By virtue of being burl in any finish, yes.
Bring me up to speed... Japanese ’bergs
- Thread starter TMM
- Start date
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By virtue of being burl in any finish, yes.
This site may earn a commission from merchant links like Ebay, Amazon, and others.
Emperor Guillotine
The Almighty Ruler
Whomever painted the top on that Strandberg clearly must have drawn inspiration from watching Mad Max: Fury Road.
KnightBrolaire
Meth Detal
nah there's too much orange in those pics, this makes more sense as the inspiration:Whomever painted the top on that Strandberg clearly must have drawn inspiration from watching Mad Max: Fury Road.
Emperor Guillotine
The Almighty Ruler
narad
Progressive metal and politics
So stopped by Big Boss Ochanomizu today -- the ESP shop, but they stock many others (including Acacia now, WTF?). They didn't have a lot of bodens around but they had one Leda sig, and I examined it at length (while spending 2 hours running ESP custom specs!).
Sound-wise, I don't know. But quality-wise there's nothing to criticize. Neck joint was great, seems were great, finish work was great, fretwork was great. There were some super tiny things, like the binding one one side had some tiny ding-like things in it, likely just pores in the wood, that someone like @Jonathan20022 would request a 20% discount over, but really solid work actually. I'll try to get around to checking out more j-bodens later in the week (trying to check out the Sugi-stain ones) but that one was much better than I expected having read this thread before hand.
Sound-wise, I don't know. But quality-wise there's nothing to criticize. Neck joint was great, seems were great, finish work was great, fretwork was great. There were some super tiny things, like the binding one one side had some tiny ding-like things in it, likely just pores in the wood, that someone like @Jonathan20022 would request a 20% discount over, but really solid work actually. I'll try to get around to checking out more j-bodens later in the week (trying to check out the Sugi-stain ones) but that one was much better than I expected having read this thread before hand.
It's like washed up hair metal bands finding a new following abroad.
I guess they figured they shit the bed badly enough in the US so they're trying thier luck in an area less likely to be aware of thier previous reputation.
narad
Progressive metal and politics
It's like washed up hair metal bands finding a new following abroad.
I guess they figured they shit the bed badly enough in the US so they're trying thier luck in an area less likely to be aware of thier previous reputation.
They were sort of near the Mayones and I think at first glance I thought they were a continuation of them -- buckeye top Regius knock off sort of thing. I wonder if that's sort of how they got their foothold here -- also, their prices were Mayones range, $3k+!
btw, the Leda. Looks much nicer in person than the photos I had seen (I think). Here my camera phone white balance is quite off, but overall thought the finish, especially on the back, was very classy:
Emperor Guillotine
The Almighty Ruler
I've seen a few photos of the Leda 6, 7 and 8-string Strandbergs. It's always difficult to capture a trans-white finish (of varying translucence and shades) without a decent camera. But the white finish on the Leda models is contrasted so nicely by the rich, super dark rosewood neck wood and purpleheart stringers. (And from what I've seen, Strandberg made the stringers BIG on the necks for the Leda models. So the purpleheart's color really stands out.)
narad
Progressive metal and politics
I'm not sure this finish is similar to trans-white on other guitars, like on a quilt or maple finish. It's more opaque, and the blue-ish ness sits really close to the top. You don't get the impression you're looking through a layer of white to a stain underneath, but more that the colors on the surface have wisps of blue going through it. Not saying that's how it's done, but just the general impression. The finish on the back too is a very opaque white, but thin, so you can see the texture of the ash but you can't really see through the white at all. Quite well done really -- things I wanted on my M2M but weren't really executed that way.
And yea, the stringers are massive. In total it seems that almost half that neck is purpleheart.
Emperor Guillotine
The Almighty Ruler
Yeah. I know the finish isn't exactly "trans-white", but it isn't totally opaque either because a bit of the burl (and, of course the grain of the ash back) visibly peer through the white. I'm not exactly sure what they did here to achieve that coloration with the little burl eyes being accented by blue underneath. Your impression and definition of them as "wisps" going through the white instead of being underneath the white fits perfectly. It's almost a little ghostly in a way.
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diagrammatiks
Well-Known Member
8 string with that fan and straight pickups just triggers me.
I don't really see why.
I've played fanned guitars with straight pickups and even more guitars with swept pickups and straight frets. Can't say I really ever liked or hated it enough to care enough to be "triggered".
It's like washed up hair metal bands finding a new following abroad.
I guess they figured they shit the bed badly enough in the US so they're trying thier luck in an area less likely to be aware of thier previous reputation.
I've seen loads of Strictly Seven guitars over there as well
Back on topic, I would consider a J Boden, but I wouldn't purchase one from anywhere other than in person, in Japan. Unless I could get one discounted from the UK (no import duty on musical instruments over here and our currency is sterling).
KnightBrolaire
Meth Detal
i get what diagrammatiks is saying. I've owned fanned 8s with angled and straight pickups and not having the pickups follow the fan is gross aesthetically and aurally (it makes the bridge pickup sound more like a middle pickup ime).I don't really see why.
I've played fanned guitars with straight pickups and even more guitars with swept pickups and straight frets. Can't say I really ever liked or hated it enough to care enough to be "triggered".
diagrammatiks
Well-Known Member
I don't really see why.
I've played fanned guitars with straight pickups and even more guitars with swept pickups and straight frets. Can't say I really ever liked or hated it enough to care enough to be "triggered".
everything is angled but the pickups are straight
everything is angled but the pickups are straight
something looks super crooked.
Less of an issue on the 6 string with the slight fan since the bridge and nut are mostly straight.
But it looks so crooked on the sevens and the eights.
I think it looks a lot sloppier when you have the end of the fretboard at one angle, then angled pickups, then the bridge at a different angle. The angled pickups accentuate that IMO. Kind of a moot point if someone prefers the sound of them angled (I think the difference is inconsequential personally, but to each their own), but speaking strictly of aesthetics, i think they look better straight than having multiple competing angles.
narad
Progressive metal and politics
Super subjective, but I prefer the look of straight pickups regardless of if the neck is straight or fanned. To me it's an issue of the body shape, and the boden shape has strong sense of symmetry. Compare to the Abasi thing, or even imagine slanted pickups on an offset or explorer.
Soundwise I also find it not to be an issue. Not playing Meshuggah much either though.
Soundwise I also find it not to be an issue. Not playing Meshuggah much either though.
Correct. The photos don't do these guitars any amount of justice. I've seen probably half a dozen in person now and they all look wonderful.
This I also agree with. Can't stand slanted pups. And while I'm sure I could probably tell the difference in an A/B test, I don't really play music where that matters so much.
PS. G-club Shibuya has an Abasi 6 right now but the guy who works there is a huge asshole and won't let anyone try guitars.
Lorcan Ward
7slinger
The main problem is if it adds bass and roundness to the lower strings while adding treble and sharpness to the higher strings, thus undoing some of the effect of the fan in the first place.
