Versatile guitar for jazz-fusion

[Sean65]

I'd recommend you try a PRS S2 Custom 22 Semi.

I have the non semi version and the things I really like are -

25" Scale length, 10" fingerboard radius and neck carve make this a really comfortable guitar. It just gets out the way and lets me focus on playing. Never played such a comfortable guitar. But I guess we are all different and have different hand sizes/shape etc.

Pickups are just great and the tone pot act as a split. I use the split neck position a lot. The tone pot interacts really well with the pickups and I personally find the entire range of sweep usable. The pickups sound great both clean and driven.

Weight is another plus point. Very comfortable to play.

I was shopping for a Les Paul, never even considered a PRS, and the guy in the shop recommended I play the new S2 Custom 22 and I was blown away with the tones and play-ability.

Well worth a look.

[christianm77]

Birelli Lagrene is fusioning it up on one of these (!)

http://www.pmtonline.co.uk/yamaha-pa...pG8aAozA8P8HAQ

Pretty good guitar for the money I'd suspect. Here's Mr Lagrene playing it:

[Almeisan]

Hmm, I was thinking that in getting a fixed bridge, I'd be able to achieve better intonation. But now I find that some fixed bridges aren't that good for saddle adjustments.

There's even this video about the PRS fixed bridge being bad an having to be replaced:

The Eastman has the Gotoh Stop Tailpiece and it seems it can be adjusted better/more.
I don't have perfect pitch, but coming back to guitar after piano, I hate that the intonation of my guitar is never perfect (though it needs a truss rod adjustment).


As for PRS S2 single cutout hollow vs semi-hollow, is there really a sound improvement for the semi-hollow, or is it just weight reduction at this point?

[lammie200]

...I don't have perfect pitch, but coming back to guitar after piano, I hate that the intonation of my guitar is never perfect...

I know that you could be chasing your tail a bit, but I have found that compensated nuts can help with intonation issues. I have an Earvana nut on my Strat and it makes a world of difference. My other guitars seem to intonate well enough without one though.

[Ray175]

If you're not sure what you want, go into shops and try a wide range of instruments - size, shape, neck profiles and width, materials, pickup types. Without looking at price, consider:

• are you physically comfortable with how they, feel sitting and standing
• ease of play in a variety of styles
• the sound it makes, and the range of sounds available
• if it has coil split or in/out of phase options - try them all

You should now be better equipped to decide what you like and then identify the factors where compromise will be necessary because of price limits - but to be honest, with 3.000€ that should not be an issue.

Let us know how you get on?

[Almeisan]

So I bought an Eastman T184 and I ordered a Kiesel Vader 6 string with the new Holdsworth pickups.

I guess I couldn't make up my mind and I had to spend money so not have too much money saved and lose my eligibility for rental subsidies.

Same guitar for 12 years, then buy two at once. Ooh well.

I really like the Eastman so far. It plays really nice. I played it at home acoustic, as I will transport a Cube 40 amp here next week. I hoped to get a T185 in a different colour, but they told me I had to wait till December for a new batch of them to be released.

It sounds so much nicer and richer than my dime 333 does acoustically.
It also plays easier, even though the body isn't as comfortable and the action is higher. Maybe the neck is just a lot straighter. I tried to do some truss rod adjustments myself on my dime 333 but I can't really see by eye how crocked it is.

I am an 'anti-gear guitarist'. I believe most are obsessed with gear, but not with music. But I should probably have bought a new guitar earlier. But I guess now that I am in an environment where there's actually jazz musicians around me, it is easier to stay interested in playing and it actually made sense to buy one. Partly to guilt myself into finding other musicians and play with them I guess.

When I made my first money at a college internship, I used that to buy a DSL401. My dime 333 sounds so bad through it. Very thin. It sounds wrong, but can't put my finger on it. I never liked the sound. I always blamed me playing bad, or the pickups or it not being played loud enough. Won't be able to try the Eastman with that amp soon, but I will eventually.
Probably the DSL401 is not the best amp for me or for my guitars, but hey it's what I have and no sense in buying something else unless I get steady gigs.r

[wengr]

Seems that imo, there can never be the perfect fusion guitar for me, as it can't wear flats and rounds at the same time. Can't be hollow and solid at the same time.
I have investigated a lot, and can't find anything I find more appropriate than a good 335 style guitar.
What is your opinion of the best fusion guitar?

[Spook410]

You can nudge a bit to solids and go with a Telecaster and Charlie C type pickup. You can nudge a bit towards hollow and go with a solid wood 335 style with a trapeze tailpiece. Then there are guitars like the Eastman El Rey.

[blille]

Of course it depends what you call fusion. But IMHO, a Tele is perfect (with a humbucker if you need to). Then again, that's my answer for flexibility in general.

Of course, you mostly need the right hands:




335 would be a second and an Ibanez S or PRS a third. But, as always, this is personal and you can likely make anything work, particularly with pickup swaps.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Meggy]

I rather fancy a UK custom-built Waghorn, maybe something like this:

- OK, the music is not really "fusion" but look at that guitar! Or perhaps the Alex Hutchins AH6 model:

Something that looks modern, sexy, and suitable for exploring sonic frontiers anyhow. And preferably blue.

[wengr]

Thanks for all the replies. I saw a video where Johnny A describes the process of developing his Gibson signature model, and he describes requesting something that retained some of the tone of his hollow guitars, but could sustain and sing, kind of like an LP.
This really grabbed my attention. Does anyone have any experience with a Gibson Johnny A? Does it actually do this to some degree?

