My journey from finding "the one" guitar to amassing a collection (still on-going)

[Pegazus133]

Rob, I haven't noticed that you ever owned the Strandberg Fusion NT with the HSX circuit. Think that would be your perfect strandy, if you can find one

 

[Loydthebartender]

No such thing. However a plain HSS strat with a neck profile that you like is about as close as you can get. Definitely a “do it most” guitar. Get one with a non locking, non recessed tremolo so you can easily deck it if you’d like. Humbucker in the bridge and singles in the neck. That will cover as much ground as a single guitar possibly can.

 

[Neon_Knight_]

No such thing. However a plain HSS strat with a neck profile that you like is about as close as you can get. Definitely a “do it most” guitar. Get one with a non locking, non recessed tremolo so you can easily deck it if you’d like. Humbucker in the bridge and singles in the neck. That will cover as much ground as a single guitar possibly can.

I think I would have a breakdown if my only guitar was HSS with a non-locking, non-recessed tremolo.

HSH would be more versatile imo. The neck humbucker could be split / coil-tapped, plus used as a humbucker. It might not quite achieve the perfect clean neck single-coil tone that some people desire, but the right humbucker will get pretty close (at least in the context of a "do it all" guitar).

A recessed double-locking tremolo offers superior tuning stability, on top of dive bombs and superior flutters etc. All while being able to do everything that a non-locking tremolo can do. And it can always be blocked. Going one further, a double-locking bridge that allows for piezos would offer optimal versatility imo.

As for the neck, 24 frets is more versatile than 22. A compound radius would probably make sense to maximise comfort / playability for all styles (I can't really speak from experience though...Super Wizard is all I need!).

Basically, the "plain strat" needs to be a superstrat imo.

No such thing.

We agree on this though and I'm definitely not unhappy about "needing" to own multiple guitars.

 

[Wiltonauer]

No such thing. However a plain HSS strat with a neck profile that you like is about as close as you can get. Definitely a “do it most” guitar. Get one with a non locking, non recessed tremolo so you can easily deck it if you’d like. Humbucker in the bridge and singles in the neck. That will cover as much ground as a single guitar possibly can.

That wouldn’t even make it the most versatile guitar in the current Fender catalog.

 

[LunatiqueRob]

Rob, I haven't noticed that you ever owned the Strandberg Fusion NT with the HSX circuit. Think that would be your perfect strandy, if you can find one

WAIT--how did I miss that one??? I have always wanted a Strandy with HSH and coil-split and I didn't think they made one, since the Fusion NX I got didn't have the coil-split. I knew they had a limited edition Titanium model with it, but it was pre-NX so the contouring isn't quite as good. The neck-thru Fusion is also pre-NX though, so same problem.

No such thing. However a plain HSS strat with a neck profile that you like is about as close as you can get. Definitely a “do it most” guitar. Get one with a non locking, non recessed tremolo so you can easily deck it if you’d like. Humbucker in the bridge and singles in the neck. That will cover as much ground as a single guitar possibly can.

I think I would have a breakdown if my only guitar was HSS with a non-locking, non-recessed tremolo.

HSH would be more versatile imo. The neck humbucker could be split / coil-tapped, plus used as a humbucker. It might not quite achieve the perfect clean neck single-coil tone that some people desire, but the right humbucker will get pretty close (at least in the context of a "do it all" guitar).

A recessed double-locking tremolo offers superior tuning stability, on top of dive bombs and superior flutters etc. All while being able to do everything that a non-locking tremolo can do. And it can always be blocked. Going one further, a double-locking bridge that allows for piezos would offer optimal versatility imo.

As for the neck, 24 frets is more versatile than 22. A compound radius would probably make sense to maximise comfort / playability for all styles (I can't really speak from experience though...Super Wizard is all I need!).

Basically, the "plain strat" needs to be a superstrat imo.


We agree on this though and I'm definitely not unhappy about "needing" to own multiple guitars.

I totally agree with Neon_Knight, as that's been exactly my experience. HSH with coil-split on the right humbucker will absolutely get a killer single-coil sound--sometimes even better than an actual single-coil. It all depends on the pickup and how many windings it has and the choice of magnets and all that. Same with the 24 vs 22 frets. The change in tone due to pickup location can be remedied with the right pickup. One of my favorite single-coil tones of all time was a split-coil from an Ibby KIKO 10 BP.

