Sirion
Well-known member
Okay, so I didn't buy these on the same day, but one led to the other, so I am posting them alongside each other.
Three weeks ago I ended up taking my chances on one of the new Kramers. As old-timers will know I love and have been known to collect old ones, but with a finite amount of time to spend on guitar I decided that I wanted to play rather than fiddle, and found that it would be nice to have a pseudo-beater guitar that I knew that I could rely on, but that I didn't have to be that careful with and that is likely to play without problem for a long time to come. So my attitude going in was that the audience is king. I could accept minor imperfections as long as I am the only one to notice, but no compomises were to be made regarding sound or playability.
As far as practical tools go, I think these are exactly what the doctor ordered. Of course they aren't as exquisite as the instruments ESP were making for Kramer 30-odd years ago, but as far as stage guitars go I maintain that there is no significant difference whatsoever between the classic guitars and these. They feel great and sound great. And, honestly speaking, they look great. Now, if you look it is obvious that the maple used in the necks isn't as nice as what was used in the originals, and there are minute imperfections in the graphic finishes, but they are small enough that you'd have to be an arse to complain about them: the audience will never notice.
Most important of all: the fret jobs are flawless, and there are no dead notes or dampened notes. The Floyd Rose 1000s are a bit less fluid than the originals, but they are the only "budget" FRs I'd trust (my experiences with the FR Special have been awful), and I doubt that I will bother shifting them unless they start malfunctioning. Most people will know how it sounds: it is a superstrat with a FR and a JB – 'nuff said.
In short, for a 1000€ guitar you can expect a fine mass-produced instrument that doesn't hold you back in any when it comes to playability or sound. Charvels and Ibanezes are ubiquitous around my parts, and I'd put the Kramers up against either dollar for dollar. Basically, they are good enough that I after getting the polka dot I ended up getting an aztec within a month. The necks feel slightly different, with the aztec feeling a hair beefier, but otherwise they are dashed near identical. If they release anything sufficiently cool in the future I would be happy to get a third one.
View attachment 291856301_1073758030015678_540950...fna&oh=03_AVJjnV3AKV1-N1ct-ytFuDrG1xQK0MbzqLpEtKST43v6vA&oe=62ED
(I changed the bridge humbucker from a JB to a Full Shred in the polka dot. After having A/B'ed the two I am considering switching back.)
Three weeks ago I ended up taking my chances on one of the new Kramers. As old-timers will know I love and have been known to collect old ones, but with a finite amount of time to spend on guitar I decided that I wanted to play rather than fiddle, and found that it would be nice to have a pseudo-beater guitar that I knew that I could rely on, but that I didn't have to be that careful with and that is likely to play without problem for a long time to come. So my attitude going in was that the audience is king. I could accept minor imperfections as long as I am the only one to notice, but no compomises were to be made regarding sound or playability.
As far as practical tools go, I think these are exactly what the doctor ordered. Of course they aren't as exquisite as the instruments ESP were making for Kramer 30-odd years ago, but as far as stage guitars go I maintain that there is no significant difference whatsoever between the classic guitars and these. They feel great and sound great. And, honestly speaking, they look great. Now, if you look it is obvious that the maple used in the necks isn't as nice as what was used in the originals, and there are minute imperfections in the graphic finishes, but they are small enough that you'd have to be an arse to complain about them: the audience will never notice.
Most important of all: the fret jobs are flawless, and there are no dead notes or dampened notes. The Floyd Rose 1000s are a bit less fluid than the originals, but they are the only "budget" FRs I'd trust (my experiences with the FR Special have been awful), and I doubt that I will bother shifting them unless they start malfunctioning. Most people will know how it sounds: it is a superstrat with a FR and a JB – 'nuff said.
In short, for a 1000€ guitar you can expect a fine mass-produced instrument that doesn't hold you back in any when it comes to playability or sound. Charvels and Ibanezes are ubiquitous around my parts, and I'd put the Kramers up against either dollar for dollar. Basically, they are good enough that I after getting the polka dot I ended up getting an aztec within a month. The necks feel slightly different, with the aztec feeling a hair beefier, but otherwise they are dashed near identical. If they release anything sufficiently cool in the future I would be happy to get a third one.
View attachment 291856301_1073758030015678_540950...fna&oh=03_AVJjnV3AKV1-N1ct-ytFuDrG1xQK0MbzqLpEtKST43v6vA&oe=62ED
(I changed the bridge humbucker from a JB to a Full Shred in the polka dot. After having A/B'ed the two I am considering switching back.)
