SixStringThings

Incoming Goodies!!!

2007-08-22T14:32:00.000-07:00

So here goes the first one!
Sitting pretty on a couple of Saul Koll guitars...one sold literally the first day I received it. Despite having been at this for the past 3 years now sometimes the speed of these sales / the intensity of people's appreciation for these fine pieces of contemporary luthiery still manages to amaze me and make me feel all warm 'n' fuzzy.
Then today someone else wrote, out of northern EU, asking for the remaining Koll Tornado - talk about taking Europe by storm (haha).

in the meantime I'm getting a precious new Nik Huber Dolphin delivered to Italy, along with Nik Huber's personal Dolphin Jr. Bigtime italian pro wants to try one out with an even bigger italian singer w/ int'l recognition (heck - even Nik has heard of him!).

Separately, Gitarre und Bass (the german mag) is putting a Soloway Swan through it's paces... fingers crossed...

Curio: I actually played a '59 Gibson Les Paul in Milano, Italy about one month ago. Thing is, these days, with all those Custom Shop and Historic reissues, not to mention the Tom Murphy relics, and Max replicas, you never really know what you're holding, see? Is it the Real Deal? Is it a very beautiful replica of the same? When I was younger there were only "real" ones or "modern equivalents". Non of this ambiguous as-good-as-the-original stuff! ;-)))

Thx for reading!

Uncle GroOve

Saul Koll Guitars - In Europe!

2007-08-12T04:33:00.000-07:00

File under Alt.Jazz.Fusion...
Very crisp and open bridge and middle positions...let Frisell shine through those ambiguous no-3rd cluster chords. Switch to the neck for some Wes inspired octave phrasing, coated in a smoky, woody vibe. Bend your way through nu.jazz microtonal runs with the Skyway trem... . Originally built for guit-extra-terrestrial David Torn (www.davidtorn.net) - there's nothing else like this on the face of this galaxy!

This one is pure rock'n'roll with a twist. Fullerton and Kalamazoo meet down Louisiana way. Short scale, maple set neck, coupled with a greasy, grind-y bridge p.up (think tele on steroids) and a warm and woody neck P90. Go from buttery bloos (neck) to finger pickin' alt-country-americana rock in the mid position, to right hand Honky-Tonk Wimmin' heavyness in the bridge position. This is what it's all about.
Like a Johnny Depp in Willy Wonka - strip away the dandy outfit, reveal them tatoos ;-) ...

Ruokangas VSOP Standard "custom"

2007-01-11T02:44:00.000-08:00

VSOP front
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

Ordered 4 months ago, she is finally here.
We're talking about a Ruokangas VSOP Standard which has been somewhat customized by Juha to my specs.
The upgrades basically are:
Haeussel "harrybarden" blade humbuckers on a pearloid 'guard
Stainless steel frets
Flamed maple neck and fretboard.
The guitar is a bow to that venerable Fullerton double-cut design, from the 25.5" scale length, to the bolt-on neck down to the alder body. Finish is a ultra-thin vintage white poly job. The" venerable design" is brought up-to date by the Wilkinson steel block (a joy to operate, smooth and precise), a moose shin bone nut (naturally lubricated) and thermo-treated woods. This treatment aims to recreate the natural effect of wood aging and drying over time and is a trademarked process (IIRC it was developed by the Wood Institute in Helsinki, Finland).
Tonally the guitar is *alive* and resonant; the low-wind pickups (appx. 4.5K) induce a nice harmonically rich sheen, but despite the maple and the stainless steel frets there is none of that glare in the mid-high register and no ice-pick shrillness from the bridge pickup. The mid positions sund "clucky" and yield an immediately apparent timbre difference when played with an overdriven amp or stompbox. Just flick from one position to go from bright to dark - easy!The generous frets are high enough so that in the high register you're practically playing a scalloped fretboard, which does wonders for faster, shred oriented players. For the heavy crowd I'd recommend using Harry Haeussel's "hot" version of these blade pickups, of course.
The price of this baby would be around 2'800 Euro (incl. VAT). In the price is included a sturdy Hiscox form-fitted case.