I should probably add these two new NGD/Reviews of 30-inch baritones I got. I wasn't going to at first because they're quite far from what this thread was focused on, but the thread has pretty much morphed into "What will Rob buy next" anyway, so here they are:

NGD/Review: Schecter Hellraiser C-VI 30" Baritone (Black Cherry)

I have always been curious about baritone guitars, wondering if they'll be useful in any usage scenarios for me. For a long time I felt having 7 and 8-strings was enough of a substitute for having baritones, but after doing some research and listening to comparison examples, I found out the...

www.sevenstring.org

NGD/Review: Aria Pro II J-B'Tone 30" Baritone (3-tone Sunburst)

I mentioned the reasons why decided to get baritone guitars in this other NGD/Review (https://www.sevenstring.org/threads/ngd-review-schecter-hellraiser-c-vi-30-baritone-black-cherry.366119/), so I won't repeat it here. This one is a lot cheaper than the Schecter baritone and I like them both...

www.sevenstring.org

 

[Neon_Knight_]

@LunatiqueRob How many more guitars are you going to churn through before you realise that a used Prestige is all you need?

 

[Stiman]

@LunatiqueRob what about the Ibanez AZ (HSS) with the Dynamix switch? In the on position with the selector in the 5th position, it combines the neck and middle single coils into a humbucker configuration. I find this to be somewhat convincing of a neck "humbucker". It has less quack than a single coil and has more output.

 

[Bloody_Inferno]

No such thing. However a plain HSS strat with a neck profile that you like is about as close as you can get. Definitely a “do it most” guitar. Get one with a non locking, non recessed tremolo so you can easily deck it if you’d like. Humbucker in the bridge and singles in the neck. That will cover as much ground as a single guitar possibly can.

I'm pretty sure the pretense of 'forever do-it-all' has long since been thrown out the window. OP has doubled down on that even more with the constant buying and selling spree as already documented in this entire thread.

But hey, getting new gear is always nice.

 

[LunatiqueRob]

@LunatiqueRob How many more guitars are you going to churn through before you realise that a used Prestige is all you need?

Been there and done that. Got close, but not quite there in terms of the tones I was after. Here's the updated collection and the ones I sold or returned (you can open these up to higher resolution, but I think you might have to right-click first):

As you can see, currently the only Prestige I still have is the RG5170G, and it's because its tones are closest to what I'm after--except I wish they gave it a passive mode like on the Fishman pickups of my Strandy Prog NX 7. Not that the Fishman active mode is terrible, but that last 15% of touch sensitivity is something you will feel if you have a dynamic playing style. If you just chug all day long then you'll never notice it.

I really liked the j.custom RG8870 but I wished the neck humbucker was thicker and not so P90-like, and the split-coil was the thinner/brighter type that I don't prefer. I loved everything else about it. If I was rich I'd have kept it.

To date, the Ibbys that got closest to my ideal tones were the KIKO 10BP and the RG5170G. But I sold the KIKO because I didn't like the ergonomics of the it. That volume knob placement is way too close to the bridge pickup. The trem arm also had too much play (though there's an aftermarket placement I could have tried). Nickel frets is also not my preference. I could have kept the KIKO, but then I never would have kept looking and then found my favorite neck single-coil tones on the Schecter California Classic.

@LunatiqueRob what about the Ibanez AZ (HSS) with the Dynamix switch? In the on position with the selector in the 5th position, it combines the neck and middle single coils into a humbucker configuration. I find this to be somewhat convincing of a neck "humbucker". It has less quack than a single coil and has more output.

I tried that with the AZ2204NW, but the tones aren't quite there for me. The neck single-coil tone is the thinner/brighter type while I prefer a fuller tone. The simulated neck humbucker tone sounds more like a P90-ish tone and not quite thick/warm enough to be convincing as a humbucker. Dialing down the tone knob didn't do enough for either tones. As much as I loved the look of that guitar (probably my favorite in terms of aesthetics), I'm selling it because ultimately it's about the tones and ergonomics for me.

