DoronEsh
New member
As promised ...
1. Max Guitars in Den Haag (http://www.maxguitarstore.com).
These guys have a very good collection of guitars, amps and effects. I was especially impressed with their collection of Gibsons. The guys at the store were helpful, but in a cordial way. They might have freaked out when I came into the store with 3 of my kids, who started jumping all over the pick stand (plectrums, as they call it), only 30 minutes before (the Dutch sacred) closing time. It payed off for them, though, as I did buy an SG3. After it was all over an payed for, they opened up a little, and even gave me a smile and a Max Guitars T-shirt asking me to send them a picture of me playing that guitar wearing that shirt in the Holy Land.
I played here the afore-mentioned SG3 Faded, a Gibson SG std and a white Epi G-400 Les Paul Custom SG Guitar Maestro Electric Guitar. No need to discuss the SG3 and the SG, as the first is discussed in another thread (and the fact that I bought it means I liked it, don't it?), and the other one's a classic. The Epi, however, is a different story. Although it has the looks to kill, a golden girl charm, and a maestro, it just didn't do it for me. With too much paint on the wood, it felt like plastic, especially after playing that faded one. It sounded great, just like an SG should, but we didn't click.
All-in-all, Max's a good place to hang out and play, and they have great guitars and good prices. Look out for VAT refund, though. If you're not from the EU, you should buy things without paying VAT and local taxes (19% !). Getting your money back is a hustle. You need a special form and Max's don't have these. I'm still negotiating a direct refund from the store. I'll keep you posted if anything happens.
2. Dijkman in Amsterdam (https://www.dijkmanmuziek.nl) is another thing. These guys have 2 stores in Amsterdam and 2 in Alkmaar. I visited the store in Amsterdam. They have at least 3 stories of guitars lined from wall to wall, amps filling up the space between them. To get the guitar you want to check out you sometimes have to move 3 or 4 just so you can reach it. Here I was less focused than at Max's, as my GAS was already gone. I played, among others, the Epi LP Ultra II, Italia Mondial, Tele 72 dlx, and Epi blond Casino.
The piezo-mag battle between the Epi II and the Mondial was won by the latter. They are both great guitars that look and sound fantastic. The Epi played well, had all the looks, and if you only got one guitar to buy, it just might be it, as it is a very versatile guitar. But as far as emulating acoustic sounds goes, the Mondial piezo does the job much better than the Epi II's nano-mag. It is also much open to after-market upgrades, and will probably communicate better with a sound-enhancing system like the Mama Bear. The Mondial has the looks that say "This one's special" and the sound to back this statement up. I even liked the light blue color. I would still refrain from buying this guitar, but due to my own defects, and none of the guitar's. I tend to scratch and break things. The Blues Hawk in my avatar got dented the first week I had it and is still missing some of its paint because I tend to smash it into things. The Mondial's acousti-glass top is too thin for me and has sharp edges that cry "Please break me, DoDo..". I think I might prefer the Mondial II's maple-over-mahogany burst combo and might look it up later on when I'll visit an Italia-selling country, as they are not sold down here.
The Tele just reassured me that fenders aren't my type. I liked its sound, but (surprisingly) its neck was way too thick and rounded for me, and I do have big hands. Maybe it's because I started playing classic as a teenager and still tend to place my thumb behind the neck and not over it.
Then my girl Hagar asked me if she could play a semi-hollow. I picked one up and gave it to her, and then played it myself. It turned out to be a hollowbody Epi blond Casino. Well, if I hadn't have already bought that SG, I would've bought this one on the spot. Do you remember the first time you ate butterscotch fudge candy as a kid, that yellow-round-sweet taste in your mouth? Well, the Epi Casino sounds just like that and more. Plus, when you play, the hair on your hand stands because the sound just spills out of those f-holes like vanilla flavored icing on a cake. You just have to touch those strings and the blues rolls out of you and enters the souls of anybody listening to you. So Sweet !! Great guitar.
So, when in Amsterdam (Holland), you should really consider popping into Dijkman's.
Following are some pics of the Epi Sg, Epi LP Ultra II, Epi Blond Casino, Fender Tele 72 DLX and the Italia Mondial Classic and II
SO,
Have fun and don't forget: you're on vacation because you feel like having fun, and nothing beats a visit to a guitar store.
DoDo
1. Max Guitars in Den Haag (http://www.maxguitarstore.com).
These guys have a very good collection of guitars, amps and effects. I was especially impressed with their collection of Gibsons. The guys at the store were helpful, but in a cordial way. They might have freaked out when I came into the store with 3 of my kids, who started jumping all over the pick stand (plectrums, as they call it), only 30 minutes before (the Dutch sacred) closing time. It payed off for them, though, as I did buy an SG3. After it was all over an payed for, they opened up a little, and even gave me a smile and a Max Guitars T-shirt asking me to send them a picture of me playing that guitar wearing that shirt in the Holy Land.
I played here the afore-mentioned SG3 Faded, a Gibson SG std and a white Epi G-400 Les Paul Custom SG Guitar Maestro Electric Guitar. No need to discuss the SG3 and the SG, as the first is discussed in another thread (and the fact that I bought it means I liked it, don't it?), and the other one's a classic. The Epi, however, is a different story. Although it has the looks to kill, a golden girl charm, and a maestro, it just didn't do it for me. With too much paint on the wood, it felt like plastic, especially after playing that faded one. It sounded great, just like an SG should, but we didn't click.
All-in-all, Max's a good place to hang out and play, and they have great guitars and good prices. Look out for VAT refund, though. If you're not from the EU, you should buy things without paying VAT and local taxes (19% !). Getting your money back is a hustle. You need a special form and Max's don't have these. I'm still negotiating a direct refund from the store. I'll keep you posted if anything happens.
2. Dijkman in Amsterdam (https://www.dijkmanmuziek.nl) is another thing. These guys have 2 stores in Amsterdam and 2 in Alkmaar. I visited the store in Amsterdam. They have at least 3 stories of guitars lined from wall to wall, amps filling up the space between them. To get the guitar you want to check out you sometimes have to move 3 or 4 just so you can reach it. Here I was less focused than at Max's, as my GAS was already gone. I played, among others, the Epi LP Ultra II, Italia Mondial, Tele 72 dlx, and Epi blond Casino.
The piezo-mag battle between the Epi II and the Mondial was won by the latter. They are both great guitars that look and sound fantastic. The Epi played well, had all the looks, and if you only got one guitar to buy, it just might be it, as it is a very versatile guitar. But as far as emulating acoustic sounds goes, the Mondial piezo does the job much better than the Epi II's nano-mag. It is also much open to after-market upgrades, and will probably communicate better with a sound-enhancing system like the Mama Bear. The Mondial has the looks that say "This one's special" and the sound to back this statement up. I even liked the light blue color. I would still refrain from buying this guitar, but due to my own defects, and none of the guitar's. I tend to scratch and break things. The Blues Hawk in my avatar got dented the first week I had it and is still missing some of its paint because I tend to smash it into things. The Mondial's acousti-glass top is too thin for me and has sharp edges that cry "Please break me, DoDo..". I think I might prefer the Mondial II's maple-over-mahogany burst combo and might look it up later on when I'll visit an Italia-selling country, as they are not sold down here.
The Tele just reassured me that fenders aren't my type. I liked its sound, but (surprisingly) its neck was way too thick and rounded for me, and I do have big hands. Maybe it's because I started playing classic as a teenager and still tend to place my thumb behind the neck and not over it.
Then my girl Hagar asked me if she could play a semi-hollow. I picked one up and gave it to her, and then played it myself. It turned out to be a hollowbody Epi blond Casino. Well, if I hadn't have already bought that SG, I would've bought this one on the spot. Do you remember the first time you ate butterscotch fudge candy as a kid, that yellow-round-sweet taste in your mouth? Well, the Epi Casino sounds just like that and more. Plus, when you play, the hair on your hand stands because the sound just spills out of those f-holes like vanilla flavored icing on a cake. You just have to touch those strings and the blues rolls out of you and enters the souls of anybody listening to you. So Sweet !! Great guitar.
So, when in Amsterdam (Holland), you should really consider popping into Dijkman's.
Following are some pics of the Epi Sg, Epi LP Ultra II, Epi Blond Casino, Fender Tele 72 DLX and the Italia Mondial Classic and II
SO,
Have fun and don't forget: you're on vacation because you feel like having fun, and nothing beats a visit to a guitar store.
DoDo
