I wish they had kept the original, more natural finish. That black center is the reason I cancelled my order.
Solar Guitars by Ola Englund
- Thread starter zarg
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I wish they had kept the original, more natural finish. That black center is the reason I cancelled my order.
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A-Branger
Well-Known Member
yup, and thats why the prices are up. Those are things that cost money
those big factories (in indo, korea, china, whatever) dont work with a "one price for all" , just becasue you paid X$ for your LTD200 with a plain black paint job and generic hardware, doesnt mean every single guitar coming from the same factory has to cost the same regardless of specs.
Think about those factories like a Kiesel ordering menu but on steroids. The more options you pick, the more your guitar is gonna cost to build.
They could happily build you a 200$ piece of firewood, or they could build you a $2000 one. The more specs you choose, the more is gonna cost you. At one point the guitar brand has to draw a line before either the cost of the instrument is going to be too high, or their mass produced guitar is going to clash with your custom made stuff, or with your other lines of guitar build in other factories.
why these guitars cost more, you just say it yourself in that coment. "but 10 years ago I could buy a prestige RG", yeah but looka t the specs of such RG, plain solid color, cheap woods(or the most popular comon available), ease of construction, and propetiary hardware. Yes, Ibanez bridges are amazing, but there are "their" bridges, so what they pay for it is not what another brand has to pay to get "name brand" hardware
you want fancy woods, high specs, branded pickups, branded hardware, unique color combinations, SS frets, ect ect?, then be prepared to pay the price for it
Also is the numbers. Ibanez/LTD can manage to build XXXXX amount of guitars (the more you order, the better the price), but Solar can only order XXX at a time. Smaller "unique" orders is always gonna cost more
would be Solar be charging too much?... donno, and who cares. Guitars are great value, they need to make a living too, jsut because you want a cheap guitar because "Indo guitars should be X$" doesnt mean the people at Solar has to live making a 5$ profit from them. Also its the perceived value of things. If these were sold to you at cost, you prob would be like "why they are so cheap?, is something wrong?, too cheap to be any good"
I am in the market for a 6 and seriously considering Solar. My experience with neck through construction is null, same as with ash as a body wood.
So... Anyone able to tell me what to expect tonally from the A and from the S series, as they have the same pickups? Anyone with both?
So... Anyone able to tell me what to expect tonally from the A and from the S series, as they have the same pickups? Anyone with both?
I’ve owned an S1.6 and had an ash body A1.6 for a moment.
The biggest difference between them is weight. Mahogany body will weigh more than ash. Sound wise ash is a bit more balanced while mahogany has more mids, but then again the tonal differences are so minimal it’s hardly a factor, especially with heavy distortion.
Personally I find the stock pickups too bass heavy and mushy. They’re not bad, just kinda meh, maybe it’s the scooped eq.
Andromalia
Pardon my french
I found the pickups good enough to not want to change them. I play tuned in E and use the axefx III pitch shifter for D, B etc. (yes, it works)
The A1.6 and S1.6 I have weight virtually the same. S1.6 was 3.5kg on the nose while A1.6 was a hefty 10 grams less. The stock pickups sounded a bit muddy at first but playing with the pickup heights as well as the pole screws helped quite a bit.
I’m torn, I’d love to order the A1.6LN, finally a bright colored model with evertune but tbh after all the qc crap I’ve gone through I’m hesitant. What if the paint finish and woodwork is as crappy as on the A2.6?
Alexa run my life
SS.org Regular
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It would behoove Ola to offer different inlay options......one of them being no inlay at all. I know alot of people like no inlays but I do like them and I just want some dots or blocks.
josh1
SS.org Regular
The 12th fret inlay or logo as it really is, is what's holding me back. I think it's so ugly. I would buy the pink Solar in a heartbeat if it had simple dots or no inlays at all.
MadYarpen
Well-Known Member
I find it very surprising how some don't like this inlay. I mean, the neck looks best (IMO) when there are no inlays and no markers, but this way it still looks much cleaner than regular markers.
I don't know, but when I look at my guitar, I really don't mind the inlay. Maybe it helps it is red, so it is not so visible. But even if it is white in most cases, I don't really care.
Of course it is 100% personal. I would just never guess this particualr thing could stop someone from buying the guitar.
I don't know, but when I look at my guitar, I really don't mind the inlay. Maybe it helps it is red, so it is not so visible. But even if it is white in most cases, I don't really care.
Of course it is 100% personal. I would just never guess this particualr thing could stop someone from buying the guitar.
Edika
Well-Known Member
I was just reading in the Ola discussion Facebook page a guy posted about his guitar that bought a bit over a year the the fretboard cracked from about the 9th fret all the way to the to the 24th.
He contacted the customer service and they more or less told they told him that it is not covered under warranty. Now I know ebony I prone to cracking but from the 10+ I've owned over the years with ebony boards none of them had an issue let alone something as extreme as that. He was going to contact Ola about this but for this kind of damage I do think the warranty should cover for defective materials.
I'm not sure if it's ok to share the guy's photo as it's not my guitar so maybe a mod could way in on that. Not trying to steer things up as per the quality of the instruments as there are several Solars with no functional issues but I'm curious to see how this is handled by the company.
He contacted the customer service and they more or less told they told him that it is not covered under warranty. Now I know ebony I prone to cracking but from the 10+ I've owned over the years with ebony boards none of them had an issue let alone something as extreme as that. He was going to contact Ola about this but for this kind of damage I do think the warranty should cover for defective materials.
I'm not sure if it's ok to share the guy's photo as it's not my guitar so maybe a mod could way in on that. Not trying to steer things up as per the quality of the instruments as there are several Solars with no functional issues but I'm curious to see how this is handled by the company.
MadYarpen
Well-Known Member
Would love to hear more. I bought mine from thomann, and I'm glad I did. I have an issue with the switch or some other electronic problem, and they accepted it for warranty repair only on the basis of a short video I sent them. Also they agreed to have it repaired locally in my country, instead of risking shipment. I will see how it eventually turns out, but their customer support is very good.
josh1
SS.org Regular
I don't want his name on the inlay. They're basically all signature guitars with his name front and center.
Cryovillain
SS.org Regular
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The pickups are meant to be boosted to the max. Otherwise id say they are unusable for lower tunings.
JimF
Contributor
Well, it is his company, selling a superstrat shape he designed (amongst other shapes), made to his specs...
Whether you like the logo or not, you can't fault him for using it. Its a small touch that sets Solar apart from it's competitors, and is easily recognisable.
josh1
SS.org Regular
It says Solar on the headstock. A guitar doesn't need two logos.
I think it's good that not all guitars are similar: There are already a million brands that don't have the logo on the fretboard. What's the point of making the same thing that's already been done to death?
JimF
Contributor
Perhaps, but Ibanez find the vine inlay very popular, Daemoness are famed for their fancy inlay work, I guess people like inlays.
There's got to be something to set you apart from the competition
Edit: Rocktoe beat me to it
josh1
SS.org Regular
That's true. I didn't ask to eliminate their inaly all together but an option would be nice.
If everyone in here who asked for no inlays threw down the median cost for a Solar you'd probably be able to order a "totally not a Solar, guys" with blank boards from WMI or Cortek or wherever these are made. 
