nothingleft09
What... the... F@#k!
Hmm... Interesting. I'm ordering my 8 string at tax time so I guess we will see how that goes.
Strictly 7 customers/owners...?
- Thread starter TheAbortionMachine
- Start date
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BodyOrigami
Active Member
Curran from S7 just e-mailed me, and my guitar is on his bench. Should be assembled by tomorrow. Despite it being 22 months since I placed my order, the guys at Strictly 7(especially Jim) have been extremely nice and easy to deal with. Hopefully me and few others will have some NGD threads comin up.
AscendingMatt
Well-Known Member
Hope curran doesnt mees yours up like he did mine! i got an email from jim saying my guitar should be back from getting the imperfections fixed wed. Im still annoyed that he told me 2 weeks over a month ago that it will be done.
thrsher
\m/-_-\m/
while we are at it, mine had a bad pickup installed, waiting on a new one. told him dec 6, still waiting for it. im planning on selling mine as soon as i get the replacement pickup. im done playing S7G
Well my experience would say nice guys, but nice doesn't correlate to skill in craft. Not in the least. Mine returned about as soon as it arrived.
Like Stealth said in post 2. Just get a carvin, cheaper, better guitar, it arrives quickly. It is not perfect, it has less options, but it is a better instrument. I have owned 3 carvins, and although I have moved on from them to bigger better things music (G&L, Music Man, ETC). They play as well as any other 1500$ guitar and give you a lot of freedom to choose.
Like Stealth said in post 2. Just get a carvin, cheaper, better guitar, it arrives quickly. It is not perfect, it has less options, but it is a better instrument. I have owned 3 carvins, and although I have moved on from them to bigger better things music (G&L, Music Man, ETC). They play as well as any other 1500$ guitar and give you a lot of freedom to choose.
TheAbortionMachine
Active Member
thrsher
\m/-_-\m/
taken from the s7g facebook
Hello to everyone in the S7G family. Jim here, rare appearance, but a necessity at this point it would seem.
As many are aware both Allan Marcus and Paul DeMaio have left Strictly 7 for various reasons of which are not relevant here or anywhere else in a public forum. I personally wish them both the best of success in their new endeavors and I am sure their futures are bright. Like all relationships in life, nothing lasts forever. The decisions made by Allan, Paul, and myself are what they are, nothing more. People can read into whatever they choose, I can't control that nor do I want to. Doesn't really matter.
At the end of the day, S7G is still making great guitars both the S7G line as well as continued production of the Strandberg Boden 7 and 8 models. 2013 sees S7G with my own paint booth which will accelerate build times for sure; and if the hoopla at NAMM is any indicator, we will double our growth from last year. There are new employees on the horizon, and although Allan and Paul will be missed, their departures will not affect the quality of the S7G products nor the growth of S7G which is destined to continue to rise.
I have been sent comments posted elsewhere that infer I am somehow becoming greedy or lowering the quality of the product somehow? And now that personnel changes have occurred, somehow there is no one left to build the guitars except a "CNC"? Newsflash, no one in S7G has built a guitar by hand from start to finish, ever, not me, Allan, or any of the other 5 employees (nor 95% of the industry I'd guess since we all use CNC's now except for a treasured few who are the true luthiers in my book). I'm sure we could, but we would only build 2-3 a month and they would have to cost $6,000 ; )
Contrary to apparent perception in the internet world, S7G is made up of 7, now 5, employees all of whom play a vital role in bringing the S7G and Strandberg Boden models to the consumer. To assume otherwise is absurd, ignorant, offensive, and short-sighted. Additionally, all my employees are very good or great even, so the loss of 1 or 2 is sad from a family standpoint, but everyone is replaceable, including me. We are building guitars, not nuclear missiles. And, as many reading this can attest to, not every family gets along with one and other all the time.
I'm not the first guy to build guitars, nor am I the best guy; I am not so full of myself that I believe we are the be all end all of the guitar world. We build excellent guitars in the USA with only the best quality components, at a price that is difficult to match. That will never change. I have been approached by 3 separate companies over the past 2 years to move my manufacturing to the Pacific Rim, I declined, because it isn't about how much money I can make...it is about how many quality guitars can we build in the USA while providing a comfortable living for my employees, their families, and mine. Period. Additionally, how many more people can I employ in the U.S. as the years progress and offer them the same thrill of getting that e-mail from a customer who loves their guitar and can't wait to melt faces with the crushing tone of an S7G Guitar. Not too many jobs as cool as building guitars for a living, IMHO.
