Guitar Pic of the Day - 12.16.08

[Help!I'maRock!]

http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/8/1/6/537816.jpg
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/8/1/4/537814.jpg
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/8/1/5/537815.jpg
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/8/1/3/537813.jpg
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/8/1/2/537812.jpg

The Laguna LE322 is a feature-rich, solid premium Louisiana swamp ash electric guitar. The rock maple neck is fast and comfortable and has a rosewood fingerboard. A uniquely wound humbucker produces massive gain and 2 single-coil pickups provide the ever-popular ringing tones. Features a 5-position pickup switch and a Wilkinson tremolo bridge that provides dive-bombing excitement to your guitar solos.

LAGUNA GUITARS LAUNCHES "ONE GUITAR, ONE TREE" REFORESTATION INITIATIVE

Laguna Guitars, reflecting the passionate convictions of musicians, celebrates Earth Day by launching their new "One Guitar, One Tree" reforestation initiative. This plan involves planting one tree for every Laguna guitar made. In addition, Laguna continues to deepen its other practical efforts to reduce waste, recycle and conserve the planet's resources.

For decades, musicians have proudly been socially aware and urged others to take more action, advocacy and awareness in environmental matters. As musicians themselves, those at Laguna have always passionately supported that position, knowing that trees are an economical, long-term solution to many tough environmental problems, including air and water pollution, climate change, wildlife protection, habitat restoration and more. In partnership with AmericanForests.org and their Global Relief campaign, Laguna proudly plants a tree for each Laguna guitar made.

In addition, Laguna's shipping cartons are designed to provide maximum protection with a minimum of material. Their boxes are made from 100% recycled cardboard that is also 100% recyclable, which they naturally encourage wherever possible. Also, in the interests of conservation, they have decided not to print glossy, heavyweight catalogs as millions from various companies end up in landfills every year. Instead, Laguna provides extensive information online at their website (www.playlaguna.com (http://www.playlaguna.com)) and a catalog will soon be available as downloadable PDF's, allowing users to print only those pages they want.

As with the design and manufacture of their guitars, Laguna welcomes an open dialogue with musicians and encourages them to share their thoughts and ideas on environmental matters including Laguna's "One Guitar, One Tree" initiative and other earth-friendly plans. All such feedback can be directed to environment@playlaguna.com. Please visit PlayLaguna.com or AmericanForests.org for more information on the "One Guitar, One Tree" initiative and Global Relief campaign.

Laguna LE322 Electric Guitar Features:

Body Type: Solid
Body Wood: Louisiana swamp ash
Scale Length: 25.5 in
Neck Joint: Bolt-on
Neck Wood: Rock Maple
Fretboard: Rosewood
Frets: 22
Bridge: Wilkinson Tremolo
Pickup Bridge: Alnico Hum
Pickup Middle: Alnico single
Pickup Neck: Alnico Single
Controls: Vol & Tone
Tuners: Locking
Hardware color: satin Nickel
Pickup selector: 5-way

[Mark Wein]

Whats funny about that is I used to own one when they were Brawley guitars.

Keith Brawley worked for Fender and was friends with the owner of my music store. When he came out with his new line of guitars in the late 1990s/early 2000's he got my boss to be a dealer. The idea was to only use the mom and pop stores as a dealer networks and keep it out of the big box stores.


He started doing well enough that GC made him an offer he couldn't refuse on his company..they bought it and shut the whole thing down until recently.

I still have one student with one of these guitars branded as a Brawley...I'll try and get him to bring it and post pictures on Thursday...

[Prages]

Looks like a nicely made guitar. A little vanilla though.

[Mark Wein]

They were OK. Lots of neat ideeas for such a low price point. I bought one so that I wouldn't have to drag a guitar back and forth to teach but the tone was killing me.

The tuners had a patented locking system that was a PITA to restring if the inner and outer parts weren't lined up just right...

[Aahzz]

Looks like a standard super strat.

[Mark Wein]

pretty much.

He was able to make them in Korea cheaply and was trying to offer a guitar with high end features at the lower price point. Lots of neat stuff but I never did like how they sounded. I brought mine to one gig and it lasted only one song and I was back to my Les Paul...

[Denverdave]

I agree with Prages - a bit to bland for me. Not a bad looking starter guitar though..

[Help!I'maRock!]

i picked one up at GC. they're solidly built, but i don't care for the thin body, the pickups, or the Wilky bridge that i had such a bad time with on my Carvin. in fact, the one i picked up had exactly the same problem as mine. the intonation screws were backing out of the saddles. so i stole one (screw, not guitar) because i needed it for my Carvin. then i sold that guitar.

also, i'm amazed at the non-reaction to the headstock.

[Prages]

or the Wilky bridge that i had such a bad time with on my Carvin. in fact, the one i picked up had exactly the same problem as mine. the intonation screws were backing out of the saddles.

You know, I've got that same bridge on one of my Warmoths and I've never had a problem with the intonation screws backing out. I remember you talking about that several years ago.

