Strandberg Boden in Japan!

[da_ue]

Are the koreaberg sold out in Japan or is there a chance I'll find one in Tokyo (possibly Ochanumizu?)?

I'll be in Japan in 3 weeks, I'd like to try out and eventually buy the OS7, I'm checkin' out digimart ishibashi etc. but no joy

I can find only Washberg(too expensive!) in Japan now.
I found used Koreaberg on digimart two month ago though...
Good luck on your trip!

 

[HighGain510]

Are the koreaberg sold out in Japan or is there a chance I'll find one in Tokyo (possibly Ochanumizu?)?

I'll be in Japan in 3 weeks, I'd like to try out and eventually buy the OS7, I'm checkin' out digimart ishibashi etc. but no joy

I believe there was only a small handful of the Japan market spec Boden OS line built first and they all sold out quickly. I know because I tried to find one myself. No idea if/when more will pop up, but the current spec seems to be what we received in the US (active EMG's instead of passive Lace pickups) and those are still available from the Strandberg site. I haven't seen anything posted by the Japanese dealers saying they had more on the way, perhaps you should email some of them (Ishibashi and Ikebe-Gakki both had some, not sure who else was selling them?) and ask if they have more coming?

 

[fantasyl]

I believe there was only a small handful of the Japan market spec Boden OS line built first and they all sold out quickly. I know because I tried to find one myself. No idea if/when more will pop up, but the current spec seems to be what we received in the US (active EMG's instead of passive Lace pickups) and those are still available from the Strandberg site. I haven't seen anything posted by the Japanese dealers saying they had more on the way, perhaps you should email some of them (Ishibashi and Ikebe-Gakki both had some, not sure who else was selling them?) and ask if they have more coming?

Will do, thanks! If someone sees an OS7 or a good deal on a washberg in Tokyo or Kyoto please PM me

 

[rockstarazuri]

strandberg

To save you some time and frustration of searching, these are about the only strandbergs you can find in Japan now.

 

[fantasyl]

strandberg

To save you some time and frustration of searching, these are about the only strandbergs you can find in Japan now.

Yeah, I'm a daily visitor of digimart these days , hope some special deal will come out just at the right time!

 

[Aaron316]

Hopefully this will lead to Washburn custom shop to stepping up there game. I speak from first hand experience from the S7G alone with Washburn models I have bought. Both was taken care of customer service has ALWAYS been on point. I 100% believe in Ola's work, with Mr. Yoon in the picture. I think things will only get better Strindberg* I wish I could be part of something like this. I see really really big things down the road for the brand.

 

[Jonathan20022]

The Washburn shop has been fantastic for a long time, dude All the builds I've had from them have been fantastic and it's made me jump on board and get my 7th from them. That should say enough

 

[Guitarrags]

I've been playing my Washburn since Oct of last year. Still flawless and will own it for life!

 

[HighGain510]

Hopefully this will lead to Washburn custom shop to stepping up there game. I speak from first hand experience from the S7G alone with Washburn models I have bought. Both was taken care of customer service has ALWAYS been on point. I 100% believe in Ola's work, with Mr. Yoon in the picture. I think things will only get better Strindberg* I wish I could be part of something like this. I see really really big things down the road for the brand.

Despite your post being incredibly hard to read/follow, if you're trying to say the Washburn CS folks aren't putting out quality Bodens, my current CL7 would beg to differ. I won't whitewash it and say they've ALL been perfect as there were neck alignment issues with some of the earlier Masvidaliens (which appears to have been sorted out?) and some folks had issues posted on here, but mine is one of the recently-built guitars and it's absolutely fantastic.

The Washburn shop has been fantastic for a long time, dude All the builds I've had from them have been fantastic and it's made me jump on board and get my 7th from them. That should say enough

Agreed. I pulled the trigger on another Boden 6'er CS built by Washburn so obviously if they sucked, I wouldn't be so eager to grab another build from them as well.


Also while I love my Boden OS a ton, I still feel the overall quality of the Washboden is higher. I'm sure the guys set on the OS line can prove it to themselves that it's not worth the cost difference, but IMHO I don't feel like I paid extra for nothing. It's a nicer guitar, not by a landslide, but the quality difference IS still there.