Although we are admittedly slow, the end result is usually worth the wait in most instances. I am not perfect, and have made mistakes in the guitar building process, but I am as honest as the day is long and correct those errors; and I am man enough to admit when I have made a mistake. Ask anyone who has one of my guitars and you will know it is true. Hearsay and opinion is the scourge of the human race. Truth will always win in the end. Have a question, ask me, but don't assume someone other than the source knows the answer. Even when I am not the responsible party for a mistake or flaw in a guitar, it is my fault, I am the end point for "passing the buck".
Customer service is critical and everyone who works for me understands the consumer is spending a lot of hard earned money to buy our products, so we all take pride in the end result. I'm a hard guy to work for and don't always share the same vision as others around me, but at the end of it all, I will know I have done things honest, fair, and the way I wanted them done, for better or worse.
So I will repeat myself once again, I wish Allan and Paul the very best and this decision to part ways is in everyone's best interest. If people have questions or concerns I would encourage you to direct them to me specifically, rather than post opinions, half truths, or guesses in a public forum.
Thank you all for your time, support, energy, and well wishes. 2013 is going to be an incredible year. So many great things coming down the pike for S7G and Strandberg and all the artists, dealers, suppliers, etc. who are involved with S7G.
All of the artists have great things on their calendars and we will be releasing some very cool new signature lines soon. (Jim Hughes, Acle Kahney, John Comprix, Josh Travis, Dusty Emer, Ola Englund, and Simone Bertozzi's first ever S7G BASS all have their sig models coming out...so whoever said the production on those has stopped is frankly an ignorant fool who obviously doesn't work for S7G) hence solidifying my statement of hearsay and opinion. Ask and you shall receive an answer. If you don't get it from the horses mouth (or the fat guy who owns S7G), then that leave's you as the horses'...fill in the blank yourself ; )
Finally, please be on the lookout for an amazing new band, Gemini Syndrome, as Mike Salerno has joined the S7G family! More info on all the artists will be forthcoming. The website is under going major reconstruction, thanks to the amazing foundation put in place by Paul and his cousin, we can build on it further.
Peace,
Jim
Hello to everyone in the S7G family. Jim here, rare appearance, but a necessity at this point it would seem.
As many are aware both Allan Marcus and Paul DeMaio have left Strictly 7 for various reasons of which are not relevant here or anywhere else in a public forum. I personally wish them both the best of success in their new endeavors and I am sure their futures are bright. Like all relationships in life, nothing lasts forever. The decisions made by Allan, Paul, and myself are what they are, nothing more. People can read into whatever they choose, I can't control that nor do I want to. Doesn't really matter.
At the end of the day, S7G is still making great guitars both the S7G line as well as continued production of the Strandberg Boden 7 and 8 models. 2013 sees S7G with my own paint booth which will accelerate build times for sure; and if the hoopla at NAMM is any indicator, we will double our growth from last year. There are new employees on the horizon, and although Allan and Paul will be missed, their departures will not affect the quality of the S7G products nor the growth of S7G which is destined to continue to rise.
I have been sent comments posted elsewhere that infer I am somehow becoming greedy or lowering the quality of the product somehow? And now that personnel changes have occurred, somehow there is no one left to build the guitars except a "CNC"? Newsflash, no one in S7G has built a guitar by hand from start to finish, ever, not me, Allan, or any of the other 5 employees (nor 95% of the industry I'd guess since we all use CNC's now except for a treasured few who are the true luthiers in my book). I'm sure we could, but we would only build 2-3 a month and they would have to cost $6,000 ; )
Contrary to apparent perception in the internet world, S7G is made up of 7, now 5, employees all of whom play a vital role in bringing the S7G and Strandberg Boden models to the consumer. To assume otherwise is absurd, ignorant, offensive, and short-sighted. Additionally, all my employees are very good or great even, so the loss of 1 or 2 is sad from a family standpoint, but everyone is replaceable, including me. We are building guitars, not nuclear missiles. And, as many reading this can attest to, not every family gets along with one and other all the time.
I'm not the first guy to build guitars, nor am I the best guy; I am not so full of myself that I believe we are the be all end all of the guitar world. We build excellent guitars in the USA with only the best quality components, at a price that is difficult to match. That will never change. I have been approached by 3 separate companies over the past 2 years to move my manufacturing to the Pacific Rim, I declined, because it isn't about how much money I can make...it is about how many quality guitars can we build in the USA while providing a comfortable living for my employees, their families, and mine. Period. Additionally, how many more people can I employ in the U.S. as the years progress and offer them the same thrill of getting that e-mail from a customer who loves their guitar and can't wait to melt faces with the crushing tone of an S7G Guitar. Not too many jobs as cool as building guitars for a living, IMHO.
