Looks nice! On my screen it looks like ash or pine with a slightly pink translucent finish, not true white. What is it really?
The ENWorld Electric Bard Gear (Etc) Thread
- Thread starter Dannyalcatraz
- Start date
R_J_K75
Legend
You are correct the body is Pine I believe. But the neck is maple but its rather dark. Plays great, beside it needs a setup for some fine tuning. Yeah the color is nice too. A few tweaks and everything will be fine. Im of the mind a $500-$1000 guitar is better thsn a $3000 guitar. More value,,,
Depends on the guitar. I’ve got guitars ranging in price from $425-3500+. And believe me, I don’t intend to part with ANY of them anytime soon!
Are the pricier ones X times better? No. But some of them are unusual enough that, if you want those specs, you’re paying that price. A few are even custom.
But like you say, even a cheap guitar these days can be well made and thus, worth upgrading.
My first 2 electrics were a Dean Special Select EVO ($550 or so) and a Dean Time Capsule Cadillac ($3500), ordered simultaneously. The only thing wrong in terms of build quality/QC was that both had burrs on their bridges that were causing the high E string to snap- probably caused by a polishing machine needing some maintenance. A few bucks and the skill of a good guitar tech, and both were fine.
It’s been 20 or so years since that purchase, and I still own both guitars. I don’t play the EVO as much, mainly for the reason that the stock pickups sound very harsh. All I need to do is upgrade them, but I haven’t been able to decide what to use!
I know too many good options, and can’t quite narrow things down. Do I want a dedicated metal machine? An odd-looking jazzer? An alt rock hotrod? An unexpected twangster?And I have a few others that need the same treatment, FWIW.
R_J_K75
Legend
It is definitely a pine body, pretty heavy, which ironically despite having 4 herniated discs I prefer. The color is gloss polyurethane white blonde and yeah it has slight underlying tint probably from the wood grain. I cant tell if its pink or a light grey; lighting most likely will make it look different. I attached a close up photo.
Always does, you could play 5 guitars off a production line and no two will be the same. I read a story years back that when he was picking out his double neck Jimmy Page went to Gibsons factory. The guitars werent in any particular order in regard to serial numbers and he ultimate picked 0000001 after playing a bunch of them.
My economic situation doesn't allow me to justify spending 2K-3K on a guitar these days. Dont get me wrong if I could afford it I'll like high end guitar. I was eyeing a G&L but it looks like that its recently gone out of production. It had the electronics/wiring setup of the G&L CLF Research spada HH, but a maple neck and Z-pickups of the G&L Fullerton Deluxe Comanche. Guess I waited too long.
G&L CLF Research Espada HH Electric Guitar - Vintage White
Solidbody Electric Guitar with Alder Body, Maple Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Vintage White
www.sweetwater.com
G&L CLF Research Espada HH Electric Guitar - Vintage White
Solidbody Electric Guitar with Alder Body, Maple Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Vintage White
www.sweetwater.com
G&L Fullerton Deluxe Comanche Electric Guitar - Vintage Natural Gloss
Solidbody Electric Guitar, with Swamp Ash Body, Hard Rock Maple Neck, Maple Fretboard, 3 Single-coil Pickups, and Tremolo - Vintage Natural Gloss
www.sweetwater.com
I've never played a Dean. Matter of fact I never even knew anyone else who has. The few people I talked to that had played them gave varying opinions. But everyone preferences are different. Are they being forced out of business because of Gibsons copyright lawsuit against them?
Attachments
Ralif Redhammer
Legend
Unless you're playing an instrument at the same time, I prefer the standard (completely straight) mic stand with a round base. The boom stands, particularly with tripod bases, just don't feel as stable to me.
TarionzCousin
Second Most Angelic Devil Ever
Do you name all of your guitars?
I own a Gibson Les Paul, Yamaha acoustic-electric, classical, twelve string, um, and one I'm forgetting. Oh, a Fender Jazz bass.
R_J_K75
Legend
Nah but a few just name themselves based on their characteristics. some are so spur of the moment I quickly forget what I decide on, so I have to think about it for a moment. I'd have to keep a list similar to the one I have for all their string gauges if I named them all.
They are in DIRE straits.It is definitely a pine body, pretty heavy, which ironically despite having 4 herniated discs I prefer. The color is gloss polyurethane white blonde and yeah it has slight underlying tint probably from the wood grain. I cant tell if its pink or a light grey; lighting most likely will make it look different. I attached a close up photo.
Always does, you could play 5 guitars off a production line and no two will be the same. I read a story years back that when he was picking out his double neck Jimmy Page went to Gibsons factory. The guitars werent in any particular order in regard to serial numbers and he ultimate picked 0000001 after playing a bunch of them.
My economic situation doesn't allow me to justify spending 2K-3K on a guitar these days. Dont get me wrong if I could afford it I'll like high end guitar. I was eyeing a G&L but it looks like that its recently gone out of production. It had the electronics/wiring setup of the G&L CLF Research spada HH, but a maple neck and Z-pickups of the G&L Fullerton Deluxe Comanche. Guess I waited too long.
G&L CLF Research Espada HH Electric Guitar - Vintage White
Solidbody Electric Guitar with Alder Body, Maple Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Vintage WhiteG&L Fullerton Deluxe Comanche Electric Guitar - Vintage Natural Gloss
Solidbody Electric Guitar, with Swamp Ash Body, Hard Rock Maple Neck, Maple Fretboard, 3 Single-coil Pickups, and Tremolo - Vintage Natural Gloss
I've never played a Dean. Matter of fact I never even knew anyone else who has. The few people I talked to that had played them gave varying opinions. But everyone preferences are different. Are they being forced out of business because of Gibsons copyright lawsuit against them?
They’re appealing the Gibson lawsuit- IMHO, it was not a good decision- but there’s also a power struggle in the family that currently owns it, ugly enough that parents & children are suing each other. Mom has even stated she’s willing to let some of the businesses they own DIE. Dean is one in the crossfire.
Beyond that, they’ve lost several marquee artists, and some of them probably won’t return anytime soon because their signature guitars were part of the Gibson lawsuit. By the time there’s a final resolution, it may be too late.
And, as I recall, Dimebag’s estate is suing them as well.
My opinion of Dean is this: they were at their best when Dean Zelinsky was associated with them- when he founded the company, and when he returned for a few years in the early 2000s. Same goes for his 2nd company (DBZ, now known as Diamond) and his current one, Dean Zelinsky Private Label. The man makes good guitars.
He actually used to ghost build for other companies, like Gibson, especially for crazy special projects. As I recall, he’s the man who made some of the special guitars for ZZ Top. Yes, including the fuzzy spinners.
But in Dean’s attempts to master the metal guitar market, they lost focus on the quality of their actual products.
Right now, the only new Deans I would buy would be their higher-end stuff, plus certain lower-priced Cadillacs.
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R_J_K75
Legend
I found it odd why after so long they just recently within the last few years decided to sue them. And out of all the other companies they could sue why them, and why not all the other companies that make "copies" of Les Paul style guitars for example? Like I said I've never paid much attention to Dean so this isnt something Ive followed that close or have much knowledge on.
Dave Mustaine being one of them, he jumped ship for Gibson now, but in light of recent developments I don't think this is coincidence. IIRC he's had signatures models with Jackson, Dean and now Gibson so it doesn't seem as though he has much loyalty. But when your band has its own Wikipedia page for past members it doesn't seem he has much loyalty to anything period.
Looks like its not his estate but the graphic designer of the blue lightning bolt guitar he designed for Dime was suing Dean but as of April 2020 the case was thrown out or still in limbo.
DIMEBAG Guitar Designer's Copyright Case Thrown Out Of Court
According to Courthouse News Service, an appeals court has put an end to a lawsuit filed by the instrument designer who alleged that he hadn't been paid for sales of the late PANTERA guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott's classic "Dean From Hell" guitar, which he said he helped create. In April...
blabbermouth.net
Looks like initially when he owned the company from 1976-1986 they were more of a custom shop rather than mass producing guitars.
Same with Samick, they used to do the same for a lot of manufacturers, if not full guitars at least parts. I owned a Samick I bought in 1995 and for the price it was one hell of a guitar. I had the Saber 6-iF with the interlocking heel neck. This picture doesn't do the flame top or color justice.
Saber
The Saber was a Strat style model introduced in 1993 as a part of the American Classic Series. it was the only model in the series to offer Valley Arts' InterlockTM heel. Related: Vantage 800 SMX-3 SMX-4 SSM S SABER 1-i FP features InterlockTM heel. Body: Solid Alder body Flame Maple veneer (F)...
In 2016 I worked close to a Guitar Center so I used to go there on lunch every few weeks just to see if anything used came in. I still don't know how, where and when I met the guy but one of the workers there knew me, and acted like I was his best friend. They stocked a lot of Deans and one day as we were talking he made an off handed comment about how bad they were. It's funny how easily people can be influenced by something so trivial. Besides Guitar Center there's only one other music store Ive ever seen Dean sold at, but it was that comment that kind of persuaded me to overlook those guitars.
Re: Dean
This guy did an excellent summary of their current situation. Among other things, he notes the Dimebag estate’s case is still active, but going slooowly.
This guy did an excellent summary of their current situation. Among other things, he notes the Dimebag estate’s case is still active, but going slooowly.
