence in the late 80's " G&L" guitars hit the market . Leo's time limit was legally up and he could make guitars again .


I won't try and copy muppet's post , because he's "hit the nail on the head" , just like the cars we love so much , everyone "has their own taste in guitars" . Guy's used to come into my shop and say "I want the same sound as XXXXXX " , I'm sure SpooN XL get's the same . The only way you will get the "Similar sound" is to "buy the same guitar , same effect pedals and amplifier" and run through a very similar sound system and use the same settings all the way through . There are so many variances .

I used to play Old Time Dance Music , Country (not 30's 40's) 50's,60's Rock & Roll , 70's and up to 80's and early 90's top 40 stuff , so I needed a wide variety of sound . MY preference was :-
Gibson Les Paul , with Dimazio Neck P/U (50's sound) , Dimazio Dual sound in the bridge position . (switchable Humbucker and single coil)
Roland JC120 (very clean sound) I chose this because you can "dirty a sound " but you can't "clean a sound up " .

Sorry about the "paperback" length of my reply , but I hope this will explain why some people like one type of gear and others will swear by other brands .

Norm

[rodderz]

It's all personal preference really, play a few to see what you like and what is the sound you are after. All guitars have their own sound with pickups, timbers and components, I would agree with HLC though I wouldnt mix and match a Gibson Explorer with a Jackson neck...they have a distinct sound and thats the beauty of them. Unless, you had 2, one to keep as standard and one to muck around with.

Years ago I bought a slab of Maple and made my own strat body, bought some les paul pickups and strat neck...unfortunately I ran out of money (was about 14 or so) and it sat in the shed for another 10 years and I sold the bits

[flathead 276]

Besides what other people have said a Gibson Explorer has a "set" neck, meaning it is glued into the body with a tenon joint. A Jackson neck is a "bolt" on like a Fender, please correct me if I am wrong. It has been a long time (24 years) since I had anything to do with guitars, if you really want a Jackson neck buy a Jackson guitar. In another life I tinkered with Marshalls, Gibsons & Fenders, nice axes by the way,spoonxl.

[stockNAfairlane]

All i know about my 76 Ibanez is that it is an EX Series, cream with black hardware, Floyd Rose (TRS) tremolo, triangle inlays on the frets and its not jap, its Korean :( it has a sweet, harmonic sound when played soft but can turn into a monster when played hard..

Just a cheapie, but ive had it in for some work at 2 different guitar shops, both have complemented me on it. Could probably use a new set of pickups but i really dont wana change the sound of this guitar.. is there a method of "cleaning up" pickups?

[rodderz]

What do you mean by cleaning? If you're referring to a bit of buzz or interference you can get some sheilding put on them or get rewound, otherwise a good guitar tech can clean them up of surface rust on the magnets and so forth

[muppet]

Originally Posted by rodderz

What do you mean by cleaning? If you're referring to a bit of buzz or interference you can get some sheilding put on them or get rewound, otherwise a good guitar tech can clean them up of surface rust on the magnets and so forth

Was just about to ask the same question .

[muppet]

just for a laugh here is a guitar just finnished making .

[normxb]

76 Korean Ibanez ? , I bought my shop in 1978 and I'm sure Ibanez were still only Japanese then , because that's when there was the big "scrap" was going on between Ibanez and Gibson . One of the companies that first started importing good Korean guitars was Hohner , I have an "ST Olympic" Hohner hanging on the wall in front of me right now , and this guitar was sold to me at a discount rate by the importers "Kurt Jackobs" of Prospect (NSW) in the mid 80's to promote their New line of guitars . I still have the original Ibanez and Hohner Catalogues here somewhere , I'll have to check out what years they are dated .

This has me very intrigued

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibanez

"In the early 1970s Ibanez began making guitars that were almost exact copies of popular models by Gibson, Fender and Rickenbacker. Using somewhat cheaper materials and greater automation in manufacturing, they were able to sell these guitars for a significantly lower price than the originals. The low price combined with the relatively high quality of the guitars made these models very popular. Many guitar aficionados feel that the early- and mid-70s mark a low point in the quality of guitars from the major manufacturers, which helped contribute to the popularity of the Ibanez copies. These guitars have become known as "lawsuit" guitars and have become highly collectible.

The actual lawsuit referred to was brought by the Norlin Corporation, the parent company of Gibson guitars, in 1977, and was based on an Ibanez headstock design that had been discontinued by 1976. Ibanez settled out of court, and by 1978 had begun making guitars from their own designs."

http://www.ibanezregister.com/histor...ory-dating.htm (Korean)
http://www.fundinguniverse.com/compa...y-History.html

Cheers
Norm

PS only EX models I can find mentioned are 1990+ models . I'm with the other guy's "cleaning up your pickups? "

[stockNAfairlane]

haha yeah, surface rust on the pickups and they are tatty and old looking. I was told it was a 76? Can post pics of the headstock or any other identifying piece maybe u guys could tell me what it is?

[normxb]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

haha yeah, surface rust on the pickups and they are tatty and old looking. I was told it was a 76? Can post pics of the headstock or any other identifying piece maybe u guys could tell me what it is?

stockNAfairlane
Hi mate, WD40 & very fine wet & dry will do the trick , and give them a "wipe-over" when you're finished playing will keep them in good cond.

I think your guitar could be very late 80's , early 90's , so you have a "Newer" guitar than what you thought , bonus , what gave it away was the Floyd Rose , not invented till the 80's . I've put a Kahler on my Hohner , both good for "dive bombing" :sm_headba (don't know what you guys call it these days) don't forget , I'm an Oldy , hahaha.

Guitars are "just like cars" , you can get one off the assembly line one after the other , one can be a Dud and one can be "a ripper" , sounds like you've got a "ripper" , maybe it was a Mid Week build Lol

Norm

[XR6-VCT-2000]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

All i know about my 76 Ibanez is that it is an EX Series, cream with black hardware, Floyd Rose (TRS) tremolo, triangle inlays on the frets and its not jap, its Korean :( it has a sweet, harmonic sound when played soft but can turn into a monster when played hard..

Just a cheapie, but ive had it in for some work at 2 different guitar shops, both have complemented me on it. Could probably use a new set of pickups but i really dont wana change the sound of this guitar.. is there a method of "cleaning up" pickups?

The EX series ibanez guitars were early 80's guitars , which i own a custom version of one too , an awesome guitar for its time era and price back then.

[rodderz]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

haha yeah, surface rust on the pickups and they are tatty and old looking. I was told it was a 76? Can post pics of the headstock or any other identifying piece maybe u guys could tell me what it is?

Try getting the serial or model number off the back of the headstock or the neck and do a google search on it, there has top be some site around with listings of the models, hopefully

[normxb]

rodderz & stockNAfairlane
There's a bit of info on dating Ibanez Guitars ( Geesh , that don't sound right : ) in my post (14) "Ibanezregister" bit hard to follow but I think you could work it out , Korean "Ibanez" are actually made by " Cort & Samick" so the serial No will start with "C" or "S" . Some brands "job" different models out to other factories .

This is not unusual , I could order " Peerless , Riviera , Memphis , Coronet , and a number of other brands of guitars , and they ALL came out of the same factory ". If anyone remembers the "Profile" brand of guitars (I have a Profile Les Paul as well as a genuine Gibson) they came out of the same factory as Fender Squires , only $100 odd dollars cheaper . (not as well known)

There are brand specific factories , but imagine how many factories there would be if each brand had their own one . :

Hope the link will help . I still have my Fender/Gibson/Gretch/Martin/Vega and Rickenbacker books , if anyone wants to find the years of these just PM me .

Norm

[Van D]

I'm a bassist... soooo. Spectors cheapo line. Just with some new pickups. They have a great neck.

Or my very own MM sterling with either a Lane Poor or Nordstrand pickup.

Or an early series Warwick Streamer Stg II (may possibly be buying the first ever made soon with LED fret markers).

[XR6-VCT-2000]

Originally Posted by popinfresh

I'm a bassist... soooo. Spectors cheapo line. Just with some new pickups. They have a great neck.

Or my very own MM sterling with either a Lane Poor or Nordstrand pickup.

Or an early series Warwick Streamer Stg II (may possibly be buying the first ever made soon with LED fret markers).

Very nice , Steve Vai has blue LED fret markers on his black ibanez - used in the Tokyo G3 concert playing 'Building The Church', looks awesome .

[Tribal]

I play (ed) bass. My setup was an Ibanez 5 String with EMG's. Mesa Boogie Bass 400 Tube Head, 2 x 15" Boogie Cabinet and 4 x 10" Ampeg Cabinet.

Now guys have more speakers in there car than I used on stage...

[b2tf]

my toys - Ibanez BTB 4 and 5 string. For the money, the BEST playing and sounding bass I have ever used. So much so I bought 2 of em!

hopefully have a Fender J-Bass joining them soon. Brother has a Warwick Corvette Standard 5, heavy bugger to play but geez it sounds great.

[LTD Ute]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

All i know about my 76 Ibanez is that it is an EX Series, cream with black hardware, Floyd Rose (TRS) tremolo, triangle inlays on the frets and its not jap, its Korean :( it has a sweet, harmonic sound when played soft but can turn into a monster when played hard..

