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previous: david it may be a bit off topic since you... -- 8/4/1999 9:32 PM

Re: Japanese Strat question

8/5/1999 3:32 AM
JohnC	Re: Japanese Strat question Yes, thanks to Don I discovered the pu's are ceramics. And yes, they are very rough sounding; loud but I don't like them. I can't get out of them the sound shades I always look for the blues. It has Gothos, and was made in 88-89 I believe (H serial#). The neck is just incredible. Not the deluxe tele neck I have in another guitar, but in some way as good. Slow growing mapple, 10 year rings running perfectly in parallel from the body end to the head. Believe me, is great. First thing I took off the old strings, and after cleaning, and replacing the horrible skull pickguard for a 3 ply american standard one (some of the holes don't fit...) adjusted by "feel" the truss rod -flat-, restrung, made the average saddle positioning for the intonation and action: not a single buzz. I don't know if basswood is the same here, but I know that kind of wood. Long time ago it was used to make kid toys. I also have some pieces around my garage/basement/computer room/guitar room left from when I used a big piece to make a carpenter's workbench clamp. It's a fine grain quite hard not very heavy wood, and if you knock on it, it's got a realy nice sound. It's a pity I cannot compare it with a poplar body american made strat to hear the difference. Now I have to think about the pickups, as I definetely don't like the ceramics at all. I'll change one after another, and maybe I'll keep the one on the neck or the mid position. I noticed that this guitar hasn't the bright long sustain (umpluged) that my fixed bridge Fender has, but again unpluged, it's got a nice coloured tone of it's own. Is it that guitars with this kind of vibrato have less sustain that fixed bridge models? Thanks to you all for your comments! JohnC

8/5/1999 3:32 AM

JohnC

Re: Japanese Strat question

Yes, thanks to Don I discovered the pu's are ceramics.

And yes, they are very rough sounding; loud but I don't like them. I can't get out of them the sound shades I always look for the blues.

It has Gothos, and was made in 88-89 I believe (H serial#).

The neck is just incredible. Not the deluxe tele neck I have in another guitar, but in some way as good. Slow growing mapple, 10 year rings running perfectly in parallel from the body end to the head. Believe me, is great. First thing I took off the old strings, and after cleaning, and replacing the horrible skull pickguard for a 3 ply american standard one (some of the holes don't fit...) adjusted by "feel" the truss rod -flat-, restrung, made the average saddle positioning for the intonation and action: not a single buzz.

I don't know if basswood is the same here, but I know that kind of wood. Long time ago it was used to make kid toys. I also have some pieces around my garage/basement/computer room/guitar room

left from when I used a big piece to make a carpenter's workbench clamp. It's a fine grain quite hard not very heavy wood, and if you knock on it, it's got a realy nice sound. It's a pity I cannot compare it with a poplar body american made strat to hear the difference.

Now I have to think about the pickups, as I definetely don't like the ceramics at all. I'll change one after another, and maybe I'll keep the one on the neck or the mid position.

I noticed that this guitar hasn't the bright long sustain (umpluged) that my fixed bridge Fender has, but again unpluged, it's got a nice coloured tone of it's own.

Is it that guitars with this kind of vibrato have less sustain that fixed bridge models?

Thanks to you all for your comments!

JohnC

Replies:

Steve A. John: -- 8/5/1999 4:58 AM
Hi The basswood body is a great idea, ... -- 8/5/1999 5:48 PM