Jump to content

Verne Andru

Members
  • Posts

    5,821
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by Verne Andru

  1. FWIW I'm always putting high-end pickups and stuff in low-end guitars. Unlike the "old days," the basic construction of most modern guitars tends to be solid (without regard to setup and etc.) so manufacturers add "bling" and upgraded hardware to justify higher prices. A well made "beginner" grade instrument with pro-level hardware and electronics will rock just as well as a more expensive custom-shop - the rest is marketing mumbo-jumbo.
  2. I modded the heck out of my V8. After getting some girth out of it by removing the excess parts I gave it the tone stack from a Train Wreck and added a spring reverb and an optical tremolo (with the reverb and trem between the pre and power amps like on old Fenders). Had a long running thread here until the forum melted down. Rebuilt it on my website here: Supercharging a V8 Also did the Bogner high-gain mods to my V33. Combined with a matching quad set of Mesa EL84s it totally rips. There was a mod thread for that one as well but it seems to have vanished with the forum changes. I met Obied, the designer behind Crate's Vintage Club and V series of tube amps at NAMM. He is also the guy who did the Bambino and the Magnatone. Super nice guy.
  3. Crate V8 and V33 here. Great amps with a bit of tinkering.
  4. The current rounds of litigation are not about patents - which relate to a new invention - but trademarks, which relate to the look and source of the goods. The first trademark law (ever) was the US Lanham Act, which is celebrating it's 75th anniversary on Thursday. If you do the math you'll note that the parent company has been doing business since 1894, which pre-dates trademark law; these issues were previously covered under copyright. All jurisdictions have their own trademark laws that only relate to their nation-state jurisdictions so [technically] a US trademark only works in the US. Trademark laws have been changing, with the biggest wave of changes coming on the tail of the global adoption of the internet, with companies often finding themselves caught in the cross-fire as what worked yesterday suddenly changes tomorrow. That said, Gibson has a ton of registered trademarks in the US and abroad and while they are often vilified for enforcing their IP rights, there is a bunch of litigation going on behind the scenes with people like Collings trying to get those registrations cancelled. There's much more going on here than meets the eye.
  5. FWIW I took trip through the USPTO trademark files and discovered: - Valco used the Supro name on cheap department-store guitars and amps back in the day but the Supro name and "Supro" graphic with the lightening-bolt were never registered by Valco. The Lanham Act, which governs US trademark law, didn't come into effect until the late 1940s and Valco had a pre-existing business-model (as did Gibson and the others) that likely didn't account for the then new IP regime. - In 2004 Bruce Zinky registered "Supro" as a wordmark for use on his re-branded Zinky amps. The wordmark is also for guitars, a couple of prototypes of which Bruce brought to NAMMs circa 2005+. He tried registering Supro for swag like shirts and caps but was denied because of a pre-existing "S.U.P.R.O." registration owned by a footwear company IIRC. - The "Supro" trademark - the graphic with the lightning bolt - has never been registered by anyone anywhere and is probably in the public domain and can't be registered. - Around 2006 Absara/Pigtronix moved from NAMM Hall E up to the main floor taking over Zinky's prime booth-location right between PRS and Seymour Duncan. It quickly became a Pigtronix booth with Supro relegated to the backline. - Around 2013 Abasra/Pigtronix bought "Supro" from Zinky and embarked on an ill-advised rapid expansion that started hitting the wall a few years later. They started using the ® mark with the Supro trademark even though it isn't registered. They also started using the ® with "Pigtronix" and that had never been registered as a trademark or wordmark. - In 2020 Absara sold Pigtronix and Supro to BOND who also own the D'angelico line. To summarize, the Supro stuff selling today has nothing to do with the Valco Supro stuff either by legal registration or guitar DNA. The OP's guitar is vintage Valco.
  6. I'm with you Phil. I have a deal with my tech where I take it as far as I can and he finishes up. When I decided to put P-Rails with custom wiring - master blend with humbucker/p-90/SC switching on push-pulls - in my Hagstrom Viking he got the parts and my wiring diagram. He just about killed me when I came to pick it up, but it came out great. That stuff's akin to building ships in bottles.
  7. You may or may not get a response from Supro USA. The only resemblance they have to the original "Supro" is they (Pigtronix) bought the "Supro" U.S. trademark from Bruce Zinky a number of years back. Not sure if Bruce bought the name from the original owners, if Valco did in fact trademark the name, or he just filed an application with the PTO and was first in line. The new Supro line is marketed as a "re-imaging" of the originals. There is no affiliation between new and old. What you have is a super cool vintage reso-glass Supro. Nice score!
  8. I still pop in from time to time. Miss the "great deals" mania that prevailed for a while there. We lived through a golden era of gear - lots of good stuff cheap - that was a lot of fun and forums like this made it moreso.
  9. I have a set of Artec rails I got from Allparts I put in an electric mandolin that work great. Artec does a range of product - some great some so-so. GFS is a used-ca-salesman-type who focuses on low prices. If you know what you want and he has it cheap, then everything is fine. If you want something top-shelf, why are you shopping there in the first place?
  10. I have a Yamaha G100-210 and find it to be a fabulous amp. It's hugely loud, great spring reverb, has a ton of tone shaping with the parametric EQ and fairly easy to move about. Jazz guitarist Mike Stern has been using a G100-212 for years, so even the pros are hip. The distortion is weak but that's not what you're buying it for. I was thinking of modding it but I've taken to putting my V33 [33 watt tube head] on top and using one of the speakers for it and the other for the Yamaha amp; I switch between with a BigShot pedal.
  11. On a vintage piece you should: a] Avoid making non-reversible modifications, such as drilling holes, etc. b] Save the original parts even if they are not working anymore - collectors like having original bits when the guitar moves from your hands. Good luck!
  12. Sure mod the amps forum. That'll keep him busy...could be fun.
  13. If there are no anvils at hand, one does what one must. Beats a parachute pack filled with dirty silverware in any case. Normally I don't vote - find it can be hazardous to one's health - but I like a man who can improvise in a pinch, so count me in!
  14. My support depends - what is JJ's stand on dropping piano's on peoples heads?
  15. http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/fender-skb-molded-case-for-right-or-left-hand-strat-or-tele-guitars/476086000001000 Great case at a great price. If you're in a state where MF charges tax, you can get one from American Musical for the same price: http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-FEN-0996101506-LIST
  16. If you're in a band, or plan to be, today's Stupid Deal @ MF - ElectroVoice drum mike kit for $199 - could be a great deal if your drummer isn't already taken care of. http://www.musiciansfriend.com/stupid/
  17. It's the weirdest thing I have ever seen as well. Within 5 min a thread on SD gets 400 views linking to a site and then the site is knocked out... I have had 3 confirmed orders but am waiting for the cancellations... I hear the last 3 will be sold in the Wonka 4 Wankerz Cyber Candy Bars... In Oz it appears the employees snagged the lions share before customers got a chance. Could have been the same situation on this side: http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/hp-fire-sale-sparks-anger-as-customers-accuse-staff-of-gobbling-up-tablets-20110823-1j7hf.html
  18. Today's deal at Hello Music is The Loar LH-600 Archtop for $700. It's $989.99 at Musician's Friend and eslewhere. http://www.hellomusic.com/ec/Home.aspx
×
×
  • Create New...