Signature guitars part uno

As I wrote in the previous posts, the concept of a "artist signature" guitar is often a thinly veiled screwjob, where a completely stock instrument is given a slightly different paint scheme, a new set of pick-ups and "custom" fret inlays. Or in the case of Good Charlotte's Benji Madden, the signature Music Man model consists of a Silhouette Special with a slightly faded color and the neck pickup removed. That's one side of the story.


The other side of the story is the signature models which actually comprise a significant difference/improvement over the parent model, and which gives you the advantage of a custom-made guitar (woods, pickups, hardware, electronics) at much more reasonable prices compared to having one made just for you. This thread is about "artist signature" guitars that are actually worth buying (provided you like the style of music etc. of its would-be inventor). Starting with:




Ibanez Steve Vai JEM7V

Developed and road-tested by Steve Vai ever since he played with David Lee Roth and Whitesnake back in the late 80's. 24 frets with scalloping on frets 21-24, wide, flat neck profile for high-speed fretwork antics, Edge Pro trem system, and DiMarzio Evolution pickups in HSH configuration. Doesn't hurt that it's a looker either. I bought one of these last Spring, and I couldn't be more pleased with it. Low action, medium-to-high output and fantastic tuning stability. As you'd expect, it's difficult to imagine a guitar better suited for whammy-bar antics. Playing one doesn't make you sound like Steve Vai, but it has the wide tonal variety which allows you to express yourself freely on a high-quality instrument. Which is what you should be after anyways. The only thing I'd change about this guitar is the location of the input jack socket. If you're not using a wireless set-up and you practice sitting down, the cable can get in the way.


One word of caution: This isn't for players of any damn music style, and a certain technical standard is also expected for someone wielding a JEM7V. There's simply no need for an instrument of this type if you're into light singer-songwriter strumming or rhytm-only power chords. This is an axe made for lead work in rock/metal genres where technical proficiency is highly appreciated, but where neither players nor audiences are expected to adhere to all the metal clichés (all black clothes, bat wings, ammo belt straps, corpse paint, "all men play on ten"-attitudes towards feedback, etc.



Fender YJM Stratocaster

YJM, of course, refers to Yngwie J. Malmsteen, the greatest guitar player to date. This is a heavily modified 70's stratocaster, with a brass nut (essential for heavy whammy bar use without string locks), DiMarzio YJM pickups (it used to be DiMarzio HS-3), which are somewhere between single-coil and buckers in output, a heavily scalloped neck, very high action, and 21 frets (either maple or rosewood, depending on how much treble you like in your sound). What the scalloping does is allow for a wider frequency band width in your vibrato, as pushing down on the strings will higher the pitch, in addition to the up-down or lateral movements. The acoustic sound in the YJM is really wonderful, however, it's quite hard getting used to the very high action on these models. So don't think for a second that Malmsteen adopted the scalloping and action in order to facilitate speed - quite the contrary. You probably won't be able to play at your normal speed without some significant practice if you buy one of these. Also, the scalloped neck is best suited for players with a very light grip on the strings (if you grip hard, you'll be out of tune and shit out of luck). The fact that you've "only" got 21 frets can also be perceived as limiting - until you listen to some of Yngwie's work, that is.


Fantastic guitar for lead-work, and of course a must if you're in a neoclassical metal band. The pickups don't quite have the sheer output you need if you're into playing extreme metal-style rhytm, and if you're primarily a tapping kind of player, you'll probably want to opt for a wider, flatter fretboard with lower action and 'buckers. Sooner or later, I'll get one of these.



Ibanez RBM2NT Voyager

Unfortunately, this gem was discontinued in the mid-90's, following the implosion of the metal scene. The Reb Beach (of Winger) model was a fantastic instrument, with the lower cutaway offering extreme whammy bar mobility. Even though it was a bolt-on, it has great sustain, and excellent playability. Really high output too, even though that wasn't obvious from the recordings. Great allround-guitar.



Washburn N4

Another great guitar made in collaboration with and road-tested by the artist. Nuno Bettencourt (Extreme) has his name on an extremely high-quality instrument - here the N4. Sustain and playability are excellent, and the combination of Bill Lawrence and Seymore Duncan pickups provides the possibility of a wide range of sounds, from rather clean to near Dime-like output. Add to that the unsurpassed high-fret (well; at least it's got 22 of them) access, the Buzz Feiten tuning system and a Schaller trem system, and you've got yourself a great instrument for technical lead-work in most genres. Of course, it's not pointy and black enough that you can get away with it if you're opening for Immortal or Dimmu Borgir, but for most genres this fits right in, both with respect to sound and appearance. A case of signature models providing excellent value without adding severe limitations.



Jackson RR5 Rhoads

The Randy Rhoads guitar - a 'V with actual significant modifications. Neck-thru for sustain, offset body for high-fret access, Seymore Duncan pickups for that classic sound -a great instrument. Difficult to sit down with, but if you're into hard rock/metal, you can use this for just about anything.