Alex Lifeson Signature Axcess

[SolitaryPine]

I just walked in the door with AL 412! I love the color - darker edges than others I've seen on others but my pic is a little darker than the actual guitar. a few nice stripes on the top, but best of all - sounds incredible!

 

 

That is a beauty. I like the darker edges very cool! Most of all I'm glad you got a good sounding one.

 

I'm also glad to see that this guitar is a big runner. With its unique features, it should appeal to a lot of people, not just fans of big Al. I wonder if they will have to break out a four or five digit serial number code scheme soon.

[Rock2112]

As I mentioned I wanted to do, and as I posted on the main product page for the AL Axcess, I've put up a video on YouTube covering Freewill on my Royal Crimson AL LP. I wanted to do Presto to have some Piezo fun but the switching was too big a hassle to set up with Amplitube 3 (I didn't have ready "axcess" to my hard gear). I also don't have a good midi track for Presto to make a backtrack. There's a decent backtrack on the web for Presto but it has no clicks or counting hats in the solo acoustic sections. Too much hassle to line that up in my DAW to a click track. Anyway, all that aside, I had some fun making this. One funny thing was that, in starting the song, I had just a two count between hitting the space bar and the song starting, and I basically had to guess when the accompaniment would kick in to start it. Naturally, there were few false starts before I got this going...

 

[RUSHian]

I love the Crimson! Great job on the song!

[Rock2112]

I love the Crimson! Great job on the song!

 

Thanks man! Such an awesome song to play.

[SolitaryPine]

As I mentioned I wanted to do, and as I posted on the main product page for the AL Axcess, I've put up a video on YouTube covering Freewill on my Royal Crimson AL LP.

 

NIIIICE!

 

Alright, now I may actually have to get around to doing this. Different song of course. And I may have to wear the same t-shirt, haha. :)

 

It will be a couple of weeks before my guitar gets back from the Gibson factory, though (long story).

[Rock2112]

NIIIICE!

 

Alright, now I may actually have to get around to doing this. Different song of course. And I may have to wear the same t-shirt, haha. :)

 

It will be a couple of weeks before my guitar gets back from the Gibson factory, though (long story).

 

Thanks. I kinda wanna hear the long story, hope it's nothing too serious. Yes, the t-shirt is a must! I got a t-shirt for every Rush tour since 1984, and yet that one and my S&A tour shirt are the only ones that I have left. I'll keep an eye out for your contribution to the AL YT Club once you get your guitar back.

[SolitaryPine]

Thanks. I kinda wanna hear the long story, hope it's nothing too serious. Yes, the t-shirt is a must! I got a t-shirt for every Rush tour since 1984, and yet that one and my S&A tour shirt are the only ones that I have left. I'll keep an eye out for your contribution to the AL YT Club once you get your guitar back.

 

My first Rush concert was the "Moving Pictures" one. In fact, it was my first rock concert without my parents along. The only one before that, with my parents, was John Denver, lol. And now I live in Denver (grew up in MN).

 

The guitar issue is not too serious. I will explain once I get the guitar back. In summary, so far I am happy with Gibson, not too happy with my local luthier who I have been using for years and who is an authorized Gibson service center. He may have lost my business.

 

I will say that I had a brief panic attack when I learned of the Federal Government raid on Gibson's factory last week, as I believed my guitar had just arrived there, and the press reports were saying that the Feds had showed up with semi-trucks and were loading large quantities of wood and guitars. I had visions of my guitar being held by the Feds for years as "evidence." However, it turns out my guitar didn't get there until Friday, after the raid, so luck was on my side. Whew.

[Rock2112]

My first Rush concert was the "Moving Pictures" one. In fact, it was my first rock concert without my parents along. The only one before that, with my parents, was John Denver, lol. And now I live in Denver (grew up in MN).

 

The guitar issue is not too serious. I will explain once I get the guitar back. In summary, so far I am happy with Gibson, not too happy with my local luthier who I have been using for years and who is an authorized Gibson service center. He may have lost my business.

 

I will say that I had a brief panic attack when I learned of the Federal Government raid on Gibson's factory last week, as I believed my guitar had just arrived there, and the press reports were saying that the Feds had showed up with semi-trucks and were loading large quantities of wood and guitars. I had visions of my guitar being held by the Feds for years as "evidence." However, it turns out my guitar didn't get there until Friday, after the raid, so luck was on my side. Whew.

 

My wife grew up in Denver and we still visit family there from time to time. Great town. When you said your guitar was at the factory, I must admit I gulped at the thought that it might have been hauled away -- glad to hear you are fine on that front. The thought of a bunch of new instruments being thrown into a semi because our federal government wants to make sure we export as much work as possible to India is insane. I wonder if they hauled any ALs away as part of that (sad thought). If so, this will feed the lore of the "Lifeson Curse" (sorry Big AL).

 

Glad your guitar issue is recoverable. Get that thing back to Denver!

[SolitaryPine]

Yeah, I was picturing my guitar being held for years as "evidence" that Gibson was providing US jobs, lol.

 

I actually called the number on the press release about the raid for the Gibson CEO. I didn't get him, but I did get his executive assistant, and she has been very helpful.

[Rock2112]

Yeah, I was picturing my guitar being held for years as "evidence" that Gibson was providing US jobs, lol.

 

I actually called the number on the press release about the raid for the Gibson CEO. I didn't get him, but I did get his executive assistant, and she has been very helpful.

 

This seems like one of the fishiest federal actions I've seen taken in my lifetime. I really think it's about time the feds show their cards because it's really hard to understand what they're up to here. Ok, you got in, you got your surprise factor. Congratulations. Now hold a press conference and tell us what you think Gibson's doing differently than every other guitar manufacturer. I have seen reports that the Nashville and Memphis facilities were raided, but I haven't heard that the custom shop was raided. Doesn't mean it wasn't. But I wonder if much in the way of production will be going on at Gibson for a while. I'm sure we are both happy to have chased our AL LPs from the initial batches as we did.

