Uusin juttu löytyy TÄSTÄ.
Lyhytskaalaisia Fendereitä ja Squier Sonic Mustang SS -mallin testi – nyt Rockway-blogissa
Review: Four LP Standard Style Guitars
Alkuperäinen, laajempi suomenkielinen juttu on luettavissa TÄÄLTÄ.
Thanks to technological progress and cheap Asian labour, you can already get a very decent Les Paul Standard copy these days for somewhere between 500 and 700 euros.
Here are four of those guitars presented in alphabetical order. I tried to obtain one of the new Epiphone-models from their Finnish distributor for this round-up, but to no avail.
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GrassRoots G-LP-60S Honey Sunburst
• Current price in Finland: 559, – (incl. gig bag)
• Distributor: Musamaailma
GrassRoots is a brand in the ESP Guitars family, and concentrates on traditional electric guitars and basses. Even though the LP-60S is the least expensive guitar in this round-up, it comes in its own, high-quality gig bag. The finish on our review sample is called Honey Sunburst.
The G-LP-60S’ body is made from four side-by-side pieces of mahogany, with a top crafted from maple. The flame maple veneer on the curved top looks gorgeous.
The set mahogany neck is one piece of mahogany (!), except for the top half of the headstock. The bound fretboard has been made from beautiful pau ferro, while the LP-60S’ top nut is genuine bovine bone. The fretwork looks very decent.
The machine heads are nice copies of vintage Kluson tuners. The GrassRoots’ bridge is a modernised version of a Tune-o-matic, sporting six separate small metal clips to keep the bridge saddles in place.
The LP-60S’ pickups are GrassRoots’ own GH-1G humbuckers with metal covers. Looking beneath the electronics cavity covers, we found a closed three-way toggle switch, as well as four small pots and very clean soldering.
The first thing I noticed when I picked up the GrassRoots guitar is how light it is. I don’t know if GrassRoots uses any type of weight relief on the LP-60S, but the review sample’s weight clocks in at only 3.3 kgs.
The neck profile is a very ”fast” version of Gibson’s famous 60s neck, meaning a nicely rounded, but relatively slim C-shape. Musamaailma’s in-house guitar technician has expertly set up the review guitar, resulting in a buzz-free action of only 1.6 mm (bass-E) and 1.5 mm (treble-e).
I’d describe the GrassRoots humbuckers as vintage-powered, meaning they give a lot of scope for dynamics and a nice, rounded top end response. The neck ’bucker is flutey, while the bridge pickup offers ample kick and mid-range push. The GrassRoots G-LP-60S is a versatile LP Standard style guitar, which sounds great, offers a comfortably slender neck profile, and which doesn’t weigh a tonne.
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Green LP STD Lemon Drop
• Current price in Finland: 498, –
• Distributor: Nordsound
Green Guitars is a Swedish brand with Far Eastern production to keep the prices musician-friendly. Green’s LP STD model comes in a fetching Lemon Drop finish, as well as sporting a few features that differ from standard vintage-fare.
The Green’s body uses three pieces of very lively mahogany. The arched maple top has been spruced up with a tiger striped flame maple veneer. Green’s LP STD sports a deeper cutaway than its famous forebear, resulting in a more pointed horn.
The set-in neck is carved out of three side-by-side strips of mahogany, which – in all probability – should add a little stiffness to the neck. The neck wrist is protected from headstock breaks by a volute.
The Green features a set of modern tuning machines, as well as an up-to-date version of the Tune-o-matic bridge.
The bound rosewood fretboard comes with 22 well-installed medium-size frets. The nut is made from a cream coloured plastic.
Green’s LP STAD model sports a pair of open, zebra-coloured humbuckers. The electronics comprise a closed three-way toggle, as well as four small diameter pots. The soldering looks nice and clean.
Green’s neck profile is a smidgen bigger than that of the GrassRoots – I’d say the profile is somewhere halfway between a ’59 and a ’60 Gibson. The set-up on our test sample was very good, with the action clocking in at 1.7 mm (bass-E) and 1.5 mm (treble-e), without any fret buzz.
I’d describe the Green’s humbuckers as ”hot vintage”. This guitar has a big sound with a nice, fresh dose of treble. If you’re into Slash, this is the guitar I’d try out first.
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Tokai Guitars ALS-62 Honey Burst
• Current price in Finland: 659, –
• Distributor: Tokai Guitars Nordic/Musamaailma
Tokai Guitars must be the most famous ”copy brand” in the world, whose instruments caused Fender and Gibson to do something about their sagging quality control back in the 1980s.
In addition to their top-of-the-line Japanese LS-models, Tokai also offers more affordable Chinese versions under the ALS-banner. The flame maple veneer – finished in a fetching Honey Burst – looks stunning, deep and chatoyant.
The Tokai ALS-62’s body uses four pieces of mahogany and a veneered arched maple top. In this series Tokai uses hard rock maple for their guitar necks – in this case we’re talking about a three-piece affair of neck, headstock, and neck heel.
Tokai uses jatoba as the material for its bound fretboard. We find 22 expertly-finished, medium-sized frets, as well as a genuine bone nut. The bridge is a fine version of the vintage Tune-o-matic, with a single metal bracket keeping the saddles in place. The bridge and stopbar ferrules have been sunk into the top wood for a very clean look.
The Tokai ALS-62 sports a pair of covered LSC-F-humbuckers. The electronics comprise a closed three-way toggle switch, plus four small pots. The soldering is very clean.
Tokai’s neck profile is my personal favourite, I must confess. It’s a rounded, not-too-fat 1959-style neck profile, offering your fretting had a good amount of ”meat” without too much bulk. The action is buzz-free, while being comfortably low at 1.6 mm (bass-E) and 1.4 mm (treble-e).
The Tokai ALS-62 sounds like ”the real thing”, leaving nothing to be desired. The neck pickup is creamy and flutey, while the bridge unit adds the right amount of grit to proceedings. The Tommi’s output is vintage-to-medium. This is a gorgeous guitar with a versatile sound to boot.
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Vintage V100PGM Lemon Drop
• Current price in Finland: 576, –
• Distributor: Nordsound
Vintage Brand’s V100PGM Lemon Drop is an ”unofficial” signature guitar, offering you an affordable shot at the legendary LP played by three legends in a row – Peter Green, Gary Moore, and Kirk Hammett. The original guitar’s burst has long faded into an ”unburst” lemon drop shade, which is why the Vintage V100PGM Lemon Drop was first only available in that shade. Our test sample, on the other had, is Vintage’s view of what the guitar must have looked like brand new. So, here we have a beautiful cherry sunburst-coloured guitar, that is called ”Lemon Burst”, go figure.
Trev Wilkinson, who has designed this guitar for Vintage Brand, has added a few nifty updates to prevent the V100PGM from being a straight copy instrument:
The V100PGM’s mahogany body (three pieces) has a rounder bass-side shoulder and a much deeper cutaway that Gibson’s original. The top’s flame maple veneer sports extremely pretty and deep figuring.
The guitar’s neck – crafted from three side-by-side pieces of mahogany – is glued into the body by means of an asymmetrical neck joint, making excursions to the dusty end more comfortable.
The Vintage’s fingerboard is made from a trademarked material, called ”Lignum Rosa”, which translates from Latin as ”wood of the rose”. I can’t tell you what it actually is, but it looks and feels great, and it is home to 22 medium-sized, well-dressed frets. The top nut is Graph Tech’s NuBone material, which is a man-made alternative to ivory.
Surprisingly, the V100PGM comes with a set of Grover Deluxe vintage-type machine heads, instead of the Wilkinsons I’d have expected. The bridge on this Vintage is a Wilkinson-version of a modern Tune-o-matic.
The V100PGM comes with a pair of Wilkinson WVC-humbuckers. Like on the original, the neck unit has been installed ”upside down”, meaning with the adjustable pole screws facing the bridge, and with the wires hooked up in reverse, too. Gary Moore swapped the bridge pickup’s controls from the original bell-type to the early-Sixties ”reflectors”, because he wanted to be able to find the correct control without having to look at the guitar. This has been copied on the Vintage as well.