A Suhr Review

2006-05-20T23:21:00.000-07:00

I've just received a beautiful - even if not spanking new - 2003 Suhr Classic S in transparent white (think Mary Kay minus the gold appointments).
25.5" scale, alder body, maple neck and fretboard, stainless steel 6105s, V60LP pickups, gotoh 1088 bridge, Buzz Feiten, etc, etc.

I remembered, from having played one that belongs to a Knopfler nut, that the guitar's response is tendentially "hard"... I couldn't get over the "compressed" feel of the steel frets + Suhr pickups.
To my energetic right hand, the guitar sounded way too brash and middy, without that nice "expanding" kind of tone that I expect from a Stratocaster. By this I denote A) the mid scoop that I have in mind from listening to too much Hendrix and SRV coupled with B) the increased dynamics in a single coil p.up vs. it's humbucker counterpart - one could say in tune amp terms: "sag".

Anyway, I took some time to play the Suhr through my Carr Rambler (www.carramps.com - check them out!)... One of the first things I did was lower the highs on the amp AND lower the guitar's tone controls down to "6". Now I was in business.
The guitar really shines because the pickups' compression actually helps you play with a much lighter right-hand touch - which is obviously a useful feature if you're playing 2,3 hour long sets - and helps you get the same kind of output level if you're fingerpicking. Not a stupid idea at all.
I actually loved the sound of the guitar played fingerstyle vs. the sound of celluloid on the strings and I did find that the Buzz Feiten optimization does wonders for those first position chords, especially triads played on the lower three strings - which usually sound a bit dodgy.

All in all I guess I've found a way to love yet another guitar - much to my wallet's distress.
My girlfriend actually fell in love with it, which means I'll have a much harder time selling it!

May 1st, 2006 Joe Barden is Back And In Business!

2006-05-01T22:53:00.000-07:00

It will seem strange to many of the visitors that I should be celebrating - after all I had some success by selling a similar product, right?
Well, it ain't so. First of all because Joe was really unlucky - hit a hard patch, and it took him quite some time to get himself back on his feet. I / we respect anybody who makes an effort to swim back to the surface of things. Nothing to do with "success", it has more to do with the human ability to spring a comeback and get himself a new lease on life.
Secondly, because Harry's and Joe's blade pickups are as different as the night and day; Joe's are acclaimed for their extended-range, high fidelity sound, Harry's because of their midrange detail and their overall warmth.
If you ask me - I think that some months down the road we'll be seeing folks with mixed Barden-Häussel sets... these will turn out to be interesting times indeed!!
In the meantime I have applied for a distributing licence here in Europe - we'll see what will happen and if I get lucky there will be good reasons to celebrate!

Affaire à suivre...

The "Barden" Legacy...

2006-04-24T23:49:00.000-07:00

Here is the image of a trio of "harrybarden" Haeussel pickups, both for stratocaster and for telecaster.
As you can see, they do look different from a true Joe Barden pickup, especially on the underside.
This is actually intentionally done to protect everyone from paying for a "fake" Barden - prices of which have gone thru the roof - and out of respect to the "real" Barden design.
I just seem to be unable to order enough at a time - box in, box out... amazing...

Stuff to look forward to...

2006-04-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

After the Musikmesse in Frankfurt it's time to give a couple of thoughts on some serious toys - not necessarily all expensive:

Fulltone OCD: I loved it! I don't understand the hype - but I know tone when I hear it. The only thing Mike should do is make the HP-LP switch "footswitchable" like the Fulldrive II. It would be an even Mo' Killah pedal...

Electro Harmonix: I loved the H.O.G. and P.O.G. harmonic pitch shifters. Pitch shift CHORDS! Unheard, unearthly, killer.

Fuchs Amps: I loved the 50 watt OD head... Smooth, rich, creamy. From Blues to hard Rock and Clean, it's got 'em all.

Koch Amps: these guys were demoing the new Supernova head. Blew many many many people away, including Paul Reed Smith himself - keep an eye for this devastating thang!

Morgaine Guitars: Made in Germany, just like Nik Huber. Easy, no? ;-) Tried out one of his relic'd LPs. Stunning!!!!

Roland: Got to meet with the guy that's programming the new super-looper (FC50?). Will make the old Oberheim / Gibson Echoplex look prehistoric!!!!