 

[Guitarrags]

From a tone perspective you notice any differences?

 

[HighGain510]

From a tone perspective you notice any differences?

Well a little hard to say since the specs a touch different on the two. The USA build is a CL7 so it has a Maple Top + Mahogany body and a Cocobolo neck plus I upgraded the pickups to passives (BKP Juggernauts). The OS 7 is the standard Maple Top + Swamp Ash body and a Maple neck and fretboard with Lundgren M7C's. The tone on the OS 7 is a bit brighter as expected for that wood combo, the attack and tightness are substantially improved beyond the CL7 but most of that is the Lundgrens. I've found they are some of THE tightest pickups under high gain imaginable. That low B on the OS just sounds incredibly defined. The Juggernauts in the CL7 are no slouch, but by comparison they are slightly rounded in the low end and part of that could absolutely be the body and neck woods.

The finish on the Washboden seems a bit nicer too, I don't know if they're spraying the exact same stuff on the OS line but it doesn't feel the same to me. The grain on the mahogany feels a bit smoother to the touch and appearance, almost like a quality oil finish but you can still see it's protected. Conversely, the OS finish looks almost like it was sprayed with clear and then buffed to satin if that makes sense? I don't know if that affects things as well but the CL7 seems to resonate like crazy, and while the OS7 obviously still reverberates quite well itself (think most of that is the chambering) I feel like the CL7 rings out/vibrates a bit more. The edge of the fretboard and the fret ends both feel a bit smoother on the CL7 too (the fret ends are rounded and polished superbly on my Washboden).

 

[Aaron316]

Despite your post being incredibly hard to read/follow, if you're trying to say the Washburn CS folks aren't putting out quality Bodens, my current CL7 would beg to differ. I won't whitewash it and say they've ALL been perfect as there were neck alignment issues with some of the earlier Masvidaliens (which appears to have been sorted out?) and some folks had issues posted on here, but mine is one of the recently-built guitars and it's absolutely fantastic.

I apologized if my post was hard to understand but I'm not saying that.. They are indeed quality, just needs to be higher and it's getting to that point. Now I do plan on ordering my third one just waiting to hear back from true temperament.

 

[fantasyl]

Spent the day searching for the OS7 today in Shinjuku and Shibuya (Tokyo)
...I was almost sure to find it in Guitar Land KEY in Shibuya but they will arrive next week, and of course I won't be in Japan by then

I had a very little little taste of the Mansoor specced Washberg and it felt nothing short of amazing.
If a SSO forumer sees or knows of an OS7 in Tokyo please post or send me a PM ASAP. I'm seriously GASSING for the OS7 but don't want the EMG version.

I will be out of Japan Saturday, but my Strandberg search just started, hopefully Ola will release the European version with Laces and the nicer case

 

[HighGain510]

Spent the day searching for the OS7 today in Shinjuku and Shibuya (Tokyo)
...I was almost sure to find it in Guitar Land KEY in Shibuya but they will arrive next week, and of course I won't be in Japan by then

I had a very little little taste of the Mansoor specced Washberg and it felt nothing short of amazing.
If a SSO forumer sees or knows of an OS7 in Tokyo please post or send me a PM ASAP. I'm seriously GASSING for the OS7 but don't want the EMG version.

I will be out of Japan Saturday, but my Strandberg search just started, hopefully Ola will release the European version with Laces and the nicer case

While it doesn't help you on the nicer Strandberg case, you CAN still get the standard OS7 model available and convert it to passives if you have someone add a ground wire for you (or do it yourself if you're so inclined, it was a bit of a PITA IMHO so I was happy I had my tech do the work on both. ). The pickup routes will still be the same so the only thing that is different is the gig bag.

 

[fantasyl]

While it doesn't help you on the nicer Strandberg case, you CAN still get the standard OS7 model available and convert it to passives if you have someone add a ground wire for you (or do it yourself if you're so inclined, it was a bit of a PITA IMHO so I was happy I had my tech do the work on both. ). The pickup routes will still be the same so the only thing that is different is the gig bag.