The V100PGM uses a closed three-way toggle switch and four small diameter pots. The soldering looks very decent.
The Vintage V100PGM comes with a slightly flatter version of a Gibson 60s C-neck, so we’re talking about a very ”fast” neck feel. The review guitars comfortable set-up gives you plenty of acoustic dynamic range at 1.9 mm (bass-E) and 1.7 mm (treble-e).
Thanks to their moderate output the Wilkinson-humbuckers offer plenty of dynamics and openness, with a nice, bell-like treble response. The neck pickup is warm, while the bridge unit sounds brighter.
On the Vintage V100PGM the three-way switch’s middle position opens the door to a wide spectrum of different tones, which differ from the usual LP middle-position sounds. With both volume controls turned up fully, you get a very wiry and bright sound, due to the out-of-phase pickups. Turning one of the volume controls down by a little, gradually adds bottom end and mid-range width. Depending on which volume knob is turned down, the resulting sounds will differ somewhat. Experimentation is allowed and will be rewarded with many different shadings. I think it’s fantastic that Vintage Brand offers somethign a bit out of the ordinary at this affordable price point.
Kalamazoo KG-2 – kun Gibson teki kuitulevystä kitaran
Vuonna 1965 Gibson Guitars etsi tapaa, jolla se voisi tehdä vielä Melody Makeria edullisempaa kitaraa aloittelijoille. Yhdellä mikrofonilla varustettu Gibson Melody Maker maksoi vuonna 1961 109,50 dollaria, mikä vastasi silloin noin tuhannen euron nykyistä ostovoimaa.
Rock’n’Roll -buumin ansiosta Yhdysvaltoihin tuotiin silloin runsaasti halpoja japanilaisia kitaroita.
Firman pomot päättivät kopioida Fenderiä, mutta ruuvikaulaisen sähkökitaramallin runkomateriaaliksi valittiin MDF-kuitulevyä kokopuun sijaan.
Koska Gibsonilla pelättiin, että uudet halpakitarat voisivat himmentää oman brändin loistoa, herätettiin 1930-luvun Kalamazoo-brändi uudelleen henkiin. Vuodesta 1933 vuoteen 1942 Kalamazoo-soittimet olivat edullisempia versioita Gibsonin akustisista kitaroista, mandoliineista ja banjoista. Näiden soittimien peruslaatu oli samankaltainen kuin Gibson-soittimissa, mutta Kalamazoot olivat kosmeettisesti vaatimattomampia, ja soittimissa ei myöskään ollut säädettävä kaularauta.
Koska uudet Kalamazoo-sähkikset olivat suunnattuja aloittelijoille, Gibson meni ja kopioi lähes yksi yhteen Fender ”oppilassoittimien” – Musicmaster, Duo-Sonic, sekä Mustang – ulkonäköä.
Uudet Kalamazoot saatiin neljänä mallina:
Kalamazoo KG-1 (yksi mikrofoni), KG-1A (yksi mikrofoni ja yksinkertainen vibrato), KG-2 (kaksi mikkiä), sekä KG-2A (kaksi mikkiä ja yksinkertainen vibrato). Värivaihtoehtoja oli tasan kolme – valkoinen, sininen ja punainen.
Vaikka Fender ei tietääkseni reagoinut tähän kopiointiin, muutettiin kuitenkin vuonna 1967 kaikkien neljä mallien rungot Gibson SG:n kaltaiseksi.
Vuoden 1969 lopussa Gibson kuitenkin lopetti koko Kalamazoo-brändin (ja myös Epiphonen US-tuotannon), koska oli päätetty teettää tästä eteenpäin edullisia soittimia Japanissa Epiphone-brändin alla.
Vuoden 1968 Kalamazoo-ilmoitus.
Tulossa Rockway-blogiin: Squier Sonic Mustang SS
• Guitar used – Squier Sonic Mustang SS
• Amps used – Bluetone Black Prince Reverb (all guitar parts, except the distorted chords in the chorus), Vox Pathfinder 10 (distorted chords in the chorus)
• Mic used – Shure SM7B
Neljä LP Standard -tyylistä kitaraa – nyt Rockway-blogissa
Voit lukea testin TÄÄLLÄ.
Tulossa Rockway-blogiin: Neljä LP Standard -tyylistä kitaraa
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The demoed guitars are:
• GrassRoots G-LP-60S
• Green Guitars LP Standard Lemon Drop
• Tokai Guitars ALS-62
• Vintage ReIssued Series V100PGM
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• Effects used: Dunlop CryBaby Mini, Ibanez Fuzz 850 Mini, Mad Professor Simble OD, Joyo Analog Chorus, EHX Memory Toy, EHX Germanium 4 Big Muff Pi
• Amp used: Bluetone Black Prince Reverb
• Mic used: Shure SM7B
• Preamp used: Cranborne Audio Camden EC2
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Tulossa Rockway-blogiin: Voiko saksalaisfirmojen omissa brändeissä edes puhua laadusta?
• Efektejä: Joyo Analog Chorus, Mad Professor Simble OD, EHX Nano Big Muff Pi, Jim Dunlop CryBaby Mini
• Vahvistin: Bluetone Black Prince Reverb
• Äänityskalusto: Shure SM57 ja Universal Audio Volt 2
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• Vahvistimet: Bluetone Shadows Jr & Juketone True Blood
• Efektipedaaleja ei käytetty
• Äänityskalusto: Shure SM57 ja Universal Audio Volt 2
Testipenkissä: LTD Phoenix Arctic Metal, Phoenix-1000 Vintage White & Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry
LTD Guitarsin Phoenix-sarja on ollut olemassa jo yli kymmenen vuotta, mutta firma on hiljattain päivittänyt näiden Firebird-tyylisten soittimien ilmettä ja myös useat detaljiratkaisut, minkä ansiosta uudistunut mallisto on mielestäni jopa houkuttelevampi kuin ennen.
Viime kahden vuoden aikana LTD on myös lisännyt uusi vaihtoehtoja Phoenix-mallistoonsa. Oli siis korkea aika tutustua näihin kitaroihin perusteellisemmin.
LTD Phoenix-1000 Vintage White (hinta: 1.082 €) on testissä käyneen trion eniten ”perinteinen” malli, johon on asennettu kaksi passiivista Seymour Duncan -mikrofonia.
LTD:n Phoenix Arctic Metal (hinta: 1.099 €) kuuluu brändin suoraviivaiseen Arctic Metal -sähkökitaramallistoon ja sen kohderyhmä ovat metalligenren soittajat. Kitarasta löytyy aktiivinen EMG-tallahumbucker.
LTD Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry -kitara (hinta: 1.320 €) tarjoaa Fishmanin uusia aktiivisia Fluence-mikrofoneja Phoenix-sarjan soittimessa.
Näissä kolmessa soittimissa on monta yhteistä ominaisuutta:
Phoenix-sarjalaiset on rakennettu kaula-läpi-rungon-periatteella. Se tarkoittaa, että kitaran kaula ja rungon kohotettu keskiosa koostuu kolmesta vierekkäisistä mahonkipalasta, jotka jatkuvat koko matkan lavan kärjeltä hihnatappiin saakka. Kaksi hieman ohuempaa siivekettä on lisätty keskiosan molempiin puoliin rungoksi. Kumpikin siiveke koostu kahdesta tai kolmesta vierekkäisestä mahonkipalasta, mikä pitää tuotantokustannukset maltillisina.
Yksi selvä ero Gibson Firebird -malliin nähden on, että LTD Phoenix -kitaroiden rungon takaosaa on jätetty täysin tasainksi, ilman etupuolen keskiosan pykälää, mikä tekee Phoenixeistä mukavamman soittaa. Kitaroiden viiste kylkiluille on asianmukaisen syvä, ja rungon etupuolelta löytyy jopa sulava mukavuusviiste käsivarrelle.
Kaikissa LTD Phoenix -malleissa on ”vasenkätinen” viritinlapa, sekä kitkaa vähenevä yläsatula.
