GEAR news 2005
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cannot afford a brand new one
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Grain: thanks for the reply, i already know what a Drop6 model is, just wanna know what pickups are in there...
Ibanez Mike Mushok signature MMM1
List: $1,700
The Mike Mushok signature model by Ibanez (MMM1) borrowed heavily from the SZ series design offered by the same guitar manufacturer. In fact it wouldn’t be far fetched to opine that this guitar is merely a baritone incarnation of the SZ model, an attempt to sell the Ibanez brand name to the nu-metal masses, or so it seems…
The MMM1 is every bit similar to its SZ sibling in looks but be informed that there are technical/ physical differences to set this guitar apart from the non-baritone make. In addition to the longer scale length- 28” (vs 25.1” of the SZ)- the lower body cutaway of the MMM1 joined the body at the 18th fret making upper frets access a little tricky. The headstock is also longer to accommodate the longer neck length (not to be confused with scale-length) for an appropriate break angle of the strings to the machine heads, to prevent the inclusion of a string retainer after the nut. It’s a necessary accommodation but this design consideration placed the D & G-string tuners too close to the headstock itself to such an extent that your finger will knock against it when tuning- it lacks a comfortable clearance. The MMM1 also features a Gibraltar Custom bridge which is placed further to the tail-end of the body to accomplish a 28” scale length- which would require the player to adjust the picking hand placement, more on this later. The pickups on offer are a pair of Ibanez Super 58s, the same units which proved lethal in the George Benson & John Scofield models but can these jazz pickups handle the bass-inclined baritone rumbling? Please read on… Also, the MMM1 sports 1X Vol & 1X Tone controls, as opposed to the SZ’s 2X Vol & 1X Tone layout. The pickup selector is 3-way. Time to play…
It’s a through-&-through mahogany guitar but sounded not too bright unplugged, a little disturbing by my standards. The guitar however proved itself worthy of praise once plugged in. The low-end rumblings are impressive clean & driven. If you are bothered by a low-end overdose, like I was, there would be a need to turn up the treble output of your amp & the guitar sings with clarity albeit sounding very low. It’s detune haven right from the start, bottom heavy riffs sing through with ease & single note definition everywhere across the neck is superb. Thanks largely due to the Super 58 humbuckers, Ibanez didn’t include them here for convenience (in fact, it looks out of place- covered humbuckers in an offset dual cut-away guitar & a natural finish- an acquired taste, really…). Sustain-wise, it’s easily one of the best, we have the neck-through construction & the Custom Gibraltar bridge anchor plate to thank. This contraption is a secondary attachment to the main bridge unit which helped disperse body resonance more extensively. Gimmick, you might say, regardless, it’s a design that works. Applause…
I had a hard time trying to put this guitar away, despite the Mike Mushok affiliations. If you palm mute your notes most of the time, then adjustments to your palm placement is necessary, keep in mind it’s located further away, to the tail-end. I kept fumbling by bringing my picking hand closer to my body & the bare fretboard contributed to my misery. The design of this guitar is sleek, the only put-off is that oversized behind the nut volute, which is necessary to strengthen the neck-headstock tilt. Fans of the Super Wizard neck would be repelled by the thick, rounded neck.
Reality check: Mushok hardly uses this guitar, his personal custom has parallel specs but the body is a resurrected Radius design, which is the current Joe Satriani signature body shape- rounded edges, with tapered bass-side. All in all, the MMM1 is a superb player, do ignore the artiste association, it deserves an individual respect.
