This I like.....

[jdgm]

Gibson Custom Shop L-4S Cherry Red 2004 on sale at Music Zoo -

https://www.themusiczoo.com/products/gibson-custom-shop-l-4s-cherry-red-2004

I already have one of these fine guitars in walnut (which I bought from Music Zoo) and it is my best/easiest to play Gibson, a wonderful instrument.  I gigged with it earlier this evening.

Cost to me in UK, including approx duty, tax etc = £3746 (GBP) which is ridiculous but if I had that sum to spare, I'd get it.

They also have a Ron Wood L5S, serial no 006. That's at least a grand more.

Ah, GAS, eh?

What have you seen recently that you are taken by?

 

Edited September 28, 2019 by jdgm

[uncle fester]

20 minutes ago, jdgm said:

What have you seen recently that you are taken by?

 

the one you just posted.

[merciful-evans]

There are 2.

This MIK D'Angelico Deluxe DC in chameleon finish which has been reduced a couple of times (just raised up again). I haven't tried it out (yet). The only thing that puts me off is it has Seymour Duncan pickups.

This MIJ Fender Esprit (Elite version. about 1985). Too late now. I've just checked and its been sold.

 

[merciful-evans]

nearly forgot. I think I like this one too. However, I would have to try it out and its a long way off from me.  I dont like flame finishes, but other than that, its pretty much perfect. 2018 HP SG Standard.

[pippy]

6 hours ago, merciful-evans said:

This MIK D'Angelico Deluxe DC in chameleon finish which has been reduced a couple of times (just raised up again). I haven't tried it out (yet). The only thing that puts me off is it has Seymour Duncan pickups.

 

What don't you fancy about the SD p'ups, m-e? I haven't heard many folks say his kit is below par somehow.

By a funny coincidence a while back, after having seen and read a little bit about the Scott Chinery 'Blue Guitar' exhibition, I had a notion that it might be a bit of fun to have a blue arch-top Jazz-Box and came across two D'Angelico's (although only one of which is a Jazzer) which I thought looked very smart indeed. I didn't see the Chameleon finish Deluxe with gold hardware but one of the ones I liked is quite similar (although I'd go for the one with the 'Stairstep' tailpiece);

https://www.thomann.de/gb/dangelico_premier_dc_oc_stopbar.htm

...and this is the one I was looking at first and still like very much;

https://www.thomann.de/gb/dangelico_premier_exl_1_ocean_turquoise.htm

I already have a natural finish D'Angelico Excel and it really is a great-playing instrument. The price differences between the similar instruments in different finises, AFAICT, i.e. those for around £711.13 (799 Euros) and the ones around the 1,600 Euro mark are that the former are finished in solid colour - so any lump of wood will do - and the latter have either clear-coat or translucent finishes which require far more attractive tops/back/sides - typically highly flamed maple. Secondly the more expensive instruments come with a HSC and the others come with a gig-bag.

The EXL-1 is a LOT of guitar for the money!

Pip.

Edited September 29, 2019 by pippy

[Navy Vet.]

I dig every guitar shown, and that’s my problem, I’ve purchased this year 6 guitars. Is there a rehab program for GAS? 

[merciful-evans]

1 hour ago, pippy said:

 

What don't you fancy about the SD p'ups, m-e? I haven't heard many folks say his kit is below par somehow.

By a funny coincidence a while back, after having seen and read a little bit about the Scott Chinery 'Blue Guitar' exhibition, I had a notion that it might be a bit of fun to have a blue arch-top Jazz-Box and came across two D'Angelico's (although only one of which is a Jazzer) which I thought looked very smart indeed. I didn't see the Chameleon finish Deluxe with gold hardware but one of the ones I liked is quite similar (although I'd go for the one with the 'Stairstep' tailpiece);

https://www.thomann.de/gb/dangelico_premier_dc_oc_stopbar.htm

...and this is the one I was looking at first and still like very much;

https://www.thomann.de/gb/dangelico_premier_exl_1_ocean_turquoise.htm

I already have a natural finish D'Angelico Excel and it really is a great-playing instrument. The price differences between the similar instruments in different finises, AFAICT, i.e. those for around £711.13 (799 Euros) and the ones around the 1,600 Euro mark are that the former are finished in solid colour - so any lump of wood will do - and the latter have either clear-coat or translucent finishes which require far more attractive tops/back/sides - typically highly flamed maple. Secondly the more expensive instruments come with a HSC and the others come with a gig-bag.

The EXL-1 is a LOT of guitar for the money!

Pip.

 

Pip, the two you have linked are quite a bit cheaper than the one I have shown. It seems that production has switched from Korea (to Indonesia I think). I get the impression that the MIK ones at GV are reduced because new stock is coming in cheaper. They are still a lot dearer though. They have 3 MIKs in all including an EXL-1. I was attracted by the Deluxe DC because its ebony fb.

 

Seymour Ds: Well if I ever try these D'Angelicos out, I will set aside my aversion and give it a fair assessment. I am likely the only player anywhere with a poor opinion of SDs, but that has simply been my experience so far. I've had a couple of guitars with SDs, and not liked them at all.  The same holds true listening to others. 

[merciful-evans]

20 minutes ago, Navy Vet. said:

I dig every guitar shown, and that’s my problem, I’ve purchased this year 6 guitars. Is there a rehab program for GAS? 

 

There ought to be, but almost nobody takes it seriously 😉. My big purchase year was 2015, which accounts for both of my Gibsons among others. I've just seen another! A nice used plain top Class 5 Gibson LP.

Help!

Edited September 29, 2019 by merciful-evans

[Twang Gang]

That L-4 seems a little overpriced for a used axe with buckle rash.  Plus it's missing a volume and tone knob!  To me the whole concept of dual humbuckers is about blending them for different tones, so they take that away and charge more.  The D'Angelicos shown look nice and fairly reasonably priced but I am well supplied with hollow/semi-hollow jazz boxes so no GAS for them.  I am not really wanting anything right now, thankfully, and have been considering thinning the herd if I could figure out what to sell.

I have been jonesing for a Sweetwater exclusive Twin Reverb that has a pine cabinet covered in wine red tolex, and two Celestion speakers, but have been able to restrain myself so far, as when I play out I don't even  use an amp anymore.  

[pippy]

5 hours ago, merciful-evans said:

Pip, the two you have linked are quite a bit cheaper than the one I have shown. It seems that production has switched from Korea (to Indonesia I think). I get the impression that the MIK ones at GV are reduced because new stock is coming in cheaper. They are still a lot dearer though. They have 3 MIKs in all including an EXL-1. I was attracted by the Deluxe DC because its ebony fb.

 

I know exactly what you mean because my Excel is an earlier one with the ebony 'board and bridge. There were some other differences too with the newer ones. Can't really remember all the changes offhand (and I'm in the Cotswolds at the moment so can't really compare things) but mine has a Kent Armstrong floating p'up which I believe has been changed for the current specification.

I cannot be 100% certain about what I'm about to type but I think that there was a management driven sea-change regarding how the D'A range was going to be built and marketed. When I bought mine there were two ranges; the ones like the more expensive ones available nowadays and a much more expensive range which were crafted in the USA. Not long after I bought mine the whole lot disappeared off the radar and I thought they must have gone bust. Lo and behold a year or so later they reappeared but by this time there was an even cheaper range which now cost half the price of what had been the previous lower-priced models and what had been the lower-price range were still on offer but had received slightly different specifications at the same price-point. I'm not sure if the USA-line still exists but from memory they were about 50% - 75% more expensive than what are now the 'Permium-Priced' instruments.

As far as the SD's go; Yes. As you will have probably read elsewhere sometime before I have a matched set of his very highly-regarded 'Antiquities' PAF-clones in my 1995 '1960 Classic' and whilst they do sound good they also take quite a lot of dialling-in to get into their sweet-spot compared with, say, '57 Classics which are much more straightforward.

Pip.

Edited September 29, 2019 by pippy

[merciful-evans]

2 hours ago, pippy said:

 

I know exactly what you mean because my Excel is an earlier one with the ebony 'board and bridge. There were some other differences too with the newer ones. Can't really remember all the changes offhand (and I'm in the Cotswolds at the moment so can't really compare things) but mine has a Kent Armstrong floating p'up which I believe has been changed for the current specification.

