Brand Concious Syndrome Part 1

There are many times when we decide to buy a piece of gear, the first thing that comes to our mind is probably the brand name of a product that we usually associate the product with. This is hardly a surprise and this is pretty evident in especially in Singapore. When I started changing the pickups of my first guitar, i wanted the best pickups with the amount of money I have. I bought a pair of Dimarzio Evolutions and don't take this in a wrong way. Dimarzio Evolutions are really good and probably still is my favourite pickup up till today. However, contrary to my believe at that time, installing Dimarzio Evolutions didn't make me sound or play anywhere closer to Steve Vai, as much as I would have liked.

However, there are many times when we make our decision relying too much on the brand image that we are being conditioned with and we make our decisions picking up those costly "branded product" without giving other lesser brands a chance. Guitar pickups are definitely one of those that are always being overlooked.

Thanks to a few local shops (namely Tymc and SVguitars), they have provide our market an alternative voice in the choice of lesser priced pickups; namely Tesla and Artec Giovanni. I personally believe that products of lesser brands should be given a chance instead of being bash and shove aside due to it's lesser known brand name and country of origin.

Next time, before anyone of us decide to buy any product be it pedals, pickups or tunners, do our necessary research on what's available to us and what exactly are we looking out for, before we make our final decision. We might just pick up a golden egg while saving a lot more money in the progress.

F spacing and Trembuckers?

Have you ever bought Dimarzio or Seymour Duncan pickups and you realized that there is 2 versions of the same pickups. One known as F-Spacing or Trembucker while the other known as standard spacing? Do they make a difference? Yes and No.

What the spacing itself means is that there are usually 2 kinds of bridge spacing, measuring 2.01" (51 mm) center-to-center from the first polepiece to the sixth for F space or Trembucker pickups and 1.90" (48 mm) for standard spacing pickups.

So which one should you get? If your guitar has a tremolo equipped, Floyd Rose or fender Vintage Tremolo, you should get the F Space or Trembucker. If your guitar is equipped without a tremolo or made in Asia or Mexico, you should get the standard spacing pickup.

What happens if you get the Standard spacing pickups for a tremolo equipped guitar or vice versa? Well, there will still be sound from your guitar (that's the yes) but not that the strings that are slightly not aligned to the pole pieces might sound slightly softer.

Why are there 2 different spacings? Before SuperStrats were invented, the only guitars that had humbuckers are Gibson lespaul kind of guitar. When people started putting humbuckers into strats, pickup makers decided to cater to the market for tremolo spaced guitars. Hence F space, for Fender or Floyd Rose (Dimarzio) or Trembucker (Seymour Duncan)

The next time, before you buy pickups to swap out the ones in your guitar, do take note that there are actually 2 different spacings.

Fake Dimarzio Pickups?

Today is another day of random window surfing and I chance upon these on Ebay. The first thing that struck my mind is, are these real? Well, after researching a bit on Jemsite, these are 100% fake Dimarzio. Even thought these should only come with the Ibanez prestige guitars, this seller (From Hong Kong) somehow manage to acquire stocks for these and they all seem to be damaged at the bobbins.

A search on google confirms that the ones above are fake. Compared to the real ones, noticed that the DiMarzio fonts are somewhat different?

New sound recording for Benihanahime

Benihanahime neo classical by Adrian Goh

So today is a day of restringing and recording. There isn't a better time. Feel of fresh strings under the fingers. Anyway, for interested peeps, this is the sound of Evolution neck coupled with a Basswood body. This is recorded with Ibanez Floral RG550 "紅花姫(Benihanahime)" . Once again, pardon the sloppy playing.

Ibanez Floral RG550 "紅花姫(Benihanahime)"

"紅花姫(Benihanahime)" is one of my biggest project that I have even attempted on. When I first bought this guitar, it was in total unplayable condition. I got this guitar, thinking it was a great deal and already having ideas on what to do with it, I bought the guitar home from this Grandpa rocker. The guitar originally came badly repainted (Think ordinary rattle can spray over existing finish with dings) in metallic red. I wanted another Floral guitar and so, in my mind, I was thinking of making this into a Red Floral project. My main decision in buying the guitar was due to the fact that I've always wanted a square heel block neck join Ibanez, the original Wizard neck and the Original Edge bridge. Those are the specs for some of my favorite guitars.

After bringing the guitar back home, I began sanding the guitar and quickly realized that rattle can spray paints that was applied too thick a layer cannot be sanded at all. So I proceed in using the paint stripper (a process which I actually hate as it stings the skin) to strip off the paint.

Next, I had to apply the material finish on the guitar, which was a piece of cloth with Japanese prints. I am a fan of Japanese floral designs which explains the main reason of me choosing this. So there I begin again, with my DIY bug getting the better of me with the drive to create a RG550 unique only to myself. Behold!

As I already had experience with floral finish on my previous "Frankenstein", this project was suppose to be somewhat simpler to do, or so I thought. I did the mistake of spraying over existing nitrocellulose based clear with acrylic based clear. So what happened was that the clear coat immediately shriveled up. So, I had to remove the existing finish and the material and start from step one again.

Meanwhile, I've also decided that I wanted some "Vine of life" inlay with matching headstock. I went ahead and got myself some Dotbuster abalone inlay sticker and clear coated over the fretboard with Matt finish lacquer. I figured that since it is a maple fretboard, I probably won't need to maintain it with oil and such. Coincidentally, the existing finish on the maple fretboard has been played till the point of the lacquer wearing out. So the neck was crying out for a refinish. Since I had extra of the cloth that I used for the body, I proceed in refinishing the headstock with the material. To keep it Ibanez, I added a chrome Ibanez decal over the finish.

After all the hardwork, the guitar is finally finished. Although the main horror of it is to realize that the neck actually needed shimming and after shimming, I had to file down the upper frets just to prevent the notes choking.

I took out the existing Dimarzio Evolutions from my "Frankenstein" and fitted them into a mirror red pickguard, installing it onto the guitar. This guitar also has a push pull coil tab knob for single coil tones. This gives the guitar both versatility and lots of tonal variation. Evolutions although mid bass dominant and hot, actually sings beautifully coupled with the Basswood body.

The original Super Wizard neck measures 17mm on the first fret and 19mm on the 12th fret with a flat radius of 430mm. This thin profile coupled with the flat radius makes playing really effortless. Due to the fret leveling, the guitar is also able to achieve the super sick low action or 1mm on the 12th fret, which I highly desire for all my guitars. This ensures that the player only need to touch while fretting, instead of spending effort to fret.

The guitar got it's name from the fact that it is a Red Floral RG550. "紅花姫(Benihanahime)" just simply means "Red Flower Princess" in Japanese. All and all, I am pretty satisfied with the end product of the guitar, even though it is not as perfect as I would have hoped. The feel of the guitar however is great, especially for a 20+ year old guitar.

Ibanez Floral RG550 "紅花姫(Benihanahime)" Specs neck type: 3pc Made in Japan Original Wizard neck fingerboard: Maple with "Vine of life" decal inlays body: Basswood with Floral Material finish. fret: Jumbo frets bridge: Ibanez Original Edge Bridge neck pu: Dimazio Evolution Neck middle pu: Dimarzio FS-1 bridge pu: Dimazio Evolution Bridge Neck Specs Scale: 648mm/25.5" a : Width at Nut 43mm b : Width at Last Fret 56mm c: Thickness at 1st 17mm d : Thickness at 12th 19mm Radius: 430mmR

Dimarzio Evolution Neck
Benihanahime neo classical by Adrian Goh

Dimarzio Evolution Bridge
Benihanahime Over the hills and far away by Adrian Goh

Dimarzio Evolution Neck Clean
Benihanahime F caruli Etude in C Major by Adrian Goh

Dragonfire screamers

I've finally got around to swapping out my stock Ibanez V1 and V2 pickups to try the Dragonfire screamers. On first try, they are actually pretty decent pickups for it's price.

These pick ups were tested out with a Marshall Mini Stack using only Amp distortion with max gain, all EQ set at flat. I put them into my Frankenstein and it seems to handle the Mahogany body pretty well. Starting with the neck pickup, which is to me my most important pickup of all position, even at max gain, the pickups still retains the clarity I need when doing fast runs. The pickups also has a thick and fat bottom end spectrum that doesn't mud out even at max gain. The pickup also has a very nice after tone to it, responding well to picking. Most important of all, it has that warmth to it, making it very pleasant to the ear.

The bridge pick up, even though at the bright side, has a lot of crunch and bite to it. Again, it doesn't mud out with max gain while retaining that clarity when doing rhythm work. Similar to the Dimarzio Evolutions that I so love, overwound at 16.9k it also has tons of harmonic overtones, making pinch harmonics really easy. If you are a fan of Steve Vai or Joe Satriani's Squeeling, these pick ups are really easy for that kind of stuff.

All and all, these pickups are really hot. Lots of dynamics. Another plus point of these pickups is, the pick ups come in 5 connectors and you can choose to coil split the pickup if you want to.

I've also did a unfair comparison to the Dimarzio Evolutions, which are fitted in my RG550, a basswood guitar. Even comparing to a Mid Bass dominant wood with Mid bass overdose pick ups, the Dragonfire Screamers are a tad too bassy and less clear compared to the Evolutions. However, at the price that they are going for, they are worth every cent. I would definitely recommend it to anyone out there who wishes to swap out that crap stock pickup for something nicer to the ear.

Customed California Squier "Malmsteen"

Customed California Squier "Malmsteen" is the first guitar that is extensively modded and customized by me. It started out as an ordinary Californian Squier which I've bought while browsing in a second hand guitar store. I wanted a scalloped guitar similar to the one Yngwie Malmsteen uses, to practice my light touch fretting technique. Just so happened that I walked into the shop and found this 21 frets Squier (Made in China) that is cream in color, selling for pretty cheap. I also saw that the neck has some hints of birdseye maple grain and thinking that I should have a go in scalloping, I bought the guitar home.

After bringing it back home, I immediately bought some half round file, wood rasp, some sand paper and armed with guts started scalloping the guitar. Scalloping the guitar wasn't honestly hard, just takes a lot of work to get it there. After scalloping the fretboard, I oiled the fretboard with Tung oil for that smooth finish and proceed to setup the guitar again.

The neck warped at first, which was expected after a full deep scallop but what I never expect was to find the first 5 frets buzzing all over. So, what I realized was that they didn't QC the neck properly and to solve the neck buzz issue, the factory merely bow the neck. I proceed to do fret leveling for the guitar, getting rid of all the buzz.

What Is a Malmsteen guitar, if the nut isn't brass right? So I went ahead and bought myself a Brass Nut and cut it myself. The Brass Nut replacement went well and the open strings was noticeably brighter. I also ordered in a set of Malmsteen pick ups (Dimarzio HS4 x2, HS3) and got them installed into the guitar (Yngwie had to swtich camp over to Seymour Duncan after I build this but nonetheless, I do prefer his tone from his old albums). The Electronic parts were then replaced to Gotoh and as per all my guitars, Orange Drop and Treble Bleed Mod.

Shortly after, I acquired an old made in Mexico Fender Stratocaster Alder body. I immediately did a swap over to the new body, while at the same time changing the bridge to a Wilkinson bridge (big steel block). The only problem with the bridge was since it's alignment was made for US neck, the neck alignment was slightly off. But that didnt post too much of a problem. I've also taken the liberty to change the pickguard to limegreen, something closer to Yngwie's guitar.

The guitar was excellent, good acoustics and all but there was something that was still missing for me. I realized that it was the action of the guitar. I couldn't get it to set to really low action, which was what I prefer. So once again, I filed down the frets, making it compound radius. This ensured that I could set it to ridiculous action without the notes choking all over. This made the guitar very playable and feels nothing like a Squier. The slight mis-alignment of the bridge has also been solved after I replaced the bridge with a custom bridge made by Dragon-fire. It also sports a solid steel block, with the exception of the bridge fitting into Mexican or Asian made Strats. The Headstock has also been sand off and replaced with a Fender decal and for the fun of it, I've signed it "Adrian Malmsteen". Technically, the only thing left from the Squier brand is the neck, but nonetheless, it is undeniably a good guitar with good tone.

This guitar is named "Malmsteen" as originally, I thought it would be funny to have a Yngwie Malmsteen like guitar, in the form of a Squier. My DIY bug got the better of me and I just went on and on modifying it, with each step making it closer to a guitar worth over $1000. This guitar remains one of the guitars that I play extensively up till date.

Customed California Squier "Malmsteen"" Specs neck type: 2pc Maple neck with Skunk stripe fingerboard:Scalloped Maple with dot inlay and Graphtech String Saver String Tree body: Alder fret: Medium Jumbo frets bridge: Custom Vintage Tremolo with Soild Steel Block and Graphtech Classics saddles neck pu: Dimazio HS-4 middle pu: Dimazio HS-4 bridge pu: Dimazio HS-3 Neck Specs Scale: 648mm/25.5" Width at Nut 40.8mm C Shape profile neck Radius: 241mmR

Dimarzio HS-4 (Neck pickup)
Malmsteen neo classical by Adrian Goh

Dimarzio HS-3 (bridge pickup)
Malmsteen Over the hills and far away by Adrian Goh

Dimarzio HS-4 (neck pickup) clean
Girl from Ipanema Malmsteen by Adrian Goh

Ibanez Custom Jem 570 "紫心姫(Shishinhime)"

"紫心姫(Shishinhime)" started out as an Ibanez RG570SA which I've gotten for myself during my trip to Oklahoma USA. I bought this from Ebay and had it shipped over to my hostel in Oklahoma. I wanted an all original RG with super Wizard neck and Original Edge tremolo at that point of time.

I took the liberty of ordering a set of Dimarzio Evolutions while I was there, and had them fitted in once I was back in Singapore. There are no better place to buy Dimarzios. The guitar electronic parts were in bad shape and had to be given a total overhaul. All electronic parts are being changed into Gotoh while Orange drop and treble bleed mod is being added, as per all my other guitars. The guitar later went on being the same way for the next 2 years, without major change or whatsoever.

Recently, there is this seller on Ebay who was clearing his store of all the OEM Jem bodies that he has ever made. One of them is this one featured in the photo. It's made of Alder, Flame Maple and Purple heart. Now, how rare is that? Without second thoughts, I bought it and gave it 4 coats of Tru-Oil finish, bring out the luster of the wood. Unfortunately, the Purple heart, which was purple when it arrived has oxidized and faded to a dark brown shape with a hint of purple. Nonetheless, the body still looks awesome.







The good thing about the OEM Jem body is that it doesn't require me to dowel and redrill the neck. It actually fits like a glove. However, the things that I had to do was to sand down the router marks and fill up the wood chips with the wood dust i acquire from drilling the tremolo claw and stud holes. Especially those caused by routing.

This unique combination of wood gave the guitar a tone that is high on the treble side yet, thanks to the alder wings, it gives off tight and deep lows. This balance out the reflective harshness of the 2 hardwood, maple and purpleheart. Evolutions also sings beautifully with this body as it retains the warmth of the neck and the hotness of the bridge while at the same time being balanced out by the tone wood of the body, making it sound less muffed up compared to basswood.

The neck measures 17mm on the first fret and 19mm on the 12th fret with a flat radius of 430mm and sports a Bulbinga stripe which acts as a separate hardwood to counteracts the neck tension, therefore making it more resistance to neck warping. The thin profile of this guitar coupled with the flat radius of the fretboard makes this guitar a shredder's dream. The action is set to 1mm on the 12 fret giving players the lightest touch possible next to a scalloped neck. Due to the flat radius, players are also able to do high note bending effortlessly without choking the notes halfway.

This guitar got it's name from the purple heart body it sports. "紫心姫(Shishinhime)"means "Purple Heart Princess" in Japanese. As purple heart is a rare timber being used for guitar building, it seem that this would be the only fitting name for the guitar.

Ibanez Custom Jem 570 "紫心姫(Shishinhime)" Specs neck type: 3pc Made in Japan Super Wizard neck with Bulbinga Stipe fingerboard: Rosewood with dot inlay body: Alder, Maple and Purple heart with Hand Rubbed Oil Finish fret: Jumbo frets bridge: Ibanez Original Edge Bridge neck pu: Dimazio Evolution Neck bridge pu: Dimazio Evolution Bridge Neck Specs Scale: 648mm/25.5" a : Width at Nut 43mm b : Width at Last Fret 54mm c: Thickness at 1st 17mm d : Thickness at 12th 19mm Radius: 430mmR

Ibanez RG520EXQS "青鮫牙(Aosamega)"

"青鮫牙(Aosamega)" started out as a RG570EX neck I purchased from a guy who got it from Tom Lee music Hong Kong. Apparently, Tom Lee was selling Ibanez necks. I had a chance to try out an old RG550 and was deeply addicted to the super thin profile of the original wizard neck. At that time, I just bought Aohimaru "青火丸" and decided to just swap the neck over.



After swapping the neck over for a short while, I decided that I actually like the profile of the Made in Japan Wizard II neck and would prefer to keep the guitar as it is. I proceed in switching Aohimaru "青火丸" back to what it was, reinstalling the original neck.

I began hunting all over Ebay for a MIJ RG body and I happened to chanced upon a silver RG520 Body which was supposedly a RG520QS body, made of mahogany. I haven't own a mahogany bodied guitar up till that point and decided to try it anyway, considering that how rare it is at that time to get a Mahogany bodied RG.

I took a gamble, bought it and sanded it down. True enough, it was really a RG520QS, with that Quilted Salepe Veneer. I was astonished. This body later went on to house Ibanez RG(5)270DX "Frankenstein" . The body and neck has a colour mismatch but all is good for the time being. The guitar was then fitted with Dimarzio Evolutions (Since they are my all time favourite Pick ups). Surprising enough, the Evolution paired up nicely with the Mahogany. The warmth and the Treble of the Mahogany body paired up evenly with the Mid bass overdose of the Evolutions.

Recently, I've been surfing around for another guitar body to match up the color of the neck and eventually found a RG520QS that is in blue. The quilt on this body isn't as nice and more subtle but nonetheless, I wanted to retain the mahogany tone within this guitar. I went ahead and bought the guitar, transferred everything over and hence, "青鮫牙(Aosamega)" was born.

As all the parts used to construct this guitar are made in Japan parts, it is technically a made in Japan Guitar. Japanese craftsmanship is still evident in this guitar, in terms of the wood routed, painted and precision. The neck is actually an Ibanez Super Wizard Neck, the thinnest neck Ibanez has ever made and I would believe the thinnest among all electric guitars.

The neck measures 17mm on the first fret and 19mm on the 12th fret with a flat radius of 430mm. There was once, to my horror, I found lacquering flaking off the neck. I am pretty particular on stuff like that and I decided to just sand off everything, and refinished to my favourite neck finish. Hand rubbed oil finish. The neck has aged to a golden hue thus far but nonetheless, baby butt smooth. My favourite part about the Super Wizards is that it also sports a Bulbinga stripe at the back and not because of cosmetic reason. The Bulbinga stripe acts as a separate hardwood that counteracts the neck tension, therefore making it more resistance to neck warping.

This guitar got it's name "青鮫牙(Aosamega)" from the way it looks. "青鮫牙(Aosamega)" means Blue Shark Fang in Japanese. RG570EX necks are fitted with mirror shark tooth inlays and since the color of the guitar is blue , I decided to just call it Blue Shark Fang. In addition to the Evolutions, the guitar is also equipped with the Orange Drop and Treble Bleed mod.





Ibanez RG520EXQS "青鮫牙(Aosamega)" Specs
neck type: 3pc Made in Japan Super Wizard neck with Bulbinga Stipe
fingerboard: Rosewood with dot inlay
body: Transparent blue Mahogany body with Quilt Salepe Veneer
fret: Jumbo frets
bridge: Ibanez Original Edge Bridge
neck pu: Dimazio Evolution Neck
bridge pu: Dimazio Evolution Bridge

Neck Specs
Scale: 648mm/25.5"
a : Width at Nut 43mm
b : Width at Last Fret 54mm
c: Thickness at 1st 17mm
d : Thickness at 12th 19mm
Radius: 430mmR

Ibanez RG470FM "青火丸(Aohimaru)"

This is the first Made in Japan Ibanez that I have gotten myself in 2007. It is a made in 2003 RG470FM, the only year produced that is equipped with an Edge Pro, and a domestic model at that. I figured that at that point of time, I wanted something better and there happened to be a sale at Swee Lee (A local music store). So I went down and took a look, actually wanting a prestige in mind, but end up picking this up for way less than the price of a prestige.

After picking up this piece, there are a few immediate difference which i noticed compared to the previous RG I have. The neck feels a lot more comfortable and the locking nut, is actually top mounted, instead of the usual back mounting. That actually surprised me a bit as I was expecting a back mounting locking nut. Not that it makes that much of a difference.

The neck really measures 19mm on the first fret and 21mm on the 21st fret with a comfortable radius of 430mm. I am astonished by the precision of a Japanese made guitar at that time which gave me the conclusion that, usually putting branding aside, the more you invest in a guitar, it's actually the workmanship that one is paying extra for. It was first hand witnessing Japanese Craftmanship.

The Guitar spots a Basswood body, which sings out really nice, allowing the pick ups to shine really well. The Edge Pro bridge, which comes only in this particular year of RG470 is really stable and allows a really low profile with nice pulling up action. As per all my guitars, I like my 12th fret action to be set at 1mm, meaning very low action for that fast fretwork.

The best part was, it spots a Flame maple top and in the shade of Transparent blue, my favourite colour to boot (Although now I've leaned towards oiled finishes)! The only thing that I hate about the guitar, is the stock pick ups (Ibanez V7, S1, V8). So I did the usual thing that I do with all my guitars. PICK UP SWAP! I ordered a set of Evolutions from Musician's Friend and got it swapped in. In addition to that, I had Orange Drop and treble bleed mod installed.

Why is this guitar called "青火丸(Aohimaru)" which means the Circle of Blue Fire in Japanese. It's a pretty obvious answer actually, it's blue and it has flame maple top. Circle in this case just means perfection.

Ibanez RG470FM SP "青火丸(Aohimaru)" Specs neck type: 3pc Made in Japan Wizard II neck fingerboard: Rosewood with dot inlay body: Transparent blue Basswood body with Flame Maple Veneer fret: Jumbo frets bridge: Ibanez Edge Pro Bridge neck pu: Dimazio Evolution Neck middle pu: Dimazio Evolution Single bridge pu: Dimazio Evolution Bridge Neck Specs Scale: 648mm/25.5" a : Width at Nut 43mm b : Width at Last Fret 54mm c: Thickness at 1st 19mm d : Thickness at 12th 21mm Radius: 400mmR