Ibanez Mike Mushok signature MMM1
List: $1,700
The Mike Mushok signature model by Ibanez (MMM1) borrowed heavily from the SZ series design offered by the same guitar manufacturer. In fact it wouldn’t be far fetched to opine that this guitar is merely a baritone incarnation of the SZ model, an attempt to sell the Ibanez brand name to the nu-metal masses, or so it seems…
The MMM1 is every bit similar to its SZ sibling in looks but be informed that there are technical/ physical differences to set this guitar apart from the non-baritone make. In addition to the longer scale length- 28” (vs 25.1” of the SZ)- the lower body cutaway of the MMM1 joined the body at the 18th fret making upper frets access a little tricky. The headstock is also longer to accommodate the longer neck length (not to be confused with scale-length) for an appropriate break angle of the strings to the machine heads, to prevent the inclusion of a string retainer after the nut. It’s a necessary accommodation but this design consideration placed the D & G-string tuners too close to the headstock itself to such an extent that your finger will knock against it when tuning- it lacks a comfortable clearance. The MMM1 also features a Gibraltar Custom bridge which is placed further to the tail-end of the body to accomplish a 28” scale length- which would require the player to adjust the picking hand placement, more on this later. The pickups on offer are a pair of Ibanez Super 58s, the same units which proved lethal in the George Benson & John Scofield models but can these jazz pickups handle the bass-inclined baritone rumbling? Please read on… Also, the MMM1 sports 1X Vol & 1X Tone controls, as opposed to the SZ’s 2X Vol & 1X Tone layout. The pickup selector is 3-way. Time to play…
It’s a through-&-through mahogany guitar but sounded not too bright unplugged, a little disturbing by my standards. The guitar however proved itself worthy of praise once plugged in. The low-end rumblings are impressive clean & driven. If you are bothered by a low-end overdose, like I was, there would be a need to turn up the treble output of your amp & the guitar sings with clarity albeit sounding very low. It’s detune haven right from the start, bottom heavy riffs sing through with ease & single note definition everywhere across the neck is superb. Thanks largely due to the Super 58 humbuckers, Ibanez didn’t include them here for convenience (in fact, it looks out of place- covered humbuckers in an offset dual cut-away guitar & a natural finish- an acquired taste, really…). Sustain-wise, it’s easily one of the best, we have the neck-through construction & the Custom Gibraltar bridge anchor plate to thank. This contraption is a secondary attachment to the main bridge unit which helped disperse body resonance more extensively. Gimmick, you might say, regardless, it’s a design that works. Applause…
I had a hard time trying to put this guitar away, despite the Mike Mushok affiliations. If you palm mute your notes most of the time, then adjustments to your palm placement is necessary, keep in mind it’s located further away, to the tail-end. I kept fumbling by bringing my picking hand closer to my body & the bare fretboard contributed to my misery. The design of this guitar is sleek, the only put-off is that oversized behind the nut volute, which is necessary to strengthen the neck-headstock tilt. Fans of the Super Wizard neck would be repelled by the thick, rounded neck.
Reality check: Mushok hardly uses this guitar, his personal custom has parallel specs but the body is a resurrected Radius design, which is the current Joe Satriani signature body shape- rounded edges, with tapered bass-side. All in all, the MMM1 is a superb player, do ignore the artiste association, it deserves an individual respect.
Grain
New member
ggg
subversion said:Grain: thanks for the reply, i already know what a Drop6 model is, just wanna know what pickups are in there...
Ibanez Mike Mushok signature MMM1
List: $1,700
The Mike Mushok signature model by Ibanez (MMM1) borrowed heavily from the SZ series design offered by the same guitar manufacturer. In fact it wouldn’t be far fetched to opine that this guitar is merely a baritone incarnation of the SZ model, an attempt to sell the Ibanez brand name to the nu-metal masses, or so it seems…
The MMM1 is every bit similar to its SZ sibling in looks but be informed that there are technical/ physical differences to set this guitar apart from the non-baritone make. In addition to the longer scale length- 28” (vs 25.1” of the SZ)- the lower body cutaway of the MMM1 joined the body at the 18th fret making upper frets access a little tricky. The headstock is also longer to accommodate the longer neck length (not to be confused with scale-length) for an appropriate break angle of the strings to the machine heads, to prevent the inclusion of a string retainer after the nut. It’s a necessary accommodation but this design consideration placed the D & G-string tuners too close to the headstock itself to such an extent that your finger will knock against it when tuning- it lacks a comfortable clearance. The MMM1 also features a Gibraltar Custom bridge which is placed further to the tail-end of the body to accomplish a 28” scale length- which would require the player to adjust the picking hand placement, more on this later. The pickups on offer are a pair of Ibanez Super 58s, the same units which proved lethal in the George Benson & John Scofield models but can these jazz pickups handle the bass-inclined baritone rumbling? Please read on… Also, the MMM1 sports 1X Vol & 1X Tone controls, as opposed to the SZ’s 2X Vol & 1X Tone layout. The pickup selector is 3-way. Time to play…
