tbonesullivan Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 I'm still going through my Jake E. Lee phase, and also my superstrat phase, so this should be no surprise. I have always wanted another SSH to replace the EBMM Luke III I had, or still have somewhere, but finding one that is set up so that the volumes aren't vastly different is hard. I remember @LucSulla saying that the pickup set was very balanced on his Jake E Lee in Lavender Pearl, and then I noticed that the Music Zoo in Long island (about 1.5 hours away) had one in stock that was "used excellent", so I went to check it out. The pickup set is slightly different on this guitar, being that the JB in the bridge has an Alnico II magnet instead of an A5, but the rest of the setup is the same. I'm not sure how the neck compares, but I like it, and it's got a nice shape. Now some may say "Dave, you hate guitars with gold hardware, so wtf?". Well the bridge and jack plate aren't gold, they are brass. The rest of the hardware is black, and the finish is just a beautiful color. Sure it's not translucent or sparkly, but this reminds me a lot of the old "blueburst" that EBMM used on some guitars in the late 80s, including the early Steve Morse guitars, before they switched to a translucent finish. It plays VERY well, I'm just on the fence about keeping the .009-.042 strings on it, or going to the .010-46 I usually use. The sound is great, and once I get the setup exactly where I want it, it's gonna be great. Now if only the weather had been great. Holy crap people do not know how to drive in heavy rain / almost whiteout conditions. 18 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrjamiam Posted March 23 Share Posted March 23 L'enfer, c'est les autres. Congrats and enjoy that blue boy! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbonesullivan Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 7 hours ago, mrjamiam said: L'enfer, c'est les autres. Congrats and enjoy that blue boy! I am so far! The neck is probably about the size of a Diablo neck or a bit smaller, so it's a bit narrower than some, also narrower than the So-Cal USA and Pro-Mod Jake E Lee guitars. I'll have to compare it to some other guitars. It's not like wizard thin, but I think it's about 2mm narrower at the nut than a wizard. We'll see how it works out in the long run once I get it really set up the way I like it. Now the big question: stick with the .009s on it, or go to the .010s I usually use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disturber Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 13 hours ago, tbonesullivan said: The pickup set is slightly different on this guitar, being that the JB in the bridge has an Alnico II magnet instead of an A5, but the rest of the setup is the same. That makes it a Warren De Martini pickup. JB with an A2. They sound great. Prefer them to the A5 version many times. 5 hours ago, tbonesullivan said: Now the big question: stick with the .009s on it, or go to the .010s I usually use. You can go with .0095's. It is what I started using one and a half years ago. I really like that gauge. A little bit of both worlds. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travis Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 LOVE it! Congrats! Jake is a killer player and I always liked his signature guitars. The blue is the way to go, tho. Much cooler than the white with pickguard. The blue just looks “cleaner”… And I vote for the .10’s. 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbonesullivan Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 (edited) 5 hours ago, Disturber said: That makes it a Warren De Martini pickup. JB with an A2. They sound great. Prefer them to the A5 version many times. You can go with .0095's. It is what I started using one and a half years ago. I really like that gauge. A little bit of both worlds. I think that the blue burst and purple burst when they original came out in the late 1980s, so I don't know if it pre-dates that or not. But it is a nice pickup. I was looking at the string gauges that Jake used, and later I see 010, 014, 018, 028, 040, 052, which is like a 10 heavy bottom set, but I also see 009; .012; .017; .026; .036; and .048 from earlier. I've never tried the .0095s, but this may be the time to check them out. 2 hours ago, Travis said: LOVE it! Congrats! Jake is a killer player and I always liked his signature guitars. The blue is the way to go, tho. Much cooler than the white with pickguard. The blue just looks “cleaner”… And I vote for the .10’s. 