I cannot be 100% certain about what I'm about to type but I think that there was a management driven sea-change regarding how the D'A range was going to be built and marketed. When I bought mine there were two ranges; the ones like the more expensive ones available nowadays and a much more expensive range which were crafted in the USA. Not long after I bought mine the whole lot disappeared off the radar and I thought they must have gone bust. Lo and behold a year or so later they reappeared but by this time there was an even cheaper range which now cost half the price of what had been the previous lower-priced models and what had been the lower-price range were still on offer but had received slightly different specifications at the same price-point. I'm not sure if the USA-line still exists but from memory they were about 50% - 75% more expensive than what are now the 'Permium-Priced' instruments.

As far as the SD's go; Yes. As you will have probably read elsewhere sometime before I have a matched set of his very highly-regarded 'Antiquities' PAF-clones in my 1995 '1960 Classic' and whilst they do sound good they also take quite a lot of dialling-in to get into their sweet-spot compared with, say, '57 Classics which are much more straightforward.

Pip.

 

I do recall vividly a pic of yours (with a Queen Anne style chair). I didn't know there had been USA ones. There is a 2001 Japanese one at guitarguitar: D'Angelico NYSS-3 Blue Burst which is very handsome indeed. 

[jdgm]

13 hours ago, merciful-evans said:

This MIJ Fender Esprit (Elite version. about 1985). Too late now. I've just checked and its been sold.

 

 

These are going for over £1k these days. They have the same HB pickups as my System III Strat from the same era. 

That's a nice one too.

[pippy]

On 9/29/2019 at 8:44 PM, merciful-evans said:

I do recall vividly a pic of yours (with a Queen Anne style chair). I didn't know there had been USA ones....

 

Here's the article which I read a few years back;

https://fortune.com/2014/06/25/dangelico-guitars/

I particularly liked these bits;

"Authenticity is key for the company, especially for their USA-made higher end models, and......For their high-end line, the company even goes so far as to craft the guitars from the same California trees that provided the wood for D’Angelico’s instruments..."

"On average, four luthiers work on each high-end D’Angelico guitar before it is ready to be shipped out and into the hands of an eager aficionado. Like with most artisanal processes, making a guitar by hand is not quick. “From raw wood, it takes 18 months to two years to make a guitar,”..."

Pip.

EDIT : The USA-crafted D'Angelico's I had seen listed were all used hence it seems I was quoting the asking price for  s/h 'regular USA' and not 'Master Builder' stuff. Here's a quote from a period article from when the brand was reintroduced;

"D’Angelico’s Korean-made Standard Series......starts at around $1,300. The company’s Pro Series, manufactured in Kalamazoo, Mich., starts at around $4,000 and its USA Master Builder line runs $10,000-$12,000...."

Apparently one early-doors customer was Eric Clapton who requested a D'Angelico 'Style B' to take with him when he was touring;

https://www.andertons.co.uk/dangelico-excel-style-b-in-black-daestybsbkgt?lgw_code=16284-DAESTYBSBKGT&gclid=Cj0KCQjwz8bsBRC6ARIsAEyNnvoqwxaB6BPwgG7abyjErpSH0V8-T_nIC2qJuXxKJU4mZUX4Tu9nQ6waAoQKEALw_wcB

I must admit I was looking at those a while back, too......

Edited September 30, 2019 by pippy

[Notes_Norton]

On 9/28/2019 at 5:53 PM, jdgm said:

Gibson Custom Shop L-4S Cherry Red 2004 on sale at Music Zoo -

https://www.themusiczoo.com/products/gibson-custom-shop-l-4s-cherry-red-2004

I like the simplicity of one vol one tone knob close to the picking hand. For quick adjustments on stage no matter which pickup or combination you are using it makes it simple and doesn't take you out of the music zone.

Put some Duncan P-Rails on it with the Triple Shot Rings and you will have a "Swiss Army Knife" of a guitar.

I really like the cherry finish.

What have I ban GAS-sing for lately? Really nothing. Since I got my Parkers I haven't had GAS.

Notes