[SolitaryPine]

This seems like one of the fishiest federal actions I've seen taken in my lifetime. I really think it's about time the feds show their cards because it's really hard to understand what they're up to here. Ok, you got in, you got your surprise factor. Congratulations. Now hold a press conference and tell us what you think Gibson's doing differently than every other guitar manufacturer. I have seen reports that the Nashville and Memphis facilities were raided, but I haven't heard that the custom shop was raided. Doesn't mean it wasn't. But I wonder if much in the way of production will be going on at Gibson for a while. I'm sure we are both happy to have chased our AL LPs from the initial batches as we did.

 

I personally can't believe they raided Gibson in 2009 and still have their stuff and have not pressed charges. That is just utter bull.

 

I spoke with a member of the senior management team at Gibson who told me definitively that the custom shop was not raided. (I'm guessing they wouldn't want to have Eric Clapton or some other celebrity guitar player outraged on TV, so they wisely avoided the custom shop.)

[Rock2112]

I personally can't believe they raided Gibson in 2009 and still have their stuff and have not pressed charges. That is just utter bull.

 

I spoke with a member of the senior management team at Gibson who told me definitively that the custom shop was not raided. (I'm guessing they wouldn't want to have Eric Clapton or some other celebrity guitar player outraged on TV, so they wisely avoided the custom shop.)

 

So did you get your guitar back? What happened with your luthier? Just curious. It looks like mine will have to go in for a bad Piezo volume pot issue affecting the mag pickups. Ugh.

[stormtropper]

Saw this signed AL Les Paul at the local guitar show on the weekend. Signed #7!

 

[SolitaryPine]

So did you get your guitar back? What happened with your luthier? Just curious. It looks like mine will have to go in for a bad Piezo volume pot issue affecting the mag pickups. Ugh.

 

I just got it back on Friday. This has been a bit of a nightmare as I dropped it off at my local luthier on July 9! He is an authorized service center. The issue was that the piezo pickup on the G string was not functioning. I took apart the bridge to inspect and found that the g string piezo pickup wire was frayed. So, I brought it to my luthier to have him fix that (he is an authorized Gibson service center). I also wanted him to do a setup.

 

Long story short, he tried to fix it himself by splicing the wire, but it caused a lot of noise when played. So, after waiting a long time for parts, he was eventually told to send the guitar to TN, which he did without first asking me if that was ok. Once it got there, they discovered that my luthier had put some masking tape on it which "attacked the finish." So, they put in a new bridge, and then refinished the whole guitar. It only took them a couple of weeks once they got it to do all of that. Now it's back and it works and it looks awesome, so I'm happy again.

[GibSinCity]

Those Lifeson models are really nice.

I did have one question I'm sure someone here could answer.

How is the wiring run from the bridge/trem, or it's cavity back into the pickup cavity?

Or does it take some different route back to the controls and jacks etc.?

Maybe some pics.?

Thanks.

[SolitaryPine]

Those Lifeson models are really nice.

I did have one question I'm sure someone here could answer.

How is the wiring run from the bridge/trem, or it's cavity back into the pickup cavity?

Or does it take some different route back to the controls and jacks etc.?

Maybe some pics.?

Thanks.

 

Each piezo pickup saddle (one for each string) has a very fine wire that runs forward from the bridge through a small hole into the cavity for the bridge pickup. From there it follows the bridge pickup wiring into the cavity for the pots, and from there into the small cavity for the circuit board.

[Rock2112]

I just got it back on Friday. This has been a bit of a nightmare as I dropped it off at my local luthier on July 9! He is an authorized service center. The issue was that the piezo pickup on the G string was not functioning. I took apart the bridge to inspect and found that the g string piezo pickup wire was frayed. So, I brought it to my luthier to have him fix that (he is an authorized Gibson service center). I also wanted him to do a setup.

 

Long story short, he tried to fix it himself by splicing the wire, but it caused a lot of noise when played. So, after waiting a long time for parts, he was eventually told to send the guitar to TN, which he did without first asking me if that was ok. Once it got there, they discovered that my luthier had put some masking tape on it which "attacked the finish." So, they put in a new bridge, and then refinished the whole guitar. It only took them a couple of weeks once they got it to do all of that. Now it's back and it works and it looks awesome, so I'm happy again.

 

Oh man -- I missed this for some reason until now. That is a luthier run amok. I can't believe he shipped it off without your knowledge. What was he going to do if it got munched in shipping or, say, hypothetically, swept up in a federal raid!? And masking tape?! Yikes. I'm glad everything is fine with it now. Those Piezo wires are extremely thin. Hard to believe they are even thick enough to fray. I hope there's no friction being caused by the bridge rocking back and forth since those wires travel through a cavity. Just another thing to worry about!

[SolitaryPine]

It wasn't caused by rubbing, so don't worry.

[e.grijp]

As I mentioned I wanted to do, and as I posted on the main product page for the AL Axcess, I've put up a video on YouTube covering Freewill on my Royal Crimson AL LP. I wanted to do Presto to have some Piezo fun but the switching was too big a hassle to set up with Amplitube 3 (I didn't have ready "axcess" to my hard gear). I also don't have a good midi track for Presto to make a backtrack. There's a decent backtrack on the web for Presto but it has no clicks or counting hats in the solo acoustic sections. Too much hassle to line that up in my DAW to a click track. Anyway, all that aside, I had some fun making this. One funny thing was that, in starting the song, I had just a two count between hitting the space bar and the song starting, and I basically had to guess when the accompaniment would kick in to start it. Naturally, there were few false starts before I got this going...