NGD - Frebulence 2.0 is home! :D (GKG R729 prototype)

[EliNoPants]

man, so digging these, i hope i have money whenever these hit production...especially if they make a purple one

 

[Bloody_Inferno]

Congrats Fred. That thing is gorgeous!

 

[Leuchty]

That colour!!! WOWSERS!!!

 

[MaKo´s Tethan]

oh shit that color is amazing for a guitar with that shape, freakin awesome, congrats!

 

[Origin]

Holy shit, that just makes me want that model more. The finish is stunning.

 

[sheboingo]

You're lucky this guy didn't grab a hold of it first :

 

[jymellis]

jesus maing, you and your custom guitars how many guitars by this comapny do you own now?

 

[Fred the Shred]

sheboingo - you know, I did fear that might have happened not too long ago...

Answering the question, I own 4 Turbulence axes now, the Beater (my first R36), the Messerchmitt, and Frebulences v1 and v2.

As for a review, after giving her a nice spanking on my rig, here it is, as sent to Mr. Leo Scala himself:

- stock pickups sound quite a bit different from the one that came in my very first R36 axe, and in a good way, as they seem to be more defined, hotter and have a broader spectrum response. Clarity is definitely improved, which is quite welcome in this sort of guitar;

- the neck is, I believe, a nice and safe bet, as it feels just like the mate finished one on my beater R36, and it's a very comfortable "shred" profile. While I'm a fan of thicker necks as well, like on the original R729 prototype, this profile is bound to appeal to a wider audience;

- fret size seems to be quite perfect - it is narrow enough to allow me to go for the 29th fret without having to shove my nails in there while having enough height to accommodate huge bends and fluid legato with no attrition whatsoever: great call here;

- knob placement is exemplary. I fiddled with the guitar standing up, walking all over the place while jamming merrily, and the position of switches and knobs was 100% unobtrusive yet intuitive to use; not once did I tap the wrong pickup, miss the selector switch, or have trouble reaching the volume knob. Lovely stuff;

- weight and balance are fabulous. She's very light yet balances perfectly when strapped on, just like the original Turbulences. After some 2 hours of hopping around with it while fiddling with my rig, I had no signs of fatigue affecting my shoulder or back. I did prefer the strap location of the first proto, as having it on the side of the horn allows me to rotate the guitar effortlessly when adjusting positions, yet this is a bit of a minor detail, in my opinion;

- the one thing I didn't like was the absence of side markers after the 17th fret. In a 29 fret guitar, no matter how used I am to the Turbulence, a visual guideline along the binding is something that really prevents you from making mistakes when fret intervals are so diminute, in a proportionally cluttered part of the fingerboard. I marked the position of the 24th fret myself, yet I don't think buyers of a production model would be pleased to feel "forced" to do so.

Thanks all for the kind words.

 

[Cyntex]

Wow, that's a real awesome guitar you have there, the design is pretty "out there" which I like a lot, congrats!

Just wondering, do you have any videos of your guitars in action, cause' I'd love to see and hear it (I have never seen anyone playing a 29 fretted guitar).

 

[Fred the Shred]

Cheers, mate. I'll be recording a few vids of not only this but other axes of mine, including at least one of the 36 fret models as well.

 

[sheboingo]

In all honesty, most people probably don't spend a whole lot of time beyond 12th fret (i.e. beyond third octave) let alone beyond 24th. So, 99% of time, it's pretty similar to whatever everyone else is doing.

Of course, can't speak for Fred, but I doubt he's stationed there himself. It's like that Jensen Interceptor that Mad Max is driving. It's got that turbo boost just in case, used sparringly. It's good to know it's there when you need it though.

 

[Fred the Shred]

Well, in all honesty, I do spend a LOT of time up there (you have a 4 octave range just from the 10th fret, excluding widdly bends), and I like to have nice and clear guidelines on stage. Problems with the sudden absence of side markers are, for instance, playing runs in which you're targeting notes between the 20th and 29th frets and find yourself clueless, especially under stage lights, as to where the hell you are, and I don't really think the audience is into being really patient while you count the frets so you don't miss a note... I marked just the 24th fret since I didn't want to scribble on the whole thing, but while I can't care less about the frets above that on this axe (as opposed to a R36, where it is indeed crucial), 17th fret seems a tad short to have an instant visual reference.

This is a proto, and I know that Leo and I want these axes to be absolutely perfect, with ZERO things to point out. It's rather close to that as it is, otherwise it wouldn't really be the fret marker issue I'd be pointing out, which is great, but I don't believe a few specks of white a bit further down the binding (this happened in the proto due to the deeper than usual scalloping) will be a massively disturbing thing to include in the actual production instruments.

 

[CooleyJr]

YES!!! FREBULENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's so damn sexy Freb.

 

[Fred the Shred]

Ask CooleyJr here how long I spend up above the 12th fret when playing leads!

 

[CooleyJr]

You never stray bro! Hahahaha That's dat there hamster shred!

 

[sheboingo]

I got that, markers should be there, I was refering to actually spending time playing above 24th (12th) fret in terms of playing technique. I had the feeling the other gentleman somehow felt that playing or listening to this type of instrument would be somehow different than playing a regular 6 string 21/22/24 fret instrument (you posted while I was responding to him, never bothered to actually quote him, mea culpa). I can't remember the last time I touched 24th fret. Once every 3 months perhaps .

Typically, I seldom go over 21st. Oh well, old school. That's not to say I didn't spend half my life between 12th and 21st. Most of the time I actually insist my guitars have 24 frets, for no apparent reason at all, come to think of it. For me, it's just psychological. Why have a fretboard that stops one and a half step below 4 octave range (talking about 6 strings). It never made sense to me. But luthiers keep convincing me it messes with construction, the whole adage. Anyway, looking forward to some vids from you.

On another note, markers? What markers?

Leo made this one for me 10 years ago, and figured, hey you don't even sightread music, what's the point, play by ear. Funny guy.

 

[Fred the Shred]

Like it! Twisted tele vibe to it is a major plus in my book! I meant side markers regarding the Turbulence, mind you - about half of my guitars has side markers only - fingerboard markers would kill my pretty North Start inlay's looks as far as this axe is concerned.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Don't you dare go and add more markers to the face of thet fretboard Fred. Or else!




I the "North Star" by the way.

 

[Fred the Shred]

I dig inlay work as much as the next guy, but adding dots here would bloody kill me!

 

[CooleyJr]

No inlays on this guitar just gives it a subtly added.. sexyness. It wouldn't be the same with dots. Is it weird I have the OP tabbed so I can still see the pics but search the forums too?