Masta' C
Well-known member
Because no one wants to talk about the new Helix Stadium and Gibson hasn't revealed what horrible design they're resurrecting this year...
How Are We Not Talking About This?
- Thread starter Masta' C
- Start date
Because no one wants to talk about the new Helix Stadium and Gibson hasn't revealed what horrible design they're resurrecting this year...
I work with literally hundreds of Fishman-loaded guitars a year. I promise you, if the USB port battery or a 9V runs out while unplugged, there is a problem inside.
The issue I have with this guitar is that is finds solutions for problems but in the most ungodly fashion. There are nicer, better ways of fixing what Herman Li wanted (like that jack situation). And then, seriously, it's just a PRS Custom 24 HSH floyd rose setup with a nice top and matte finish. Its pricing is ridiculous. The inlay is neat, but is that worth 2000 (just spitballing a price here). Hell no. To mill a board to accept this inlay is at most 2 hours especially since PRS doesn't do binding or blind fret slots on this guitar, and the inlay will cost at most 200 from a company who specializes in MOP cutting. I know, I make these purchases constantly for a living. And then imagine you have to mill the same inlay a few hundred times. That cuts down cost fast. Real fast. So that board alone should not cost more than 350 to 400 USD including labor.
Then the pickups. OEM Fishmans are very, very cheap. The 3 pickups and USB port will cost, OEM, 200 USD. The floyd unit costs OEM 150 USD.
So where does the cost come from? The top costs 150, the body 100, the neck also 100 at most. So we're talking about 1100 to 1500 dollars worth of parts, materials, etc. It takes approx 40 hours to make a guitar like this (I am talking from experience), so even if the labor is 100USD/Hour, that's 4000+1500=5500USD, plus a few overhead costs. This should not be over 6000 by any stretch of the imagination.
Then the pickups. OEM Fishmans are very, very cheap. The 3 pickups and USB port will cost, OEM, 200 USD. The floyd unit costs OEM 150 USD.
So where does the cost come from? The top costs 150, the body 100, the neck also 100 at most. So we're talking about 1100 to 1500 dollars worth of parts, materials, etc. It takes approx 40 hours to make a guitar like this (I am talking from experience), so even if the labor is 100USD/Hour, that's 4000+1500=5500USD, plus a few overhead costs. This should not be over 6000 by any stretch of the imagination.
Maybe Herman and Paul wanted more money each for this thing.
Chistopher
malapterurus electricus tonewood instigator
https://www.gibson.com/en-US/p/Elec...c-City-Special-50th-Anniversary/Tobacco-Burst
Is this enough to hold over your Gibson schadenfreude for a while?
80's_Metal
Underglazed Hair Metalologist
That certainly is some design.... Not a fan.
Maybe the problem was the battery itself. The wiring was fine. I spoke with them on the phone about it while I was installing it, even. To be clear, the battery didn't run out; it ran down. I would charge it when I was done using it and then put it to the side for a few days or even a couple weeks while playing other instruments. When I went back to it, it ran out hours quicker than it should have with a full charge.
If you're saying that you work with hundreds of guitars with these batteries, and you can charge them up to full, leave them to the side or put them in a case, and they hold that full charge indefinitely, I believe you, but that's not how mine worked. I was happy to get rid of it. If I was going back to actives and wanted something rechargeable, like I think I said before, I'd much rather have a few rechargeable 9Vs and swap them in when they got low. Waiting to recharge the whole guitar is a non-starter for me.
Masta' C
Well-known member
Rex_Rocker
Well-known member
Chistopher
malapterurus electricus tonewood instigator
$1700
I always liked the Sabres, although I never heard one that I like the sound of. They are very comfortable to play, though.
GuitarStv
Sock Market Trader
Rex_Rocker
Well-known member
I used to have an S470 madey by Cort. It didn't sound bad to me? I didn't like the Wizard II neck at the time, but I'm sure a Prestige with a thinner neck would play nicer.
Every one I tried had this really bright edge that I couldn't dial out. No warmth at all, but I guess that isn't what they were designed for.
Rex_Rocker
Well-known member
Ah, mine wasn't particularly bright. It was well-balanced leaning towards warm. It's been a while, and I'm not gonna say it was the fattest guitar I've owned, but I've had way brighter guitars, even LP-shaped ones. I think that's exactly what they were designed for, though. Many Ibanezes are Basswood. They decided to make those out of Mahogany to offset the thin body. Not gonna say you're gonna get huge hollowbody super FAT tones out of those, but I think you've just had bad luck with the ones you've tried.
The good thing is they make them with fixed bridges now too. Back then, it was all trems.
Rex_Rocker
Well-known member
I don't dislike it, but at that time, I was comparing it to the Wizard Prestige, and the Wizard Prestige was the same kind of neck, just better. For my taste, of course. And I suppose for the Ibanez marketing department as well.
I don't think I've ever found a neck so uncomfortable that it gave me pain. I can play almost anything, I feel. But skinny and flat-ish necks are more my vibe.
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