JOYO JF-09 Tremolo - A cheap and great sounding pedal (Video-Clip)

The Chinese company Joyo has a whole flood of pedals, mini pedals and other musical accessories in its range. They define themselves as a company that "focuses on the production of digital music oriented tools". It is an interesting company but for most guitarists it´s probably "just another clone-company". And it is true that they are making cheaper clones, but they also show tendencies to go towards a more innovative path.

It's not unusual for Chinese companies to draw the bow as hard as they can and at the same time look ahead to innovative world domination. The point is that many of them has a fair chance to be successful in a global perspective. To make clones in collaboration with other partners in the music industry is a smart and easy way to learn the basics and then when the timing is right take off to more innovative products. To ignore of these actors are both clumsy and stupid intimidation as they already have good stuff to offer.

The JOYO JF-09 tremolo is exactly such a product. In fact, it is a really good tremolo, from barely noticeable sweeping rate (speed) to fast and even large span of "intensity".

Tremolo, unlike Vibrato, creates variation in loudness (amplitude) which means that raises and lowers the volume. This technology has been around for vintage amps since the 50's. Vibrato on the other hand varies the pitch as you may already know. Anyway, Tremolo is a classic and very useful effect that throws pure or soft crunched sound back to the vintage mode. I think the best effects stays in the background and highlights the guitar without taking over. This pedal is outstanding on just that, it lifts the whole and it creates a good old fashioned vintage sound if you do not exaggerate settings, and it doesn't suck tone at all, at least not by my standards.

- True Bypass
- Built like a tank
- 9v battery or eliminator
- Light that indicates the rate

I made a little demo here which gives a hint of how it sounds. The pedal is connected in the effects loop on a Marshall JVMJS on the clean channel orange mode and the guitar is a Jeff Beck Stratocaster. There is a reverb there too, a TC Electronics "Hall of fame".

You can get one for $28 on Amazon and eBay, which is very cheap for this kind of quality pedal.

A tap tempo to easily change rate between songs had been great, but at the same time you may lose a bit of the vintage feeling.

Rating:
4.5 zombies (5)

The Bill Kelliher "Rig Rundown 2014"

I had the opportunity to interview Bill Kelliher of Mastodon before their gig in Stockholm and we talked much about "Tone Chasing".  I also took the opportunity to make a Rig Rundown, ie a filmed review of Bill's live stuff. If you want to read the interview you can find it here.

Otherwise, you can enjoy "The Bill Kelliher Rig Rundown 2014".

Stay Zombied and Merry Christmas....

Bill Kelliher Mastodon, "The Tone Chaser" (Interview )

One of the most interesting progmetal bands of today is Mastodon. The band played a few days ago here in Stockholm and I had the opportunity to see them. Mastodon is one of my favourite bands when it comes to guitar players in the metal genre. Complicated and beautifully created riffs all the way and the four band members are as tight as you hear them play on the albums. 

Bill Kelliher is, in my opinion, the best rhythm guitar player i the business and he is also a very talented soloist. I was asked to meet Bill for an interview just before soundcheck and I didn't hesitate long. Bill is known to be very particular about his tone, a tone chaser, and I asked him how it all started.

Foto: The Guitar Zombie

When did you become a "tone chaser"?
A good question actually, and I can't speak för everyone, but, what ever you do in life you always try to do it the best you possibly can. I have always been interested in recording and when I hear a guitar player on a record that sounds awesome I instantly want to catch that tone or sound. Thats where my addiction with starts actually, to find that tone that cuts through and sound fucking awesome.

Which guitar player was the first one to catch your interest?
It all started with Eddie Van Halens tone, and he is still to this day a tremendous guitar player. A clear tone with not to much distortion. Its funny because when you start playing you always try to collect as much distortion boxes as possible, and thats not what this thing is about at all.