Music123.com: These guys came over to the Nik Huber booth. They're looking to open up a high-end section of the store. Could be a very positive surprise for many boutique builders.

Ruokangas Guitars: I'm stoked every time I meet Juha. Such incredible stuff - with his flamed artic birch tops he sets the bar Very High. Whoa!

Ninety times Love

2006-03-14T08:20:00.000-08:00

A batch of P90's
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

P90s are definitely ruling my life lately.
From left to right.
Nik Huber Junior Dolphin, '93 Hamer P90 Special (w/Lollars), 90s Bacchus Junior, Reverend Slingshot Custom, Molinelli Molicaster (Häussel "BigMag" P90/strat hybrids)

P90=more spank to your plank. Dig it.

1993 Hamer Special P90

2006-03-12T03:06:00.000-08:00

1993 Hamer Special P90
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

Found her in an italian store.
Paid the price for having pushed and generally shown around Hamer guitars over her for the past 2 yrs...

Original everything, pre Kaman (every guitar must have a pre-something to it, LOL), small Hamer tuners, University Drive warranty card.

I swapped the pups for Lollars (the original SDs really sucked bigtime, sorry seymourfans) - and now this beast rocks and rolls like nothing else!!!!!

Owner of a Real Gibson Les Paul...

2006-02-28T12:26:00.000-08:00

My oh my.
Who would have EVER believed I would purchase a real Les Paul, one day?
I've been dissing GBSN for ages, for their repellent QC, for the awful swindle they're prepetrating to the guitarists all over the world, for having clogged 99% of the world's videos (and stages) with the six string equivalent of the ubiquitous coke can.

Having said this I did jump on a 1999 R9 Les Paul, a darkburst model, apparently the second ever built for Wildwood.
I love it's neck carve, the tailpiece can actually be screwed down all the way to the top (no pun intended), the finish is gorgeous, the weight is still comfortable, the guitar is very resonant. Heck - with a pair of Seymour Duncan Antiquities it sounds plenty mucho good.
But it's up for grabs as it comes from a complexely orchestrated swap with a new Huber owner, so I guess I'll enjoy this rare bird only for a few more days.

Still - Nik Huber is gonna build me a couple of awesome "singlecuts".
One is going to be a more adventurous korina build with an incredible tubular quilt top, the other a more traditional mahogany / flame maple job in a very classy Jimmy Page vibe.

Stay tuned.

Joe Barden lives on...

2006-01-30T11:23:00.000-08:00

...In the work of Harry Häussel (www.ugroove.biz/haeussel.html), who has resuscitated the lost art of building blade pickups.
They look "almost" the same as the original Joe Barden pickups, but of course are differently executed, s nobody really knows how Joe did it.
The regular version pickup has a DC resistance of 4.04KOhm (!) yet is powerful enough for hard rock and maintains a lot of clarity and control, without sounding brittle or thin.
There is a hotter model which sports a whopping 15KOhm DC resistance...of course the 2 sets can be mixed and matched - say a HOT bridge with a regular mid and neck.
These pickups have such great dynamics that they can be played with the volume at "1" allowing you to gig with a simple one-channel amp and to dial all your tones exclusively with the p.up selector and the vol /tone controls.

Rock on
!-)

Kudos to....

2006-01-26T10:58:00.000-08:00

Bob Willcutt (www.willcutt.com) - for some awesome awesome Nik Huber Guitars. Dude, you rock!
Joe Driskill (www.driskillguitars.com) - for being willing an'able to try out the Häussel pickups I sent him... I wanna hear that plank wail, man :-)
David Myka (www.mykaguitars.com) - Dave is such a nice fellow, unbelievable.... Some his stuff is really innovative and refreshing (check out his "Stargazer" guitar). David will be getting some Häussels very shortly.
Last but not least
.
.
.
.
.
Saul Koll (www.kollguitars.com). Yet another awesome builder and such a kind person. He's the only builder who has tempted me for so long and for whose guitars I couldn't pull the trigger. Why? They're all so damn Gorgeous! And even when I did finally make my mind up, many moons ago, I kept agonizing on the color and the pickup combination.
I did finally decide last night: I'm getting a Superior, standard configuration with the electroflux p.up in the bridge and a Häussel P90 in the neck. It'll be (probably) a daphne-blue kinda job which he calls "rafito blue".
Oh yes... he too is gonna get some Häussels to play around with.