I'm pretty sure the pretense of 'forever do-it-all' has long since been thrown out the window. OP has doubled down on that even more with the constant buying and selling spree as already documented in this entire thread.

But hey, getting new gear is always nice.

Yes, this thread mutated into something else, but we can't change thread titles so we're stuck with it.

 

[Stiman]

I tried that with the AZ2204NW, but the tones aren't quite there for me.

That model has the more vintage style pickups (Fortuna). You might prefer the Hyperion pickups. I hear ya though, it's not the same as a true neck humbucker.

edit: BTW this thread is very entertaining, I'm glad you keep updating it!

 

[Bloody_Inferno]

Yes, this thread mutated into something else, but we can't change thread titles so we're stuck with it.

Use the Report option on the original post, and a Mod can change the title for you.

 

[LunatiqueRob]

Couldn't you have sold something and put different electronics in the J.Custom and made it what you wanted?

I'd also have to put in stainless steel frets (my preferred material), and with the cost of the j.custom already being so high (I bought it new for around $3.2k), replacing the frets and pickups would push it past $4k. For a non-custom guitar, the ROI would be abysmal IMO. Also, because Ibanez has much cheaper guitars in its catalog that are very similar to that j.custom in terms of features--only not quite as extravagant in aesthetics, I realized I could just sell it and have at least two almost as nice guitars to cover more tonal bases.

That model has the more vintage style pickups (Fortuna). You might prefer the Hyperion pickups. I hear ya though, it's not the same as a true neck humbucker.

edit: BTW this thread is very entertaining, I'm glad you keep updating it!

I had an Ibby Premium AZ with the Hyperions and I did not like them--too thin and shrill when coil-splitting/tapping. If they had been to my liking, my journey would have ended there because ergonomically I do prefer HH over HSH or HSS because I hate hitting the middle pickup with my pick. While you can lower that middle pickup (which I don't like due to the imbalance of volume between pickups) and/or alter your picking technique, there are situations where it just wouldn't work very well, such as when you need to palm mute at an ideal spot and then also hit aggressive downstrokes or alternate picking while string skipping. The Fortunas and the Hyperions are both not really to my liking. Even the Air Norton on my RGT1220PB when split/tapped doesn't sound close enough to my liking. The only Ibby that gets it perfect (for me) so far has been the KIKO 10BP and those are custom DiMarzio pickups. When I contacted DiMarzio inquiring about which of their pickups available for purchase comes closest to those pickups. they told me it's the Titan neck pickup. I asked because it's for my Dean Gordon Virtus Headless custom build . The Fishmans in the RG5170G also comes close, but no passive mode switch on that guitar.

Thanks for your appreciation. Some folks find this thread annoying, which is why I'm reluctant to update it.

Use the Report option on the original post, and a Mod can change the title for you.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[Neon_Knight_]

Have you considered fitting the same Fishman pickups as your Strandberg has in your RG5170G?

I would never buy or sell a guitar because of the pickups it has. That would be like selling a house because I don't like the furniture in it.

 

[LunatiqueRob]

Have you considered fitting the same Fishman pickups as your Strandberg has in your RG5170G?

I would never buy or sell a guitar because of the pickups it has. That would be like selling a house because I don't like the furniture in it.

While I do like the split-coil tone on that Strandy Fishman in passive mode, it's not even in the top 5 single-coil tones for me, and the split-coil tone on the RG5170G is much better (to me).

 

[LunatiqueRob]

For every guitar that comes into my studio, I take photos of them (the ones you see in my NGD/review threads) and record audio clips of all the pickup positions (and sometimes different tone knob roll-off amounts too, when I'm chasing a specific tone profile). I spend hours and hours comparing the different tones and take extensive notes, which helps ingrain these insights I'm developing and serves as reference notes when I'm working on a song and need a specific tone. I figured I should share these notes with y'all here--you know, contributing to the community and all that.

These notes will continue to grow as time goes by, and I'll update with newer versions when there have been significant new additions. Not all my guitars are included in these notes, since the missing ones are very straightforward and unique and aren't similar to any of my other guitars. These notes are mainly to compare and contrast guitars with similar enough tones that I wanted to know exactly how they compare to each other.