Foto: The Guitar Zombie

What amps did you start out with?
I started out with Peavey Butcher and the VTM60 from the 80s, amazing amps. It was basically like a JCM800 but way cheaper. I also had a Chandler Tube Driver, the big yellow thing, for just a tiny extra overdrive. The thing is that after 20 years i the business I saw one of these VTMs on craigslist and bought one just out of curiosity to hear how it sounds today as myself and technology has developed. I was surprised that it still sound amazing... It struck me that I´ve had my tone since beginning and still chase for better all the time and I actually returned to the same spot.

Foto: The Guitar Zombie

But you are a Marshall guy?
Yeah, I have used Marshalls for a long time since then and they have always sounded good for me. But when I heard Jerry Cantrell from Alice in Chains and his awesome tone a while ago I was stunned.

What was it about his tone?
You know I was on the backside of the stage every evening and could hear his guitar from that isocab and it was so clear,  you could hear every single beautiful note he played, and that guy is a great guitar player. I asked him "what the hell are you playing through?" Whatever it is I got to have it. He said he had a Friedman "Marsha", a Marshall clone basically, and an isolation box with Celestion Creambacks. He said that he had an head one I could borrow on the tour.

Foto: The Guitar Zombie

So that was it?
Yeah. His guitar tech had a couple of guitar pickups called Motorcity Pickups that Cantrell use and he installed it in my guitar and I got his tone, or at least his sound. A couple of years later I bought a Friedman Head which I now use on tour back in America, they are way to heavy to move over to Europe.

What is the best thing with this Friedman head of yours?
I have two, one of modified Jerry Cantrell signature and one HBE. The thing is that you don't need that much distortion, once again, cause it blurs up stuff between the notes to much. I use to roll back the gain and turn up the mids, but I´m still out on the hunt and I have millions of distortion pedals but at the same time I like less of everything. I like it the best when the guitar goes right in to the amp. Once you start adding chains of this and that and wireless and stuff and you suddenly get confused and loose the things you´re actually chasing. I want it to cut through and define my playing the way I want it to.

Foto: The Guitar Zombie

On the European leg of the tour you use Marshall heads?
Yeah, JCM800 2203, one reissue and one original from like 2003 or something. Great amps too, and if something breaks a use a Blackstar for backup.

You have Creambacks in your isocab?
Yeah but I´m not the guy who can easily explain how stuff sounds, I just now when it sound great,  but they´re awesome. They are like Vintage 30´s which I have in my stage cabs but a bit more aggressive maybe.

When I was growing up I always had 20 watt speakers to use less distortion on the amp and distortion pedals and let the speakers do the job but the seems to have shorter life as I run them pretty hard. But then i found the Celestion 65 watt Creambacks that sounds great, somewhat in between 75 and 20 and when I cracked it up it sounded so good.

Foto: The Guitar Zombie

You have a signature Gibson Les Paul...
Yes, Gibson Les Paul "Halcyon" with my own designed pickups made by Lace called "Dissonant Aggressor". A beautiful guitar with Mahogany body, gold and black burst, mahogany neck and rosewood fretboard. On this tour I also have a 82 Les Paul Custom wine red and a white 1977 Les Paul Custom.

What about effects then?
I have moved on from the effect pedal stuff now and I use Fractal AxeFX II and a MFC 101 instead. I still use normal amps you know so I´m just half way in to the modern era. I´m not using the amp modelling thing yet.

How does your guitar tech  handle your "changing all the time" regarding your tone chasing?
Yeah ha ha he´s a bit frustrated sometimes but I am actually my own tech. He knows how to set things up but I want the last hand on everything to be satisfied. I use this Fractal thing for some stuff, and he doesn't have a clue about that sort of stuff. But its ok, cause I know how it sounds when it sounds good, you know what I mean... He basically keeps the guitars i tune and stuff. I want to problem shoot things myself and I am really anal about it, you would hate work for me...

I don't know about that.... 
Ha ha well I´m a nice guy but I now my stuff you know and I know exactly how I want it.

Looking forward to the show and to hear you play...
Your welcome

Thanks for letting me talk to you...
Thank you, it was fun talking about "tone chase"...

Tomorrow I will publish the Bill Kelliher Rig Rundown.... 12 minuets of pure nerd activity....

Stay Zombied.....

Review of Marshall JVM410HJS, Joe Satriani model - Best Marshall amp in years...

A while ago I made a "rig rundown" with Fredrik Åkesson from the progressive metalband Opeth. The rundown made me interested in his amplifier, the Marshall JVM410JS "Joe Satriani model". After buying it a couple of days later I realised that it´s the best amplifier Marshall have made in years. Now don't fall into the trap to think it´s the same amp as the first JVMs, because this is something completely different.

Maybe it has to do with increased experience at Marshall's development department, or that more efforts are required from the market in these "digital times" or that they finally started to look at what all the "modders" has done since 1980 or so. Most of the great guitarists have had modded Marshalls through the years and it feels like the focus now has shifted at Marshall, to once again take the customer perspective. A perspective they were so good at until 1973 or so, when the forces of customer demand took over and they had to compromise.

Anyway, this amp is a collaboration between Santiago, amp developer at Marshall, and Joe Satriani. Now, don't fall not in the next obvious trap, namely, the conclusion that this amplifier "just replicates Joe Satrianis tone". It can certainly do that, but the outcome of this collaboration has accomplished more important things than that. It´s a very versatile amp for pretty much every kind of guitar genre, from sparkling clean blues to heavy chunky riffs and outrageous high-gain lead tones.

The front panel probably scares the shit out of many vintage purists with its 28 knobs, but it's really not complicated at all. It´s actually quite intuitive, and I didn't  have to use any manual at all.

I've recorded a short demo for those of you who want to get a hint about how it might sound. Clean Orange mode with little effects, Crunch in Orange mode and OD in Red mode. I have shorten it down focusing on how the amp sounds. My suggestion is that you read this full review before you listen.

4 channels
The amplifier has 4 EL34 and 5 EC83 hard working tubes and delivers 100 watt pure guitar tone. It has 4 channels: Clean, Crunch, and 2 identical OD channels.

Noise-Gate
Each channel has its own noise-gate, which has replaced the reverb in the origin JVMs. These noise-gates are really good, Fredrik Åkesson pointed out it´s "musicality" and that they doesn't "eat" any tone at all, like many other amps do. The tone becomes tight and completely studio-silent. If you don't like it, just turn it off.

Green, Orange & Red modes
Furthermore, all channels has 3 modes: Green, Orange and Red. This means that the amplifier actually has 12 channels, which can be controlled from the pedalboard (foot-switch). Green is the starting position and the other puts each channel a step forward in to a different character.

There are also two master volume-sections with "resonance" and "precense" knobs, very handy.

Clean
The starting point for the clean chanel is the nice clean sound in the Marshall Anniversary 6100 and it´s just  incredibly good in the "Green mode", and it takes distortion pedals in an excellent manner. In "Orange mode" the clean is a bit more gained without cracking up and in Red mode it cracks up in a brilliant way without falling over in to distortion.  It all lands in one is exceptionally good tool for anyone who needs a clean sound with variety. This variation in clean tones makes it very easy to take advantage of different types of guitars and brings the best out of them.  Everything is controlled from the supplied foot-switch.

Crunch
The Green mode sounds like a JTM Plexi and Orange as a JCM800. Red mode turns it into a hot-rodded JCM800. This is the amplifier's most exciting channel, I think. Orange mode with the gain at 2-3 a´clock should fit any classic rocker and with the right effects it grows brutal.

OD 1 and 2
These channels are identical, which I think is a brilliant idea. Instead of adding another hi-gain characteristic chanel it gives the guitarist an ability to vary their own sound in the same "personal tone area". Maybe a bit more gain in OD 2 or some different EQ, it´s "sick clever" based on the ideas of individual tone consistency. Another great thing obut the ODs is that Marshall has found a really good metal amp here, which should attract even the most modern metalheads. There is more gain than you ever need, and the fact is that it sounds best when you are not utilizing its full gain capacity.