Kitaran otelaudat on veistetty eebenpuusta – Arctic Metalin tapauksessa otelaudassa ei ole otemerkkejä, paitsi sen sivuun upotetut ja pimeydessä hohtavat isot pisteet, kun taas kummassakin Phoenix-1000-kitarassa löytyy ESP/LTD:n tyylikkäitä lippu-upotuksia, sekä reunalistoitus.
Kitaroiden 22 jumbokokoista nauhaa ovat ruostamatonta terästä (!), mikä on tässä hintaluokassa hyvin harvinainen herkku. Mensuurin pituus on kaikissa Phoenix:eissä 25,5 tuumaa (64,8 cm).
LTD Phoenix -kitaroiden lukkovirittimet vaikuttavat hyvin laadukkailta.
TonePros:n valmistama tune-o-matic-tallan ja stoptail-palkin parivaljakko on lukittavaa sorttia.
Kaikissa kolmessa Phoenix-malleissa on mukana nostokytkin lisäsoundeja varten. Voit lukea seuraavassa osiossa, mikä nostokytkin tekee testissä olevissa soittimissa.
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Phoenix-1000 Vintage White on kolmikon kevyin soitin, mutta erot testikitaroiden välillä ovat pieniä.
Passiivimikityksen ansiosta Vintage White -mallia voisi kutsua Phoenix-sarjan eniten perinnehenkiseksi soittimeksi.
Kaulamikrofoniksi on valittu Seymour Duncanin Phat Cat, joka on P-90-kaltainen ”paksu” yksikelainen humbuckerkoossa. Tallamikrofoni on Duncanin Custom-malli, joka on PAF-henkinen soundiltaan, mutta hieman ”kuumempi” tapaus. Tone-säätimen nostokytkin puolittaa nostetussa asennossa tallamikkiä yksikelaiseksi, minkä ansiosta kitarasta lähtee peräti viisi erittäin käyttökelpoista soundia.
Meidän kitaristien keskuudelta löytyy yhä henkilöitä, jotka väittää että aktiivimikit kuulostavat tylsiltä ja elottomilta. Aktiivimikeiltä kuulema puuttuu kunnon karakteeri.
Haluaisin kysyä heiltä onko kukaan heistä tutustunut edes yhtään niistä inspiroivista aktiivimikkeistä jotka tulivat markkinoille viimeisen 20 vuoden aikana?
Vaikka Phoenix Arctic Metal -kitaran kohderyhmä löytyy varmaan hevimuusiikin ystävien keskuudelta, olen aivan varma, että EMG 81TW -aktiivimikki voisi olla erittäin toimiva ratkaisu monessa eri genreissä.
EMG:n malli 81TW on nerokas uusi sisarmalli firman Model 81 -klassikkomikrofonista, ja se tarjoaa nyt kaksi autenttista soundivaihtoehtoa. EMG 81TW on kolmikelainen (!) aktiivimikki, josta saa sekä kunnon humbuckersoundi että aidon yksikelaisen ääni, silloin kun nostokytkin on ylhäällä. Parasta tässä on, että yksikelaismoodissa yksi humbuckerin keloista toimii fantomikelana, minkä ansiosta myös EMG 81TW:n singlecoil-soundi on täysin hurinaton!
LTD:n Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry on kolmikon painavin soitin, vaikka erot testikitaroiden välillä ovat pieniä.
Black Cherry -mallin tärkein ominaisuus on aktiivinen Fishman Fluence -mikkivarustus. Fishmanin Fluence-sarjassa on yhdistetty aktiivimikrofonien perinteiset hyvät puolet – matala impedanssi, suurempi dynamiikka, sekä (usein) korkeampi lähtötaso – firman akustisista etuvahvistimista aktiivimikkeihin siirettyyn hurinapoistoon ja soundimallinnukseen.
Tämä tarkoittaa LTD Phoenix-1000:n tapauksessa, että kitarasta saa peräti kuusi eri humbuckersoundia:
Kun tone-säätimen nostokytkin on ylhäällä mikit toimivat Classic-moodissa, jossa saa ”passiivisoundeja – alnico kaulamikki, molemmat yhdessä tai keraaminen tallamikki yksin.
Silloin kun nostokytkin on alhaalla mikrofonit toimivat Modern-moodissa, jolloin voi valita ”aktiivimikki” soundeista.
Kuulen jo narinan: ”Mikä uutta tässä on? Aktiivi-/passiivikytkimet on jo niin nähty!” Totta, mutta:
Fishman Fluence -mikrofonien kytkin kytkee ainoastaan eri mikkisoundien välillä, teknisesti Fluence-mikit pysyvät molemmissa moodeissa aktiivisena. Tämä tarkoittaa, että myös ”passivisoundeissa” voi hyödyntää aktiivimikityksen etuja – mikkien impedanssi ei muutu moodien välillä. Vain peruskarakteeri muuttuu keskialuevoittoisesta ”passiivisoundista” aktiivi-moodin tarjoamaan isompaan bassoon ja avoimempaan diskanttiin.
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Soitettavuuden ja ergonomian suhteen kaikki kolme Phoenix-kitarat lähtevät samalta viivalta. Kaulaprofiili tuntuu erittäin mukavalta, olessaan toimiva ristisiitos 1950-luvun Gibson-pyöreyttä ja 1960-luvun Fender-vaivattomuutta. Rosterinauhat tuntuvat eritäin sulavilta ja nopeilta, ja Phoenix-mallien suhteellisen tasainen otelautaradius (13,8 tuumaa/350 mm) edesauttaa kielten bendauksia.
Henkilökohtainen suosikkini tästä triosta on varmaan LTD Phoenix Arctic White -malli, koska tykkään siitä virtaviivaisuudesta ja suoraviivaisuudesta, jonka yhdellä mikillä varustetut sähkökitarat tarjoavat. Jos tarvitset lajemman soundivalikoiman musiikkityyli ratkaisee luultavasti – jos pysyt enemmän särösoundien puolella LTD Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry on hyvin luonteva valinta, kun taas erittäin hyvien clean-soundien ystävät kallistuvat kenties enemmän LTD Phoenix-1000 Vintage White:n suuntaan.
Kaikki kolme LTD-kitarat ovat joka tapauksessa erinomaisia pro-luokan laatukitaroita. Kokeileminen varmasti kannattaa!
Review: LTD Phoenix Arctic Metal, Phoenix-1000 Vintage White & Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry
LTD Guitars’ Phoenix Series has been around for over a decade now, but recently the company has given this Firebird-inspired guitar range a cosmetic and electronic overhaul that – at least in my opinion – makes the instruments even more attractive.
Over the past couple of years LTD has also diversified the model range, prompting us at Kitarablogi.com to take a closer look at the current crop of Phoenixes.
The LTD Phoenix-1000 Vintage White (current price in Finland: 1,082 €) is the most ”traditional” of the trio of models on review in this article, sporting a pair of passive Seymour Duncan pickups.
LTD’s Phoenix Arctic Metal (current price in Finland: 1,099 €) is part of the company’s stripped-down Arctic Metal range of guitars aimed at Metal guitarists. It comes with a single active EMG pickup.
The LTD Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry (current price in Finland: 1,320 €) introduces Fishman’s new active Fluence humbuckers to the Phoenix Series.
All three models share many features between themselves:
The Phoenix Series instruments are neck-through guitars, built around a neck and central body core made of three long strips of mahogany going from the tip of the headstock all the way down to the end of the body. Two slightly thinner wings are then added on either side of the through-neck as the guitar’s body. The body wings have been glued from two to three side-by-side blocks of mahogany for each wing to keep down production costs and to make more economical use of the available timber.
In contrast to a Gibson Firebird an LTD Phoenix has a level back without the stepped neck core, which makes the LTDs much more comfortable to carry and play. The Phoenix models also have a deeper ribcage contour on the back of the body, as well as a nice smooth forearm chamfer on its front.
The LTD Phoenixes feature reverse headstocks and friction-reducing nuts.
