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UNO: Warzone II (List: $790)
The UNO brand name isn’t quite the luminary when it comes to guitar-wielding. Chances are, the average layperson out there would mistake it for a card game instead. But the appraisal you are about to read here is about guitar goodness, quite extraordinary for its asking price.
Construction/ Fit/ Finish
UNO is a Korean manufacture & this brand name is rather anonymous next to Fender/ Gibson/ Ibanez; it’s a small time player in this industry, to say the least. The range of instruments on offer is mid-priced throughout the selection so the manufacturer’s statement of intention is rather clear; they don’t tread the dodgy, entry-level turf. The Warzone model is offered in two versions, one equipped with passive humbuckers or you could go with active pickups if that’s your preferred voicing. The Warzone II (W2)comes with Tesla’s UNO Custom pair which aren’t offered as separate purchases.
Once in your hands, the W2 simply reeks of perfection; this is in light of the QC standards on show. There is a definite difficulty in faulting the W2 for its physical imperfections, we’d wish that every serious manufacturer out there would manifest such respect inducing high standards for their instruments & not give us the bare quality minimum in light of the asking price. Just by looking at this guitar & bleeding your wits out in trying to detect some talking point flaws, you’d appreciate all the efforts the factory hands laboured in making it a fine instrument. All the binding showed no signs of pre-mature lifting, no bleeding of the veneered top into external territories, final coat application was aptly leveled, hardware is firmly located, free from novice fittings- the list goes one. I wouldn’t say I’ve gotten lucky & played a perfect piece out of the box but the QC standard is unnervingly consistent across the board; very impressive.
If there is any cause for concern here it’s the manufacturer’s decision in not attributing their products with serial numbers & production origin details (you wouldn’t know it’s made in Korea). It’s a negligible omission you’d argue but it helps prevent bickering in the after-market. There’d be wise-cracks out there who would ask sellers to prove their W2’s authenticity as a possible contention is asking for a lower selling price.
Rating: 95%
Playability/ tone
The W2 is not an instrument offering fresh perspectives to distortion laden tones or an implement for speed mongers among us- let’s not kid ourselves when it comes to this understanding. In fact this UNO guitar draws more similarities to Ibanez’s slim-necked models & ESP’s finesse finish than any other guitars. The neck profile offers one of the most accommodating feel in the slim & wide feel. Unlike other satin finished speed-inducing necks, the W2 has a lacquer finished treatment ala ESP’s Horizon or Gibson’s LP models we’ve come across. However, the treatment here is such that it’s not an excessive application masking the neck’s acoustic resonance once you start playing; there is enough presence to convince the player that despite being a finished article, it’s as appealing as those Wizards out there in terms of feel. Coming back to the ESP parallel, the W2 is a set-neck model which allows almost effortless access to the higher frets, this makes attractive efficiency for those who are not about to slow down. Together with the Floyd Rose Original bridge on board, the W2 presents itself to be one of the most engaging contemporary guitars out there in terms of playability.
Moving over to tone, be informed that the TESLA UNO Custom you find in the W2 is an exclusive partnership between the manufacturers. The bridge model makes itself useful by supplementing bottom end deficiency due to the fitting of a dual action locking whammy bridge (especially to a bright alder body). We’ve been through this before, our instruments sounding thin due to the presence of an FR bridge (or its derivatives), but the TESLA UNO Custom got this covered. The neck counterpart is simply a darling when it comes to distortion & it’s equally appealing clean- think warm PAF-type tones. Personally, I’ve come across these pickups in the UNO Standard guitar & simply love them there, it’s good to know that they are not one-trick ponies, making themselves sound equally appealing in the W2.
Amps used for tone test:
• Sound Drive: SG-100R
• Laney: Ironheart IRT60H
Rating: 95%
You’ve always been wanting an FR-equipped guitar but you keep holding back because the models you’ve come across are either deficient in terms of tones, hardware functionality or overall playability. UNO’s W2 is an instrument addressing these issues adequately. If you continue to hold back it’s because you have misgivings about the manufacturer & electronics brand name- UNO…? TESLA…? Who the heck are these people? But we should let the era of second guessing unfamiliar names pass us by because we are learned people today, making informed choices based on real-time encounters & not perceived performances. The UNO W2 is highly recommended for players looking forward to own a locking hardware equipped instrument without the negative fulfillment issues. To top it off, it simply looks attractive as well.
Overall rating: 90%
Product availability: SV Guitars
Likes:
• Overall QC- thumbs up!
• Playability
• Tone
• Price
• Visual cosmetics
Dislike:
• Absence of product marking (no serial number)
Worthy contenders:
• Ibanez: RG370
• Charvel: San Dimas Style 1 HH
• LTD: M-100
