diablo175

I was a huge King Diamond fan- I'd take Them and Conspiracy as my faves. Stellar guitar work in those 2. + 1 on War of Words and Vulgar Display Damn, they were heavy! And just amazing leads in War of Words. Brian Tilce, I think was one of the guitarists in Fight. How about Helloween? Very good Euro-metal from some shredders in Germany. Better than Scorps and Accept IMO.

Zebra IS a stretch but they were very talented. I'd add Countdown to Extinction as two of the best offerings from Marty Friedman-era Megadeth. Also would add Judas Priests Unleashed in the East as good sample of live Sturm und Drang, lock-step tight timing and classic, soaring and growling Halford vocals. And lastly you can hardly ignore Iron Maiden for late 70's 'til present metal offerings. My fave is Powerslave.

Absolutely a fan of 2112. I really dug the concept/prog-rock vibe of 2112 which was a departure from the bluesy muscle of songs like Working Man and a bit more complex than the radio friendly vibe of Fly By Night.

I hate to see that beauty go to E(vil) Bay. I'll see if I can somehow scrape up some cash. I'll pm you soon.

If I weren't so hugely broke at the moment...

+1 As a public school teacher and the faculty advisor for the guitar club, I wanna help. Count me in!

+1! I've owned only two stock Cali Elites, one had OBL's and the other SD Parallel Axis. Gotta say the SD's, to my ear, are far superior. Much more punchy with clearer highs and less sludge. Haven't worked up the cash or the nerve to mod a perfectly good USA Cali- though I do have a MIK Cali that has some awesome after-market SD's and an OFR...

Good luck finding a flame Cali for $1,400 anywhere... Already got one. Just not as flamed as the Emerald one

It's been stated already but I doubt anyone's engine is even gonna have starter key brought out given that price. Sheesh! If he drops it a by about 500- 600 clams I'll throw my hat in the ring!

...talented, reliable singer for the band.

Ouch. I hope not. I've posted classifieds for singers on CL at LEAST 8 or 9 times in the last 6 months. Granted, some of the gems we've auditioned should have posted a classified similar to that one.

ROTFLMAO!

Peter, PM me please! Tried 3 times to email you and PM you- no dice.

I heard it on an archaic Mac G4 with one lousy factory speaker. Didn't notice the panning.

Happy B-day, man! Don't know you but you must live somewhere near the northeastern part of the right coast- The Philly suburb I live in got 24+ inches of snow this weekend. How much did you get in your area? BONUS! They're forecasting 6- 12 inches more Tuesday night into Weds.

Implying what? I'm inclined to overlook that fact in light of it's a music video, not a live performance caught on vid. Does anyone have any doubt that those two played every single note of that song? I've seen Vai live 4 or 5 times and I know he's certainly capable of those notes and then some.

If it was a guy, viewers would think it was just Vai on a splitscreen. It's hard enough to tell Ori and him apart as it is. -Austin What? Are all them white people starting to look alike? I think she's got a very prominent nose...ala Christy Hynde. At least that's who I thought of when I first saw Ori playing. By the way, does Vai's tone sound particularly thin when listening to his parts against her parts? Or is it just me. (He ducks) Yeah, though it pains me to say it. Her PRS was definitely fuller sounding.

Holy sh*t. That was inspiring!! Gawddammmmm! Doesn't get too much better than that- one of my favorite all-time guitar players and arguably one of the hottest and most talented chick guitarists ever, jamming together. And the tune was pretty cool.

Yup. Tried to PM him but keep getting some error notice. And then I read his entire post which gave an email to contact him at...D'OH!

Yup. Tried to PM him but keep getting some error notice.

Was drooling all over the images of the Standard Custom Natural that BCR Greg has up and I realized I've been GAS-ing a Standard for a long time. BUT...I'm a certified trem junkie and I gotsta have a Floyd or Kahler on it. Prefer Floyd, routed, set to float but will settle for flush mounted FR or a Kahler. Would REALLY love a burst or black finish though the natural was looking VERY sweet.