Neck Humbuckers (bright tones)

• Çharvel Pro-Mod DK24 HH
• Ibanez AZ2204NW (ALT)
• Ibanez j.custom RG8870

Neck Humbuckers (neutral tones)

• Aristides H/08 (V1)
• Charvel Guthrie Govan
• Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 (Vintage PAF)
• Ibanez KIKO 10BP
• Ibanez RG5170G
• Ibanez RGT1220PB
• Strandberg Original NX Neck-Thru
• Strandberg Prog NX 7

Neck Humbuckers (warm tones)

• Aristides H/08 (V2)
• Charvel Guthrie Govan (tone 25%)
• Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 (Modern PAF)
• EBMM Petrucci Majesty
• Schecter C-1 E/A Classic Piezo

Neck Single-Coil (bright tones)

• Aristides H/08 (P4)
• Ibanez AZ2204NW
• Ibanez j.custom RG8870 (split)
• Schecter California Classic (tapped)
• Schecter KM-7 MKIII FR S
• Strandberg Original NX Neck-Thru (P4)
• Variax JTV-69

Neck Single-Coil (neutral tones)

• Charvel Guthrie Govan
• Çharvel Pro-Mod DK24 HH (split)
• Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 (split)
• Ibanez KIKO 10BP (split)
• Ibanez RGT1220PB (P4 & ALT)
• Schecter California Classic (with tone rolled down 50%)
• Strandberg Prog NX 7

Neck Single-Coil (warm tones)

• Charvel Guthrie Govan (tone 50%)
• Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 (tone 25%)
• Ibanez RGT1220PB (Neck ALT, P4 tone 50%)
• Ibanez RG5170G (voice 2)
• Schecter C-1 E/A Classic Piezo
• Strandberg Standard 6 NX
• Strandberg Original NX Neck-Thru (tone 30%)

MISC notes

• Mini humbucker neck tone can be approximated by these:
  • Schecter California Classic 50% tone
  • Strandy Original NX Neck-Thru (or any Strandy with Suhr SSV neck humbucker)
  • Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 24 HH (modern PAF)
  • Charvel Guthrie
  • Ibanez RGT1220BP
  • Eart W1
• LP humbucker can be approximated by:
  • Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 24 HH (vintage PAF)
• Schecter California Classic's neck single-coil is just like a vintage Telecaster.
• Schecter California Classic's neck single-coil tapped is just like Ibby AZ2204NW's neck pickup.
• Ibanez KIKO 10BP's split-coil tone can be closely matched by:
  • Charvel PRO-MOD SO-CAL STYLE 2 coil-split with 50% tone
  • Schecter California Classic with 75% tone
• Strandberg Standard 6's neck single-coil tone can be closely matched by:
  • Strandberg Original NX 6 Neck-Thru P4 with 30% tone
  • Ibanez RG5170G neck voice 2
• PRS SE Standard 24-08 and Ibanez RGT1220PB sound almost identical and can match all pickup positions and split coil positions.
• Eart W1 sounds very similar to Strandberg Plini Edition Neck-Thru, with slightly less clarity.
• Ibanez RGT1220PB's P4 (ALT) with 50% tone is a bit sterile and doesn't quite match the KIKO 10BP or the Strandy Standard 6, due to it having less mid-range resonance peak. But it does sound similar to Strandy Prog NX 7's neck split-coil--both have that bright and clear and sterile sound without the warmer resonance peak in the mids.
• Epiphone SG Prophecy's neck humbucker in modern voicing gets reasonably close to the PRS SE Hollowbody Piezo II, being just a hair brighter. Schecter C-1 E/A Classic Piezo is also close, being just a hair warmer.
• Schecter C-1 E/A Classic Piezo's split-coil tone is like a slightly duller match for the Schecter California Classic's 50% tone neck single-coil, with less of the warmer resonance peak of the mids.

Here's a screenshot of the project file in my DAW for all the test clip recordings. I opened up a couple of the track folders to show the different positions and tone knob levels recorded. If I opened all the closed track folders this screenshot would be a few pages long.