Thanks, could see me doing that, but I still hope to find a Japanese OS7 in ochanumizu tomorrow ...then will wait for OS European version (April May so it's almost here)...and as last chance I'll buy the active OS7 or better yet a used washberg if a killer deal comes this way

 

[HighGain510]

Thanks, could see me doing that, but I still hope to find a Japanese OS7 in ochanumizu tomorrow ...then will wait for OS European version (April May so it's almost here)...and as last chance I'll buy the active OS7 or better yet a used washberg if a killer deal comes this way

Unless they're not advertising online, I think most dealers sold out of the Japanese run of OS 7 models, that's why I was suggesting that option.

 

[guitar4tw]

Thinking about purchasing a Strandberg OS7 soon. I was just wondering, how long does that Zero Fret last before it needs changing, and does Strandberg sell spares? And is it glued to the fretboard, or is it as easy to change as on a Vigier for example?

I'd want to be able to change it myself and not have to rely on a tech to do it.

This is the only "deal breaker" for me so far, so hoping for positive answers.

 

[cubix]

+1 to that, I'm also curious about it. From the information I gathered the wear on the 0 fret really depends on the string break angle between the 0 fret and the nut. The nut should be very slightly lower than the 0 fret because then there is no real pressure put by the string to the fret. I've read about the CARVIN headless where the problems occured with standard strings (clamped behind the nut) but there were no problems with excessive wear when using double ball end strings (they mount further away from the nut making the break angle less drastic). If the 0 fret on Strandbergs is indeed just a light press fit then replacement shouldn't be an issue.

 

[Zinter]

I'm not sure if it's glued in as I haven't tried to remove mine. It had scratches from the factory so I recrowned mine when I got it. It hasn't aged since early feb. In regards to what Cubix was saying, they come with nuts that more help with the spacing and stop them from bending too far, but there isn't much contact. I replaced mine with a nut that has the strings resting on it, you often see the Washburn ones with that. Probably helps with the life like he said.

Given that they sent out an entire new bridge assembly to asher you're probably in good hands if you asked.

 

[guitar4tw]

I sent Strandberg a mail asking about this very question I posted here a couple posts up, and got a response just hours later from Ola himself!

Here's what he had to say about it:

Hi "my name",
thanks for your message.

You raise a good question, but unfortunately, it's not possible to give a good answer. If you wouldn't do a lot of bends, it will last a long time. But if you do put a lot of strain on the strings "sideways", it will wear out eventually. What I will say is that the frets are stainless, so they last a long time.

We do glue the frets in, but it's easy to get them out with heat (which is recommended anyway, to ensure there are no tear-outs). I've never been asked if we sell spare 0-frets, I have to think about that one for a bit, and figure out what the warranty situation would be.

I hope you can find yourself comfortable with the thought that it will work out in one way or another.

Best regards,
Ola

I then responded:

Hello!

Thanks for the quick reply, and from the main man himself! Not bad!

I think that's an okay solution and it won't keep me from purchasing one then, as I guess my local tech could remove the fret and place in a new one when it's needed. However, as I'm reading forums like sevenstring.org I find that "zero frets" will get worn out and need replacing at one point or another - how long depending on the playing style of each individual. Just as a thought and a little a tip to you: I feel the way French Vigier guitars has solved this issue by making the stainless steel zero fret easily replacable by 1. making it easy to remove and 2. by selling spares is a good way to handle this whole thing, as it pretty much removes the whole issue of wear and tear all together. If you guys also opted for a solution like this, the guitar would be pretty much the perfect musical tool in my opinion!

Here's a video from Vigiers youtube channel showing how easy it is to replace on their guitars: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvD5NpRN2tQ

I think I'm going to buy a Strandberg this spring then, as I really think the guitar and the ergonomical concepts you've come up with look fantastic, I must say you've done a great job coming up with something new and fresh that still looks really aesthetically pleasing and beautiful, while being very functional. I haven't tried one yet, but there's a lot of good praise to find on forums.

Have a great rest of the weekend Ola!

Best regards
"My name"

And his response:

Hi "My name",
thanks for the video! I wasn't aware that Vigier had this capability. I'm sure we can replicate it.

I look forward to seeing you as player.


Best regards,
Ola