Members harold heckuba Posted January 6, 2011 Members Share Posted January 6, 2011 I prefer the salsa made in New York City Come to think of it he may be in jail for what he did. I think they hung their head salsa maker, Cookie, out on the trail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted January 6, 2011 Author Members Share Posted January 6, 2011 Okay just to let everyone know, I got my guitar back last monday, and I'm taking it through it's paces. I'll be posting a review with lots of pictures and a few sound clips and what not. I have some very good things to say, but then I also have a few critiques as well. Should probably expect something to be posted with the next two days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted January 7, 2011 Author Members Share Posted January 7, 2011 Okay, so I know some folks may have been interested in seeing what this thing looks like, or atleast I like to fool myself into believing that anyways. So for now while I wrote up this review and get all my sound clips together, I'll post a few teaser pics of what I had before and after and then later on I'll post up the full review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aliensporebomb Posted January 7, 2011 Members Share Posted January 7, 2011 Looks like he did a terrific job. So it took a long time? Longer than promised? It may even be worth it if the guitar works better than it did prior to you bringing it to him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brujo13 Posted January 7, 2011 Members Share Posted January 7, 2011 the paint and routing look factory, seems it may have been worth waiting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members docjeffrey Posted January 7, 2011 Members Share Posted January 7, 2011 I took my Martin in for a neck reset and refret about 10 years ago to a highly regarded luthier in Boulder. He warned me that it would be awhile, but I was happy to get my guitar in the queue. He'd call me every two weeks or so and say, "Hey, I was on call at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival last week and Dan Fogelberg needed a new bridge on his Hummingbird (god rest his soul), or James Taylor was at Red Rocks and he needed a new pickup..." He finally got to my Martin Dreadnaught 6 months after I dropped it off. When I got it back, it was freaking perfect. The fretwork was amazing; the new nut was pure perfection; the neck reset was seamless and invisible; and I had him install an undersaddle pickup. Bottom line--I knew it was going to be a long wait. I was willing to be patient because I knew I'd get top notch work. I had a backup that I used during the restoration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members crashclc Posted January 7, 2011 Members Share Posted January 7, 2011 Looks like a brand new guitar. (Now I have to nag him to get my D35 finished ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OldMattB Posted January 8, 2011 Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 Pace replaced some frets and did a set-up on my Tak acoustic. He was slow, but the results were ASTOUNDING. I don't take the guit out of the house anymore - it is my secret weapon! oldMattB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted January 8, 2011 Author Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 So a year ago, I walked into Guitar Center a bought a 1995 vintage white Carvin DC127 for $400. It was a good guitar, and there was a lot that I liked about it, but sadly her previous owner had run her though the paces and left her worn. So after sitting and bonding with it for about 5 to 6 months, I decided that even with it's flaws, this thing was too good to sell off or trade, and I that really wanted to have it restored to it's former glory. And essentially how I arrived at Ron Pace's doorstep. For those who don't know, Ron Pace is a highly trained guitar tech, who has been in the business for over 3 decades. He's done work for many musicians, some of the more famous being ZZ Top, Pink Floyd, and Warrant. He also does work for all the Guitar Center's in the Houston area. To sum up Ron; he knows guitars, and knows them well. When you walk into Ron's home, the first thing your guaranteed to see, are guitars, lots of them. There are guitars placed side by side on the couch. Guitars hanging on wall hangers all over the office. Guitars in cases, stacked all over the house. Guitars on desks, and in hands, and on work benches. There guitars everywhere, which I guess would make Mr. Pace happy, knowning that he's walking around a room full of job employment. So when you walk in, he takes you over to his desk, surrounded by guitars, and you show him what you got and give him the details for your order. For myself I requested: -Stainless steel jumbo frets to replace the old flat nickel ones. -An original floyd rose trem be installed, which meant taking out the old Wilkinson bridge and routing out some of the wood for the floyd. -Repaint the guitar in House of Kolor's kandy apple red. The order came out just alittle over a grand, to which I paid Mr. Pace half the money, and bid him farewell. Now for those interested in what while I waited, you read here: How I finally got fed up. I remember when I wrote that, I was pretty steamed about the whole incicdent, and I guess you can say I'm still disapointed that it even happened. I'm guessing someone either tipped Ron off or he discovered it himself, because a few nights later, I got a call from Mr. Ron that essentially laid out as a huge apology and also an update for how the guitar was doing, what needed to be done, and a round-about date of when it would completed. After that, I felt at ease, not only because I got what I wanted, communication, but because he had apologized over an issue I had. Having worked in retail (a frame