Famous Axes,Amps and Effects

Gibson USA Angus Young SG

2011-12-16T08:04:00.000-08:00

Time so for some high voltage Rock N' Roll!!!! Well, its an SG but i wonder who it belongs to....
Look closer at the inlays and its STRIKES you!! That ain't no trapezoids, those are lightning bolts similar to the ones in between the AC and the DC....

Enough crap, ladies and gentlemen, id like you to meet the Gibson USA Angus Young SG, custom built for ACDC's flamboyant lead guitarist, Angus Young. Gibson has endorsed this band for a very long time, both achieving legendary status might be a uniting factor.

Suits him id say, his style, looks and shredding ability. I mean, nothing says "I'm on a Highway to Hell!!" like those damn horns on an SG. And look at that headstock, seriously, how many guitarists actually have a cartoon deviled version of them on their headstock.

Anyways, here's proof that Angus actually uses this....

Gotcha!
Well, you see, just like you, halfway through writing this, i just realized that there are two versions of these
One with the tremolo and one without. Here's how the one with the tremolo looks like...

Well, as usual, the specs,

BODY
Top Species:	Mahogany
NECK
Species:	Mahogany
Head Inlay:	Gibson Logo + 'Devil Signature' Decal
FINGERBOARD
Species:	Rosewood
Scale Length:	24^3/4"
Number Of Frets:	22
Nut Width:	1.625"+/-.050"
Inlays:	Figured Acrylic Trapezoid
Fingerboard Binding:	Single-Ply (Antique Cream)
HARDWARE
Plating Finish:	Nickel
Tailpiece:	Lyre Vibrola With Angus Cover
Bridge:	Gibson ABR-1
Knobs:	Black Witch Hat With Silver Insert
Tuners:	Grover Kluson Style Green Keys
ELECTRONICS
Pickups:	'57 Classic Humbucker (Neck) / Angus Young Special Pickup (Bridge)
Neck Pickups:	'57 Classic
Bridge Pickups:	Angus Young Special Pickup
Controls:	2 Volume, 2 Tone, 3 Way Selector Switch
CASE
Case Interior:	White
Case Exterior:	Black
Case Silkscreen:	Gibson USA Logo

Hmmmmm, what do people who own this have to say???

"It is a good match for any rocker out there. I own one other SG, but this one is my main axe. If it where stolen I would not hesatate to get a new one, except comming up with the money would be a little hard."

"Awesome all-round guitar, will get the job done. I got a warranty on it just in case something went wrong with it and I hope that will never happen. What I said in the other paragraphs about the bridge and stuff is nothing really worth worrying about. best guitar I ever braught!"

The first version is still in production but is just extremely expensive. Only 500 were produced or something like that.
That is all my friends...

Schecter Synyster Gates Custom

2011-12-15T22:04:00.000-08:00

Moving on from established rock legends, to one who is slowly moving into the limelight in the name of Metalcore.
Synyster Gates of Avenged Sevenfold. What axe does he use I hear you ask?
Its none other than The Schecter Synyster Gates Custom....

Schecter Guitar Research has long endorsed both Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance with a myriad of different guitars. Zacky can be seen wide a wide variety of the Schecter Mirror models, using a different one for each song setting it seems. However, the lead man on guitar is rarely seen without one of these. And man does Syn need one, especially during all his spiking whammy moves.

This baby here also comes in white, and Syn does occasionally use it in concerts, and some music videos which i can't seem to recall at the moment. And there is also a red and black color combination which has almost certainly did not catch Syn's eye.

You can definitely see the similarities of this axe with Schecter's Avenger Series and the headstock looks like a ripoff from a B.C Rich. Here's the specs,

Set neck construction

25.5 inch scale

Mahogany neck and body

Ebony fingerboard

24 Jumbo Frets

Synyster Inlays

Seymour Duncan Custom Invader Pickups

3- way pickup selector

Original Floyd Rose Whammy bar and Bridge

Grover Tuners

And here's a video of Gates actually playing it.

Now what do people who own this have to say..

"This guitar is perfect for the metal music that I play, the sound, feel, look, everything all matches up perfectly. I've been playing for a couple of years now, and I've played a Crafter cruiser, G2 X300 and a Vintage SG, the Vintage SG being my favourite after many modifications, and I believe that this guitar is the end of my Quest for my perfect guitar. I tried a couple of other guitars before buying this, from the Dime Razor, to the Ibanez Jem, and eve the Santana PRS, and finally settled on this guitar for it's sheer brilliance. If it were stolen from me, then I would definitely replace it with the same guitar, nothing else. I love everything about it, from the fancy neck inlays, to the body artwork, to the headstock artwork, to the feel, the playability, the usability, eveyrhting, and the only thing I would even come close to faulting is the strap buttons which I'm working on getting sorted. Just wish I had a hard case for it! Currently using my bass guitar bag as it has more room for that cheeky wee spike!"

"The specs seem great, but the fact of the matter is that this is a Korean made guitar with a huge price tag. It's got the looks, but I don't think it really walks the walk for anything outside of metal. It's a very limited guitar, and the quality control on that neck is something that I just cannot look past. We've got 2 of these in store, and they're both the same.Personally, I think it's a marketing thing. Avenged Sevenfold fans will buy the guitar if it plays like a dream or a 2x4. Simply for that, they get away with the awfully high price tag for the low quality paint, wood, tuners, and QC."

Well, among all the serious custom guitars i've seen, this is probably the cheapest. It retails for $999 and you can get it through this website.
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-SCE-SYNYSTERCST-LIST

That's it for this time...