For a guitar like the Variax, I would record all the digital models and all pickup positions:

 

[Stiman]

That's really cool @LunatiqueRob !

One thing that I've found from buying a bunch of guitars over the last few years is that, irrespective of electronics, some guitars a more bright or dark or resonance or... And this isn't "tone wood" necessarily, just the individual guitars as complete systems, can vary in character.

For instance, I have a PRS Custom 24 and an Ibanez AZ2204B. Despite the scale length differences and the difference woods used, neck joint construction, the PRS is really bright and the Ibanez is very dark. You'd think it would be the other way around given the "tone woods" but it's not. They have very similar weights too (~7.8 lbs).

My point being that the character and tone of each guitar in each pickup position is unique the the exact guitar I have IME

 

[LunatiqueRob]

That's really cool @LunatiqueRob !

One thing that I've found from buying a bunch of guitars over the last few years is that, irrespective of electronics, some guitars a more bright or dark or resonance or... And this isn't "tone wood" necessarily, just the individual guitars as complete systems, can vary in character.

For instance, I have a PRS Custom 24 and an Ibanez AZ2204B. Despite the scale length differences and the difference woods used, neck joint construction, the PRS is really bright and the Ibanez is very dark. You'd think it would be the other way around given the "tone woods" but it's not. They have very similar weights too (~7.8 lbs).

My point being that the character and tone of each guitar in each pickup position is unique the the exact guitar I have IME

I've had different guitars with exactly the same pickups and configuration, but different in shape, wood, electronics, etc. They generally almost identical but might have very slight shift such as a little warmer or brighter, but it's subtle enough that I don't know if anyone can hear the difference in a mix. Even when isolated, they might not be able to tell the difference without doing a direct A/B listening test and compare the clips back-to-back. Maybe if my playing on those test clips had been 100% identical, they could sound too close to tell apart in contexts that are meaningful. But that could just be those exact guitars and in other situations, the differences could be greater, and it sounds like they were in your cases.

 

[LunatiqueRob]

The Ibanez Artcore AMH90 Hollowbody has joined the herd!

NGD/Review: Ibanez Artcore AMH90 hollowbody (black)

I have always wanted a more traditional-looking jazzbox type of guitar, since jazz is one of my influences. I did have a PRS SE Hollowbody PIezo II and a Schecter C-1 E/A Classic Semi-Hollowbody with piezo, but they had ergonomic issues I couldn't live with so I sold them. So when I researched...

www.sevenstring.org

Recently I've been eyeing the Harmony models like the Silhouette, Juno, and Jupiter. I like the fact they are simple and elegant and made to high standards at the same place as Heritage (they share the same parent company, who also happens to own my DAW of choice--Cakewalk Sonar).

I've also been checking out the Vola Vasti KJM (Kaspar Jalily Signature) and the OZ RV TNC for their flexible tone options and nice modern take on the traditional Tele and Strat designs, now at a very reasonable price for MIJ due to selling direct only.

There's also the Slomnium Impulse, which if I had found out about earlier, I probably would have just bought that, a few pickup modules, and called it the day. But at $4K (and not even including the swappable pickup modules), it's a bit of a gamble, regardless of how amazing it seems on paper and in demonstration videos.

My Dean Gordon Virtus Headless custom build is almost done. I'll post a full build progress/NGD/Review when I have it in the studio.

 

[LunatiqueRob]

I did end up getting that Vola OZ RV TNC:

NGD/Review: Vola OZ RV TNC (Tiger Eye Gloss)

I've been eyeing the Vola guitars ever since they switched to direct sales and dropped prices dramatically across their entire product line. Made in Japan at the new prices is just too tempting. I debated between this model and the Vasti KJM (Kaspar Jalily Signature), but this one has more tone...

www.sevenstring.org

Out of all the guitars I've ever owned to date, this is the closest to a "do-it-all" forever guitar. The number of tone options is amazing and it plays so comfortably and is very fast. I can shred faster and more accurately on this than any of my other guitars.

I'll probably end up getting the Vasti KJM too, since it's sort of like the Tele Thin line version of this one, with a bit less tone options but also different pickups.