shop) throughout highschool and college, and doing work now as a concept artist for oil companies, I understand wholeheartedly how difficult it is to man up and apologize to a customer on mistakes you've made and or issues the client has with you. It sucks, and one of the biggest fears you have of the act is getting your ass chewed out by the guy your apologizing to. I would know, there's been one too many times I've had to do it. And so that was that, and a few weeks later, I got a phone call from him saying it was done. And so here it sits in my hands I guess that's enough for backstory and it's time to get on to the actual review section. I'll review the guitar first, and then I'll get onto my final verdict with Pace. So what do I think about this thing? Bottom line, it's fantastic. This will quite honestly be my number 1 for long time, if not forever. As far as the DC127 goes, I do love the shape and numerous cuts it has. my favorite being how carvin approached the neck joint. One of my biggest bitches with my Les Paul it that it has that giant heel from hell getting in the way of playing on the higher frets. With the Carvin, this problem is completely washed away, so much so that my hand never even touches the body when going for the 24th fret. As far as the electronic goes, this features two humbuckers, with coil tapping miniswitches for the both of them. The bridge provides really nice crunchy tone that's easy to work with, but also has enough punch to show these pickups have a pair. They also pickups up harmonics really well, even on lower gain settings. The coil tapping feature on the bridge gives the pickup a more hollow tone, but this change is really only noticeable on clean or low gain settings. I can say there is a definate difference as far as the weight of the bridge when switching between single coil and humbucker mode. The neck pickup has alot of highs and alot of lows, which ends you up with a very tight blues sound. I tnd to like my neck to be a bit more loose and creamy, so I might change this out to a BKP mule or Duncan P-rail, but for it's still a good pickup, especially for clean or low gain volume settings, as that's where you get more of the loose bassy feel of it. Coil tapping on the neck give it a really nice strat tone in my opinon. It's not 100% true strat tone, but it's a good imitator to say the least. Coil tapping on this pickup can be really heard. Now as the as the actually work done for the guitar, what can say? Well, for starters, the route is done very clean and expertly. Looks even better than Katana's USA RR1 or Gibson V, but then again, anything looked better than the Gibson V, but only because that looks like it was done with a spoon and a jar full of termites. Joking aside, the routing is done very well for both floyd (which yes it does have a brass block installed)... And as well as the locking nut. What about the frets? The frets are beautifully installed as well as polished to an almost mirror shine. Because they're stainless steel, bending is smooth like silk. Actual fret work is very clean on this, no excess sticking out on the sides, all frets are rounded perfectly and there's no sign of them popping off. As said, excellent work Mr. Pace. Installation of the floyd is also done very expertly. There's no trace of the Wilkinson post ever being there, and the trem is installed straight. The setup is nice and low, with the trem sitting perfectly parrallel to the body. The nut is also installed wonderfully, with no indication of it being crooked or loose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted January 8, 2011 Author Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 And then finally we come to the finish. Let's face it, without a good paint job, a guitar is worthless. To be honest with you, I was worried about how the repaint would turnout. When Mr. Pace called me a few weeks ago, the only work left to do was the actual refin. He said he would have it done quick, which he did, and I was glad to hear that, but it did have me worried, considering that it usually takes like a month and a half for this sort of work to be done. But never-the-less, he came through on this as the guitar looks and feels awesome. It was a good idea to go with the House of Kolor paint, it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted January 8, 2011 Author Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 So that's the guitar. It's beautiful, plays great and was worth the money spent on it. But what do I think about about Mr. Ron Pace? There's alot to say really, I have some good thing to say about him, but I also have some critques. First of all, his work is phenomenal. He easly earns the title of being one of the best guitar tech in Houston, based on the quality that he puts out. I can also say that everytime I've physically met him, he's been pleasant to talk to, but this could be for several reason. First, I had alot of money to spend. It's no lie that when people with big wallets walk in to a store, and declare they're looking to burn cash, the customer service does increase in quality. With that said though, there were times before I started this thread that I felt like I was being shrugged off bit, which alarming for people who put alot of money in an investment. The other reason why he could have been so pleasant is because of this thread. Had I continued to get rubbed off and left on No Communication Island, I probably would have tried to write him off on every major guitar forum and social site around, as well discredit him by word of mouth. Word travels fast, and the worst thing that can ever happen to a business is a bad reputation. But that didn't happen, so I'll keep my business here. As far as my actual critque goes, my only distinct problem is the no communication issue. In all my time in working as