[citizenk74]

According to Wolf Marshall, Joe Pass used a custom GHS set : strings 1 & 2-plain; 3 & 4 roundwound; 5 & 6 flatwound. Put a set of your preferred gauges on a PRS like my '86 Custom 24, and you're good to go.

[339 in june]

My vote : ES-339 with flatwounds ECG24
(and an EL-84 based amp)
But that's just me

[neatomic]

really depends what kind of fusion you are talking about..

the original guys...coryell used a super 400 and a hagstrom swede, mclaughlin used gibson & rex bogue double necks and ovation acoustics with pickups...rypdal used a rickenbacker 360 and strats...holdsworth used sg...

steinbergers were extremely popular at one point

335 popualrity was via the california session guys...lead by larry carlton..mr.335

fusion is in the minds ability to fuse various musical genres, not the guitar

cheers

[neatomic]

According to Wolf Marshall, Joe Pass used a custom GHS set : strings 1 & 2-plain; 3 & 4 roundwound; 5 & 6 flatwound. Put a set of your preferred gauges on a PRS like my '86 Custom 24, and you're good to go.

good stuff...and while not fusion..johnny smith used roundwound set with flatwound .58 low E..so this mix and matching was not unknown

wolf marshall, despite his shred/hair band origins turned out to be a good jazz guitar historian..he's done some great work on howard roberts gear and style as well...kudos

cheers

[LtKojak]

I play Smooth Jazz with a 339 and I love every second of it.

[Jazzstdnt]

Thanks for all the replies. I saw a video where Johnny A describes the process of developing his Gibson signature model, and he describes requesting something that retained some of the tone of his hollow guitars, but could sustain and sing, kind of like an LP.
This really grabbed my attention. Does anyone have any experience with a Gibson Johnny A? Does it actually do this to some degree?

Yes. One thing that makes them a lot different than a 335 styled guitar or even a PRS is the 25.5 scale length though. Personally I find that whole-step bends feel kind of funny on that scale length and prefer the 24.75 if I'm going to do a lot of bending.

But then Tele and Strat fans may say "so"?

[neatomic]

some of the greatest "stringbending" effects ever are done on a 25.5 scale tele...witness all the old school "country" players from james burton to clarence white (pre stringbender) to albert lee etc etc

but i get you..it's a different kind of bend..really two distinct practices...go with whats comfortable..(but don't be afraid to stretch out a little)

ideally one should try to be comfortable with both scale lengths, as they both present different benefits

cheers

[wengr]

Wasn't that sorta the same idea behind the 335?

I don't claim to know what the ideas behind the 335 were, but my understanding is that the Johnny A has no center block, so in that regard I would expect a different experience.

[Jazzstdnt]

I don't claim to know what the ideas behind the 335 were, but my understanding is that the Johnny A has no center block, so in that regard I would expect a different experience.

Good point. I'm pretty sure Gibson lists it with their archtops. I think Johnny wanted some controllable feedback capability - which he intentionally uses.

[jads57]

Really comes down to the player mostly and their comfort factor. And all the above choices are good. I'll just add some others for fun

1.) PRS Hollow Body 2
2.) Gibson Pat Martino Custom
3.) Carvin Alan Holdsworth
4.) Gibson ES-339 Studio ***** best buy used!
5.) Hamer Newport and Monaco models
6.) Tele with PAF type humbuckers both solidbody/thinline

Check out Jack Zucher's page on reviews of many of the guitars mentioned. Pretty harsh crtique, but some very valid points as well.

sheetsofsound.com?

[Meggy]

How's the blue AS-153 coming along?

I don't think it's ever going to happen GNAPPI - the blue version has not been made available directly in the UK, for whatever reason - I don't know. Maybe I could get a store to special order one or something, but the other factor working against the idea is the current low currency value of the pound, meaning AS153's are currently selling at £850 or more. I notice Thomann.de in Germany has the blue AS153, at £860 plus postage to the UK - these kind of prices put the guitar into impossible to justify territory for me. The blonde AS103 I got second hand at a little over £400 not long ago increasingly seems like a wise purchase.

[Bach5G]

80s Kramers, Ibanez. Cheap non?

[wengr]

Thanks to all for the replies. I have a 335 incoming at the moment, and I plan to work with that until i find the right 355.
Someday, I'm sure I'll be known as Mr. 355

[Ray175]

Suggestion from outside of the box, and based on my own playing experience....

The early Charvel models from the mid/late 1980s remain seriously under-rated guitars and meet all you requirements except one (I'll come to that point later)

Well balanced, very flat fingerboard, excellent sustain, tuning reliability (locking nut). The Model 4 superstrat has single coils in bridge and middle position with a humbucker at the bridge - and each pickup can be turned on/off independently. Additionally, there is a mid-boost control (progressive from full off to full on), which gives a massive tonal range that can be interesting in a fusion context.

Mine, from 1986 with dot mother of pearl inlays (not sharkstooth), is now 30 years old and plays as good as when it was new.

The downside with respect to your specification is the (excellent) Floyd Rose floating bridge and tremolo unit, but you can neutralise this by adding a "tremolo-no" blocking system alongside the tremolo springs. I fitted one some years ago in 30 minutes and it works perfectly. with the 3 locking wheels it allows you to block/allow tremolo movement in four ways :

- no upward movement
- no downward movement
- no upward movement and no downward movement
- movement up and down are both possible



I've seen Charvel Model 4's going for around 500€, recently on several European sites.

For me it's better value than many guitars at twice or three times the price