Recommend me a high end shredder

[Crappymonkey]

If I went the Warmoth route, does anyone know of any good luthiers in Connecticut who could help me with assembly and routing for a floyd?

With the body that was pictured you just tell them what routing/controlls/jack you want and they'll do it for you at no extra cost. For the neck you let them know what tuning machines you'll use and they'll fix the holes for them

[PlinytheWelder]

The funny thing is, that the Hamer factory is just down the road from my house (20 miles or so). Maybe i can go there and have them build me a floyded firebird type axe.

 

 

Now yer Talkin'! Also take a look at Musikraft customs...

https://www.musikraft.com/

[The Rossness]

Peavy Wolfgang/HP Select? Or the original, EBMM EVH/Axis

 

I just sold my Axis. That's how I have the funds to buy a new axe I also sold my wolfie earlier this year. I like my Charvel's way more!!!!! And the new EVH Axes just don't feel good to me. I only got to play one for about 10 minutes, but it felt cheap and toy-like.

[Axeslinger]

These hold a candle to any high end I've played, and it sure would be fun to spec one out if you weren't worried about price.

That IS probably the nicest looking Carvin I've ever seen and I've owned a half dozen beautiful Carvins:thu:

[Axeslinger]

I just sold my Axis. That's how I have the funds to buy a new axe I also sold my wolfie earlier this year. I like my Charvel's way more!!!!! And the new EVH Axes just don't feel good to me. I only got to play one for about 10 minutes, but it felt cheap and toy-like.

I guess I'm going to suggest the obvious:o

I suggest you draw up a list of specs you want, and DON'T want

We can give ya a brutal case of GAS from there:thu:

[bigconig]

That IS probably the nicest looking Carvin I've ever seen and I've owned a half dozen beautiful Carvins:thu:

 

 

I agree- For the record that belongs to rob_l over at the Carvin boards. He has quite a stable. I recently ordered a DC127T with black hardware and flamed Koa top after seeing his ST300

[Beckman]

What about a Petrucci? I always like the ones I play.



I also like the Ibanez Prestige necks. The Satriani model has a thicker neck as well. It plays pretty nicely in my hands.

[panther_king]

What about a Petrucci? I always like the ones I play. I also like the Ibanez Prestige necks. The Satriani model has a thicker neck as well. It plays pretty nicely in my hands.

Rosewood boards....





I might recommend a good Suhr or Anderson then. Heck, my local dealer called up the factory (anderson) and had them stop in the middle of painting when I asked about ordering one, in case I wanted a different color...

Looking back I'm sure the guy locally new somebody down there to just call up and do that.

[jimlp]

I'm going to spring for a high end shredder but don't know what to get. Give me some ideas and what you liked or didn't like when you played them. Please don't recommend Agile's and Epiphone's and LTD's. I think my price limit is $2800. I'm not into active pup's and rosewood fingerboards. I don't think I want an Ibanez Either. Are there any small builders anyone can recommend? Has anyone ever played a Caparison, BTW?

If you are open to something other than a strat shape and open to the unique look at the Identity from Carlino Guitars. Mahogany body/neck with a maple top and ebony board. Original Floyd Rose and Duncan pickups, usually a Distortion bridge and a 59 neck. Go to carlinoguitars.com and click on the Identity tab on the left side and browse, prices are negotiable. Tell him Jim Castagno sent you and tell him what you are willing to spend. A few to see if you even think you would consider them:

[Bbreaker]

Brian Moore C 90P

[The Rossness]

I guess I'm going to suggest the obvious:o I suggest you draw up a list of specs you want, and DON'T want We can give ya a brutal case of GAS from there:thu:

Specs I like:
Meduum-thin, to medium sized neck. I like a little bit of chunk, but not too much. I like sonething feel-wise inbetween my charvels and my old wolfgang

ebony or maple board. Maple looks the best, ebony feels the best.
either big frets or a scalloped board

Tonal variation. Can't stress that one enough- coil taps, sustainer, onboard active electronics, Hell, if I could have a pizeo and a floyd, that would be pretty cool.
12" or 12" compound radius fretboard, highly roled fretboard edges.

Tonewise, I'd like something between my aldrich for for my old school hot ac/dc tones and a JB. The neck position, I'm looking for something in between a SD Pearly gates & a DiMarzio chopper.

body wood- I'd like walnut with a maple top, but it's not that important to me.

Maybe SS frets

Bolt On or Neck-thru

Top mounted, floating floyds.

I LOVE the stuff WAYNE makes. And I love old school paintjobs. I like flashy stuff.

If I could find a glow in the dark finish, it would be sooooooo cool.

What I DON'T want-

I don't like the feel of rosewood boards. Unless they're polished to a T, I find their feel too grainy. I never want to feel the fretboard or frets fore that matter. I want smoothness.

Most active pickups sound sterile to me. I've played high and low end axes with EMG's and they sound the same. -That's not a compliment.

Small frets

Ibanez Thin necks. Nice for some stuff, but they give me cramps. If Ibanez made a thicker neck as an option... Latley I've been into the fat necks on some SG's.

