Members smrz Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 how are they? i probably won't be able to afford one any time soon, but i'm definitely curious. do they share much/anything with what i've heard about other aluminum guitars, like travis beans, meaning lot of physical weight, great sustain, very "clear" sounding...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SirJackdeFuzz Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Probably cold to the toutch if you want to own one while living in Canada. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Agreed Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Lately aluminum necks have been making something of a comeback, personally I think they look good, probably have an interesting contribution to the tone, sustain pretty well though probably not really any better than other neck materials and it's still a question of the overall construction of the guitar, and would be cold enough to take the skin off your fingers playing out in winter unless you live near the equator. Which if I remember right is one of the reasons they didn't make them very long once the concept initially got off the ground. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members smrz Posted February 27, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 how often do you guys play guitar in sub-freezing temperatures? more idle curiosity than anything. i'd have to play one first... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NITEFLY182 Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Aluminum adapts to temperature changes very quickly. Its not like you would be playing an ice-cold neck for hours. They warm up within a minute or two and are comfortable to play. The Kramer necks aren't solid aluminum. They have wood cheeks so you would hardly notice the metal except for the weight. Aluminum guitars sound bright and clear. They work really well for clean and overdriven tones although the dirt sounds are more like raw bell tones than what you would hear with a wood guitar. Its a unique sound that takes some tweaking. You certainly wouldn't want to go changing between a metal necked guitar and a strat a bunch of times per night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Agreed Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Yeah, that's true, the Kramers do have the wood inlay sort of thing going on for a more traditional feel. What I'm gonzo for right now is a graphite neck, to be honest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Screaming Stone Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 I had a Kramer DMZ with an aluminum neck - played it in Chicago where the temps vary. To me, that neck always felt cold. The fretboard was also not made of wood - it was ebonol - designed to look and feel like ebony, but did not (I have ebony fretboards and ebonol, while being similar, is not ebony.) While ebonol feels more like rock than it does wood - it's actually pressurized laminated paper and resin. The guitar sounded very bright. The fretboard was solid and flat - super low action with no fret buzz (of course that depends on the fret job.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sethlover Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 If I remember they were neck heavy, no pun. As in when used with a guitar strap and you let go the neck drops down. I played one a few times at a guitar store. I remember it having a lot of treble to it. I remember it being a twang monster and I wanted it, low on the cash... Jerry Garcia used jam on one they must be cool right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members smrz Posted February 27, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 interesting all around. now i'm just more curious to try one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SirJackdeFuzz Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 how often do you guys play guitar in sub-freezing temperatures? more idle curiosity than anything. i'd have to play one first... Our winters can easily reach 0 (zero) degrees celcius, and over here non of the houses are fitted with an indoor heating system like that of the UK, so yes, the house does get p!ss cold in winter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members smrz Posted February 27, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Our winters can easily reach 0 (zero) degrees celcius, and over here non of the houses are fitted with an indoor heating system like that of the UK, so yes, the house does get p!ss cold in winter that's not good for wood either. you do know that 0 celsius is much warmer than 0 Fahrenheit right (0 F is about -18 C)? are you saying your house is literallyfreezing inside during the winter because you don't have any heating? if so that's nuts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jorhay1 Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 [YOUTUBE]XeXQz_k20YI[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members .homewrecker. Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 mxbTRh1o_RU Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SirJackdeFuzz Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 On a warmer note, here are some other metal guitar brands : http://www.seymourduncan.com/forum/showthread.php?t=144861 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SirJackdeFuzz Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 that's not good for wood either. you do know that 0 celsius is much warmer than 0 Fahrenheit right (0 F is about -18 C)? are you saying your house is literallyfreezing inside during the winter because you don't have any heating? if so that's nuts CLOSE, the temp is in the house is about 5 C just before sunrise during the coldest part of winter !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Coma Larkin Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 This. Of course, that's a lot of EQ and a notched metal pick, too, if I'm not mistaken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members smrz Posted February 27, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 that first video is really rad. i think that's a travis bean though. almost positive it's not a kramer. same w/ shellac. just saying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jorhay1 Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 that first video is really rad. i think that's a travis bean though. almost positive it's not a kramer. same w/ shellac. just saying. yes thats his travis bean bought it from vern at drapers music, Palo Alto Ca. in the 70's when they came out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Diabolus_in_Musica Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 came out w/ his own line back in the 90's. I have one for sale, body is sorta jazzmaster/mustang offsetish. They are a tiny bit heavy.. not neck heavy though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NITEFLY182 Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 that first video is really rad. i think that's a travis bean though. almost positive it's not a kramer. same w/ shellac. just saying. Indeed they are very different. A metal neck kramer is built mostly like a typical bolt-neck guitar except they use 2 machine screws instead of 4 wood screws. The body wood has some impact on the tone. Most of the kramers have maple bodies so they are very bright. Beans use a sliding neck joint where the bridge and pickups attach directly to the aluminum neck. The body is merely hardware for the electronics and strap to attach to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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