😉 I hope the nut can take 10s... lately I've had a few guitars that came with 9-42 sets that couldn't take the lower strings without having the nut adjusted. Now, I was kinda torn between the OG Lee, which has a slightly wider neck, but one less fret. Both have the truss rod nut on the neck pocket end, so that's not a real difference. I could honestly see myself getting both. I really like how this pickup setup sounds. Edited March 24 by tbonesullivan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travis Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 2 hours ago, tbonesullivan said: I think that the blue burst and purple burst when they original came out in the late 1980s, so I don't know if it pre-dates that or not. But it is a nice pickup. I was looking at the string gauges that Jake used, and later I see 010, 014, 018, 028, 040, 052, which is like a 10 heavy bottom set, but I also see 009; .012; .017; .026; .036; and .048 from earlier. I've never tried the .0095s, but this may be the time to check them out. I hope the nut can take 10s... lately I've had a few guitars that came with 9-42 sets that couldn't take the lower strings without having the nut adjusted. Now, I was kinda torn between the OG Lee, which has a slightly wider neck, but one less fret. Both have the truss rod nut on the neck pocket end, so that's not a real difference. I could honestly see myself getting both. I really like how this pickup setup sounds. Hmm…. I didn’t know that about the difference in neck width. I might’ve seriously considered the white JEL, too. The 21 vs 22 fret deal doesn’t make a big difference to me. I’ve got guitars with 21, 22, & 24 frets and the number of times it’s been an issue is…. Well…. I’m still waiting for it to be an issue…. 😂 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbonesullivan Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 17 minutes ago, Travis said: Hmm…. I didn’t know that about the difference in neck width. I might’ve seriously considered the white JEL, too. The 21 vs 22 fret deal doesn’t make a big difference to me. I’ve got guitars with 21, 22, & 24 frets and the number of times it’s been an issue is…. Well…. I’m still waiting for it to be an issue…. 😂 Yeah... I love it even more when people are like "gasp", how can you play a guitar with ONLY 22 frets? How can you play a bass guitar with "only" 20 frets like a Jazz Bass? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottcald Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 On 3/24/2024 at 2:30 PM, tbonesullivan said: Yeah... I love it even more when people are like "gasp", how can you play a guitar with ONLY 22 frets? How can you play a bass guitar with "only" 20 frets like a Jazz Bass? Or better yet, Jimmy Page's doubleneck with TWO necks with only 20 frets! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biz Prof Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 Love that finish. The purpleburst was just as cool, even if it seems he played it less than the blueburst and Whitey. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonge Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 On 3/24/2024 at 2:30 PM, tbonesullivan said: Yeah... I love it even more when people are like "gasp", how can you play a guitar with ONLY 22 frets? How can you play a bass guitar with "only" 20 frets like a Jazz Bass? Wait a minute - you can play a bass above the twelfth fret? I though those high frets were just decorative. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottcald Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 6 hours ago, Biz Prof said: Love that finish. The purpleburst was just as cool, even if it seems he played it less than the blueburst and Whitey. I love both the blue and purple burst finishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbonesullivan Posted March 27 Author Share Posted March 27 (edited) 7 hours ago, Biz Prof said: Love that finish. The purpleburst was just as cool, even if it seems he played it less than the blueburst and Whitey. I can't even find past listings for a purple one coming up for sale. I found lots of old listings for the White and Blue versions. Also some for the ESP strat types from the 1990s. Now part of me is wondering how the pickup set works if the middle and neck aren't slanted. I also noticed that the ESP version has the pickup spacing slightly different from the Charvel. Edited March 27 by tbonesullivan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucSulla Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 I gig the crap out of mine. It's just a really well rounded, versatile guitar. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbonesullivan Posted March 28 Author Share Posted March 28 11 hours ago, LucSulla said: I gig the crap out of mine. It's just a really well rounded, versatile guitar. It really is! The only guitars I have that have the same level of versatility are an EBMM Steve Morse, and a Brian May guitar. My PRS CE24 with the coil tap comes kinda close, but yeah I find the Morse to really be great. IMHO there are not enough hardtail superstrats out there. Not everyone loves the whammy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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