NGD

Pierre

Pierre

Stratologist
This was advertised on Wilcutt and well, for absolutely no reason, certainly none arising of need, I had to have it. So I did.

DSCF2822_zpsohk7yb13.jpg

DSCF2819_zpsk6rr6b5e.jpg

DSCF2817_zpsedg4htoz.jpg


My apartment doesn't get much sunlight, especially not these days, so I apologize for the very crappy pictures...

Transparent blue, and a beaaaaaautiful flame to the neck. Plays great, sounds bright and loud. Exactly what I'd expect.

Plugged in she's REALLY bright, which makes the bridge pickup a little useless on its own. Even position 4 (bridge + middle), my favored position on a Strat, is a little thin sounding. So I'm thinking of swapping the bridge pickup for something higher powered and warmer sounding, but we'll see. Either way a beautiful addition and a great player!

Some MUCH better pictures, until I can take a few: Ernie Ball Music Man Albert Lee Pac Blue (308) | Reverb
 
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Nice flame on that neck! I love the necks on these- a bit small for my hands (I have long fingers) but not totally outside my comfort zone. Is that a satin finish on the back? Have seen some that have satin neck and gloss behind the headstock, with a visible line where it switches over. Can't tell from the pic if yours is that way. Mine have the gun oil/wax rubbed finish, an unusual but nifty texture. Nonstick and organic, sort of primal & very comfy indeed.

Mine are HH models with all rosewood necks. The fact that the factory humbuckers are DiMarzio gives them fairly warm midrange without lacking highs. Nothing approaching the glass & chime of singlecoils though, especially with yours having a maple fingerboard. Must be really punchy & snappy. I know the SSS version is Stratlike in tone and I'm sure it would benefit (like many Strats) from a hotter and fatter bridge pickup. The Surfer Custom Hot is a really good replacement; it has more power & richer mids without giving up the essential Strat character. There are some P90 style pickups made to fit Strats too, they're a slightly bigger step away from classic Strat tone as you might imagine, but don't really sound like P90s either. Sort of a midpoint between the two. Two of my Strats have the QuarterPound pickup, another great option. Its tone and feel are similar to those Strat/P90s, maybe just a hair fatter. They all still have distinctive singlecoil bite when you dig in & pick hard. One disadvantage of the QP is that it won't fit under a traditional cover, so the look is nonstandard.

I know many here favor the noiseless stacked Strat pickups too. Reduced hum would be a big plus in a hot pickup; they're popular and well-regarded tonewise. I don't have any myself so I can't weigh in on that aspect.

Anyway, congratulations on your Albert Lee- it's beautiful and I'm sure you'll have a great time with it.
 
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You're right... that neck is gorgeous! I've always been a sucker for a pearl guard against a dark background too... nice score! [emoji1303]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Killer guitar! I really like the ones hey did with the roasted maple necks, congrats and enjoy
 
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Several years ago when I ordered my first set of BKP Strat pickups, Tim Mills at BKP told me on the 'phone that Albert Lee used baseplates on all three pickups in his guitars. I thought that was interesting. I'm assuming that was for passive pickups, although I don't know if the pickup model was mentioned.

Anyway, Congrats ! Fabbo-looking guitar, I hope it's as fun to play as it looks.
 
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What a beauty! I'd love one of those but they never seem to be around when I'm looking for something new. Congrats, great addition to your others.
 
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eclecticsynergy said:
Nice flame on that neck! I love the necks on these- a bit small for my hands (I have long fingers) but not totally outside my comfort zone. Is that a satin finish on the back? Have seen some that have satin neck and gloss behind the headstock, with a visible line where it switches over. Can't tell from the pic if yours is that way. Mine have the gun oil/wax rubbed finish, an unusual but nifty texture. Nonstick and organic, sort of primal & very comfy indeed.

Mine are HH models with all rosewood necks. The fact that the factory humbuckers are DiMarzio gives them fairly warm midrange without lacking highs. Nothing approaching the glass & chime of singlecoils though, especially with yours having a maple fingerboard. Must be really punchy & snappy. I know the SSS version is Stratlike in tone and I'm sure it would benefit (like many Strats) from a hotter and fatter bridge pickup. The Surfer Custom Hot is a really good replacement; it has more power & richer mids without giving up the essential Strat character. There are some P90 style pickups made to fit Strats too, they're a slightly bigger step away from classic Strat tone as you might imagine, but don't really sound like P90s either. Sort of a midpoint between the two. Two of my Strats have the QuarterPound pickup, another great option. Its tone and feel are similar to those Strat/P90s, maybe just a hair fatter. They all still have distinctive singlecoil bite when you dig in & pick hard. One disadvantage of the QP is that it won't fit under a traditional cover, so the look is nonstandard.

I know many here favor the noiseless stacked Strat pickups too. Reduced hum would be a big plus in a hot pickup; they're popular and well-regarded tonewise. I don't have any myself so I can't weigh in on that aspect.

Anyway, congratulations on your Albert Lee- it's beautiful and I'm sure you'll have a great time with it.
Click to expand...

I also have an AL HH :) I ADORE these guitars. The SSS one is just for fun, but I'll always have an HH with the Rosewood neck in my stables (well maybe not, I also have this year's PDN coming up with roasted maple neck and ebony fingerboard... ooops).

The neck has the usual MM finish, so the oil and wax. There is no lacquer here, unlike on my HH's headstock. This is all oiled.

The battery compartment is for the silent circuit, basically an active dummy coil. I don't like it. I live under some VERY large antennas, and the radio interference the circuit brings is A LOT louder than any 60 cycle hum.
The pickups are Seymour Duncan singles, custom-made for this model I take it.

I ordered an SSL-6 to try in the bridge. Maybe try a quarter pounder or lil'59 at some point. For now she's a player!
 
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the old albert lee models had alnico II pro singles with a baseplate on the bridge, not sure if that changed over the years or not
 
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Thanks, that's quite true :) Am on 4 Music Men, and they're all just amazing instruments. The Albert Lees in particular are amazing.
 
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Wow, this looks like it came straight from the 80s!

Congrats man and enjoy her in good health!

Happy New Guitar Day :headbang:
 
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i think they started making them in the mid 90's. it always reminded me of the jetsons for some reason
 
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I love that futuristic look in a guitar. Always thought the Backlund designs looked like something George Jetson would play.

e645cfde0c06a33a5bc9910ae9819a15_large.jpg
 
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