Aristides Guitars

[KnightBrolaire]

@brandonwall Can you comment at all on some of the pickup selections we might not be familiar with, and how they sound in Aristides guitars?

For example, the BKP Aristides customs - is there a regular BKP set which they are comparable to? Do they have a modern metal sound? High or lower output?

I'm seriously considering an H/06R which would be used in C standard tuning. I don't want the modern djent sound, so BKP doesn't really appeal to me by default. But I notice that for the H/0 we aren't limited to Juggernants like some of the other Aristides guitars, so maybe there are some good BKP options I don't know about.

I already have an 060R with Fishmans, so I'd want something different this time. I feel like Lundgren Black Heaven set would probably be the most suitable, but again, there are less common Lundgren options like "The One" or the Sucker Bucker.

Also, I am curious how you price the single pickup guitars. For example, bridge Lundgren only - is it still +€100?

the customs are based off the holy diver/VHII set iirc. More like medium output. Pretty tonally versatile set imo. Can cover classic rock, thrash, etc all the way up to more modern tones without giving the quack/honk that some djent focused pickups do.

 

[Restarted]

The neck is actually based on the Emerald neck pickup, but yeah pretty much agree with everything said there. Theyre higher output than my alnico Nailbombs, which is weird because it took me a couple of days until I A/Bed them, and for those 2 days I thought the Nailbomb was higher output.

Overall I'm very happy with mine. Amazing set that reacts very well to volume and tone controls, and does a lot of things very, very well.

I think all BKP sets are available now for the S series. Previously it was the twin-screws models only, that's why only a few options are on the forms.

 

[jephjacques]

Yeah I really liked the ones I had in my 080s and I'm not a djent guy

 

[brandonwall]

@brandonwall Can you comment at all on some of the pickup selections we might not be familiar with, and how they sound in Aristides guitars?

For example, the BKP Aristides customs - is there a regular BKP set which they are comparable to? Do they have a modern metal sound? High or lower output?

I'm seriously considering an H/06R which would be used in C standard tuning. I don't want the modern djent sound, so BKP doesn't really appeal to me by default. But I notice that for the H/0 we aren't limited to Juggernants like some of the other Aristides guitars, so maybe there are some good BKP options I don't know about.

I already have an 060R with Fishmans, so I'd want something different this time. I feel like Lundgren Black Heaven set would probably be the most suitable, but again, there are less common Lundgren options like "The One" or the Sucker Bucker.

Also, I am curious how you price the single pickup guitars. For example, bridge Lundgren only - is it still +€100?

For sure, dude! I've had to pleasure of playing a lot of different humbuckers in Aristides guitars, so I'm happy to give my thoughts on them. The usual caveat of everyone has different ears and tastes applies.

The Aristides Custom set is an A5 bridge (15.7k DCR) and A4 neck (9.5k DCR) that I'd describe as a fairly high output pickup that excels at anything and everything (even split tones) with the exception of some of the more modern metal styles. They certainly have the clarity and output for metal, but they wouldn't be my go-to pickup for that. When it comes to super clean stuff, ambient, jazz, edge tones, hard rock, or anything in between, the Aristides Customs are phenomenal. Personally, I also feel like they work best in 6-string guitars. I've had them in an 070 and 080S and felt like the bass was a bit uncontrolled/unfocused for my taste, and I was missing some of that growl and snarl that I like out of bridge pickups. Given that you're looking at an H/06R and you're not really into the modern metal sound, these pickups might actually be perfect for you.

On the pickup options in general, we've made some changes this year to make it possible to get any BKP or Lundgren humbucker made to our slants. We used to be restricted to the twin-screw designs, but now it's wide open. We don't currently have a true price list for single humbucker builds at the moment as this is something that took off in our community somewhat recently. We basically do it on a per-instance basis right now, but one of our goals to be able to offer standardized pricing on single hum builds in the future.

 

[Jonathan20022]

The customs are a very versatile set of pickups, I have had them in an 080S as well as my Silverburst 060.

https://soundcloud.com/kenji20022/stranger-things-080s

There's a soundclip of what they sounded like in that 080S for reference.

