Members kcrimson Posted November 6, 2009 Members Share Posted November 6, 2009 One of my favorite DVDs is the Adrian Belew Power Trio's Rockpalast performance that can be found on various music torrent sites. The performance introduced me to Adrian's recently introduced Parker Fly Signature guitar. After seeing it, and the various product demo videos available on the web, I'm left wondering why there's been (I believe) zero mention of this nearly state-of-the-art guitar (with its stratospheric nearly 10K price tag) here in the forum(s). I'm sure some of the other Parkers in the less than $3K price range also feature excellent electronics and would be excellent high-tech guitars, but when I search the Harmony Central forums I'm not getting a single hit on "Parker" or "Parker Fly". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members girevik Posted November 6, 2009 Members Share Posted November 6, 2009 Not a popular guitar because some people can't deal with the upper horn, plus it doesn't have a "classic rock" look. I have no issues with the horn "cutting into my chest" because I don't hold the guitar that way, nor does the horn "cut in" when I play standing up. Another issue some people have is the pickups being hard to replace on the Fly models. The body is thinner than average, so the pickups that come with them are designed for that thin body. I don't know though if the Seymour Duncans on the Fly Mojo were also customized for the Fly Mojo's body. I love my Parker Nitefly SSS, which I got on blowout sale from Woodwind and Brasswind. At about $800 plus the cost of a GK3 pickup, it was a good deal to me. My only complaint is the onboard Blue Velvet single coils hum quite a bit, which gets into my head compared to the single coils on my Reverend Jetstream 390 (hum is barely perceptible on those guys). I'll probably replace them with Dimarzio Virtual Vintage 54 Pros, which were designed to be noiseless and are said to be a great match for inherently bright guitars like my Parker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WKG Posted November 7, 2009 Members Share Posted November 7, 2009 At $10k there are probably very few people who have actually played the Belew Fly. I shunned Parkers for years until I had a chance to trade an old Soloist for one. That fell through but it got me looking closer and the more I looked the cooler it was. I ended up getting a Mojo Fly and it just kills. Feels and looks like some exotic sports car. Alot of folks seem to think that Parkers are all composite but they are not. There is only a thin skin of carbon glass on the back and the neck to enhance rigidity and it is thinner than the paint. My Mojo is very similar tonally to my SG, both are mahogany, with the Parker having more defined note separation and a killer resonance. Playabilty and comfort is unmatched. Pickups are a bit of a hassle because you have to modify the baseplate but it's not that big of a deal. I haven't felt the need to bother, yet.I think Ken Parker got abducted by aliens and came back with the Fly design. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kcrimson Posted November 7, 2009 Author Members Share Posted November 7, 2009 Do any of the lower priced Parkers include the active electronics, MIDI, modeling, etc that make Belew's guitar such a high-tech monster? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members germanicus2112 Posted November 7, 2009 Members Share Posted November 7, 2009 the 10k parker is a joke in terms of price. The guitar is 'worth' about 3k itself. The sustainer adds about 300-400, and the variax electronics go for about 300. You figure, $500? more for the fancy features in terms of putting it all in the same guitar. Ie it shouldnt be more than 5k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WKG Posted November 7, 2009 Members Share Posted November 7, 2009 A significant part of the Belew Fly is the circuitry, not just the parts. There is a tremendous amount of control stuffed into three knobs and a pickup selector switch. The guy who actually designed the circuitry passed away before it went into production and apparently there was some question as to whether Parker could actually reproduce it. I agree though, $10k is too much. There are midi options on some of the other Fly models but nothing that approaches the Belew... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Karma1 Posted November 7, 2009 Members Share Posted November 7, 2009 For me, in terms of features, the Belew model Parker is the ultimate guitar ever. Having all those features in a guitar of that quality would be a dream come true. The closest I've come is adding a Sustainac, Roland GK synth pickup, and Duncan humbucker to my PRS Santana SE. I know that Parkers are great guitars and I've been impressed with the one's I've played, but I really don't care for the styling of them, the Fly in particular. But I'm sure I could get past that if I had the opportunity to own the Belew model. I agree that the pricing in way over the top. How many do they think they will sell at that price? It seems strange to put all that development into a product that so few people will buy. But, again, that combination of features is awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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