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Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

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  • #16
    Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

    Grover Jackson once stated he chose basswood for the import Charvels because, in his years of experience, he found that heavier guitars sounded thinner, while lighter guitars had more warmth. You can always add treble via EQ or pickups or hardware choices, but it's harder to take it out of an axe that is so dense and heavy that it has nothing but treble and high-mids.

    The brass block is adding weight to the guitar, which will add treble, but along a specific EQ curve, and may result in the cancellation of certain frequencies, while doubling others.
    As well, the pot-metal JT-6 is not exactly a tone monster. What a great many people fail to understand about most Jackson imports, even though they note it frequently, is that they put more time, effort, and money into the things that cannot be changed: body, neck, fretwork - than the hardware and pickups. "Restoring" an old import Charvel/Jackson to "factory specs" is a considerable downgrade. The in-house pickups sucked, the bridges sucked (there's a distinct difference between the Schaller-made JT-590 with a Jackson logo and the actual Schaller-branded version of that bridge), and the electronics were the most basic you could get, and were intended merely to get you amplified and playing. You are supposed to upgrade the hardware and electronics. This is how they were able to compete with mass-producers like Hondo, Ibanez, Cort, and Yamaha at the time, and still put out a better chunk of wood.
    While they were cutting corners on the wood and overall craftsmanship to upgrade the hardware and electronics, C/J was doing the opposite, and that is what made them rise above the rest, moreso than the Randy Rhoads or other "hot shots" affiliations.

    Ditch the Jackson bridge, get a genuine Germany-made OFR or Schaller-logoed model with the stock steel block, put in a quality post and a Switchcraft toggle (the stock toggles are the worst ever, even today) and put the PATB 1, 2, or 3 in the bridge and a Lil59 in the neck, then set your EQ properly.

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    • #17
      Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

      ^That's nonsense. The real reason was basswood was and is abundant in Japan. That's why even today Fender Japans are generally basswood, teles and strats.

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      • #18
        Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

        Originally posted by Obsessive Compulsive View Post
        ^That's nonsense. The real reason was basswood was and is abundant in Japan. That's why even today Fender Japans are generally basswood, teles and strats.
        This actually makes more sense. It all comes down to cost, really.
        Administrator of the SDUGF

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        • #19
          Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

          Originally posted by Newcenstein View Post
          Grover Jackson once stated he chose basswood for the import Charvels because, in his years of experience, he found that heavier guitars sounded thinner, while lighter guitars had more warmth. You can always add treble via EQ or pickups or hardware choices, but it's harder to take it out of an axe that is so dense and heavy that it has nothing but treble and high-mids.

          The brass block is adding weight to the guitar, which will add treble, but along a specific EQ curve, and may result in the cancellation of certain frequencies, while doubling others.
          As well, the pot-metal JT-6 is not exactly a tone monster. What a great many people fail to understand about most Jackson imports, even though they note it frequently, is that they put more time, effort, and money into the things that cannot be changed: body, neck, fretwork - than the hardware and pickups. "Restoring" an old import Charvel/Jackson to "factory specs" is a considerable downgrade. The in-house pickups sucked, the bridges sucked (there's a distinct difference between the Schaller-made JT-590 with a Jackson logo and the actual Schaller-branded version of that bridge), and the electronics were the most basic you could get, and were intended merely to get you amplified and playing. You are supposed to upgrade the hardware and electronics. This is how they were able to compete with mass-producers like Hondo, Ibanez, Cort, and Yamaha at the time, and still put out a better chunk of wood.
          While they were cutting corners on the wood and overall craftsmanship to upgrade the hardware and electronics, C/J was doing the opposite, and that is what made them rise above the rest, moreso than the Randy Rhoads or other "hot shots" affiliations.

          Ditch the Jackson bridge, get a genuine Germany-made OFR or Schaller-logoed model with the stock steel block, put in a quality post and a Switchcraft toggle (the stock toggles are the worst ever, even today) and put the PATB 1, 2, or 3 in the bridge and a Lil59 in the neck, then set your EQ properly.


          Grover would know.
          You are wise in the wayz of Toan ...

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          • #20
            Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

            Originally posted by Obsessive Compulsive View Post
            ^That's nonsense. The real reason was basswood was and is abundant in Japan. That's why even today Fender Japans are generally basswood, teles and strats.


            Dewd, i had a 90's Korea Jackson made of poplar and it was a dawg and cost more than my 87' MIJ Charvel. What that guy posted is totally plausible.

            And current stocks of Japan Basswood are totally different than Basswood sourced in da 80's.

            Usually the more years that pass the wood stocks get crappier. Look and what Gibson is putting out.

            Fender Japan & Orville/Gibson were such good guitars they were putting Fender/Gibson Custom shop out of business back in the day.

            Thats why Fender moved the Mexico & Gibson/Epi moved to China.

            Ive seen current Epi China & Mexi-Charvels going for $1200-$1500 bucks. Absolutely ridiculous. Craigslist ads all across the USA are jammed with these bogus guitars with sellers asking absurd prices.
            Last edited by JMP/HBE; 01-08-2020, 08:39 AM.

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            • #21
              Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

              Originally posted by JMP/HBE View Post
              "Vai's #1 Jem is actually alder (The $3k model)."

              Depends on the year of JEM. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibanez_JEM the current made JEM's are alder made in Indonesia cuz i almost bought one but couldn't justify the cost because there is no resale value in a $2.2K Indonesian guitar.
              Yes, but his main one, and others he plays, are the JEM7VWH, which has been alder since it's introduction.

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              • #22
                Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                Originally posted by ErikH View Post
                Yes, but his main one, and others he plays, are the JEM7VWH, which has been alder since it's introduction.
                Vai's stuff is all custom made. Im sure he has about everything.

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                • #23
                  Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                  Originally posted by JMP/HBE View Post
                  Vai's stuff is all custom made. Im sure he has about everything.
                  Quite possibly but his white #1, named Evo, is alder for sure. He still uses that one today and has many like that one as backups. He's talked about Evo in his gear videos several times.

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                  • #24
                    Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                    Originally posted by ErikH View Post
                    Quite possibly but his white #1, named Evo, is alder for sure. He still uses that one today and has many like that one as backups. He's talked about Evo in his gear videos several times.




                    Ive been playing 40 years, im a Gibson guy. One guys Evo JEM is another guys Les Paul. I don't hear anything particularly earth shattering about "Evo" but i get it when it comes to playing favorites. Personally id take Vai's green meanie Charvel over any JEM for sure.
                    Ive been following Steve Vai way before his sig Ibanez.

                    The Green Meanie was Basswood on loan from Grover Jackson & never returned.



                    Eat em & smile was recorded 80% with the green charvel. Thats my favorite guitar & album by Steve. That just what i prefer because of the impact it had on me at the time. Mind blowing to say the least.

                    GM was destroyed as he ripped out the trem at MSG while gigging.
                    RIP GM.

                    Last edited by JMP/HBE; 01-08-2020, 02:56 PM.

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                    • #25
                      Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

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                      • #26
                        Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                        Yeah, that album is killer. I lean a little more towards Skyscraper when it comes to fav DLR era albums for him but my fav of his is still Passion and Warfare. I can still listen to that from start to finish and over again.

                        I've been playing over 30 years and mostly a Strat guy (with humbuckers) but I like a good Gibson too, and Deans. Love my ML.

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                        • #27
                          Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                          Nowdays everything is on youtube. In the beginning i had to figure out songs playing vinyl LP's & 45's, then 8 tracks, then cassettes. My drummer came to me one day with EE&S/DLR .... like i said "mind blowing" to try & decipher Vai by ear from cassettes. I like all his stuff including what you metioned and all his stuff with Tony McAlpine. Never met a Vai track i wasn't in awe of to be honest.

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                          • #28
                            Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                            Originally posted by JMP/HBE View Post
                            Nowdays everything is on youtube. In the beginning i had to figure out songs playing vinyl LP's & 45's, then 8 tracks, then cassettes. My drummer came to me one day with EE&S/DLR .... like i said "mind blowing" to try & decipher Vai by ear from cassettes. I like all his stuff including what you metioned and all his stuff with Tony McAlpine. Never met a Vai track i wasn't in awe of to be honest.
                            The good old days...LOL. I did a lot of the same, mostly from cassettes though by the time I started playing. I remember seeing the Yankee Rose video for the first time and thought, oh great, Dave is trying to create another Van Halen band...lol. It was neat seeing a local boy from where I grew up in the band (Billy Sheehan). His prior band, Talas, was making some big noise in the region.

                            I'm not a shredder like Vai by any means. Never tried to be. I don't think I've attempted to learn to play his stuff. I fell in to the VH camp and then with a little bit of that influence and some Frehley and a little bit of a few others (Clapton, Hendrix, Walsh, Lynch), my own style developed. If I can play a cover and capture the vibe regardless of being note for note, I'm happy. The vibe speaks more to me than being totally accurate. I still try to figure out stuff by listening and going back and forth. If anything, I look up the chords and go from there. A few I dig up what was actually played to see what was actually done.

                            Vai blows my brain. He makes it look so easy. The other that does that, though he can't play anymore but composes superbly, is Jason Becker. What a talent.

                            Talk about off-topic. LOL

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                            • #29
                              Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                              Basswood has "ass" included in the name.

                              It's science people.
                              “For me, when everything goes wrong – that’s when adventure starts.” Yvonne Chouinard

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                              • #30
                                Re: Basswood Charvels-cant get a decent tone

                                Originally posted by STLMTLHD79 View Post
                                Is there anything i could do to make these guitar sound less muddy? pots? caps?
                                Uh, what about frets?

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