Mid Shift
Another great feature is the Mid Shift, a function that was developed to let Sammy Hagars vocals cut through better in Chickenfoot, but its allows you to compress the tone a bit, it allows your metal sound in to deliver really good "Chucka-Chucka-down-strokes".

Effects Loop
Another very nice feature is the incredibly great effects loop. I have never experienced such good effects loop before and pedals appear flawless compared to loops in other amps.

The fact that there is no reverb may seem strange, but given the extremely well-functioning effects loop it doesn't matter. The thing is that a mediocre reverb, or other modulation effects, actually sounds brutally nice in this amplifier, thanks to the new effects loop technology and the amps great "basic sound" in general.

Summary
This is one of the the best Marshall amps ever, for reasons as:

1. The basic sounds in the channels, which are spot on, and especially Crunch Orange Fashion
2. Effects loop, one of the best I've ever heard
3. The versatility that basically allows you to sell every other amplifier

The variety of sounds you can get out of this amp to and how easily you can switch between them is actually quite stunning. From shimmering cleans to cocky crispy Plexi-Crunch and powerful high gain makes it´s suitable for virtually all music genres.

An additional nice gesture from Marshall is that this tone monster doesn't rob you of 5000 dollars, as it actually should be worth. It´s yours for 2600 dollars. A bargain considering the value this tone monster will bring you.

A bestseller .... Period!
Buy here

Rating:
Zombies 5.0 (5.0)

Review of MXR Berzerker Overdrive, from blues to really high-gain

I can't get enough of overdrive and high-gain pedals, it's like a food for a Guitar Zombie. The latest in the line that danced in here is an MXR Berzerker Overdrive. That fact that Berzerker is a signature pedal by Zakk Wylde is perhaps not exactly a novelty, he has a whole series of gadgets with his name on it. Zakk is known for its unbroken and painstaking experimentation with his tone, and this pedal is excellent, if used properly, that is. 

Many people misunderstand the Berzerker for recreating Zakks unique tone. Thats not true, its an overdrive. Its just how marketing works, it puts images in your mind. You do not play like Zakk or sound like him if you buy this pedal.

The Berzerker is an overdrive that is designed to add an extra form and an additional density to an already great gain structure. Zakk himself carefully point out that he uses it precisely for that purpose, to get more out of his amps gain.

Everything starts with a good sounding amplifier. But once you have got a great high-gain through your amp this pedal adds that extra "sustain" you might need for solos and or extra fat licks.

There is no point in running it on the clean channel, if you're in to high gain. But if you're looking for a slightly overdriven clean sound it works really fine. It is basically a well-balanced overdrive and gets my VOXAC15 to emit new fine blues tones. And the basic rule, that people talk about today, is to "roll off" the gain to a minimum, letting your hands and your heart do the bluesy job.

This pedal is  built for something else, namely bold and quite comprehensive gain to get that screaming monster riffing, without becoming muddy.

When I run it in a proper Marshall, which has that perfect high gain, I can kick in that extra amount of gain needed for blasting harmonics and massive power chording the man himself is known for.

The prize from 100-150 dollars makes sense, if you're looking for ultra-gain solutions for your already great amp.

Rating:
4,5 Zombies (5)

Stay Zombied

Interview with Chris and Ben from Black Stone Cherry

"There are no Fractals here man"
Chris Robertson

Black Stone Cherry is a hardrock band with clear roots in the American South's musical treasures. The band started in 2001 and took over the same rehearsal house as country rock band The Kentucky Headhunters. 

The latest album "Magic Mountain" is another step in the direction they adopted from the beginning, in all cases since they released the first album. They have basically been playing together since their teens. 

The heavy stoner-groove is there on the new album and it fits properly along with the catchy refrains. Everything is refined and even more of the characteristics of the band. Powerful and very heavy guitars.

I meet Chris Robertson and Ben Wells just before their gig at "Klubben" in Stockholm last month. I was a little curious about if they have fell in to the digital trend and how they create their guitar sound as a band in studio and in live situations.

Have you stepped in to the digital world or did you use real amps on the latest album?

Chris: It´s real amps, no digital! There are no Fractals here. 

Ben: All Tubes man...

Chris: We use different kinds of stuff in the recording studio but all of them are old school amps with tubes in them and it goes to a speaker cabinet and the sound comes out that way, no digital wizzard-tricks going on.

Is it still Budda amps?

Chris: I just switched to PRS amps now and they´re great man. The best amps I´ve ever heard.

Ben: I have my same Peavey 5150 and 6505. On the new album we also used a VTM 120 from the late 70s. It´s a killer amp head. It´s sad to say that playing through amps is becoming old school.

Why did you leave Buddha for PRS?

Chris: I´ve used Budda or Peavey for years and the reason I switched over was because PRS asked us if we would like to have a couple of amp heads in the studio while recording. And you know, in studio sessions you use a lot of stuff, there is no limit. We had Soldanos, Ritchie Blackmoore Engles and much more. When the PRS amp heads came down I recorded the whole album with them. Totally impressed. The one I use right now is an PRS Original Sewell, but I´ve listen to the new amps they have and they're great amps man. 

On the new album your guitars sounds really simple, big and consistent through the whole album, is that something you actually worked hard on?

Chris: Well it´s much about keeping it simple and take advantage of the "sonic air" on the tracks as a whole. If you listen to an old Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath or an AC/DC album they may not have much "low end" but they sound so huge because there are so much space. 

So it´s back to basics?

Chris: Yeah. First of all we wanted to record on a two inch tape which is totally awesome and it was the first time ever for us. We wanted to get that space and as heavy as it could get.

So your going back to the origin that everyone is running away from…

Ben: Yeah let them run from it man…it´s good for us ha ha ha...

Chris: Why go to a concert and see a band that has a Pro Tool rig behind the drummer that plays half the music. A lot of band has three guitars but only one guitarist up infront. That doesn’t make sense, it´s weird.   

Is it to much focus on technology today?

Ben: Yeah, you know, Tony Iommi could sound like two guitarists with his vibrato back in the days. I mean lets get back to that, that awesome playing without to much effects and layers. We all want to sound big but much of it is in your playing, in your hands and heart. We are two guitar players but we use to keep it as simple as we can. I think that´s what makes us different. Fortunatly and unfortunately I guess. 

How about the learning perspective today and when you started?
Chris: We grew up when there was no YouTube. I had to sit by the record player or the cassette deck and use my ear to learn. Big difference from today. 

Many guitarist today seems to play from visuals or from memory, or reading tabs to play something thats cool, they don’t wanna pick up the guitar and play stuff that sucks. When I started I played a lot of stuff that sounded like shit, and thats a part of the learning process to. 

Ben: Everybody does….I mean playing shitty in the beginning...it´s natural and something you have to pass. 

How important is the guitar sound to your ability to play well?

Chris: It´s one of the most important things in a way. A good sound inspires you. 

Ben: Yeah and most guitarists are actually depending on their sound, but really great players can use whatever amp they can find and sound like themselves anyway. 

Chris: Most of your sound or your tone is in your hands as you say. But a good sound encourage you...

What stuff did you start out with, like your first amp?

Ben: My first amp was a Peavey Combo, I don't remember which one but it was one with the old logo. I had a lot of distortion pedals too, you know like everyone else who starts out, trying to get your first shitty amp sound better. I had a one called Rat Distortion that I liked and a Boss Super Distortion. Now, when you getting older, you find yourself a good amp instead of loads of pedals. My first guitar was a Peavey Stratocaster, but my first "real guitar" was a Fender Telecaster Japanese reissue. 

And what was your first attempts?
Chris: I had a Create 30 1x12 combo and my first guitar was an Epiphany Telecaster copy. I know the guy who have it now but he refuses to sell it back. Then my grandpa let me use his old Fender Bassman 1966, and I really learned to really play on that amp. That old amps have what I use to call "three nobs and the truth",  volume, bass and treble and thats it. I didn't have any pedals, I wanted a wha wha but my dad didn't let me get it before I could play the Jimi Hendrix songs. I think pedals are cool för like effects and stuff, but they're not cool if you use them covering up shitty playing. 

How stripped down are you pedalboards today?
Chris: I have a Poly Tune, MXR La Machine which is a Octave up Fuzz, Dunlop Cry Baby Wha, GT-OD Overdrive and a Carbon Copy delay and a chorus with some weird name on it, I don't remember. I use the chorus as a "vibrato", not the way Zakk Wylde does.

Ben: Same tuner, same wha,  a Talk-Box, a Swollen Pickle Fuzz and a MXR Phase 90. And of course my channel switcher. Pretty much so... I like pedals, I must admit, I like experimenting with crazy sounds. If we have an odd pedal sometimes it´s just to create a sound in a particular song which reflects the album, most of the time only one song in the set. The most used pedal is the wha...

Is it hard to translate the studio sound on an album in till live performances?
Ben: Well it starts in the studio actually. If you don't put 1000 layers on each song you don't have to worry about it. 

Chris: We have done that misstakes in the past, with like 5 guitars over the chorus and it´s just not possible to do with the same emotion live. 

Ben: Yeah and we have learned our lessons. 

You had a Les Paul on soundcheck?
Ben: Yeah it´s a Classic Lemon Burst with the 60´s neck, that´s what I grew up playing. I have 4 Les Pauls and a PRS SE.  It´s 496 and 500 pickups you know, the ones with higher output. Thats why I love the Classics, cause the come in stock with those pickups and it saves me from changing. 

And you are endorsed by PRS Guitars?
Chris: Yes I am. I have the same guitars and amps here (in Europe) that I have have back home in the States. The green one is a PRS Starla S2 with a 25 inch scale and then I have another S2 24 1/2 inch and aother guitar I have is a PRS Stripped 58 Antique white. We were on tour with Alter Bridge and Myles had PRS guitars and he told that they were awesome. 

At the same time I had som consistency problems with my guitars, they played differently and sounded differently depending on the humidity and I asked my guitar tech which guitar he thought would be the best up on consistency and he said "you probably don't want to hear it...it´s PRS". And I was the guy like "everybody plays PRS" and I wanted to be that guy playing old beat up Fenders and stuff. But I gave it a shot and since then that guitar changed my life as a guitar player. I was hooked from there. In my opinion PRS are the best guitars, playing the same day in and day out. 

What about tuning?
Chris: Most of the time its C sharp or drop C but some of the songs on the record is drop B actually. 

What guitar players inspires you?
Chris: The 80s brought out some great guitar players, but Im not that found of that era except from Slash. I like the old Whitesnake guys and of course Doug Aldrich. But the top three today is Gary Clark Jr, Ian Thornley from Big Wreck and Joe Bonamassa. Myles Kennedy is another great guitar player. Those guys make me wanna be a better guitar player. 

Ben: My influences comes from Joe Perry, Jimi Hedrix, Brian Setzer and Scotty Moore. Amazing guitar players. 

You are both playing solos nowadays?
Ben: Yes but Chris still does the most of them. 

Chris: Yeah but we both love playing riffs and solos, I could never be in a punk band man. Playing E, A and D power chords all day, it gets boring. Our solos are longer on this album, it´s kind of boring to do chorus playing and we are always waiting for the bridge or the solos in our songs.

Thats how a guitar player works isn't it? Waiting for the singer to stop....
Chris: Yeah ha ha ha and that sucks for me cause I have to do the singing too right...

Ben: ha ha ha

Chris: But it is a good balance for me though, singing makes me appreciate playing guitar even more...

Thanks for hanging out with The Guitar Zombie, appreciate it.
Chris: Thanks man, it was fun talking guitar stuff...

Ben: Yeah and thank you for having us. 

Rig Rundown with Fredrik Åkesson Opeth

It's time for the first "Rig Rundown" as promised.  First up is Fredrik Åkesson, lead guitarist in the Swedish progressive metal band Opeth. The RR was recorded in Stockholm November 15, 2014 during soundcheck. Fredrik guides us through the rig he´s currently using, which is based on the PRS guitars and Marshall JVM 410HJS, an amplifier I will return to for a review later on.

Fredrik Åkesson is not only one of our most talented guitarist, he is also extremely careful about his tone. This becomes clear when you hear him play live. Every little detail is perfect and he knows his rig inside and out.

The actual rig is designed by Göran "LEO" Elmquist at Sound Of Silence in Stockholm. It is interesting to see how Frederik and Göran has created an advanced but controllable switching system for Frederik's very diverse playing and at the same time been able to secure tonality, ie the minimun loss of tone. The same challenges most guitarists face every day, mostly by long cables and signal chains that suck tone.

Those of you who knows your Opeth stuff may notice some new gadgets in the rig. In addition to the Marshall JVM Joe Satriani model there is a thing called Box of Doom and a Piezo system for acoustic sounds.

Follow Fredrik around his rig anno 2014 and enjoy some totally stunning solos recorded during soundcheck at Münchenbryggeriet 15/11 2014.

Enough said! Zombies....Please enjoy:

There will be more "Rig Rundowns" in the future and I will return as I said with a review of the Marshall JVM 410HJS, an amplifier that is not unimportant in this context. Not at all the same as the first JVM series, even if they look identical.

Thanks to Fredrik Åkesson and Darren Edwards for giving me the opportunity to do this "Rig Rundown".

Stay Zombied...

// The Guitar Zombie

Slash Les Paul Standard Antique Vintage Sunburst "counterfeit" from China (MIC)

In three previous articles I have discussed Chinese counterfeits. First a general discussion, a review of a 160 dollars "Fender Telecaster" and then a 270 dollars "Fender Stratocaster Relic YJM". The last one, # 3, is a Gibson Slash Les Paul Antique Vintage Sunburst "Slash Tribute" for $280. The price tag should easily tell anyone on the planet that the whole thing is a "fake". The original, as you may know, was just manufactured in 1600 ex worldwide and goes for over $3000...Worth every penny. 

I once again must point out that I do not intend to promote Chinese "fakes", I just want to inform you about the phenomenon of "Chinese copies". It´s not illegal to purchase counterfeits, but it is to manufacture and sell them, and especially as "originals".

Even if you don't have moral doubts about buying them, you should know that you support illegal activity and infect the business of high quality instruments.

"Enough" about that ...

# 3 arrived one day after the #2. The walk from the Post Office was much more exciting as #2 turned out to be better than #1, I felt at least not fooled. I was excited all the way home.

The package, also a yellow cellophane package, was heavier than the last two. Once home, I opened the package and found a guitar, the same guitar strap as before, one-piece plastic cable and two shitty picks.

After unpacking the box I met a guitar with an excellent finish. I remember thinking:"how on earth can they make this awesome finish for just $280?". I found virtually no errors at all, maybe a bit more colourful in the burst compared to the original.

I comparison to my original "Slash Signature" I noticed that the "Slash logo" is placed slightly crooked, but it's not something you notice if you do not have an original side to side. The Gibson logo is placed where it should be though.

The neck is straight and under the truss rod plate you actually find a "trussrod". It is the third guitar with a truss rod and it´s not made of silicone, which is important to notice. The counterfeits has become better. The truss rod works fine but it doesn't look like the original at all.

The fretboard appears to be made of Rosewood and it feels great. The inlays looks quite authentic to. The frets are also fine, maybe a bit jagged so they get a little trimming.

The guitar is surprisingly perfect intonated right out of the box, a signal that the factory not just throw stuff together, but the strings are horrible. Not quite as bad as the # 1 (Telecaster), but definitely not classy at all. The three way switch works flawless.