Praying for positive responses from all these iconic builders......

Something Very Expensive will stay where it is

2006-01-22T12:39:00.000-08:00

So, after having spoken to the man I waited and waited.
I must say that he was sort of reluctant to sell.
His market in the US is absolutely roaring - fair enough - also thanks to the promo efforts of his henchman, Matte Henderson - an outspoken, cynical, sneering, super-guitaristo of swedish origin.
So Johan Gustavsson doesn't really see the point of having to sell outside the US where his guitfiddles sell at 5.5-6k a pop.

So it isn't a surprise that Matte sends me a terse message some days later

Hi Paul,
Matte Henderson here. Johan asked me to email you regarding your order. The price of your guitar(excluding shipping, customs fees, etc.)is 5,000 Euros. A 50% is required to start the order. I can email you with all pertinent wiring transfer info at your convenience.

Best,

Matte

Guess what.
The same guy quoted me back on July 1st 2005 for the same guitar at 4.400 euro and never got back to me when I asked for more info re. deposits etc.
There's absolutely NO WAY I'll pay up 13% more, just because on dollar terms the 5.5k dollar guitar has gotten more expnsive (remember - it's built in Europe).
So I guess that my hard earned money stays where it is.
So I also guess that the Häussel pickups I sent to Mr. Johan Gustavsson to try out will never find their way back home.

Disappointment runs a dime a dozen, lately. Poor lame world.

Pulled the trigger on Something Very Expensive

2006-01-06T09:01:00.000-08:00

Called today.
Spoke top the man.
Sent him an e-mail.
I'm in for a Johan Gustavsson '59 Classic.
Take your most beautiful '59 Gibson Les Paul, with it's gorgeous flamed maple top, morph it slightly into a telecaster shape and voilà...you have a Gustavsson.
Will have real old-growth honduran mahogany back and neck, btw.
And - of course - Harry Häussel pickups ;-)

Wanna see some?

Go to www.jgguitars.com
You're warned... Like the Nik Huber guitars, these are equally as addictive.

Six String Shakira!

2006-01-04T01:02:00.000-08:00

Did you see her latest vid? She's rocking on a pink Hamer Special...!!
Kudos to her for having the balls to avoid the usual G*bson - F*nder cliche' and for being so indipendent as to being able to make her own free choices.
(Having said this, I really don't dig the tone of her voice on this song, unfortunately)

Mo' Bettah' Vintage

2006-01-02T13:01:00.000-08:00

Mo' Bettah' Vintage
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

A brief word of praise to Steve Carr for building the Carr Rambler amplifier (www.carramps.com).
I purchased this baby for home use, but at 28 watts (pentode) it's still waaaay too loud, LOL...
I'll never get it to crunch (ok, I could plug it in my Weber MASS attenuator).
Despite the fact that I can't bring it to grind I can get some of the most luscious clean tones out there, from jazzy to fonky...and if I plug in my Fulltone Fulldrive II things turn real real nasty.
Oh, BTW...the Fender Telecaster Deluxe is the real thing, not a reissue.
Capito?
;-)

PAF Vintage Tone? Not for everyone...

2005-12-29T07:38:00.000-08:00

Apropos PAF…

Saw an ad just the other day of someone selling a set of PAF ("Patent Applied For") guitar pickups from a 50-something vintage (so he says) Gibson Les Paul.
One thousand dollars ($1'000.--) may be about 1 percent of the value of a real, vintage 1958 Les Paul, but put in the perspective of a reissue, refinish, replica instrument, this sum becomes outright ridiculous.
A set of $1000 pickups will not make your guitar sound 100 times better, just fractionally so.
Stories abound about the fact that the folks at Hamer Guitars are sitting on a ton of old PAF pickups that in the early 70s old Gibson owners were swapping out for newer and more "modern" (LOL) Di Marzios, Bill Lawrences, etc.
Most of those users probably did the wrong thing - but many probably found their tone to be lacking something, maybe warmth, maybe power... who knows.
A "Real PAF" is not the ultimate tone panacea - it's just a piece of (albeit important) modern music history.