Save for my acoustic and an old Peavey bass, every one of my axes has a Floyd or Floyd derivative (Edge, Schaller) Contrary to Shredmeister, I DO use the bar- alot- either for subtle coloring of the pitch or for flat out, extreme dive bombs, wide vibrato, wicked pull ups, trills, and a whole host of wacky and weird effects. I'm not Vai, Stevens or Van Halen but the bar is integral to my style and Jacksons, with the right locking trem, stands pretty much neck and neck with my beloved Hamer Diablo for that style of playing. If that body was routed and the Floyd set to float, I'd take it in a heartbeat- tree-fiddy? Seriously, I'd snag that save for the flat mount trem.... Freakin' beautiful.

Indeed. I really wish I could figure out a way to get along with Floyds. I wish I could figure out how to get along without Floyds... I'd save a bunch if/when I purchased a new or custom ax.

Oh HELL yeah, another fan of the 80's! Thank you for reminding me that I'm not alone out here! I have owned numerous Jacksons over the years- couldn't afford the really good stuff until the last 10 years, had to settle for the (then) cheaper Japanese made stuff. Had a black Model 3, a purple Kelly Pro Standard, a faux stone-finish Randy Rhoads Pro Standard, a BEE-U-TEE-FULL San Dimas Dinky Strat in yellow desert crackle (MY god, why did I trade that for a Washburn N4???) and now I'm down to a black Charvel Star- OFR SD JB/'59, a 90's black Kelly Pro Standard that I've pimped out- OFR, reverse headstock replacement neck w/sharkies, Seymour Duncan Dimebucker bridge, a Bill Lawrence L500 in the neck and Dimarzio K500 pot. Just pimped out a Randy Rhoads Ex not too long ago- I stripped it, gutted it and painted it. Then I added an OFR, Seymour Duncan Blackouts (active), swapped the blade style 3 pos. selector for a toggle 3 way switch, and Schaller strap locks. Here's the body after I painted it. http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk148/v...50/DSCF0756.jpg

I was told (7-8 years ago) that there was no way to get boomers done - they were over, and we'd never see them again. I placed an order through Elduave in the Fall of '04, and requested boomers anyway...what could it hurt, right? It worked out, and now I've got a great custom bass with boomers that I was told a year or two before would never be possible. I think stuff like that will be open here and there for specific requests. What I think Hamer DOES NOT WANT TO DO, is get all the goofy requests for things they don't make, like a checkerboard 5-neck, a copy of Tipton's ugly mutant guitar, or something with a meat slicer and a kitchen sink and an LED array with an iPod interface. I think people looked at some of the crazier things that Hamer did in the 80s and thought that's the kind of stuff the company did on a regular basis. I don't think they want to become "that" place, and that they wish to focus on pushing their current designs forward. Think of it like this; Fender has a Custom Shop. Gibson has a Custom Shop. Paul Smith has his Private Stock program. These are all "Real" custom shops that build "real" custom guitars to a customer's specs. HOWEVER, none of them are going to make you a totally customer-spec guitar - they'll ALL use existing or available platforms. Want a Strat with a fish tank in it? Fender will do it if you pony up. Want a Les Paul with some NASCAR guy's face carved in it - they'll make it for you. Want a PRS Santana with Gold-rimmed fossilized Wooly Mammoth ivory "old" bird inlays? They'll do that if your wallet's fat enough. None of them will make you a 5 neck monstrosity or a model they no longer make or no longer have the capacity to do. It isn't worth it for any company to go through the R&D, mock up a prototype or two and then try to make a one-off guitar. My challenge still stands: Of all the people complaining that Hamer won't build them a Californian, call your dealer with a minimum of a $5,000 deposit in hand (fully prepared to pay a second $5k or more upon delivery), and see what your answer will be. Still no takers after 6 years! If Hamer wants to run their business as a custom shop then more power to 'em. The question then becomes can they thrive and grow as a boutique CO shop. Maybe they don't want to grow. But stats show that businesses that don't plan and work for growth go belly up eventually. I, for one, can't afford to, and am not inclined to support a custom shop that charges what they do for guitars. Not saying they're not worth every penny of it but I'll hold on to my 2 Cali's and Diablos and when I feel the urge to drop some bank on a bout of GAS, I'll look to some other manufacturer. Charvel is putting out some decent USA models...