ESP James Hetfield Signature "Iron Cross"

2011-12-15T06:20:00.000-08:00

Owh, look what we have here... a Gibson Les Paul.... Hahahahahah

Wait a minute folks, this ain't no Gibson, what we have here is a ESP James Hetfield Signature "Iron Cross" used by none other than Metallica frontman and rock legend, James Hetfield. And trust me, this ain't for the open chord strumming newbies...

As we know, ESP Guitars have since long endorsed Metallica and produced many different guitars for both James and Kirk, but this one has a special spot in the eyes of the fans. This particular model was thrown into the limelight after the release of Metallica's Death Magnetic album in 2008. This model has been mass produced but rumors indicate that there are only 50 of these ever produced.

A mentioned earlier, the Iron Cross has replaced the Truckster as James' first guitar after the Death Magnetic album.

Below here is a song from that album, The Day That Never Comes, which features this beauty.

And as talks bout the specs goes,

Set-neck construction
24-3/4" scale
Mahogany body
Maple top
Mahogany neck
Ebony fingerboard
Iron cross inlays
13.77" fretboard radius
Bone nut
1.65" nut width
Extra thin U neck \cContour
22 extra jumbo EVO frets (gold) Ni-free alloy
Distressed gold hardware
Sperzel locking tuners
Schaller Straplocks
Tonepros TOM bridge and tail
EMG-81 (bridge)/EMG-60 (neck) active pickups with distressed gold covers
Gold stripe graphics and metal iron cross on lower bout
Distressed black finish

If you look closely, you'll realize that there are two pickup switches on this guitar.... and guess what?

The one near to the neck is just a PROP... That's right, its fake.... maybe its just there to resemble a Les Paul...

Oh look, I found a video review...

Well, I wonder what the lucky people who own one of these babies have to say...

"For me this guitar is a perfect match, playing mainly metal it sounds great, but I also play some classic rock, and it sounds great with that as well. I have been playing for 11 years and have played on quite a few guitars and am highly impressed with this guitar. One of the nicer LTD models I have seen. If it were stolen I would most likely hunt down the thiefs family slowly murdering them all, while the thief was tied up in the corner watching, I would then proceed to beat him to death with his own mother's arm, then I would buy a new one. This is a really great guitar I hate nothing, but love everything. I actually changed my order at the last minute from the KH-602 to this, and am highly pleased with my decision. Now I have to save back up for the KH-602. The one thing I wish this had was a nice ol' floyd rose or something of that nature, but then again I bought this bacause I needed a solid rhythm guitar, and that is exactly what I got."

" I play mostly heavy stuff like Metallica and Megadeth and this axe covers it all. If it were stolen I might buy another one, they are quite expensive new. I love everything about this axe. The tone, the colours, the ability to stay in tune for an eternity, just perfect. The only thing I wish it had was for the top pickup selector switches between active and passive, that'd be super awesome."

I guess that's it for this axe....

Gibson Slash Signature Les Paul Goldtop

2011-12-15T02:28:00.000-08:00

Let kick start this new blog with one of my most adored guitars of all time owned and endorsed by my absolute favorite guitarist, Slash. As we all know, Slash is one of Gibson's most trusted and valuable endorsee he has been using their Les Paul series of guitars for a very long time, even since the days of the Guns N' Roses.

Down over here, is a video of Slash performing with this beauty in Tokyo, 1992, playing the theme of the movie, The Godfather.

As for the specs,
22 fret Rosewood Fingerboard
Unchambered solid Mahogany Body
Classic Bullion Goldtop Finish
Set Neck Construction
Seymour Duncan Alnico Pro II Pickups
Tonepros Tune-o-Matic Bridge and Stopbar TailPiece
Fully Binded

As u can see, the thing that sets this guitar apart from other Les Pauls is the shiny Gold finish, which gives it its name. This guitar also doesn't have a pickguard, just the way Slash loves it. And of course, the headstock with signature Slash artwork.

Here are some serious comments taken from a third party website.

"This baby rocks so hard for just about everything, it sounds really wierdly cool in really low tunings, because of the low-output humbuckers, but I usually play Rock N' Roll, and a lot of Guns N' Roses, because it sounds just like that Slash tone on all his albums, I'm playing through an early 80's Marshall 5210 (it's solid state but kicks some cheap tube butt) 50 watt combo amp. The guitar has a nice thick, warm, but still bite-your-ass tone, those Seymour Duncans keep it under control. The cleans are nice and warm but still bright enough to keep it out of the mud. Dirty they just rip, so thick and juicy and... ahhhh... it's hard not to play this guitar at all hours of the day. The pickups can go from a close SRV tone (neck volume and tone both full, and attack hard!!! ) I use 11 gauge strings, as I believe that Les Pauls need the thick strings to help that thick sound along, and with the neck pickup at volume full, tone rolled back all the way, it's a nice November Rain-esque tone. It's VERY nice. Bridge pickup volume, tone full sounds so raw and dirty like the Appetite For Destruction tone, it KILLS! But honestly, work with it and you can get whatever sound you like."

"This was one of the first guitars to come out of the Gibson factory with the Plek'd setup, and wow. That's all I have to say. It was set up just PERFECTLY! I haven't messed with anything yet, except tuning (1/2 step down for the 11's, to keep the tension right) The action is pretty low, just low enough to play easy and not have any buzzing. The pickups are at good heights, the neck pickup is flush with the body, and the bridge pickup is up closer to the strings for more tonal difference. I think the only thing that I found to be disappointing was that there was some dirt in the corner of the neck and the neck pickup, which was really hard to clean out, but it just got dirty again, so I don't worry about it anymore"

Well enough said.
This baby goes in the US for around $3600, which is not that bad considering its wonders.
Be sure to check this guitar out at Gibson's website
http://www.gibson.com/Slash/Gibson%20USA/Slash-Les-Paul-Goldtop/