essentially a designer of other people's idea, if there was one thing I've learned, it's that when people pay you money, a lot of money for that matter, they'll either want the work done quick, or for a periodic update on how it's coming along. That's how it's been for all my career, and I imagine that's how it is for alot of other folks as well. But when you deny clients both options, they start to get antsy and some down right jerkish. And they have a right to be that way in some cases, this someone's money that your handling and to not once and awhile inform them what your doing with it can quickly change their view of you as a professional to a crook who is taking the next flight to vegas with all their hard earned cash. I remember Ron explaining to me that the reason why he was so hard to reach or rarely called was because if he took every phone call that came in, he would never be able to step into his shop. I can find sympathy with this, as it reminds me of my job in the frame shop. In order for the framer's to get any work done, we would just take one of the assoicates and sit them next to the phone, so that they could handle all the calls and the business that came with it. And really Ron, if calls are that bad, then hire a secretary or someone who sole jobs is to keep up communications with the clients. That may be less money in your pocket, but that would keep you in shop doing what you need to do. Lord knows, I wouldn't have had any problems if I had just had some one give me an update every once and awhile explaing to me that my order will be past due or just got this set of work done on it. To sum this all up, Ron Pace puts out some amazing work and I can safely say I'm very impressed with what I have in my hands. That being said, Ron's appraoch to customer service has put me off abit. Will I use him again? For smaller stuff like pickup changes or electrical work, no. These are things I can either do myself, or have the shop near my house do in a day or two with satisfactory quality. For major work like routing, fret work or repaints, yes. The job was done excellently on those parts, to the point of custom shop quality. You'll have my dollar again for anything weird I come up with Mr. Pace. Review over, now here's a picture of my cat, Mr. Whomper Bottoms. Eat it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Katana Posted January 8, 2011 Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 When I was a teen (about 14 years ago) he absolutely chewed my butt out on the phone because I had called him inquiring about my guitar. I only called when he told me the guitar was going to be ready. He kept stringing me along, lied to me about being 'almost done', and it took him about a month for a simple setup and installing a kill-switch (in the already drilled tone pot hole). During his tirade on the phone he told me to get a backup guitar, and 'if I stopped calling him maybe he'd have time to finish my guitar'. Keep in mind I ONLY called him when he said it was going to be done.As a result, I refuse to have anything to do with him. Even after all this time I still remember his attitude, and I warn others about his customer service. Sure he does good work, but the guy is a prick. I had the exact same experience...Told me "I can either be in the shop working on your guitar, or answering phones. Which would you prefer?!" When realistically I feel like neither were going on...That aside his work is good. I just don't think the quality work is easy to appreciate after you have to rub all the feces off to get to it. Sweet pics, btw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Katana Posted January 8, 2011 Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 Now as the as the actually work done for the guitar, what can say? Well, for starters, the route is done very clean and expertly. Looks even better than Katana's USA RR1 or Gibson V, but then again, anything looked better than the Gibson V, but only because that looks like it was done with a spoon and a jar full of termites. Joking aside, the routing is done very well for both floyd (which yes it does have a brass block installed)... I gave you that brass block free...and you're STILL gonna talk trash about my poorly factory routed flying V. I see how this is. And I'll have you know my RR1 route my not be as clean, but it still kicks your Carvins ass. You really F'd up this time. And F stand for '{censored}'! Nah, but in all seriousness it came out pretty nice. The paint looks way too orange in your pictures though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted January 8, 2011 Author Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 That it does, this thing is much more vibrant in person. I guess you could say this is a better picture of what the color actually looks like Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members illinismitty Posted January 8, 2011 Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 Nice work. I have found that the best luthiers are terrible at communicating and take longer than promised. So basically, take the simple work to someone who can get it done quickly. For the more detailed work, send it in and wait. However, I do think it's {censored}ty to make you pay and wait. My luthiers never asked for money until it was done. If you made payments, you deserve communication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sylvesterlowery Posted January 8, 2011 Members Share Posted January 8, 2011 See, I've used the guys down at Great Southern Music for most of my repairs lately, and they get them done when they say they will. I've shown up with my Ibanez with a PITA to change barrel jack and they swapped it while I waited and cleaned the pots when they noticed a bit of crackle while they were testing it out. Swell bunch of guys.I try to do