It’s a through-&-through mahogany guitar but sounded not too bright unplugged, a little disturbing by my standards. The guitar however proved itself worthy of praise once plugged in. The low-end rumblings are impressive clean & driven. If you are bothered by a low-end overdose, like I was, there would be a need to turn up the treble output of your amp & the guitar sings with clarity albeit sounding very low. It’s detune haven right from the start, bottom heavy riffs sing through with ease & single note definition everywhere across the neck is superb. Thanks largely due to the Super 58 humbuckers, Ibanez didn’t include them here for convenience (in fact, it looks out of place- covered humbuckers in an offset dual cut-away guitar & a natural finish- an acquired taste, really…). Sustain-wise, it’s easily one of the best, we have the neck-through construction & the Custom Gibraltar bridge anchor plate to thank. This contraption is a secondary attachment to the main bridge unit which helped disperse body resonance more extensively. Gimmick, you might say, regardless, it’s a design that works. Applause…
I had a hard time trying to put this guitar away, despite the Mike Mushok affiliations. If you palm mute your notes most of the time, then adjustments to your palm placement is necessary, keep in mind it’s located further away, to the tail-end. I kept fumbling by bringing my picking hand closer to my body & the bare fretboard contributed to my misery. The design of this guitar is sleek, the only put-off is that oversized behind the nut volute, which is necessary to strengthen the neck-headstock tilt. Fans of the Super Wizard neck would be repelled by the thick, rounded neck.
Reality check: Mushok hardly uses this guitar, his personal custom has parallel specs but the body is a resurrected Radius design, which is the current Joe Satriani signature body shape- rounded edges, with tapered bass-side. All in all, the MMM1 is a superb player, do ignore the artiste association, it deserves an individual respect.[/quote
the yamaha D6 i have uses the stock pick ups...
the MMM1 is actuali more longer than the D6.
and for wat i knoe, its suitable if u wanna play, Low A tuning.
Korn kinda tunings
subversion
Moderator
the Ibanez MMM1 has an A# tuning as default, when i tried it out, i brought it up to B- better tension for me...
Anyway, I saw some Carvin amps at Ranking the other day. The Vintage 16 surely looks promising. 16 tube watts, switchable to 5 watts, running on EL84s. It's nearest competitor would probably be the Peavey Classic 30. Price - $899 (should be neg I think, but don't quote me on that).
I saw some Ashdown bass amps there too, I enquired whether they would be bringing electric amps, and yes, there will be a second shipment soon. Hi-gain guys, you might want to take a look a look at the Fallen Angel series.
I saw some Ashdown bass amps there too, I enquired whether they would be bringing electric amps, and yes, there will be a second shipment soon. Hi-gain guys, you might want to take a look a look at the Fallen Angel series.
fibredrive
New member
hey lifehouse, did they say roughly when and what ashdown amps will be coming in? am looking forward to it as i am changing amps soon....heh. thks!
That I wasn't sure, but should be in these 2 mths IIRC what the salesperson told me. Meanwhile, some pics for you amps freak.
Ashdown Fallen Angel 180 Watt Tube (I sincerely think its overkill even with a THD Hot Plate)
Ashdown Fallen Angel 60 Watt Tube
Ashdown Fallen Angel 40 Watt Combo
These will probably be very good alternatives to Rectos, Triple Xs and TSLs. :supz:
Ashdown Fallen Angel 180 Watt Tube (I sincerely think its overkill even with a THD Hot Plate)
Ashdown Fallen Angel 60 Watt Tube
Ashdown Fallen Angel 40 Watt Combo
These will probably be very good alternatives to Rectos, Triple Xs and TSLs. :supz:
Grain said:[quote="
Ashdown Fallen Angel 180 Watt Tube (I sincerely think its overkill even with a THD Hot Plate)
:
hey this one looks cute, i dont care how it sounds, sumhow the looks amazes me,
cant wait for it to be on sale. how much do u think it wuld b???[/quote]
The FA180 would probably be near the price of a dual recto. After doing some conversion from some US online stores, it would probably be around $2800. But US slaps quite some import taxes from overseas products AFAIK. The actual price might be less.
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