High price tags. I put $2800 as a limit, so I could find those more expensive guitars on the used market.

PRS

Uncomfortable to play siting down

flat tops

Inlays

trems that lose tune easily

Black- Just don't like black guitars. I like bright groovy stuff.

___________________________________________________________________________________

I had posted what spec's I would like in my custom guitar. Take a look at those, that's the kind of stuff I'm going for. It's the post with a charvel star in it. I'll re-post it, below this post. What I don't want is the opposite thing. Does that make sense?

[The Rossness]

Neck-

XJ Jumbo SS frets

Mohogany neck

DiMartini neck shape

AAAAA Birdseye board

24 frets

Scalloped at the 15th fret upwards

Custom inlay at the 12th fret

Gold Sperzel Tuners

Floyd nut and locks (gold)

Skunk stripe

 

 

Body-

Walnut

Star shape

contour on upper fin for my arm to rest on

output jack on the back of the body (like a Brian Moore)

Floyd Rose Pro, non- recessed, but floating (gold)

Wacky finish

Maple top

 

Electronics-

Single coil sustainer in the neck (with on off switch, and mode select switch)

Dimarzio Chopper beneath the sustainer

Duncan RTM

All the active electronics you'd find in a USA BC Rich

[In Absentia]

How about a custom Sherman?

[Darkstorm]

Jackson or BC Rich. For nice custom shredder easilly in your price range theres also monson guitars.

[DK_CUSTOM]

Vigier, Suhr, Robin, Anderson, Music Man JP or SM.

[The Rossness]

If you are open to something other than a strat shape and open to the unique look at the Identity from Carlino Guitars. Mahogany body/neck with a maple top and ebony board. Original Floyd Rose and Duncan pickups, usually a Distortion bridge and a 59 neck. Go to carlinoguitars.com and click on the Identity tab on the left side and browse, prices are negotiable. Tell him Jim Castagno sent you and tell him what you are willing to spend. A few to see if you even think you would consider them:

Those look AMAZING. Checked em out and their prices are too much over my price. Maybe this weekend I'll take a drive to mass and check em out.

[The Rossness]

Vigier, Suhr, Robin, Anderson, Music Man JP or SM.

 

 

ever play a Vigier? Besides a description of amazing, what can you tell me about them?

[panther_king]

Also, I hate to burst your bubble, but from what I read up on (even says as much on the sustainiac AND Fernandes sites) putting a pickup near a single coil sized sustainer (a'la humbucker look) will interfere with the resonant frequency of the sustainer and cause it to either not work properly, or have a serious volume drop on half of the strings.


I only bring this up because I had the same idea, and was advised against it by sustainiac support themselves.

[Larry the Dog]

I'd hunt down a early 80's B.C. Rich... actually that's exactly what I did its easier for me to list what I (kind of)didn't like about it... at first I wasn't that hot into trems either, but kahlers are easy to get into and just don't seem to give me the same problems I hear about floyds. I like kahlers now so its cool afterall, I wouldn't change it.

:thu::thu:

[kherman]

What's the deal with Carvin's not holding their value very well?

The CT's and CS's do very well with resale.

Otherwise, It really all depends on the options one has chosen.

I don't think I would have a problem getting a decent return on my
ST300, or my '89 DC's.

The '89s are sought after because of the Jackson style headstock.
I've gotten offers a few times.

My ST300 is spec'd very similar to a Jackson Soloist SL2H.
So, it definitely has a lot of features fellow shredders and metalheads are looking for.

The 7 string maybe a little less, because the white/gold look isn't real popular these days.
The Dc400 ? People freak on all the knobs and switches. So, may not fetch as well as the others.

Moot point for me anyways. I never plan to sell.

Again, just watch your option choices.
A floyd equipped Carvin without a locking nut is harder to sell than one with one.
Colors like the DragonBurst, LizardBurst, Spiderman are acquired tastes.
So, it really has to appeal to the right buyer.
If you like fixed bridge, I think the TOM Carvins have more appeal than the FT6's.


Overall you really don't find mint Carvins in pawnshops for $250 anymore.
Even with Ebay there aren't too many $300 steals one had just 6 or 7 years ago.

[Beckman]

Rosewood boards.... I might recommend a good Suhr or Anderson then. Heck, my local dealer called up the factory (anderson) and had them stop in the middle of painting when I asked about ordering one, in case I wanted a different color... Looking back I'm sure the guy locally new somebody down there to just call up and do that.

How about:



Only $25,000:eek:

I also like the looks and Specs of Suhr, but never played one.

[Special J]

The funny thing is, that the Hamer factory is just down the road from my house (20 miles or so). Maybe i can go there and have them build me a floyded firebird type axe.

Not likely they'd build one for you, and these are pretty rare. You might be able to get them to build a floyded Standard (Explorer style) for you. You might have to up your budget a little though depending on the options you wanted.

PI was right though, the Cali's are nice...