[Mark Wein]

also, i'm amazed at the non-reaction to the headstock.


Keith Brawley told me that it was inspired by a show on the Discovery Channel on Sharks.... smi

[Prages]

also, i'm amazed at the non-reaction to the headstock.


While I'm not entirely sold on the headstock design, it's the most interesting part of the guitar, IMO.

[Help!I'maRock!]

or the Wilky bridge that i had such a bad time with on my Carvin. in fact, the one i picked up had exactly the same problem as mine. the intonation screws were backing out of the saddles.

You know, I've got that same bridge on one of my Warmoths and I've never had a problem with the intonation screws backing out. I remember you talking about that several years ago.


i actually lost two screws, and only got to replace one. the guy i sold it to never noticed. all he knew was that it was light years better than his Ibanez GAX.

i'm convinced that the Carvin was just a bad idea all around and that i shouldn't project the problems i had onto other guitars. yet i can't help doing it. i avoid Wilky vibratos and Sperzel tuners, and won't buy a guitar that features either.

[Prages]

I'm not big on the Sperzels either. I've only had their locking tuners on one guitar, and they worked fine, but they felt cheap, the gear ratio was too low and the thumbwheel was kind of hard on the thumb.

My US Masters has non-locking Sperzels. I don't mind them as much, but since it's got a Floyd Rose, I hardly ever have to use the tuners anyway. I think I've only used them once, and that was when I changed the strings.

[Mark Wein]

or the Wilky bridge that i had such a bad time with on my Carvin. in fact, the one i picked up had exactly the same problem as mine. the intonation screws were backing out of the saddles.

You know, I've got that same bridge on one of my Warmoths and I've never had a problem with the intonation screws backing out. I remember you talking about that several years ago.


i actually lost two screws, and only got to replace one. the guy i sold it to never noticed. all he knew was that it was light years better than his Ibanez GAX.

i'm convinced that the Carvin was just a bad idea all around and that i shouldn't project the problems i had onto other guitars. yet i can't help doing it. i avoid Wilky vibratos and Sperzel tuners, and won't buy a guitar that features either.


I'm not a fan of Sperzels for a couple of reasons, but I had one fail spectacularly on a gig.

Playing in a blues band at the county fair I went to start the first song in front of a couple of thousand people with a big unaccompanied bent note and while I was bending the note up the peg released and the pitch went down at about the rate that it should have been going up. What a mindfuck. I was already a little freaked out because it was the biggest crowd I had played in front of to date.

I though someone had slipped the brown acid in my preshow chili messedup0

I like Klusons and have them on pretty much everything.

[Phil513]

I'd like that better if it was just a string-through hardtail.

[Eminence_Front]

WOW, Deja Vu. Mark and I had the tuner conversation like just last saturday !


I am quickly losing patience with my locking spertzels. They just won't hold, and I have to tighten them daily.

[Mark Wein]

Gotoh Klusons ftw

[Prages]

I'm a big fan of Schaller tuners. I've got the locking M6s on one guitar and the non-locking Schallers on a couple of guitars. They feel more solid to me than most other tuners out there.

They are heavier than a lot of other tuners though, so if the guitar is already neck heavy, they may not be the best option.

[JModius1972]

Floyd it instead of a Wilkie and I'd rock it. idn_smilie

[Prages]

Floyd it instead of a Wilkie and I'd rock it. idn_smilie


AOK

While I really like my Wilkie, I really LOVE my Floyds.

I think I'd probably rock the shit out of a Floyded Les Paul. :weebz:

[JModius1972]

Floyd it instead of a Wilkie and I'd rock it.   idn_smilie


AOK

While I really like my Wilkie, I really LOVE my Floyds.

I think I'd probably rock the shit out of a Floyded Les Paul.   :weebz:


Like this? drool0

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v518/JModius/693px-Alex_Lifeson6.jpg

[telecaster911]

I have two guitars with Schaller lockers and they are rock solid. AOK I had one with Sperzels, also with no problem. I like the Schallers better though.

Do you guys know the 12 o'clock rule for locking tuners?

Load the high e string with the hole in the tuner at 12 o'clock, esentially from the tip of the headstock feeding the string back towards the nut. Pull tight, lock string.

Same with the b string.

G string, 1 o'clock

D, 2 o'clock

A and E, 2 - 3 o'clock. You kind of have to experiment with the bottom strings. You should have between a half of a wrap and a wrap and a half when the guitar is in tune.

[Help!I'maRock!]

the best locking tuners i've used are the PRS Phase II. but they don't come 6 in-line, only 3+3. my tele has Gotoh vintage locking, and i like them too. Grover supposedly makes a set that's really good too, but i haven't tried them.

[Prages]

the best locking tuners i've used are the PRS Phase II. but they don't come 6 in-line, only 3+3. my tele has Gotoh vintage locking, and i like them too. Grover supposedly makes a set that's really good too, but i haven't tried them.


My PRS has the old wing style locking tuners.  I've heard a lot of complaints about them, but I always liked them.  The one complaint I had was they seemed to have a really low tuning ratio.

http://www.thewindtunnel.com/GuitarPics/PRSA5.JPG

[Help!I'maRock!]

yeah, lots of people hate those old PRS tuners. the new ones work really well though.

thinking back it was probably a dumb thing to do, but i brought my PRS with me to Australia a few years ago when we played the Brisbane Arts Festival. it was dumb because i took it on 3 flights each way.

during the first show, i broke a string, and literally had 90 seconds from the time i broke the string, to the time i started the next song. i had no backup, and the show just keeps going no matter what. i'm smart enough to always have the strings loose on top of my amp so i was able to grab the right one and string it up within that time constraint. that wouldn't have been possible with my Floyd'd Ibanez, nor any guitar i've bought since. even the Tele with its Gotoh locking tuners take a bit longer than the PRS does.

nobody in the show noticed, and i asked every last one of them afterwards.

[telecaster911]

^^^^ This is what I'm talking about. There needs to be at least a half of a wrap around the post. Some look like no wrap.

[Prages]

^^^^ This is what I'm talking about. There needs to be at least a half of a wrap around the post. Some look like no wrap.


Those aren't your typical locking tuners. They are cam action, so you just pull the strings snug through the opening and tighten the tuner until it locks.

Honestly though, even on my guitars with regular locking tuners, I've never had a problem with the strings slipping, and I don't think I ever have more than about 1/2 a wrap on them. idn_smilie

[telecaster911]

Ok, I'm not familiar with the PRS ones, just the sperzel and schallers. The little ball is only supposed to lock the string in position in the tuning peg hole, not take full tension of a tuned string. This may be the root of some tuning problems for some folks.

[Prages]

I really think the PRS winged tuners are a good design.

The shaft of the tuner has a flattened edge and the winged part has a notch that the string fits in.

You simply line up the notch in the wing with the flat side of the tuner shaft, pull the string tight through the notch (you don't even have to thread the string...just pull it tight and lay it into the notch), then tighten the tuner. As the shaft turns, the wing stays put and wedges the sting in between the shaft and the wing.

When it's time to restring, just loosen the tuner about 1/4 turn and push on the wing and the string pops out.

[Help!I'maRock!]

Ok, I'm not familiar with the PRS ones, just the sperzel and schallers. The little ball is only supposed to lock the string in position in the tuning peg hole, not take full tension of a tuned string. This may be the root of some tuning problems for some folks.


i had two problems with my Sperzels. they wouldn't always unlock, and there was a tiny bit of play in the tuning key. they held tune fine, and i rarely had more than half a wrap on any string. but they were a bitch to use.

nobody else i know who has owned Sperzels has had these problems.

[telecaster911]

A half of a wrap is fine, but reliable tuning is iffy if there is essentially no wrap as in Prages A and D string. If there were a quarter turn more on those, it would be fine for the Schallers and Sperzels. Kind of like if you were holding something with a rope, it's easier if you go around a tree, even a 1/4 turn and coming off at 90deg than if you were just holding the rope. This also saves having to overtighten the locking knob. Remember it's there to keep the string stationary in the tuning peg hole. (PRS tuners excluded tongue0)

[Prages]

A half of a wrap is fine, but reliable tuning is iffy if there is essentially no wrap as in Prages A and D string.  If there were a quarter turn more on those, it would be fine for the Schallers and Sperzels.  Kind of like if you were holding something with a rope, it's easier if you go around a tree, even a 1/4 turn and coming off at 90deg than if you were just holding the rope.  This also saves having to overtighten the locking knob.  Remember it's there to keep the string stationary in the tuning peg hole.  (PRS tuners excluded  tongue0)


That makes sense. I don't ever have less than about 1/2 wrap on my Schaller locking tuners. You'd have to pull the string pretty tight to begin with to end up with less than 1/2 wrap, I'd think...especially on the unwound strings. I may end up with one full wrap on the high E and it gets progressively less as the string gets bigger, just because of the nature of the beast, where it takes less turns to raise the pitch of the wound strings.

Even with my non locking tuners, though, I rarely have more than one complete wrap around the posts.

I do the 'knot' technique where you stick the string through, wrap the loose end backward 1/2 turn and up between the fastened end and the tuner, then tighten the tuner to pitch. This uses the strings tension to lock the loose end into place. It essentially turns any non-locking tuner into a locking tuner. It works great. After you get the strings stretched out, you never have strings slip at the tuner.

Here's a detailed step by step of what I'm talking about:

Ignore the stuff that's specific to acoustic guitar bridges.

http://www.deanmarkley.com/Info/Instruction/Instruction03StringChange.shtml

I'll try to find time to take pics of my locking and non-locking guitars to show how much winding I put on them.

I'm big on Floyded guitars for live use, and I always run the strings backwards on them with the ball end at the headstock, so none of this applies to those guitar.

http://www.thewindtunnel.com/GuitarPics/USMasters/HeadstockLogo.jpg