In my personal experience I’ve seen boutique pickups *adding* to the overall tone of the instrument – the best results falling squarely on the shoulders of the best builds.

Who would I turn to in alternative?

Here’s my personal list:
Tom Holmes
Harry Häussel
Jason Lollar
Lindy Fralin
WCR
Harmonic Design
BareKnuckles
Wolfetone
And if I must:
Di Marzio
Seymour Duncan (caveat: I only like the Seth Lover – you’re warned)

I haven’t heard great things about PRS pups for some reason, and in any case I’d steer away from EMGs if the scope of the pickup upgrade is to obtain a better sounding „classic“ instrument.

One test for excellence…
Crank your amp to a nice overdrive, pickup volume full on.
Now roll down the volume on your guitar and see if
a)you manage to clean the overdrive
b)your clean sound (with the rolled down volume) retains the overall feeling and dynamics of the full output.

I’ve tried the trick on a $6'000 1994 Tom Murphy Les Paul into the ‚57 The Twin reissue amp.
Result?
Disappointing.
I kept my $$$ in my pocket – I’ll be looking to get both a Nik Huber (already in preorder status) and Gustavsson instead…

Affordable Boutique - The Wave of the Future

2005-12-29T02:09:00.000-08:00

This was just published by the guys at Guitar Player.
I see in it the shape of things to come... a wave of professional, skilled, craftsmen - building beautiful and great sounding instruments without swamping the market with a flood of mass-produced pap.
AND - making a decent living out of their skills.
More names spring to mind: David Myka, Ron Thorn, Gene Baker, Koll, Steve Carr (Carr Amplifiers), Jason Lollar, Lindy Fralin...
Let's give these dudes the credit they deserve.
Rock on.

Fargen Mini Plex
By Terry Buddingh | January 2006

There are many niches in the amp builder's marketplace, but perhaps none more challenging than that of Affordable Boutique. Faced with this seemingly oxymoron-like contradictory business model, how does an aspiring amp manufacturer offer hand-built craftsmanship at a production-line price?

Like many boutique builders, Ben Fargen (pronounced Far-gen, as in Gen-X) does everything himself. There's no greater motivation for quality than having your name on the front, and there's also no payroll leaner than a one-man show.
Fargen also simplifies production by using the same basic zinc-plated steel chassis for many of its models, including the Mini Plex. This sturdy and simple open-box design has no extra reinforcement folds, fancy welded corners, mounting ears, or blocks, but it's punched to accommodate every component needed for all the applicable models.
This universal-chassis approach saves Fargen (and you) money because it allows him to place orders for larger quantities, which further amortizes the sheet-metal shop's setup fees.

While a good chassis can be costly, an amp's transformers are typically its most expensive components. The Mini Plex uses a standard Hammond power transformer, and this transformer is used in some other Fargen models, as well. Buying off-the-shelf power transformers in large quantities helps to reduce cost, which allows Fargen to splurge on the Mini Plex's most tone-crucial component it's custom-wound, interleaved and paper-layered output transformer.

Fargen Cool
From the outside, the Mini Plex may look like just another run-of-the-mill Marshall plexi repro (albeit an upside-down one), but a careful study of its circuitry reveals that it's far from being just another copycat. For starters, the Mini Plex has a very unusual parallel single-ended output stage. While most amps with two output tubes configure them in a push/pull arrangement, the Mini Plex has two cathode-biased EL34s wired in parallel. You don't get as much power this way, but the tone is noticeably richer in lower harmonics. The Mini Plex also has a Hi/Low power switch that reduces the amp's output from 12 to 8 watts by disabling one of the EL34s.

The Mini Plex has only two preamp tubes. Of course, a simple design reduces parts count and, therefore, cost, and it also reduces labor time as there are less components to install and wire. And many tone gurus will also agree that a simple circuit can often provide a richer tone, as well. The two halves of the Mini Plex's first 12AX7EH preamp tube are wired in parallel?a configuration that's somewhat reminiscent of a vintage Marshall preamp with it inputs jumpered.

Fargen's front-panel Decade switch provides three different preamp voicings by bypassing the first stage's shared cathode resistor with a .68uF capacitor for the '60s position (for enhanced upper mids and treble), and a 25uF cap for the '80s setting (for full-range boost). The '70s position leaves the resistor unbypassed for lower gain and more clean headroom.
The Mini Plex's Volume knob follows this first stage, which feeds the Marshall-style second gain stage a cathode follower-driven classic 3-knob tone stack.

Immediately following the tone controls, the Master Volume control is a simple voltage divider that also feeds the output tubes. That's right - there is no phase inverter tube like you would expect to see in a typical Marshall clone.
Remember the Mini Plex has a single-ended output stage, so there's no need for a phase inverter/splitter, and the preamp's two gain stages are more than sufficient to drive the EL34s to maximum power. How's that for tube-savvy economics?

Flex The Plex
So how does a Marshall-inspired preamp sound when it's driving a parallel single-ended EL34 output stage? The Mini Plex can sound amazingly lush, rich, and warm at low volumes, and it gets gradually more aggressive and grinding as it gracefully makes the transition into overdrive. Set to Hi power mode, and at relatively moderate volume levels through the J Design Old Dog 12-12 test cab, Icoaxed some absolutely luscious jazz tones from a Guild archtop. Grab a Les Paul, crank it a little more, and you'll be steppin' out with some authentic-sounding Beano-era Clapton snarl. The Mini Plex maintains its
vintage-amp character and responsive dynamic feel when run wide open, but with only two preamp gain stages, you can't expect modern high-gain preamp saturation. This is truly an amp for those who love classic tones, but want to
get them at more manageable, and tolerable, volume levels.

Instant Gratification
Who's it for?
Those seeking classic British-voiced tones with true class-A richness.

Kudos
Lusciously rich tones at bedroom volume levels. Surprisingly low hum and noise. Boutique quality at a reasonable price.

Concerns
None.

Price
$1,175 retail
$1,075 street

Contact
Fargen, (916) 971-4992; www.fargenamps.com

More About...

2005-12-26T08:31:00.000-08:00

So...what else do I do / have I done to get to this maniacally crazy point in life?
I had a PA service company - we did live gigs, I did most monitor mixing and stage management.
Hmmm... when that folded I kept part of the equipment and used it to record with my old group and then converted it into my own project studio.
This is now somewhat at a standstill because of the logistical problems I'm encountering in finding good space to house all the goodies.
Anyway my setup consists of: RAMSA Panasonic DA7 mixer, KS digital monitors, Lexicon and Alesis outboard, assorted noisemakers such as the Waldorf X-pole, the Sherman Filterbank, a Moog parametric EQ, Alesis ADAT machines, masterlink CD burner, Tascam DA20 DAT machine, some interesting synthesizers (Waldorf Microwave I, Korg MS2000, Quasimidi Polymorph, Korg wavetable synth) plus all the assorted patchbays and younameits.
I'm also running an Apple G4 DP with Logic and Pluggo plugins (ahhh...Radiohead!).
My next purchases would love to be a PCM91 reverb machine, an Empirical Labs Distressor and a FATSO, too.
I wouldn't mind getting my hand on a couple of good Neumann microphones and some nice preamps (Millennia, Grace, API).
But that is still far away... byck with my feet on the ground.

As far as my roster of guitars is concerned I own and have owned several Gibson, Fender, Hamer, Nik Huber, Bacchus, Ibanez, Schecter, BC Rich... As far as amps are concerned I've got a Carr Rambler, a Fender Twin and a Rivera M60 combo. In the past I've been the proud owner of a Mesa Boogie Mark IV and of a 60s Ampeg Gemini.

More pics soon...

! ! H E L L O ! !

2005-12-25T07:24:00.000-08:00

Who needs another guitar-related blog, fer chrissie's sakes??
I do.
I'm a showoff - what can I do?
AND
I have a tone of guitars that I like to show off, I have a ton of guitar related links that I'd like to share, I trade and deal in guitars and pickups, so at the end of the day it makes perfect sense, see?
The headstock pictured above belongs to one of my purty ones, built by an italian luthier called Fabio Molinelli.
Very much in the vein of a Fender master-built, custom-shop, relic job it sports an ash body, maple neck and ebony fretboard. Hard, huh? Well, it was built to show off Harry Häussel's handmade Joe Barden replicas (awesome awesome puppies).
Here's another pic for ya: