I've been ogling the products on Callaham's website for some time now and finally I took the plunge.
I bought the ABR-1 conversion for a Nashville bridge, a vintage telecaster bridge (which will find its way onto one of my many telecasters), and a vintage Stratocaster bridge for my 70's RI.
I expected the Gibson conversion to be a bit more involved than the Fender due to the Fender parts being screwed in and the Callaham ABR-1 bushings being 1 piece press in.
However, things aren't always as they seem.
I went online and say a nifty trick for removing the bushings from a Gibson involving a small screw in the bushing hole. However, I also saw some posts about people being able to pull the bushings by hand.
Deciding to test my strength, I attempted to pull the bushings out by hand with the stud screwed in almost all of the way.
Believe it or not, they came out. I'm not going to say it was easy, but I was able to remove them without any sort of mechanical assistance!
The new bushings came with a plastic sleeve that protects the threaded post of the bushing. I tapped the new bushings in with a plastic headed mallet. They went in easily and the new bridge was installed in a matter of moments.
At first I didn't really notice too much of a change in how the guitar felt. And then I started lowering the tailpiece which previously was up pretty high due to the wider Nashville bridge. That made a huge difference!
Now the guitar really just resonates in an amazing way!
While I was taking apart the Gibson, I also replaced the cheap locking strap buttons on it with some smaller Gibson style buttons. They aren't for gigging, but they will keep the strap on for recording and casual playing.
I expected things to go just as easily with the Strat. I had some big plans for it. I was going to replace the 70's style F tuners with modern vintage style tuners from Gotoh, replace the string tree with a modern roller string tree, and replace the entire bridge assembly with the new Callaham bridge.
The pickups had already been changed out for a set of Angeltone pickups and the nut is brass. Another thing on the list of things to do was to replace the electronics with the correct value pots. The current pots are 500k miniature pots. I'd like to install 250k pots, perhaps a .1 uf no load tone control, and MAYBE a varitone. Anyway, that is a bit further down the road.
I should have known things weren't going to go as planned when the new screws for the bridge were about 1/4 to 1/2" longer than the original screws. Sure I could use the original hardware, but that hardly seems like fun. Now I need to drill the holes a bit deeper into the body for the bridge mounting.
Additionally, when I went to install the replacement tuners, the old bushings didn't fit and the new bushings were too small. I ordered conversion bushings and am currently awaiting their arrival.
One thing that did work out really nicely is that I had a caliper handy to measure the bushing holes to verify their diameter as well as a screwdriver which conveniently had a 10mm shaft which made knocking out the current bushings super easy!
Now the waiting game, but at least I have a really great playing Gibson to keep me company!
Friday, July 27, 2012
Companies to do business with and to avoid
I will update this list as I deal with more companies and I will try to specify my reasoning for placing them in whatever list I do.
The Good companies to deal with:
Morley Effects - They went above and beyond to keep my 70's Tel-Ray effects working by sending me LDR's for FREE when I was willing to pay!
Antique Electronic Supply - I had a problem with a tube socket in the past which I broke when I attempted to bend the solder tabs (like the old sockets allow for). I called explaining that they should warn that the new sockets were incapable of having the solder tabs bent as the material was brittle. They called me back and told me they were shipping me a new socket at no charge and that they would try and get better quality sockets. Additionally, there is always a person there who you can call and get a real update about what is in stock and not.
Warmoth Guitar Parts - Pleasant to deal with on the phone! Real people and real pictures of the actual product you are buying!
Acme Guitar Works - Very fast shipping and an excellent website which lets you know what is actually in stock.
Specialty Guitars - They have the fastest shipping I have ever experienced. I ordered on a weekend and 10 minutes later, I had a shipping confirmation. Their website also lets you know exactly what is in stock which I appreciate. Additionally, they give you a heavy pick taped to your sales order. Sure I don't use heavy picks, but it is just a nice gesture!
Line 6 - I had repaired a friends rack mounted pod some years back. They sent me a free replacement part.
Ruger - I had sent back my Ruger Mark III Competition Target model due to a pin in the mainspring housing shifting into the grip frame. They took the pistol back on their dime and replaced the grip frame. Additionally, they sent back all of my aftermarket parts in a bag as requested. They were unable to be removed as the gun was stuck together.
Smith and Wesson - I had a model 686 .357 magnum which had a chipped firing pin bushing. They returned the revolver on their dime and replaced the bushing in less than a week.
Henry Firearms - Knowing I was not the original owner of the gun, they returned my AR-7 Survival Rifle on their dime and had it back to me in under a week. I had offered to pay for replacement parts. They insisted I sent it back.
Mouser Electronics - Prompt shipping, good product visibility on their website. Additionally, they upgraded my shipping from ground to 2 day air for no good reason over a weekend once just for the sake of it.
Stew Mac - Very fast shipping, lots of free infomation on their website, items are as described or have good user reviews which allow both the good and bad to exist (as in they don't remove the negative comments - you know, being honest), competitive pricing, many guitar specific and exclusive products.
The SHIT list:
Guitar Parts Plus - Short shipped me for under 10$ in parts - but didn't respond to 2 emails or a phone call. Will never order from them again.
Futurlec - Held my order for over a month with no notification. When they finally told me why the order was delayed (a backorder), they asked that I pay additional shipping above what I had already paid. I cancelled the entire order. They refunded me all but 15$ and change. I asked for the remainder to be refunded. They said all of my money had been refunded. This is of course in addition to the 7$ currency conversion fee I was charged by the bank because they didn't charge me in American money (which I think is the root of the entire problem). A week later and a claim with my bank and I was at least reimbursed the 15$ and change. Will never order from them again.
EMG Pickups - Zero response to an aftermarket support problem. Potted electronics make troubleshooting absolutely impossible as well. Will absolutely never deal with them or install one of their products in anything for anybody for any amount of money again.
The Good companies to deal with:
Morley Effects - They went above and beyond to keep my 70's Tel-Ray effects working by sending me LDR's for FREE when I was willing to pay!
Antique Electronic Supply - I had a problem with a tube socket in the past which I broke when I attempted to bend the solder tabs (like the old sockets allow for). I called explaining that they should warn that the new sockets were incapable of having the solder tabs bent as the material was brittle. They called me back and told me they were shipping me a new socket at no charge and that they would try and get better quality sockets. Additionally, there is always a person there who you can call and get a real update about what is in stock and not.
Warmoth Guitar Parts - Pleasant to deal with on the phone! Real people and real pictures of the actual product you are buying!
Acme Guitar Works - Very fast shipping and an excellent website which lets you know what is actually in stock.
Specialty Guitars - They have the fastest shipping I have ever experienced. I ordered on a weekend and 10 minutes later, I had a shipping confirmation. Their website also lets you know exactly what is in stock which I appreciate. Additionally, they give you a heavy pick taped to your sales order. Sure I don't use heavy picks, but it is just a nice gesture!