Just a cheapie, but ive had it in for some work at 2 different guitar shops, both have complemented me on it. Could probably use a new set of pickups but i really dont wana change the sound of this guitar.. is there a method of "cleaning up" pickups?

"Cleaning up" the pickups could mean a few things with different solutions.
What are they, single coils or humbuckers?
If they are a bit muddy you could increase the value of the caps or the pots,
500k for single coils and 1meg for humbuckers, or swap to lower output pickups.
or swap to lower output pickups.

My favourite mod for humbuckers is 1meg pots and series/split/parallel 3 way mini switch
for each pickup and a 6 position double pole rotary switch that gives you
1) Bridge
2) Bridge/neck-parallel=swampy
3) bridge/neck-series=high output
4) Bridge/neck-series/out of phase=great when both pickups split/parallel
5) Neck
6) Off - or to a tuner (no output to the amp) if you use stereo cabling

You can replace the mini switches with push/pull pots for for volume + tone
and the rotary switch replaces the 3 way selector on a Les Paul.
This means no extra holes need to be drilled into the guitar

This is a wiring nightmare and you need a licence to navigate all the switching
But it will give you amazing tonal control over your 2 X humbucker guitar.

My Strat setup uses the "E" model megaswitch by Schaller and 3 500k push/pull pots.

Megaswitch gives you
1) bridge
2) bridge/middle
3) bridge/neck
4) middle/neck
5) neck

Volume with .001mf cap for treble bleed- in=normal, out=to tuner
Tone neck - in= tone neck, out= neck phase with other pickups
Tone middle+bridge - in=.o22mf cap, out=.047mf cap.

Effects = TS9

Amp = Fender Twin (red knob-90's)

Enjoy!
Will :sm_headba

[stockNAfairlane]

By cleaning up i mean rejuvenate them, make them appear to be new again, eliminate a bit of buzz and clean up the sound a bit. The pickups just look worn and dated which brings down the look of the guitar (I know appearance isnt everything but its a good looking guitar and i take care of it).

[LTD Ute]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

By cleaning up i mean rejuvenate them, make them appear to be new again, eliminate a bit of buzz and clean up the sound a bit. The pickups just look worn and dated which brings down the look of the guitar (I know appearance isnt everything but its a good looking guitar and i take care of it).

What pickups are they, single coils with plastic covers?
Humbuckers with metal covers or exposed?
Cosmetically, covers can be replaced and pole pieces polished.
Getting rid of buzzing/hum can be addressed by properly
shielding the cavities in the guitar and if you do physically clean up
the pickups, have them re-dipped in wax to reduce any coil winding
movement.

[Van D]

Originally Posted by Tribal

I play (ed) bass. My setup was an Ibanez 5 String with EMG's. Mesa Boogie Bass 400 Tube Head, 2 x 15" Boogie Cabinet and 4 x 10" Ampeg Cabinet.

Now guys have more speakers in there car than I used on stage...

Was that 2x15 from the diesel series cabs (thinner, black, tolex than they use now, EV/Eden speakers, black grill etc) from the mid 90's?

I had a 1516 (15", 10", 2x6", tweeter in one big cab) from the diesel line of mesa cabs and man that thing smoked. Ended up having to sell as I wasn't driving back then (too young!) and it didn't fit in the falcon, bummer.

PS.

Current rig. Bergantino NV 610.. Much the vibe of a vintage ampeg fridge (8x10), but smaller, lighter, hand made boutique cab with a bit more of a modern edge to it. Trace elliot V8.. One of 75 made in the world, 400 watt all tube. What more do I have to say? heh.







Piccy on my bass now of my mate.



Old rig.. Schroeder was another boutique imported cab. Sounds great, though I sold it for the bergie as the bergie was a rare opportunity, looks tiny now compared to the new cab..

Sound of it can be heard here in the bands mix www.myspace.com/themissingmusic



Sex




Sorry 56k'ers.

[Van D]

Went back through the old photo's some more.. Won't go any more OT than this ;)

My first rig was of SWR, second was the mesa (for tribal). All except the bass and SWR 2x10 is now gone.

[stockNAfairlane]

Setup for the pickups = humbucker, single coil, humbucker. Gonna take into the local guitar sho soonish and have a chat to them and see what they can do for me. Might end up with all new pickups..

[LTD Ute]

Originally Posted by stockNAfairlane

Setup for the pickups = humbucker, single coil, humbucker. Gonna take into the local guitar sho soonish and have a chat to them and see what they can do for me. Might end up with all new pickups..

Where are you? Might be able to help.
I make and repair guitars.
PM or call me on 0411 048 744.
Cheers, Will.