[nickeroo]

 

ever play a Vigier? Besides a description of amazing, what can you tell me about them?

 

 

Sorry to butt in:

 

I have a Vigier Indus. Their sort of "budget model" (or rather, the cheapest they make. It kind of poops on my other guitars.

 

I think you'd like the neck a lot. I have a So-Cal too BTW, and some old Charvels, Fender HMs older Jacksons. The Vigier is the best guitar I own out of 40 guitars...objectively speaking. Mainly for the feel and comfort of the neck. I let a friend try it out and he said he'd never tried a more comfortable neck, and that it was "a revelation." He has a lot of nice gear and some cool vintage axes and knows his stuff.

 

I would obviously recommend you hunt one down and give one a blast. A Vigier Ultra would meet your needs, having a Floyd, but would lack all those neato electronic you'd like. Even so, the trem they have (2011 system) never really goes out of tune either.

 

For that money you could also try A Tyler guitar who are up at the top end of the boutique scale. I would place Vigier at that top end too.

 

BTW Caparisons are a little overhyped IMO, but they are still "ok" for the price.

 

 

To meet all the specs you have asked for (Star body, walnut, maple neck, crazy finish etc etc) you'd obviously need a custom build.

 

But for an off the shelf shredder, you can't really go wrong with the Vigier. They are very versatile too. There's a reason Ron Thal, Shawn Lane and Christophe Godin play(ed) them. Review in Premier guitar called them the F1 of guitars. Accurate description.

[The Rossness]

Sorry to butt in: I have a Vigier Indus. Their sort of "budget model" (or rather, the cheapest they make. It kind of poops on my other guitars. I think you'd like the neck a lot. I have a So-Cal too BTW, and some old Charvels, Fender HMs older Jacksons. The Vigier is the best guitar I own out of 40 guitars...objectively speaking. Mainly for the feel and comfort of the neck. I let a friend try it out and he said he'd never tried a more comfortable neck, and that it was "a revelation." He has a lot of nice gear and some cool vintage axes and knows his stuff. I would obviously recommend you hunt one down and give one a blast. A Vigier Ultra would meet your needs, having a Floyd, but would lack all those neato electronic you'd like. Even so, the trem they have (2011 system) never really goes out of tune either. For that money you could also try A Tyler guitar who are up at the top end of the boutique scale. I would place Vigier at that top end too. BTW Caparisons are a little overhyped IMO, but they are still "ok" for the price. To meet all the specs you have asked for (Star body, walnut, maple neck, crazy finish etc etc) you'd obviously need a custom build. But for an off the shelf shredder, you can't really go wrong with the Vigier. They are very versatile too. There's a reason Ron Thal, Shawn Lane and Christophe Godin play(ed) them. Review in Premier guitar called them the F1 of guitars. Accurate description.

 

No, no- That's the kind of info I am looking for. I've played most off the shelf common find guitars- Jackson, Charvel, Every EVH variation, Kramers, ESP, Bc Rich's, Carvin's. Even played some of the more boutique axes like Anderson, Suhr, Wayne's, Trussart. Actually, I played a Wayne Monster once, and it still the nicest feeling axe I've ever tried.

 

But then there are the harder to find guitars that are held in higher regard. Suhr's for example are nice, granted. I liked their Reb Beach model even with the EMG's (I'm not an emg guy). It had a mix of all different woods and sounded really cool and different from the common axe.

 

Caparison's draw my interest for a few reasons. I saw Rob Marcello playing one 3 weeks ago and it sounded awesome. His was black with white polka dots. The story goes that they were made at the ole' jackson japan factory. At that time, Jackson was having them make a special professional series that gained a reputation for being better than their American counterparts. Jackson USA canned production and out of the ashes rose Caparison. I dig Jackson axes. I might very well buy a RR1 or WR1. But if a caparison is better quality than a USA Jackson, it really makes me wonder. I'm going to try to visit a dealer on the weekend (guitar Asylum), but they're over 3 hours away from me and I don't know if its worth the effort.

 

Vigeir's on the other hand- While not my favourite player by a long shot, Shawn lane may be the best technical player I've ever had the pleasure of listening to. He played a vigeir ( and a Charvel before that). People always talk about their neck construction and flat radius. I know of no dealers around me to try one out, and they are really costly. I've always been really curious about them. Whenever I see someone playing one, I know they have a good guitar.

 

Thanks for the info

[nickeroo]

Only the Lane model has flat radius, the others are a shade under 12 ".12 is very comfortable for me, (Eric Johnson has his strats radiused to 12 too I think!)

 

I think Caparisons are as you said, essentially comparable to US Jacksons in terms of feel and quality. However they offer crazy cool things like 27 frets. And Marcello is a major bad ass.

 

Shame that the Vigier dealers are far away from you. (Boston/NY)!

 

Good luck in your quest for awesome shredability.

 

 

EDIT:

 

Actually, Looks like AxePalace in Walpole MA, up the road from you should stock Vigiers. They are listed as a dealer. Website doesn't show any, but does ahve the Vigier category up. Maybe give em a call.