Line 6 - I had repaired a friends rack mounted pod some years back. They sent me a free replacement part.
Ruger - I had sent back my Ruger Mark III Competition Target model due to a pin in the mainspring housing shifting into the grip frame. They took the pistol back on their dime and replaced the grip frame. Additionally, they sent back all of my aftermarket parts in a bag as requested. They were unable to be removed as the gun was stuck together.
Smith and Wesson - I had a model 686 .357 magnum which had a chipped firing pin bushing. They returned the revolver on their dime and replaced the bushing in less than a week.
Henry Firearms - Knowing I was not the original owner of the gun, they returned my AR-7 Survival Rifle on their dime and had it back to me in under a week. I had offered to pay for replacement parts. They insisted I sent it back.
Mouser Electronics - Prompt shipping, good product visibility on their website. Additionally, they upgraded my shipping from ground to 2 day air for no good reason over a weekend once just for the sake of it.
Stew Mac - Very fast shipping, lots of free infomation on their website, items are as described or have good user reviews which allow both the good and bad to exist (as in they don't remove the negative comments - you know, being honest), competitive pricing, many guitar specific and exclusive products.
The SHIT list:
Guitar Parts Plus - Short shipped me for under 10$ in parts - but didn't respond to 2 emails or a phone call. Will never order from them again.
Futurlec - Held my order for over a month with no notification. When they finally told me why the order was delayed (a backorder), they asked that I pay additional shipping above what I had already paid. I cancelled the entire order. They refunded me all but 15$ and change. I asked for the remainder to be refunded. They said all of my money had been refunded. This is of course in addition to the 7$ currency conversion fee I was charged by the bank because they didn't charge me in American money (which I think is the root of the entire problem). A week later and a claim with my bank and I was at least reimbursed the 15$ and change. Will never order from them again.
EMG Pickups - Zero response to an aftermarket support problem. Potted electronics make troubleshooting absolutely impossible as well. Will absolutely never deal with them or install one of their products in anything for anybody for any amount of money again.
Scored a Fender Jag-Stang
I received a pretty good coupon from Sam Ash a few weeks back. It was good on new AND used gear!
I went to the local store and checked out their used inventory. I didn't really see anything and was about to leave when I spotted a Fender Jag-Stang in Fiesta Red on the wall toward a corner. How had I missed that with my first pass!?
I used to have a Jag-Stang years ago. Honestly, I hated it. I didn't understand it. I tinkered with it and more or less screwed it up. Finally frustrated with it, I gave it away to a friend.
Now being older (and hopefully a little wiser), I decided to play it and embrace it for what it is (an incomplete concept guitar).
Firstly, I plugged into a nice tube amp. I only own tube amps now. I didn't own any tube amps when I owned my original Jag-Stang. It sounded surprisingly good! I really love the out of phase single coil neck pickup with the bridge pickup on. It gives the guitar a unique voice! But each pickup also sounded pretty good on its own. I'm not sure if they are the same pickups as the older Jag-Stangs but I was happy. I wish I would have known better when I was younger (read that as stupider). I had replaced the pickups in the guitar thinking it was going to make the guitar into something better.
I also didn't understand the floating bridge. Now, having owned a Jazzmaster for some time, I not only understand it but love it! It is why the Jazzmaster is capable of returning to pitch when you use the whammy bar. The entire bridge moves back and forth so the strings don't bind on the saddles.
Two things the guitar was missing when I bought it were the correct knobs and the whammy bar.
I purchased the whammy bar and re-educated myself on american fine spline split shaft knobs versus metric coarse spline knobs.
Ordering the knobs wasn't as easy as it should have been as I was short shipped on my first order. That reminds me to put together a list of companies I have dealt with and had positive experience as well as a shit list for companies who have screwed me in some way.
I went to the local store and checked out their used inventory. I didn't really see anything and was about to leave when I spotted a Fender Jag-Stang in Fiesta Red on the wall toward a corner. How had I missed that with my first pass!?
I used to have a Jag-Stang years ago. Honestly, I hated it. I didn't understand it. I tinkered with it and more or less screwed it up. Finally frustrated with it, I gave it away to a friend.
Now being older (and hopefully a little wiser), I decided to play it and embrace it for what it is (an incomplete concept guitar).
Firstly, I plugged into a nice tube amp. I only own tube amps now. I didn't own any tube amps when I owned my original Jag-Stang. It sounded surprisingly good! I really love the out of phase single coil neck pickup with the bridge pickup on. It gives the guitar a unique voice! But each pickup also sounded pretty good on its own. I'm not sure if they are the same pickups as the older Jag-Stangs but I was happy. I wish I would have known better when I was younger (read that as stupider). I had replaced the pickups in the guitar thinking it was going to make the guitar into something better.
I also didn't understand the floating bridge. Now, having owned a Jazzmaster for some time, I not only understand it but love it! It is why the Jazzmaster is capable of returning to pitch when you use the whammy bar. The entire bridge moves back and forth so the strings don't bind on the saddles.
Two things the guitar was missing when I bought it were the correct knobs and the whammy bar.
I purchased the whammy bar and re-educated myself on american fine spline split shaft knobs versus metric coarse spline knobs.
Ordering the knobs wasn't as easy as it should have been as I was short shipped on my first order. That reminds me to put together a list of companies I have dealt with and had positive experience as well as a shit list for companies who have screwed me in some way.
General Rant
I am currently working on a few amplifiers for a friend to clean out my work shop before I begin working on my own projects.
In the course of researching one of the amplifiers (trying to find schematics or any other repair notes that might be helpful), I came across a forum thread which really frustrated me. I try and remember that forums are largely unmoderated and that everybody is entitled to their opinion. I found this post a bit difficult to swallow.
A major boutique manufacturer of pedals and amps suggested that a good tech shouldn't need a schematic to repair an amplifier.
General misinformation on the web...What makes me different? Nothing. Take everything with a grain of salt. Do your research and make your own conclusions.
In the course of researching one of the amplifiers (trying to find schematics or any other repair notes that might be helpful), I came across a forum thread which really frustrated me. I try and remember that forums are largely unmoderated and that everybody is entitled to their opinion. I found this post a bit difficult to swallow.
A major boutique manufacturer of pedals and amps suggested that a good tech shouldn't need a schematic to repair an amplifier.
General misinformation on the web...What makes me different? Nothing. Take everything with a grain of salt. Do your research and make your own conclusions.
Sometimes NOTHING is what's wrong!
Been working on a friend's VHT Two/Fifty/Two amplifier.
The amplifier had been blowing the HT fuses immediately upon power up. This occurred with or without the tubes in the amplifier.