All models come with Macassar ebony fingerboards – in the Arctic Metal’s case the ’board has been left unadorned, except for its special glow-in-the-dark side dots, while both Phoenix-1000 versions sport ESP/LTD’s stylish flag inlays and binding.
The 22 jumbo-size frets are made from stainless steel, which is still a rather deluxe feature in this price range. The scale length on all Phoenix guitars is 25.5 inches/64.8 cm.
All LTD Phoenix models come with a very smooth set of locking machine heads.
The tune-o-matic bridge and tailpiece combination are locking units made by TonePros.
All three Phoenix models come equipped with a push/pull-switch for additional sounds, read about the details in the section below.
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The Phoenix-1000 Vintage White is the lightest of the tested trio by a small margin.
Thanks to its passive pickups the Vintage White could be described as the Phoenix Series’ most traditional guitar.
The neck pickup is a Seymour Duncan Phat Cat, which is a humbucker-sized P-90 singlecoil. The Duncan Custom in the bridge position is a slightly hotter version of a typical PAF-style humbucker. The tone control’s push/pull-switch lets you choose between the full humbucker for full power and the split humbucker for faux singlecoil tones. This gives you five different tonal variations that cover a surprisingly wide amount of musical ground.
There are still quite of lot of incorrigible doubters, who never cease to claim that active pickups sound dull and lifeless, without any real character.
C’mon guys, have you ever really tried any of the plethora of inspiring active pickups that have come out over the past two decades?
Even though the Phoenix Arctic Metal is aimed squarely at the players preferring heavier genres of music, I’m sure the active EMG 81TW will go a long way in winning over guitarists from many different styles.
The EMG 81TW is an ingenious new version of the company’s classic Model 81 humbucker that offers two authentic-sounding variants in one pickup. The EMG 81TW is a three-coil design giving you the full humbucker tone, as well as a genuine singlecoil (not a split humbucker) sound when you pull the volume pot’s push/pull-switch up. By using one of the humbucker coils as a phantom coil during singlecoil use, the Model 81TW manages to give you noiseless singlecoil action!
The LTD Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry is the heaviest guitar in this round-up by a small margin.
The special feature of the Black Cherry model is the pair of active Fishman Fluence humbuckers. Fishman’s Fluence pickups bring together the traditional advantages of active pickups – low impedance, larger dynamics, (often) higher output – with hum-reduction and microphone/pickup modelling technology transferred from the company’s preamps for acoustic instruments.
In the LTD Phoenix-1000’s case this means you get six different basic tonalities:
With the tone control’s switch in the ”up” position you get classic (read: passive) alnico neck humbucker, classic ceramic bridge humbucker, and both classic ’buckers on in the toggle switch’s middle position.
With the push/pull-switch in ”down” you get modern (read: active) counterparts of the sounds mentioned above.
Now you might ask: ”What’s the buzz? We’ve seen active/passive switching before!” And right you are – but this isn’t what’s happening with the Fishman Fluence humbuckers. The Fluence pickups stay active all the time, which means that the ”passive” tones are delivered with the same advantages active pickups offer. And there’s no drop in the nominal output levels between the classic and modern modes, only the basic tonality changes from a chunkier mid-range in classic mode to more bottom end punch and treble bite in modern mode.
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In terms of playability and handling there’s virtually nothing to divide this trio of LTD Phoenixes. They all come with a great-feeling neck that’s somewhere between a chunky late-Fifties Gibson neck profile and an early-Sixties Fender neck. The stainless steel frets offer a super-smooth playing surface, and the Phoenixes’ flat 13.8″/350 mm fingerboard radius couldn’t be any more eager to please during string bending.
My personal favourite of these three instruments would be the LTD Phoenix Arctic White, because I simply love the no-nonsense, no-compromise attitude of single pickup guitars. If you need a wider variety of tonal options your choice would depend on whether you are more of an out-and-out Rock and Metal player (LTD Phoenix-1000 See-Thru Black Cherry), or whether clean and only slightly overdriven sounds are also a vital part of your tonal arsenal (LTD Phoenix-1000 Vintage White).
In any case, all three guitars are fantastic players and quality instruments that will never leave you feel wanting. Try one now!
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