Although we are admittedly slow, the end result is usually worth the wait in most instances. I am not perfect, and have made mistakes in the guitar building process, but I am as honest as the day is long and correct those errors; and I am man enough to admit when I have made a mistake. Ask anyone who has one of my guitars and you will know it is true. Hearsay and opinion is the scourge of the human race. Truth will always win in the end. Have a question, ask me, but don't assume someone other than the source knows the answer. Even when I am not the responsible party for a mistake or flaw in a guitar, it is my fault, I am the end point for "passing the buck".
Customer service is critical and everyone who works for me understands the consumer is spending a lot of hard earned money to buy our products, so we all take pride in the end result. I'm a hard guy to work for and don't always share the same vision as others around me, but at the end of it all, I will know I have done things honest, fair, and the way I wanted them done, for better or worse.
So I will repeat myself once again, I wish Allan and Paul the very best and this decision to part ways is in everyone's best interest. If people have questions or concerns I would encourage you to direct them to me specifically, rather than post opinions, half truths, or guesses in a public forum.
Thank you all for your time, support, energy, and well wishes. 2013 is going to be an incredible year. So many great things coming down the pike for S7G and Strandberg and all the artists, dealers, suppliers, etc. who are involved with S7G.
All of the artists have great things on their calendars and we will be releasing some very cool new signature lines soon. (Jim Hughes, Acle Kahney, John Comprix, Josh Travis, Dusty Emer, Ola Englund, and Simone Bertozzi's first ever S7G BASS all have their sig models coming out...so whoever said the production on those has stopped is frankly an ignorant fool who obviously doesn't work for S7G) hence solidifying my statement of hearsay and opinion. Ask and you shall receive an answer. If you don't get it from the horses mouth (or the fat guy who owns S7G), then that leave's you as the horses'...fill in the blank yourself ; )
Finally, please be on the lookout for an amazing new band, Gemini Syndrome, as Mike Salerno has joined the S7G family! More info on all the artists will be forthcoming. The website is under going major reconstruction, thanks to the amazing foundation put in place by Paul and his cousin, we can build on it further.
Peace,
Jim
irondavidson
Well-Known Member
.. so who are Allan and Paul..?? 
thrsher
\m/-_-\m/
allan marcus was from my understand jims right hand man from the begining(and over saw the strandberg work, he went out to ola to learn directly from him). Allan did my final setup on my first build and it was perfect. paul was he customer serivce/internet rep. the day to day face of s7g
straightshreddd
Dat Dood
Dayum^
Interesting. That's a bummer than Allan left, when I talked to him he was a really nice guy. Hopefully it was indeed for the best.
It's interesting what Jim said, and cool that he's being honest, but there is one thing that kinda worries me. The main complaint I've been seeing from people is that S7G bit(es) off more than they can chew, and basically people end up waiting a long time. Mostly because of all the signatures, and the Strandbergs. It's funny how Jim acknowledges the wait time, then announces another large handful of signatures coming out.
I think they'd be better off committing to either just customs or just signatures/productions
or at least setting up two different shops, so they're basically two separate entities.
Having said that, they're definitely good guys who are working hard, and their guitars almost always look amazing. I don't think I'm in a rush to order a custom from them after reading everything (including their updates), but I'd still love to get a Boden from them if I could afford it.
It's interesting what Jim said, and cool that he's being honest, but there is one thing that kinda worries me. The main complaint I've been seeing from people is that S7G bit(es) off more than they can chew, and basically people end up waiting a long time. Mostly because of all the signatures, and the Strandbergs. It's funny how Jim acknowledges the wait time, then announces another large handful of signatures coming out.
I think they'd be better off committing to either just customs or just signatures/productions
or at least setting up two different shops, so they're basically two separate entities.Having said that, they're definitely good guys who are working hard, and their guitars almost always look amazing. I don't think I'm in a rush to order a custom from them after reading everything (including their updates), but I'd still love to get a Boden from them if I could afford it.