I was honestly kind of puzzled by the entire thing. Both channels had the exact same symptoms. While one channel might have had a set of filter caps go, I refused to believe that both channels had them go at the same time.
I decided to email the VHT/Fryette and try and get some help.
They were very friendly and explained that the fuses in the amplifier are purposely rated conservatively. Most people do not experience a problem but some people with abnormal power conditions may.
They suggested replacing the .5 Amp fast blow fuses with .75 Amp fuses.
Success!
So, I replaced the tubes and reassembled the amplifier.
The moral of the story is that sometimes there is nothing wrong. Had I not contacted the company, I'd still be dickering about with the amplifier and never any closer to finding out the real problem.
The amplifier had been blowing the HT fuses immediately upon power up. This occurred with or without the tubes in the amplifier.
I was honestly kind of puzzled by the entire thing. Both channels had the exact same symptoms. While one channel might have had a set of filter caps go, I refused to believe that both channels had them go at the same time.
I decided to email the VHT/Fryette and try and get some help.
They were very friendly and explained that the fuses in the amplifier are purposely rated conservatively. Most people do not experience a problem but some people with abnormal power conditions may.
They suggested replacing the .5 Amp fast blow fuses with .75 Amp fuses.
Success!
So, I replaced the tubes and reassembled the amplifier.
The moral of the story is that sometimes there is nothing wrong. Had I not contacted the company, I'd still be dickering about with the amplifier and never any closer to finding out the real problem.
Shooting update
I went shooting a couple of weeks ago. The trip was cut short when the pin that holds my Ruger Mark III Competition Target model sight together started to work its way out of the sight. It is generally held in place by the friction of the sight assembly.
This is the same gun that previously had a pin work itself out of the mainspring assembly which prevented the gun from being disassembled and required it to go back to Ruger for a replacement grip frame.
I decided not to take any chances and stakes not only the pin for the sight in place, but also the pins that are in the mainspring housing on both my Competition Target model and my Hunter model.
The Hunter model has given me absolutely no issue (with the exception of the Loaded Chamber Indicator getting clogged up and causing jams - removal of this part has since solved the problem for thousands of rounds without a single malfunction).
The real test however will be shooting the gun for a few hundred rounds and seeing that everything doesn't go flying apart.
I have read posts from people in the past which talk about how some people never take apart their Ruger Mark III pistols or even some other guns and just spray cleaner inside of them and blow them out with compressed air.
I think it is really important to take apart any firearm that is in regular use and inspect for any worn or damaged parts.
While at the shooting range, I also spotted a new (well new to me) Ruger 10/22 Takedown model. I used to have one of those Henry AR-7 survival rifles and while the concept was really solid, I felt like the rifle was made to be cheap.
Henry is a great company! Don't get me wrong. They stand by their product and I have had excellent customer service interaction with them, but I just didn't like how cheap that rifle felt.
The 10/22 TD (as it will be henceforth referred) on the other hand looked like a real rifle and the best part is, it is compatible with a multitude of aftermarket parts for the normal 10/22. Additionally, it accepts 25 round magazines!
I may have to look into getting one in the future, but I think I might have to thin the heard of Marlin .22 rifles I have first.
I also went to a gun show at the beginning of the month. I picked up some cleaning patches and a plastic magazine for my Ruger Gunsite Scout rifle. I'm starting to feel like a Ruger salesman. At about half the price of the normal steel magazine, I felt it was a good deal. I can't justify 70$ on a magazine! Even 30$ seems a bit much.
I also looked at Ruger's 1911. It looked nice and felt like it had some real heft to it, but I don't need another 1911.
Ruger sent me a survey which I have yet to complete. It asked for gun suggestions. Here are 2:
9mm Revolver - I know the idea is not new, but nobody (at least to my knowledge) is currently making an affordable and quality variant of this. It'd be nice if it had a medium or large frame. I am tired of all of these small frame revolvers. Sure they have their place in self defense, but they are miserable to shoot for fun.
9mm 1911 - Again, I know this isn't an original idea, but all of the ones on the current market are quite expensive and I don't feel like they have the quality behind them that justifies their prices.
Anyway, the gunshow was a bit of a waste of time. A lot of paranoids spouting off political agendas and people of questionable sanity (and hygiene) cheering them on. I hate to say it, but these are the people that give gun owners a bad image. No wonder I've been way more involved in the guitar lately.
This is the same gun that previously had a pin work itself out of the mainspring assembly which prevented the gun from being disassembled and required it to go back to Ruger for a replacement grip frame.
I decided not to take any chances and stakes not only the pin for the sight in place, but also the pins that are in the mainspring housing on both my Competition Target model and my Hunter model.
The Hunter model has given me absolutely no issue (with the exception of the Loaded Chamber Indicator getting clogged up and causing jams - removal of this part has since solved the problem for thousands of rounds without a single malfunction).
The real test however will be shooting the gun for a few hundred rounds and seeing that everything doesn't go flying apart.
I have read posts from people in the past which talk about how some people never take apart their Ruger Mark III pistols or even some other guns and just spray cleaner inside of them and blow them out with compressed air.
I think it is really important to take apart any firearm that is in regular use and inspect for any worn or damaged parts.
While at the shooting range, I also spotted a new (well new to me) Ruger 10/22 Takedown model. I used to have one of those Henry AR-7 survival rifles and while the concept was really solid, I felt like the rifle was made to be cheap.
Henry is a great company! Don't get me wrong. They stand by their product and I have had excellent customer service interaction with them, but I just didn't like how cheap that rifle felt.
The 10/22 TD (as it will be henceforth referred) on the other hand looked like a real rifle and the best part is, it is compatible with a multitude of aftermarket parts for the normal 10/22. Additionally, it accepts 25 round magazines!
I may have to look into getting one in the future, but I think I might have to thin the heard of Marlin .22 rifles I have first.
I also went to a gun show at the beginning of the month. I picked up some cleaning patches and a plastic magazine for my Ruger Gunsite Scout rifle. I'm starting to feel like a Ruger salesman. At about half the price of the normal steel magazine, I felt it was a good deal. I can't justify 70$ on a magazine! Even 30$ seems a bit much.
I also looked at Ruger's 1911. It looked nice and felt like it had some real heft to it, but I don't need another 1911.
Ruger sent me a survey which I have yet to complete. It asked for gun suggestions. Here are 2:
9mm Revolver - I know the idea is not new, but nobody (at least to my knowledge) is currently making an affordable and quality variant of this. It'd be nice if it had a medium or large frame. I am tired of all of these small frame revolvers. Sure they have their place in self defense, but they are miserable to shoot for fun.
9mm 1911 - Again, I know this isn't an original idea, but all of the ones on the current market are quite expensive and I don't feel like they have the quality behind them that justifies their prices.