most of my own repairs, but sometimes I need a tech. Then I like to take it to someone who can do the job right, do it in a timely manner, and not totally rape me on the charges. And decent communication skills are a must, after all, I am trusting that person with something that I've invested my hard earned money into. It's not unreasonable to expect that person to occasionally answer an email regarding my investment. I've managed to find a couple of them, and I'll stick with them for now. I'll put it this way: When you hand your guitar and your money to a guitar tech, in a way you become their boss. As a boss, you do not have to put up with a worker that cannot produce quality work in a timely manner, and either gives you vague answers or doesn't even attempt to communicate the status of the work being done. You simply find someone else who can. That being said, It looks like you are happy with the results of Mr. Pace's work. And looking at that beautiful Carvin, I have to say, he did an excellent job on it! I'm glad the results were worth the wait, and I hope you enjoy that guitar for years to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Nothingman1776 Posted February 11, 2011 Members Share Posted February 11, 2011 Ron Pace has had my Martin acoustic for over a year as of yesterday. He never answers the phone, never returns your messages, and flat out lies. If you cant deliver on a two month turn around, the why the F*CK are you still taking new orders?! I dont care how good he is, he sucks and I'll never go to him again and I'll make damn sure everyone I know and every forum on the interwebs knows about it. This guy may be a good luthier, but he's a sh1tty businessman. I'm going to get my guitar next week, if its not done then I'm taking him to court, simple as that. Ron Pace = ( * ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members stingxnj Posted February 11, 2011 Members Share Posted February 11, 2011 Ron Pace has had my Martin acoustic for over a year as of yesterday. He never answers the phone, never returns your messages, and flat out lies. If you cant deliver on a two month turn around, the why the F*CK are you still taking new orders?! I dont care how good he is, he sucks and I'll never go to him again and I'll make damn sure everyone I know and every forum on the interwebs knows about it. This guy may be a good luthier, but he's a sh1tty businessman. I'm going to get my guitar next week, if its not done then I'm taking him to court, simple as that. Ron Pace = ( * ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members stingxnj Posted February 11, 2011 Members Share Posted February 11, 2011 Hey Cap, that guitar looks absolutely fantastic. I love the choice of color for the refin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted February 13, 2011 Author Members Share Posted February 13, 2011 Thanks guys, it really is beautiful. I am curious in knowing what the bill is for your order Nothingman. Even a year seem to be a little long on Ron time, unless you've asked him to pretty much build you an acoustic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tinear Posted February 13, 2011 Members Share Posted February 13, 2011 To me, a good job is only half the reason to give someone my business. Meeting deadlines and communicating with the customer is the other half. It's one thing to have an unexpected delay; things happen. As long as you give me a timely heads up and a reason for the delay, I'm usually OK with it. But to take an order knowing full well that you can't meet the customer's expectation for when the job will be done is dishonest, period. I would never give my money to someone who lies to my face, I don't care how good they are at what they do. The lack of communication alone would be enough for me to never do business with someone again. I can't conceive of treating my customers the way this guy does. How anyone stays in business acting the way he does is a mystery to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members humbuckerstrat Posted February 13, 2011 Members Share Posted February 13, 2011 For a grand, you could have gotten.... A NEW CAR-vin!!!!!! And you might not have had to wait as long. Awesome results, tho. I've always been very pleased with the work that Ron and his assistants have done for me, despite the long wait times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cheepgeetars Posted February 13, 2011 Members Share Posted February 13, 2011 Lone Star guitar shop in Pasadena (Spencer) does excellent, thorough, and timely work. He's reasonable and appreciates repeat business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Texas Noise Factory Posted February 14, 2011 Members Share Posted February 14, 2011 Nice to see who some of you H-Town guys are. Cpt: Nice work on the Carvin. Looks beautiful! I've got a Les Paul that I need a repair on and was looking for someone local. Not too keen on shipping it, but am not aware of anyone local that can do what I want for the repair on my LP. Thanks for the info on Ron Pace's capabilities. I've heard his name around here, but not seen his work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cpt Albatross Posted February 14, 2011 Author Members Share Posted February 14, 2011 Better prepare to not see that Les Paul for a while then Texas. I mean really prepare, as in you mentally ready yourself for what will probably half a year without your precious Paul. Make sure touch it, feel it. Remember the texture, remember the warmth, remeber the taste, remember the goddamn smell. That's right, smell it. Good and hard my friend because anything less will have you thinking crazy thoughts while your baby is gone (such as buying another guitar). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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