That being said, when I designed the pair of 060's I received a year ago I relegated it to be my drop tuned 060 for Drop C - A#. I feel like it lacks in some areas for the more dry cutting low string chugging, it does have great chord definition though to be fair.

I'm actually going to be swapping in some SD Jupiters and performing a before and after tone demo. Hopefully I'll have it done in a week to post.

 

[jyym]

you know how hard it is to find the dimensions of a single packet of dominos sugar.

so am I allowed to want a 25.5-27 scale or has my small hands card been revoked?

 

[diagrammatiks]

so am I allowed to want a 25.5-27 scale or has my small hands card been revoked?

I actually think....that you do have baby hands.

 

[jyym]

Brandon, could you tell us a bit about the choice of Hantug for the headless hardware? I wasn't able to find much on google, although there was a single thread on SSO mentioning them and it seemed generally positive.

 

[pott]

About the BKP Customs, I actually kind of had the opposite reaction (which does highlight their versatility, in some ways).

On my multiscale 060s, they're thin-sounding. I just can't beef them up.
On my 7-string -70, they sound INCREDIBLE. Perfect mix of clarity and output.

I agree about cleans/jazz etc... they ARE great pickups. They're not very girthy, but they are very clear. A 7 string low note will add beef to the sound. Very thick strings on a 7 may as well.

 

[7stringtheory]

Just submitted my order and deposit for H/07 in Dark Grey Sapphire Marble Gloss, with the new hantug tremolo unit for multiscale headless guitars. I hope the trem works well considering this may be one of the first (hopefully good) solutions for multiscale guitars.. I guess now the waiting starts xD....

 

[brandonwall]

so am I allowed to want a 25.5-27 scale or has my small hands card been revoked?

Hey, dude! Sorry for the delay. Sometimes I get the SSO emails when a thread is bumped and sometimes I don't.

We ordered hardware from a couple of different manufacturers and, in our experience, Hantug absolutely nailed the product features, quality, and customer service we were looking for. They've been great to work with on a custom trem solution based on the ideas and desires of our master luthier and engineer. The result of that is a trem that has some really unique features that and we think it's phenomenal when combined with our Headless Guitars. We also worked with them on a custom headpiece solution that we believe is both extremely functional and durable.

On the fixed bridge side of things, I had a chance to play around with the prototype H/07R and I felt like the tuners were much smoother than other headless tuners I've used in the past. In all fairness, that could be partially due to the fact that the tuners were basically brand new and didn't have several years of wear and tear, but it was something I noticed immediately. Aside from that, I found the bridge to be pretty comfortable and the sustain was absolutely crazy.

I should have the H/08R with a trem in the near future, and I'd be happy to share my thoughts on it once I've had some meaningful time with it. Our resident engineering wizard is also working on a document that describes the trem in greater detail and goes over some of our design decisions. I'll be sure to share that as soon as it's ready.

 

[7stringtheory]

Hey, dude! Sorry for the delay. Sometimes I get the SSO emails when a thread is bumped and sometimes I don't.

We ordered hardware from a couple of different manufacturers and, in our experience, Hantug absolutely nailed the product features, quality, and customer service we were looking for. They've been great to work with on a custom trem solution based on the ideas and desires of our master luthier and engineer. The result of that is a trem that has some really unique features that and we think it's phenomenal when combined with our Headless Guitars. We also worked with them on a custom headpiece solution that we believe is both extremely functional and durable.

On the fixed bridge side of things, I had a chance to play around with the prototype H/07R and I felt like the tuners were much smoother than other headless tuners I've used in the past. In all fairness, that could be partially due to the fact that the tuners were basically brand new and didn't have several years of wear and tear, but it was something I noticed immediately. Aside from that, I found the bridge to be pretty comfortable and the sustain was absolutely crazy.

I should have the H/08R with a trem in the near future, and I'd be happy to share my thoughts on it once I've had some meaningful time with it. Our resident engineering wizard is also working on a document that describes the trem in greater detail and goes over some of our design decisions. I'll be sure to share that as soon as it's ready.

Awesome thanks a lot for sharing that info Brandon! Being honest I was 99% about to order a kiesel custom vader that i had been planning for the last week. I have been interested in your guitars since i first saw them, but i drank the koolaid and I'm sold on the headless ergonomics and aesthetic. I finally finished planning the kiesel build so it was ready to order this weekend, but their sales department is only open weekdays, so i had to wait before i could order it and my mind started to wander.... then i stumbled upon your headless and saw that it was multiscale with a trem and i was sold immediately.

I am very glad the planets seem to have aligned in such a way for this to happen xD

 

[brandonwall]

Awesome thanks a lot for sharing that info Brandon! Being honest I was 99% about to order a kiesel custom vader that i had been planning for the last week. I have been interested in your guitars since i first saw them, but i drank the koolaid and I'm sold on the headless ergonomics and aesthetic. I finally finished planning the kiesel build so it was ready to order this weekend, but their sales department is only open weekdays, so i had to wait before i could order it and my mind started to wander.... then i stumbled upon your headless and saw that it was multiscale with a trem and i was sold immediately.

I am very glad the planets seem to have aligned in such a way for this to happen xD

Happy to do it, dude! I'm glad you decided to pull the trigger on an Aristides! I truly am not a big headless fan and this H/0 design won me over.

 

[Flappydoodle]

Awesome thanks a lot for sharing that info Brandon! Being honest I was 99% about to order a kiesel custom vader that i had been planning for the last week. I have been interested in your guitars since i first saw them, but i drank the koolaid and I'm sold on the headless ergonomics and aesthetic. I finally finished planning the kiesel build so it was ready to order this weekend, but their sales department is only open weekdays, so i had to wait before i could order it and my mind started to wander.... then i stumbled upon your headless and saw that it was multiscale with a trem and i was sold immediately.

I am very glad the planets seem to have aligned in such a way for this to happen xD

Aristides also just rock. They sound absolutely amazing, and their build quality is second to none. Flawless frets, and even the wiring is perfectly done.

 

[narad]

Awesome thanks a lot for sharing that info Brandon! Being honest I was 99% about to order a kiesel custom vader that i had been planning for the last week. I have been interested in your guitars since i first saw them, but i drank the koolaid and I'm sold on the headless ergonomics and aesthetic. I finally finished planning the kiesel build so it was ready to order this weekend, but their sales department is only open weekdays, so i had to wait before i could order it and my mind started to wander.... then i stumbled upon your headless and saw that it was multiscale with a trem and i was sold immediately.

I am very glad the planets seem to have aligned in such a way for this to happen xD

Damn dude, Kiesel Vader vs. Aristides? No brainer. And that dark grey sapphire marble gloss is going to look amazing!

 

[7stringtheory]

Damn dude, Kiesel Vader vs. Aristides? No brainer. And that dark grey sapphire marble gloss is going to look amazing!

Haha yeah, well in my defense it was going to be a really nice vader with a master grade quilted top and master grade pale moon ebony fretboard. Initially i was only looking to spend around 3k max, but then i started slipping down the GAS rabbit hole, and ended up with the kiesel looking to run around 4k, at that point i was like yeah maybe i should check one more time at what i can get for this money. When i saw the H/07 it was definitely a No Brainer

 

[Restarted]

Haha yeah, well in my defense it was going to be a really nice vader with a master grade quilted top and master grade pale moon ebony fretboard.

That does sound nice, but expensive options on Kiesels don't make them better. They just make them more expensive and non-returnable.

 

[StevenC]

Haha yeah, well in my defense it was going to be a really nice... pale moon ebony

Pick one

 

[jephjacques]

Haha yeah, well in my defense it was going to be a really nice vader with a master grade quilted top and master grade pale moon ebony fretboard. Initially i was only looking to spend around 3k max, but then i started slipping down the GAS rabbit hole, and ended up with the kiesel looking to run around 4k, at that point i was like yeah maybe i should check one more time at what i can get for this money. When i saw the H/07 it was definitely a No Brainer

you have chosen wisely

 

[jyym]

What’s the weight difference on the titanium tremolo bridge versus stainless? Are there an other pros and cons to titanium? And this is pretty anal but do you plan on offering other titanium or titanium finish hardware?