Anyway, the gunshow was a bit of a waste of time. A lot of paranoids spouting off political agendas and people of questionable sanity (and hygiene) cheering them on. I hate to say it, but these are the people that give gun owners a bad image. No wonder I've been way more involved in the guitar lately.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Futurlec could learn a few lessons from Mouser
What separates a company that is good to do business with from one that is unpleasant isn't how they treat the customer when everything goes right but how they handle mistakes and keeping the customer happy.
I don't think I am a difficult customer. I have dealt with many companies for various reasons and in the end, the outcome was almost always one that kept me as a satisfied customer. In some cases the companies went above and beyond and now when I discuss companies such as Morley or Antique Electronic Supply, I always tell of their amazing customer service! Other companies (like EMG) have left me soured and I will never do business with them again.
I had ordered electronic components for my up and coming business from Futurlec. In the past I had never had any issues. It took some time for the items to arrive but the prices were good enough to justify the wait. My most recent and final order was placed at the beginning of April 2012. I waited roughly 45 days before contacting them asking if my order had shipped and why it had not.
I was told it had not shipped as 3 items were back ordered and they were having difficulty securing those items. I told them to cancel those items and to ship the remainder of the order.
I get another response from them saying that due to the weight of my package, they would need to charge my card an additional fee on top of the shipping fee I had already paid. I told them to cancel the entire order.
Their shipping is set up where you pay a shipping price based on how much you spend rather than how much the item weighs. That is their system. Not mine.
I waited a few days and checked my bank. They had issued me a credit...but it came up $15.82 short from what I had originally been charged. This of course doesn't include the $7.05 exchange rate charge that my bank hit me with because they didn't ring in my order in US currency.
I asked them to refund the remainder of the money I was owed. They said they had issued me a full refund but would leave $15.82 on my account as a credit anyway.
I will NEVER order from them again so what good does a 15$ credit do me!?
I have since contacted my bank to have the money recovered through their fraud protection/merchant dispute. While this has been an inconvenience for me and the amount of money isn't the issue, it is the principle that is important.
Do your customers right and they will continue to patronize your service.
Following the cancellation of my order with Futurlec, I spent a few hours on Mouser's website trying to recreate a similar order. I got the important things ordered and paid for the most basic shipping on the Friday Night of Memorial Day Weekend.
I get a confirmation email saying that my order was received. Then I got another email on Saturday saying my order shipping had been upgraded from UPS ground to UPS 2 Day Air.
Following that, I had another email saying my shipping had once again been upgraded for free from UPS 2 Day Air to UPS Overnight Air.
I had my parts on Thursday. I was more than pleasantly surprised by this. I have made orders with Mouser before but this was going above and beyond. One of the emails said something to the effect of me being a valued customer and how they understood that having my components was important. It made me feel important and from now on, I will order from Mouser and not screw around with cut rate companies with cut rate customer service.
I don't think I am a difficult customer. I have dealt with many companies for various reasons and in the end, the outcome was almost always one that kept me as a satisfied customer. In some cases the companies went above and beyond and now when I discuss companies such as Morley or Antique Electronic Supply, I always tell of their amazing customer service! Other companies (like EMG) have left me soured and I will never do business with them again.
I had ordered electronic components for my up and coming business from Futurlec. In the past I had never had any issues. It took some time for the items to arrive but the prices were good enough to justify the wait. My most recent and final order was placed at the beginning of April 2012. I waited roughly 45 days before contacting them asking if my order had shipped and why it had not.
I was told it had not shipped as 3 items were back ordered and they were having difficulty securing those items. I told them to cancel those items and to ship the remainder of the order.
I get another response from them saying that due to the weight of my package, they would need to charge my card an additional fee on top of the shipping fee I had already paid. I told them to cancel the entire order.
Their shipping is set up where you pay a shipping price based on how much you spend rather than how much the item weighs. That is their system. Not mine.
I waited a few days and checked my bank. They had issued me a credit...but it came up $15.82 short from what I had originally been charged. This of course doesn't include the $7.05 exchange rate charge that my bank hit me with because they didn't ring in my order in US currency.
I asked them to refund the remainder of the money I was owed. They said they had issued me a full refund but would leave $15.82 on my account as a credit anyway.
I will NEVER order from them again so what good does a 15$ credit do me!?
I have since contacted my bank to have the money recovered through their fraud protection/merchant dispute. While this has been an inconvenience for me and the amount of money isn't the issue, it is the principle that is important.
Do your customers right and they will continue to patronize your service.
Following the cancellation of my order with Futurlec, I spent a few hours on Mouser's website trying to recreate a similar order. I got the important things ordered and paid for the most basic shipping on the Friday Night of Memorial Day Weekend.
I get a confirmation email saying that my order was received. Then I got another email on Saturday saying my order shipping had been upgraded from UPS ground to UPS 2 Day Air.
Following that, I had another email saying my shipping had once again been upgraded for free from UPS 2 Day Air to UPS Overnight Air.
I had my parts on Thursday. I was more than pleasantly surprised by this. I have made orders with Mouser before but this was going above and beyond. One of the emails said something to the effect of me being a valued customer and how they understood that having my components was important. It made me feel important and from now on, I will order from Mouser and not screw around with cut rate companies with cut rate customer service.
Fixing a Fender Frontman 15B
I was given a Fender Frontman 15B amplifier to repair.
For as long as I've been fixing equipment, I've been fascinated by how people describe problems and what they assume the fix to be. I'm sure we've all seen the ads on many popular sites about how they are selling an amplifier that just needs one "easy" fix. And somehow, despite this fix being so easy, it is never done. I've gone off on a bit of a tangent.
The amplifier was given to me with the problem description being that the input jack is bad and you need to wiggle the cord to get it to make sound. Truly an easy repair!
I disassembled the amplifier which is the bass variant of the Frontman amps (hence the B designation). It comes apart pretty easily. There are 6 screws on the back which remove the back panel. The back panel also has the power jack on it. I removed the terminal connections from the power jack. There are 2 screws inside on the under side of the chassis which hold it in place as well as the 2 screws which hold the handle. I disconnected the terminals from the speaker and carefully slid the chassis out of the box.
The board is mounted in such a way where you can see the trace side of the PCB. It was clear that the input jack was free to move. Additionally, I spotted a broken solder joint on the volume pot. Worse than the input jack being broken, the threads for the plastic nut were also stripped and I do not have any spare Fender style jacks. I did have some Marshall style jacks though from when I was working on a friend's plexi RI.
I decided that it would be a good replacement jack. I soldered it in and fixed the bad solder joint on the volume pot and reassembled ready to pat myself on the back for a job well done.
Only problem is, the amp was motorboating now. Admittedly, that was a step forward for this amp which had previously been dead quiet, but not the end result I had been shooting for. I had to reassemble it and take a closer look.
While I had the amp disassembled I turned it on with the speaker disconnected. The output IC is a TDA2050 (just like I put in my Marshall VS15R!) so I know it can handle no load. However R22 (a 5.6 ohm resistor) could not handle the load and promptly began to smoke. I turned off the amp and decided to just kind of replace everything quickly.
R22 was replaced with 2 10 ohm resistors in parallel giving me 5 ohms which is close enough. I probably could have picked different values to get closer to the original 5.6 ohm load, but the value hardly seemed critical.
I also replaced U1 and U2 which are the input IC and post gain/eq buffer/driver IC (respectively). U3 is the output ic. U4 and U5 drive some sort of compression circuit.
I reassembled and crossed my fingers. Powered the amp on and was now ready to pat myself on the back! Success!
I'd like to take a moment to talk about some of the pros and cons of working on this amp.
Pros:
-Fender provides the schematic for this amp free of charge on their website! All companies should do this and most used to. Now schematics are like secrets from most companies.
-The circuit was fairly straight forward with the only complicated part going to the compression circuit.
-It came apart extremely easily.
Cons:
-The board had traces which were very easy to damage. I managed to break the LED trace off of the board entirely just by touching the LED in the wrong way.
-The schematic provided was close but had a couple of glaring and major differences from the actual unit. Most striking was the speaker output on the schematic instead of a CD player input.
-While the amplifier came apart easily, I had to do it multiple times as the tolex managed to get in the way a couple of times during reassembly and I don't like sloppy tolex.
-And finally, I didn't get paid for this amp at all because it was a favor.
Because I was not getting paid for my work, I did make a few parts substitutions with what I had on hand. For example, the 5.6 ohm resistor that burnt up was replaced with 2 10 ohm resistors in parallel for 5 ohms. U1 and U2 were TL072 op amps which I replaced with MC4558 op amps. They will sound close enough but they are not the same. I just didn't have any TL072 op amps around. And the input jack was replaced with a marshall style jack (which is a much nicer jack anyway!).
I know a lot of people might not waste their time repairing an amp like this when the used value is probably worth less than the time I put into it, but I have the time and the grand total in parts was well under 5$ to repair the amp.
Another thing I'd like to note about the amp is how much additional circuitry Fender put into the amp than is absolutely necessary for a bare bones amplifier. U4 and U5 could be eliminated entirely and the amplifier would probably sound pretty close at lower volumes and would distort at higher volumes a bit more. But for a practice amp, I am actually impressed with how much engineering they put into it.
For as long as I've been fixing equipment, I've been fascinated by how people describe problems and what they assume the fix to be. I'm sure we've all seen the ads on many popular sites about how they are selling an amplifier that just needs one "easy" fix. And somehow, despite this fix being so easy, it is never done. I've gone off on a bit of a tangent.
The amplifier was given to me with the problem description being that the input jack is bad and you need to wiggle the cord to get it to make sound. Truly an easy repair!
I disassembled the amplifier which is the bass variant of the Frontman amps (hence the B designation). It comes apart pretty easily. There are 6 screws on the back which remove the back panel. The back panel also has the power jack on it. I removed the terminal connections from the power jack. There are 2 screws inside on the under side of the chassis which hold it in place as well as the 2 screws which hold the handle. I disconnected the terminals from the speaker and carefully slid the chassis out of the box.
The board is mounted in such a way where you can see the trace side of the PCB. It was clear that the input jack was free to move. Additionally, I spotted a broken solder joint on the volume pot. Worse than the input jack being broken, the threads for the plastic nut were also stripped and I do not have any spare Fender style jacks. I did have some Marshall style jacks though from when I was working on a friend's plexi RI.
I decided that it would be a good replacement jack. I soldered it in and fixed the bad solder joint on the volume pot and reassembled ready to pat myself on the back for a job well done.
Only problem is, the amp was motorboating now. Admittedly, that was a step forward for this amp which had previously been dead quiet, but not the end result I had been shooting for. I had to reassemble it and take a closer look.
While I had the amp disassembled I turned it on with the speaker disconnected. The output IC is a TDA2050 (just like I put in my Marshall VS15R!) so I know it can handle no load. However R22 (a 5.6 ohm resistor) could not handle the load and promptly began to smoke. I turned off the amp and decided to just kind of replace everything quickly.
R22 was replaced with 2 10 ohm resistors in parallel giving me 5 ohms which is close enough. I probably could have picked different values to get closer to the original 5.6 ohm load, but the value hardly seemed critical.
I also replaced U1 and U2 which are the input IC and post gain/eq buffer/driver IC (respectively). U3 is the output ic. U4 and U5 drive some sort of compression circuit.
I reassembled and crossed my fingers. Powered the amp on and was now ready to pat myself on the back! Success!
I'd like to take a moment to talk about some of the pros and cons of working on this amp.
Pros:
-Fender provides the schematic for this amp free of charge on their website! All companies should do this and most used to. Now schematics are like secrets from most companies.
-The circuit was fairly straight forward with the only complicated part going to the compression circuit.
-It came apart extremely easily.
Cons:
-The board had traces which were very easy to damage. I managed to break the LED trace off of the board entirely just by touching the LED in the wrong way.
-The schematic provided was close but had a couple of glaring and major differences from the actual unit. Most striking was the speaker output on the schematic instead of a CD player input.
-While the amplifier came apart easily, I had to do it multiple times as the tolex managed to get in the way a couple of times during reassembly and I don't like sloppy tolex.
-And finally, I didn't get paid for this amp at all because it was a favor.
Because I was not getting paid for my work, I did make a few parts substitutions with what I had on hand. For example, the 5.6 ohm resistor that burnt up was replaced with 2 10 ohm resistors in parallel for 5 ohms. U1 and U2 were TL072 op amps which I replaced with MC4558 op amps. They will sound close enough but they are not the same. I just didn't have any TL072 op amps around. And the input jack was replaced with a marshall style jack (which is a much nicer jack anyway!).
I know a lot of people might not waste their time repairing an amp like this when the used value is probably worth less than the time I put into it, but I have the time and the grand total in parts was well under 5$ to repair the amp.
Another thing I'd like to note about the amp is how much additional circuitry Fender put into the amp than is absolutely necessary for a bare bones amplifier. U4 and U5 could be eliminated entirely and the amplifier would probably sound pretty close at lower volumes and would distort at higher volumes a bit more. But for a practice amp, I am actually impressed with how much engineering they put into it.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
The Marshall amplifier that stopped a crime ring!
Before I really knew much about amplifiers or even guitars, I was highly suggestible to the imagery that is presented in all of the common guitar literature. The kind of material that costs thousands of dollars in ad campaigns.
I wanted to sound my best like any guitarist naturally would want. I believed the weak link in my sound at the time was my amplifier (instead of my playing which still could use some help). I had been playing through a Dean Markley amplifier and while it got the job done and had served me for years, I was searching for something of an icon!
Around that time, the second series Marshall Valvestate amplifiers were being released. They bear almost no resemblance in sound or design to their namesake. The older Plexi style and non master volume JMP Marshalls are based around a modified Fender Bassman circuit while the master volume JMP and early JCM800 amps are based on a modified Plexi/JMP style amp.
Now having a lot more experience, I find it difficult to get anything I like out of a non master volume Marshall. The controls are somewhat unresponsive and the amp piercingly bright or exceptionally dull depending on the channel and tube set. I've heard others use these amplifiers in ways that I only dreamed of, but much like the Big Muff, I decided that it is best to leave these non master Marshalls in the hands of serious players who demonstrate that tone is in the fingers and not the amp.
After the single channel JCM800 amplifier, I pretty much lose all interest in Marshall amps. The circuitry becomes way too convoluted.
Anyway, the Valvestate amplifiers share zero ancestry with these notorious Marshall amps. In fact the only real connection is that the amplifier says Marshall on it and has similar cosmetics. But I didn't know any better.
I bought the smallest model in the line. The VS15R. There was also a non reverb variant made. The VS15 and VS15R have the distinction of being the only valvestate models NOT to feature a tube of any sort. All of the other models had a 12ax7 in the preamp somewhere. I don't remember those amps sounding particularly good, but hybrid amps were a big deal at the time. Some companies like Music Man had tried solid state preamps with tube driver and output stages. Nearly every other company tried a tube preamp with a solid state output.
The VS15R featured a nominal 15 watt output into an 8" speaker and had a simple set of controls. It actually sounds pretty good for a cheap practice amp. I've heard cheap tube amps which sound much worse as well as more expensive solid state which sounds far worse.
The amplifier is actually pretty simple inside. It features a set of 4558 chips for the preamp, a 1458 on the reverb, and a TDA2030A on the output.
After becoming a bit wiser to amps, my Marshall began to see less and less use as I had gotten into vintage Blackface Fender, Ampeg, and Gibson amps from the 50's and 60's. I eventually gave the amplifier (box, warranty card, and manual!) to my brother who was learning to play guitar.
He tinkered with it and enjoyed it....Until...
His house was burglarized. His guitars and amplifier were amongst the stolen items. This sort of burglary had been going on in his Florida community alongside of neighboring communities. The thieves would break in and take what they wanted and pawn it through a series of friends and acquaintances. They had gotten away with it for some time as nobody ever had serial numbers for stolen items to pin them to the crime.
That is until they stole the Marshall VS15R without taking the box which has the serial number marked on it.
The amplifier turned up in a local pawn shop. Florida has some very unfair rules regarding victims having to buy back their equipment, but I suppose it is in return for their full cooperation. My brother was forced to buy back this amplifier for the original pawned price.
I'm sure he slept a little easier on that injustice knowing that the person who pawned it was sitting in a police station for questioning. Turns out it was a woman who pawned it for her boyfriend who happened to be the one who stole the amplifier. The police were able to take finger prints off of the amplifier and match it to the suspect. The amplifier had finger print dust on it for years almost as a trophy that my brother would show off.
Fast forward a few years, my brother was playing through the amplifier. Took a break. Came back to play some more and the amp no longer worked. It made an awful steady tone which was not sensitive to the volume or tone controls.
I recall in my younger curiosity opening the amplifier. All of the parts laid out looked like Greek to me. Not this time. I had scored some time at the bench while working for Ibanez. I have always been naturally pretty good at troubleshooting things and this was no different than any other amplifier I had worked on...except I didn't have a schematic nor could I find one online.
I probed around and took some voltage readings. I noticed the power rail for the output IC was 21.2 Volts which is just .8 volts shy of the absolute maximum for the TDA2030A chip. I took some readings on the chip and got all kinds of screwball numbers. I removed the chip and researched it a bit.
I learned that the TDA2030 is a popular choice for small amplifiers because it requires very little support circuitry. Countless examples were shown. One thing they all had in common was how sensitive the chip was to exceeding the voltage rating.
I figure a power surge probably did the amp in. And being that this amp was a hero (even though many will never know it!), it was not fitting that it end up in a landfill!
I replaced the TDA2030A with a TDA2050 which has a slightly higher voltage rating and a higher wattage rating but left the rest of the circuitry alone.
Reassembled. Crossed my fingers and turned the amplifier on for the first time in years.
Fired right up! The hero has been resurrected!
And that is the story of how a Marshall amplifier stopped a crime ring...with a lot of tangents and technical information thrown in.
I wanted to sound my best like any guitarist naturally would want. I believed the weak link in my sound at the time was my amplifier (instead of my playing which still could use some help). I had been playing through a Dean Markley amplifier and while it got the job done and had served me for years, I was searching for something of an icon!
Around that time, the second series Marshall Valvestate amplifiers were being released. They bear almost no resemblance in sound or design to their namesake. The older Plexi style and non master volume JMP Marshalls are based around a modified Fender Bassman circuit while the master volume JMP and early JCM800 amps are based on a modified Plexi/JMP style amp.
Now having a lot more experience, I find it difficult to get anything I like out of a non master volume Marshall. The controls are somewhat unresponsive and the amp piercingly bright or exceptionally dull depending on the channel and tube set. I've heard others use these amplifiers in ways that I only dreamed of, but much like the Big Muff, I decided that it is best to leave these non master Marshalls in the hands of serious players who demonstrate that tone is in the fingers and not the amp.
After the single channel JCM800 amplifier, I pretty much lose all interest in Marshall amps. The circuitry becomes way too convoluted.
Anyway, the Valvestate amplifiers share zero ancestry with these notorious Marshall amps. In fact the only real connection is that the amplifier says Marshall on it and has similar cosmetics. But I didn't know any better.
I bought the smallest model in the line. The VS15R. There was also a non reverb variant made. The VS15 and VS15R have the distinction of being the only valvestate models NOT to feature a tube of any sort. All of the other models had a 12ax7 in the preamp somewhere. I don't remember those amps sounding particularly good, but hybrid amps were a big deal at the time. Some companies like Music Man had tried solid state preamps with tube driver and output stages. Nearly every other company tried a tube preamp with a solid state output.
The VS15R featured a nominal 15 watt output into an 8" speaker and had a simple set of controls. It actually sounds pretty good for a cheap practice amp. I've heard cheap tube amps which sound much worse as well as more expensive solid state which sounds far worse.
The amplifier is actually pretty simple inside. It features a set of 4558 chips for the preamp, a 1458 on the reverb, and a TDA2030A on the output.
After becoming a bit wiser to amps, my Marshall began to see less and less use as I had gotten into vintage Blackface Fender, Ampeg, and Gibson amps from the 50's and 60's. I eventually gave the amplifier (box, warranty card, and manual!) to my brother who was learning to play guitar.
He tinkered with it and enjoyed it....Until...
His house was burglarized. His guitars and amplifier were amongst the stolen items. This sort of burglary had been going on in his Florida community alongside of neighboring communities. The thieves would break in and take what they wanted and pawn it through a series of friends and acquaintances. They had gotten away with it for some time as nobody ever had serial numbers for stolen items to pin them to the crime.
That is until they stole the Marshall VS15R without taking the box which has the serial number marked on it.
The amplifier turned up in a local pawn shop. Florida has some very unfair rules regarding victims having to buy back their equipment, but I suppose it is in return for their full cooperation. My brother was forced to buy back this amplifier for the original pawned price.
I'm sure he slept a little easier on that injustice knowing that the person who pawned it was sitting in a police station for questioning. Turns out it was a woman who pawned it for her boyfriend who happened to be the one who stole the amplifier. The police were able to take finger prints off of the amplifier and match it to the suspect. The amplifier had finger print dust on it for years almost as a trophy that my brother would show off.
Fast forward a few years, my brother was playing through the amplifier. Took a break. Came back to play some more and the amp no longer worked. It made an awful steady tone which was not sensitive to the volume or tone controls.
I recall in my younger curiosity opening the amplifier. All of the parts laid out looked like Greek to me. Not this time. I had scored some time at the bench while working for Ibanez. I have always been naturally pretty good at troubleshooting things and this was no different than any other amplifier I had worked on...except I didn't have a schematic nor could I find one online.
I probed around and took some voltage readings. I noticed the power rail for the output IC was 21.2 Volts which is just .8 volts shy of the absolute maximum for the TDA2030A chip. I took some readings on the chip and got all kinds of screwball numbers. I removed the chip and researched it a bit.
I learned that the TDA2030 is a popular choice for small amplifiers because it requires very little support circuitry. Countless examples were shown. One thing they all had in common was how sensitive the chip was to exceeding the voltage rating.
I figure a power surge probably did the amp in. And being that this amp was a hero (even though many will never know it!), it was not fitting that it end up in a landfill!
I replaced the TDA2030A with a TDA2050 which has a slightly higher voltage rating and a higher wattage rating but left the rest of the circuitry alone.
Reassembled. Crossed my fingers and turned the amplifier on for the first time in years.
Fired right up! The hero has been resurrected!
And that is the story of how a Marshall amplifier stopped a crime ring...with a lot of tangents and technical information thrown in.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Gibson Les Paul Special Premium Plus and my New Plan
Since writing last a lot has changed on my end.
I've acquired software to create PCBs, a tank for etching them, miscellaneous tools, and a load of parts are on order for a run of effect units.
I am also hoping to sell some miscellaneous guitar accessories.
Meanwhile I am looking to incorporate and have a website made. I have already purchased a domain and hosting.
I realize how incredibly vague that is, but I don't want to let anything out yet until it is finalized.
I've also censored out a lot of my previous post so if things seem out of context or don't make a whole lot of sense, that is probably why.
Now onto the new guitar!
I purchased a 2008 Les Paul Studio Premium Plus at a local store. It had occurred to me that I didn't own a guitar with humbuckers and that might make testing effects a bit one sided. This is especially true since humbuckers are probably more popular than single coil pickups anymore.
Admittedly I could have bought any number of other guitars that would have satisfied my criteria, but I also wanted something that spoke to me a bit.
I originally started my quest looking for a Les Paul style guitar with a maple cap, humbuckers (no p90's or mini buckers), and a real finish (not a faded or tribute model). The new batch of Studios looked like a good place to start. I wanted to try out the silverburst studio I had seen a few weeks back but by the time I was ready to buy, it had been sold. In the end, I had visited 3 stores and played 3 or 4 different Les Paul Studios.
I found the Les Paul Premium Plus at the last store used but not beat on. Mine has a few small dings in the top and a lot of belt buckle rash on the back but no heavy fret wear and nothing I can't live with.
All of the studios I played sounded pretty good which surprised me. I recall a friend having a studio more than a decade ago and it completely underwhelmed me. That image of the studio stuck with me for a long time and I simply avoided them altogether.
In retrospect, perhaps a good setup was in order as all of my reading indicated that the studios are very close to standards for most years with only a few minor cosmetic differences. Some of those differences are preferences of mine anyway. I was never big on binding.
The newest studios have different pickups than some of the older studios as well as "coil tapped" humbuckers which are activated by push pull volume controls. To my ears, the newer studios are very bright without sounding harsh. This is true even in the neck position. The coil tap sounded good and added an additional sound to an already good sounding guitar.
The newer studios also have speed style knobs while the Premium Plus has bell knobs. Speed knobs are certainly more functional but bell knobs just look great!
The older studios (which includes my Premium Plus) have a 490R neck pickup and a 498T bridge pickup. I thought they were darker all around than the newer studios but that the high end could become a little more harsh if you allowed it. The sound overall embodied what I expected a Les Paul to sound like more so than the newer studio models. Both sounds are good but different enough that it becomes rather easy to tell them apart and to have a preference. In a perfect world, I'd have a newer studio to go with my Premium Plus.
The hardware on the Premium Plus is gold and has covers on the humbuckers which makes me quite happy. I also like that from time and use, the gold color has worn away on the bridge and tailpiece a bit. I think it adds character but I guess it is a warning for those who want the guitar to remain gold forever. I have seen other complaints online about the gold color fading so this is not an unusual occurrence.
Another thing that separates the Premium Plus from other Les Paul Studios is the AAA flame maple. From what I understand, they still offer this option and some come with dyed tops, but mine is the natural top as seen in the pictures below. The top wood is definitely very attractive and even other top end Les Paul Standards don't have AAA grade maple.
One complaint I do have about ALL of the Les Pauls and actually all Gibsons I have played lately (including 3000$+ models is that the paint on the top by the neck always looks terrible. Sometimes it has a nasty texture to it and other times it is missing small patches. I don't know if the problem is in the color coat or the clear coat or maybe both coats, but it detracts from the quality of the finish and in my opinion should never have left the factory looking like that. I think it looks bad on a 500$ guitar...It is inexcusable on a 1500$ guitar.
My last Gibson I owned was a 1998 Les Paul Special with P90's. It was a nice guitar and I picked up a cheap used case. I recall the lock being broken on it. I also recall the lock breaking on my friend's LP special case from the 90's. I was pleasantly surprised that the new cases no longer have that lock on them. What they have done now is put a small hasp on the case so you can use a lock of your own. Personally, I'd go with an Abloy PL-321. I didn't check the size of the hasp, but I'd imagine it should fit and the only way that lock is coming off is with the key or a bolt cutter.
Supposedly the neck shape on the Premium Plus is a 59 shaped neck. I played a bunch of different Gibson necks and from what I read, they are CNC machined into rough shapes and then hand finished creating a unique neck for each instrument. In all, most of the necks felt similar enough to be called a Gibson and none were particularly uncomfortable.
The Premium Plus also supposedly has weight relief routes in the body. It is still heavy when compared to a Swamp Ash Telecaster but weighs just a little less than a normal Les Paul Standard. I can't say it has made the guitar any more resonant but it does keep my back just a little happier.
Another interesting quirk I discovered about this guitar was that Gibson started using circuit boards in the control cavity! When did this start happening? I can see how this would speed up wiring, but I don't like that they used ceramic capacitors nor do I like that replacing a single pot involves removing all of the pots to either service the board or replace them with individual pots. I had been planning on adding the coil tap function that I enjoyed so much on the newer Les Pauls but for now that is going to wait as I don't feel like toying with all of those connectors. I am wondering what is behind curtain number 2 (the switch control cavity) but I haven't been brave enough to look yet.
To complete the review, the Les Paul Studio Premium Plus is a guitar loaded with expensive features on an inexpensive (well compared to a Les Paul Standard anyway) guitar. While I am not totally happy about the circuit board controls or the finish around the neck, these are things I can live with or fix on my own if I am willing to spend the time.
I've acquired software to create PCBs, a tank for etching them, miscellaneous tools, and a load of parts are on order for a run of effect units.
I am also hoping to sell some miscellaneous guitar accessories.
Meanwhile I am looking to incorporate and have a website made. I have already purchased a domain and hosting.
I realize how incredibly vague that is, but I don't want to let anything out yet until it is finalized.
I've also censored out a lot of my previous post so if things seem out of context or don't make a whole lot of sense, that is probably why.
Now onto the new guitar!
I purchased a 2008 Les Paul Studio Premium Plus at a local store. It had occurred to me that I didn't own a guitar with humbuckers and that might make testing effects a bit one sided. This is especially true since humbuckers are probably more popular than single coil pickups anymore.
Admittedly I could have bought any number of other guitars that would have satisfied my criteria, but I also wanted something that spoke to me a bit.
I originally started my quest looking for a Les Paul style guitar with a maple cap, humbuckers (no p90's or mini buckers), and a real finish (not a faded or tribute model). The new batch of Studios looked like a good place to start. I wanted to try out the silverburst studio I had seen a few weeks back but by the time I was ready to buy, it had been sold. In the end, I had visited 3 stores and played 3 or 4 different Les Paul Studios.
I found the Les Paul Premium Plus at the last store used but not beat on. Mine has a few small dings in the top and a lot of belt buckle rash on the back but no heavy fret wear and nothing I can't live with.
All of the studios I played sounded pretty good which surprised me. I recall a friend having a studio more than a decade ago and it completely underwhelmed me. That image of the studio stuck with me for a long time and I simply avoided them altogether.
In retrospect, perhaps a good setup was in order as all of my reading indicated that the studios are very close to standards for most years with only a few minor cosmetic differences. Some of those differences are preferences of mine anyway. I was never big on binding.
The newest studios have different pickups than some of the older studios as well as "coil tapped" humbuckers which are activated by push pull volume controls. To my ears, the newer studios are very bright without sounding harsh. This is true even in the neck position. The coil tap sounded good and added an additional sound to an already good sounding guitar.
The newer studios also have speed style knobs while the Premium Plus has bell knobs. Speed knobs are certainly more functional but bell knobs just look great!
The older studios (which includes my Premium Plus) have a 490R neck pickup and a 498T bridge pickup. I thought they were darker all around than the newer studios but that the high end could become a little more harsh if you allowed it. The sound overall embodied what I expected a Les Paul to sound like more so than the newer studio models. Both sounds are good but different enough that it becomes rather easy to tell them apart and to have a preference. In a perfect world, I'd have a newer studio to go with my Premium Plus.
The hardware on the Premium Plus is gold and has covers on the humbuckers which makes me quite happy. I also like that from time and use, the gold color has worn away on the bridge and tailpiece a bit. I think it adds character but I guess it is a warning for those who want the guitar to remain gold forever. I have seen other complaints online about the gold color fading so this is not an unusual occurrence.
Another thing that separates the Premium Plus from other Les Paul Studios is the AAA flame maple. From what I understand, they still offer this option and some come with dyed tops, but mine is the natural top as seen in the pictures below. The top wood is definitely very attractive and even other top end Les Paul Standards don't have AAA grade maple.
One complaint I do have about ALL of the Les Pauls and actually all Gibsons I have played lately (including 3000$+ models is that the paint on the top by the neck always looks terrible. Sometimes it has a nasty texture to it and other times it is missing small patches. I don't know if the problem is in the color coat or the clear coat or maybe both coats, but it detracts from the quality of the finish and in my opinion should never have left the factory looking like that. I think it looks bad on a 500$ guitar...It is inexcusable on a 1500$ guitar.
My last Gibson I owned was a 1998 Les Paul Special with P90's. It was a nice guitar and I picked up a cheap used case. I recall the lock being broken on it. I also recall the lock breaking on my friend's LP special case from the 90's. I was pleasantly surprised that the new cases no longer have that lock on them. What they have done now is put a small hasp on the case so you can use a lock of your own. Personally, I'd go with an Abloy PL-321. I didn't check the size of the hasp, but I'd imagine it should fit and the only way that lock is coming off is with the key or a bolt cutter.
Supposedly the neck shape on the Premium Plus is a 59 shaped neck. I played a bunch of different Gibson necks and from what I read, they are CNC machined into rough shapes and then hand finished creating a unique neck for each instrument. In all, most of the necks felt similar enough to be called a Gibson and none were particularly uncomfortable.
The Premium Plus also supposedly has weight relief routes in the body. It is still heavy when compared to a Swamp Ash Telecaster but weighs just a little less than a normal Les Paul Standard. I can't say it has made the guitar any more resonant but it does keep my back just a little happier.
Another interesting quirk I discovered about this guitar was that Gibson started using circuit boards in the control cavity! When did this start happening? I can see how this would speed up wiring, but I don't like that they used ceramic capacitors nor do I like that replacing a single pot involves removing all of the pots to either service the board or replace them with individual pots. I had been planning on adding the coil tap function that I enjoyed so much on the newer Les Pauls but for now that is going to wait as I don't feel like toying with all of those connectors. I am wondering what is behind curtain number 2 (the switch control cavity) but I haven't been brave enough to look yet.
To complete the review, the Les Paul Studio Premium Plus is a guitar loaded with expensive features on an inexpensive (well compared to a Les Paul Standard anyway) guitar. While I am not totally happy about the circuit board controls or the finish around the neck, these are things I can live with or fix on my own if I am willing to spend the time.
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