Explorers vs. Soloists on the used market right now

[Inflames626]

What you really want is a Dean ML, without the Dean headstock. All those are ML knock offs.

If you could get over your dislike of the Dean headstock you would have access to many more guitars.

I like the Dean headstock on that kind of guitar fwiw.

I would say I prefer a smaller star shape, like a 1980s Ibanez Destroyer.

The MLs have points of equal lengths if I recall, like a King V. I prefer the offset, like an RR.

Additionally, I don't want rounded points but something like the Washburn ML style points or LTD style points.

It isn't hard. Kramer was making the Voyager 40 years ago. Just shorten the horns, narrow the gap between the lower rear horns, and make it more compact.

Again, tastes are just boring right now because of inflation, so they keep cranking out Strats and LPs they know will sell.

This doesn't bother me with the Boomer Bonamassa crowd.

It bothers me with the new generation of metal players who are easily satisfied with very conventional and underwhelming guitars.

I feel they want to chug power chords and not really do anything else (Ryan "Fluff" Bruce comes to mind). That is when they aren't djenting.

Domestic guitars now are, unlike, say, the Japanese guitar market of the 1980s where all sorts of risks were taken and cool stuff was being made.

I've nearly resigned myself to having to import a guitar made for the Japanese market because American companies are just not putting out the aggressive looking, fully featured designs I want.

For my money the original Voyager is cooler than any ML will ever be.

Steffan Kummerer's older Ran guitar (now made by ESP) is another cool change. Could do without the can opener headstock. Triangle is fine. It's really just a tweaked remake of a Hondo death dagger from the 1980s.

Again, to me, way cooler than an ML.

This works too, but with a Floyd. A star is just a Rhoads V on bottom and Explorer on top. Not difficult to make, especially with CnC machines, but you'd think they sculpt them by hand for how rarely they are offered and how much they cost relative to Strats and LPs. Just make it a bit sleek, pull the horns in, make them true points and not rounded. Jack on the bottom. No 90 degree jacks for me due to breakage.

Shorten the bottom right horn on this Washburn ML and you're in the park. And paint it gloss black.

 

[80's_Thrash_Metal]

Sometimes you can find a used Charvel desolation star FR for reasonable, they play pretty solid.

 

[Inflames626]

Sometimes you can find a used Charvel desolation star FR for reasonable, they play pretty solid.

Love the Desolation Stars. That was a good line for the price. Don't see much comparative to it now in terms of value. A lot of those were mahogany, neck thru, Floyd Rose 1000s, Blackouts.

 

[solspirit]

I would say I prefer a smaller star shape, like a 1980s Ibanez Destroyer.

The MLs have points of equal lengths if I recall, like a King V. I prefer the offset, like an RR.

Additionally, I don't want rounded points but something like the Washburn ML style points or LTD style points.

It isn't hard. Kramer was making the Voyager 40 years ago. Just shorten the horns, narrow the gap between the lower rear horns, and make it more compact.

Again, tastes are just boring right now because of inflation, so they keep cranking out Strats and LPs they know will sell.

This doesn't bother me with the Boomer Bonamassa crowd.

It bothers me with the new generation of metal players who are easily satisfied with very conventional and underwhelming guitars.

I feel they want to chug power chords and not really do anything else (Ryan "Fluff" Bruce comes to mind). That is when they aren't djenting.

Domestic guitars now are, unlike, say, the Japanese guitar market of the 1980s where all sorts of risks were taken and cool stuff was being made.

I've nearly resigned myself to having to import a guitar made for the Japanese market because American companies are just not putting out the aggressive looking, fully featured designs I want.

For my money the original Voyager is cooler than any ML will ever be.

Steffan Kummerer's older Ran guitar (now made by ESP) is another cool change. Could do without the can opener headstock. Triangle is fine. It's really just a tweaked remake of a Hondo death dagger from the 1980s.

Again, to me, way cooler than an ML.

This works too, but with a Floyd. A star is just a Rhoads V on bottom and Explorer on top. Not difficult to make, especially with CnC machines, but you'd think they sculpt them by hand for how rarely they are offered and how much they cost relative to Strats and LPs. Just make it a bit sleek, pull the horns in, make them true points and not rounded. Jack on the bottom. No 90 degree jacks for me due to breakage.

Shorten the bottom right horn on this Washburn ML and you're in the park. And paint it gloss black.

Now why didn't they put strat style Jack's on the lower horn?

 

[Phantasmagoria]

I hate Star's and V w/ rounded edges (and V's that are'nt asymmetrical) . Would'nt touch them. Either go the whole hog or don't bother ....they got thing's right in the 80's

 

[Inflames626]

Now why didn't they put strat style Jack's on the lower horn?

I've seen V's with jacks both on the upper and lower horn. Some people seem to like them up high and tucked away so they aren't in the way as much when walking.

I would only like a front jack if I had a 90 degree cable. I wouldn't want a regular straight plug into that because one hard pull down on it if you step on it while walking and something is going to break.

Additionally, I like all controls fairly close together to minimize wire runs. As cool as a 3 way toggle looks on a front horn, I hate running the wires behind the pickups. I like all the pots and toggles close together.

In that orange Washburn above you could group the volumes, tone, and toggle in a diamond shape like a Les Paul on a shorter lower horn. They'd be close together but it would work.

For a rear upper horn jack you'd have to run everything back behind the bridge pickup. No thanks.

I'd put the jack on the bottom edge of the lower right horn.

 

[Inflames626]

Grassroots star for the Japanese market.

Reverse the headstock and lose the cheesy inlays and this is very close to what I have in mind.

I'd still tuck the rear horns in a bit for a narrower V, shorten all the horns overall, and make them smaller, but I would love to see more of these.

 

[Mincer]

All of these pointies hurt my soul. :headbang: