Post by RonSonicSamick can build very good stuff. They've got the chops to build to whatever
quality level the product's priced at and for stuff that can go for decent money
and can afford good materials, they are dollar for dollar as good or better than
anyone out there.
Agreed. My 2 main working axes are their builds (an Epi & a Dean).
With Far East mfg'rs it appears to be mostly a matter of what is
spec'd & priced out by the importer. I also have a Powermatic
tablesaw made in Taiwan with iron as good or better than any USA tool,
while some others from the same factory are cukka (and priced or
overpriced accordingly).
It's clear that their lookalike wood species are not the same as
traditional western-used ones (there probably isn't enough
original-species "flamed maple" on the planet to have made all the
guitars already made from it). But they seem to have nailed the
tonal/appearance/structural combinations well & some are superb.
One thing/hassle I've had with my 2, is a great deal of neck movement
with seasonal changes, requiring frequent readjustment even 2+ years
after mfg. But to be fair, I had a new '68 335 that was all over the
place for years, too. Even though the "rosewood" used for
fingerboards is totally different wood between my 2, (one is exactly
like ebony & one luthier believes it is), I speculate that it
expands/contracts lengthwise somehow with humidity changes more than
the neck woods (also different) - which I know defies the usual rules
of how wood moves. But it only takes 3 minutes to correct. I am
thinking of leaving the rod covers off.
Everyone likes the tone (acoustically & electrically), playability &
appearance
of both axes & I've had a few offers for each.
Both of mine came with better fretwork than most Gibsons. Some like
my luthier say: "Gibson builds guitars but doesn't finish them."
Ditto problem on a Jap Elite Byrd I tried out. Only very minor
levelling was needed to get setup perfection. The Epi (an AK) plays
clean at the lowest action of anything I've ever owned. I like the
robust Korean PBR tune-o-matic & posts better than ABR or Nashville
thumbwheel styles, too. Small downsides:
- my top-model Dean a/t (great neck) was made with a bit low neckset
for its bridge & had a few loose upper frets, both quickly/easily
corrected; it had one p/u surround wrongly located causing the p/u to
hit/buzz against the top's cutout, *not* so easily corrected but I've
had the same annoyance in costly Gibsons;
- the Epi came with unreliable pots & switch, an easy & cheap
changeout but an annoyance.
- many of them are furnished with a neck wrench & a crude little piece
of paper advising owners to tap down any high frets with a hammer(!),
so there are often fubar necks on used axes from newbies.
- the thick poly (?) finish often used on spruce laminate tops
finish-cracks more easily & extensively from any unavoidable extreme
cold transport, even with the usual rewarming precautions, and as far
as touching it up you are basically fkd, unlike lacquer, though it has
nothing to do with tone & playability. On the plus side, it is easy
to polish out deep scratches that would be permanent with thinner
lacquer. Yet somehow, body oils & perspiration do migrate a little
bit through it & may be noticed on a well-gigged natural finish top
out in the sun. I feel this is all minor stuff that gives a guitar
character.
- the Dean spec came with a cheap black dye in the f'bd which, after
being once oiled, still comes off on my fingers; no such thing on the
"ebony" Epi.
- the Epi has some block inlays, one in particular, that look like
they were cut out of a plastic milkjug, though most others now are
better.
- flimsy stick-on wiring ties to frig with, though everyone uses them
now;
- (personal aesthetics) IMHO many have an excess of cosmetic trim that
might be more tasteful by its absence, such as the white binding in
f-holes, ersatz abalone bindings, slightly too bright/garish sunburst
tones, or the big headstock plate on my AK which would make a good
pistol target. :-)