AscendingMatt
Well-Known Member
i know allan on a personal level and i know him and jim always butted heads. Also allan and paul are in "The Drake Equation" and they are starting to write music and going to be doing a tour overseas. Although allan did amazing work and i am perturbed that this happend. (because allan was amazing at setting up guitars and basically everything about guitars) i am skeptical to see how these new S7G's will come out in the future. Paul i didnt know very well but he was a great dude and knows his stuff. He also works for Randall as well. My
Yoims
Frustrated Lefty
I ordered my S7 in October, and it was completely untouched until last week. At the time they had told me 6-8 months, but that could shorten in 2013 since they were making some changes to the company.
As far as I know, the body for my guitar was either just cut, or hasn't even been cut yet.
I was skeptical to ordering an S7, mainly because I'm a lefty. Not many luthiers have experience building a left handed guitar, and even though you can claim that any good luthier should be able to build one, it still really is a completely backwards method. However, I decided to go with them after some conversations with both Paul and Jim at the time, and their responses and customer service was great then.
I also figured, for the kind of music I play, they were pretty much building the guitar I would need. I don't consider myself anywhere near an expert on guitar, but there's nothing I love more than playing, and I decided to make the investment.
I will agree, that the customer service decreases a lot over time, mainly because in the past 5 months I've only received 2-3 actual updates, and my guitar was untouched for several months.
It's true that a lot of people who ordered or order the signature models get them a lot faster, rather than those who get actual customs. I find it a bit unfair, but at the same time all of those customs as far as I've seen have been near top notch.
Obviously I'll post again when I actually get the guitar, and then I'll see if the lack of customer service and the long wait is worth it.
As far as I know, the body for my guitar was either just cut, or hasn't even been cut yet.
I was skeptical to ordering an S7, mainly because I'm a lefty. Not many luthiers have experience building a left handed guitar, and even though you can claim that any good luthier should be able to build one, it still really is a completely backwards method. However, I decided to go with them after some conversations with both Paul and Jim at the time, and their responses and customer service was great then.
I also figured, for the kind of music I play, they were pretty much building the guitar I would need. I don't consider myself anywhere near an expert on guitar, but there's nothing I love more than playing, and I decided to make the investment.
I will agree, that the customer service decreases a lot over time, mainly because in the past 5 months I've only received 2-3 actual updates, and my guitar was untouched for several months.
It's true that a lot of people who ordered or order the signature models get them a lot faster, rather than those who get actual customs. I find it a bit unfair, but at the same time all of those customs as far as I've seen have been near top notch.
Obviously I'll post again when I actually get the guitar, and then I'll see if the lack of customer service and the long wait is worth it.
All I can say is that my wait time has been about 5 months and I got a note stating that my guitar would ship this coming week at some point.
Jim is an absolutely fantastic guy and he and I have talked on the phone on a couple of occasions. Weve had a few good talks about things.
Right now, that company is BOGGED DOWN, they are apparently training some new people but there's bound to be some kinks whenever a company blows up like S7 has.
But at the end of the day, Jim cares about his customers and it shows. That is more than I can say about my experiences with LTD, Jackson and back in the day Yamaha. Those companies treated me like garbage but this was between 5-10 years ago. I havent rushed Jim or S7 in the slightest but Jim has been there to call and email to keep me posted.
As for the build I cant speak about it yet but I will be able to in about a week hopefully. However what can be said,,, if S7 is THAT back ordered then they must be doing something really damn well.
Jim is an absolutely fantastic guy and he and I have talked on the phone on a couple of occasions. Weve had a few good talks about things.
Right now, that company is BOGGED DOWN, they are apparently training some new people but there's bound to be some kinks whenever a company blows up like S7 has.
But at the end of the day, Jim cares about his customers and it shows. That is more than I can say about my experiences with LTD, Jackson and back in the day Yamaha. Those companies treated me like garbage but this was between 5-10 years ago. I havent rushed Jim or S7 in the slightest but Jim has been there to call and email to keep me posted.
As for the build I cant speak about it yet but I will be able to in about a week hopefully. However what can be said,,, if S7 is THAT back ordered then they must be doing something really damn well.
I'm not a customer nor an owner BUT I feel like I'm qualified to post here because:
1. a very good friend of mine is an owner and I have played his guitar (along with a few other S7Gs)
2. I'm actually the person who deals with S7G for him as my friend is not very good at English
Having said that, I would agree with some of the things mentioned here previously, they bit off more than they could chew, and the turnaround time was misleading etc etc, but they were very nice to deal with. Yes, like someone else said, nice doesn't really mean anything useful, but at least I know they're try their best to get things resolved. One issue with the delay is that they outsource the finishing process to another paint shop with their own orders, and obviously that paint shop will prioritize their own orders and delay the S7G orders, and that's what's causing the main delay. To solve that issues, S7G is building their own paint booth to do that in house. Anyways, I'm not trying to find excuses for them, but that's just what's going on.
About the guitars themselves... gotta be honest that they're not the prettiest looking guitars on the market, but they give out this "workhorse" feel, that they're the guitars that are meant to be played and abused. Having said that, they're still built nicely and don't have any particular flaws. They did have some screw ups though, that they installed the wrong pickup on my friend's guitar, good thing we spotted that before it was shipped so they swapped it back to the correct ones, however they forgot to change the pot (active to passive) still. So yes, they do seem like they were too busy and overlooked certain things, but when we told them they were willing to compensate and stuff, but that was a small issues we just got it fixed locally.
Playability wise, they are indeed great guitars. The neck shape is really something else, it takes time to get used to, as it's quite fat and chunky, and feels like a piece of soap... but once you get used to it, it's very nice to play with and honestly you don't get fatigued easily. A few friends got together with the guitars, and I feel the S7G neck is easier to play with than another friend's ESP custom shop.
So all in all, no, S7G is not perfect, they do make mistakes, they have and they probably still will until they're stabilized, but they are getting better, and they will admit their fault and make up for the mistakes they've made. But then again no guitars or guitar companies are perfect, what's important is that I've liked all the S7Gs I've played, even though none of them were mine, and my friend who is the owner is very happy with his.
1. a very good friend of mine is an owner and I have played his guitar (along with a few other S7Gs)
2. I'm actually the person who deals with S7G for him as my friend is not very good at English
Having said that, I would agree with some of the things mentioned here previously, they bit off more than they could chew, and the turnaround time was misleading etc etc, but they were very nice to deal with. Yes, like someone else said, nice doesn't really mean anything useful, but at least I know they're try their best to get things resolved. One issue with the delay is that they outsource the finishing process to another paint shop with their own orders, and obviously that paint shop will prioritize their own orders and delay the S7G orders, and that's what's causing the main delay. To solve that issues, S7G is building their own paint booth to do that in house. Anyways, I'm not trying to find excuses for them, but that's just what's going on.
About the guitars themselves... gotta be honest that they're not the prettiest looking guitars on the market, but they give out this "workhorse" feel, that they're the guitars that are meant to be played and abused. Having said that, they're still built nicely and don't have any particular flaws. They did have some screw ups though, that they installed the wrong pickup on my friend's guitar, good thing we spotted that before it was shipped so they swapped it back to the correct ones, however they forgot to change the pot (active to passive) still. So yes, they do seem like they were too busy and overlooked certain things, but when we told them they were willing to compensate and stuff, but that was a small issues we just got it fixed locally.
Playability wise, they are indeed great guitars. The neck shape is really something else, it takes time to get used to, as it's quite fat and chunky, and feels like a piece of soap... but once you get used to it, it's very nice to play with and honestly you don't get fatigued easily. A few friends got together with the guitars, and I feel the S7G neck is easier to play with than another friend's ESP custom shop.
So all in all, no, S7G is not perfect, they do make mistakes, they have and they probably still will until they're stabilized, but they are getting better, and they will admit their fault and make up for the mistakes they've made. But then again no guitars or guitar companies are perfect, what's important is that I've liked all the S7Gs I've played, even though none of them were mine, and my friend who is the owner is very happy with his.
nothingleft09
What... the... F@#k!
Read into it a little more? All the guitars are done by CNC.
Necromagnon
Well-Known Member
Read into it a little more? That's not what Walt said.
And I totally agree with him (but it worth what it worth...
) nothingleft09
What... the... F@#k!
That's the way it read out to me. lol I'm not entirely sure myself that Jim meant inside S7 or outside of S7 on never building by hand though. Could go either way on that one.
Necromagnon
Well-Known Member
What Wakt said, I guess, and how I understand and agree to it, is that you better learn how to build a guitar, by hand (but it doesn't prevent to use router and stuff) and THEN, when you know your stuff, jump on CNC.
Here, it appears that they never build one by hand before jumping on CNC. And CNC doesn't program itself, until you prove me I'm wrong. So if you don't know how to build one, using a CNC will not help.
Also, about building by hands around here, they have a looooooooooot of preconceived ideas that would be great if they could keep it to their own, imo...