The tuners are "vintage style" and works smoothly. The guitar definitely keeps i tune, even at quite rough playing. They are definitely not Kluson Deluxe, it says Gibson Deluxe on them, but they look almost the same. Another detail to remember if you wanna spot a counterfeit.

Electronics inside are no masterwork, the whole thing looks actually rather "cheap" with sloppy soldering, but it works without "humming".

The pickups are not at all Alnico 2 Pro as it should be in the original. They do not sound bad but they are a bit flat sounding. If you change the pupps to Alnico 2 Pro, you will probably get a much better sounding instrument.

The acoustic sound is surprisingly strong as the guitar is made of less wood.

The bridge is stable with a "Tune-o-matic bridge" and lightweight Stopbar tail piece. It looks ok and works like any other "low cost hardtail" on the market.

This Chinese counterfeit may well cause problems for the ignorant, it is a well-functioning instruments with great looks. Compared to an original Gibson Standard you will notice a difference, of course. But as an instrument it works really well as delivered. If you change hardware it will become a great guitar, there is no doubt about that.

Again, I am pleasantly surprised by the quality versus price. My Chinese # 1, # 2 and # 3 will remain in my possession and will remind me of the globalized world and how it affects us and how it will continue to fool us.

Rating:
4 zombies (5)

Fender Stratocaster YJM "counterfeit" from China (MIC)

In the two previous articles I have discussed the Chinese counterfeits, or fakes, if you will. First, a general discussion, and then a review of a $160 "Fender Telecaster". Now we proceed with the copy # 2, a "Fender Stratocaster Yngwie J Malmsteen signature" for $ 27. Free shipping.

Once again I want to clarify that I am not promoting or encourages anyone to buy counterfeit guitars, I just want to raise awareness of the phenomenon. As I have previously written, it is not illegal to buy "counterfeits", but it is to sell them as originals.

On the way home from the post office, I wondered if the project "china guitars" were not so smart after all. The Telecaster was far from a success, you might say. A total disaster actually.

Once home I opened the yellow cellophane package and I had a bad feeling about the piece in question. In the package I found the guitar, a black plastic guitar cord, a too short guitar strap, a tool for trussrod adjustments and two picks.

The guitar is built as a "relic", but it´s just "fake relic". From a distance it looks, however, very cool.  The neck is scalloped just like the original, and the work actually looks and feels very good. The frets sit nicely but they are a little rough on the surface, easy to fix in a minute though.

The Fender "logo" on the headstock looks ok, maybe slightly fatter than what would be considered properly.

The strings are better than on the "Telecaster" but still rubbish. When I check the intonation it´s as perfect it could be  but the string height feels somewhat high.

The pickups are labeled "Noiseless", but when I plug it in, it becomes clear that they are not very noiseless at all. The guitar has however a great tone, which is surprising since it is considerably less weight than an original strat.

I decide to make the modifications needed to make the guitar playable, because this actual guitar has great potential, just like many low-cost guitars actually. The hardware is not high class, but they work, and can of course be replaced with better.

The tuners are robust and responds well and keeps the guitar i tuning. The trussrod works well on this guitar, it is not made of silicone that you read about on the net. Not this one anyway.

The good thing with this kind of "cheap" guitar is that you can modify it and play around around with it without getting anxiety.

When I plug it in and played it I discovered to my surprise that the guitar playability is really good. It also sounds very good, although it would need a set of new pickups. It is easy to play and after I polished the frets they are "smooth less". When I play it a bit  tougher than normal it keeps the tuning perfectly. In fact, it plays almost as good as an original Stratocaster made in Mexico, the only difference is that it´s not that, which is good for long playing sessions or for small kids. The body is probably made basswood, but I really can not say.

It´s a really good guitar at a crazy low price.

So # 2 turned out to be absolutely acceptable. Of course, not as good as an original YJM. Nothing are...

Rating:
3 zombies (5)

2nd article about counterfeits guitars from China

In my articles on Chinese copies, fakes, counterfeits or whatever you call them we are now focusing on three examples that I purchased through the web. The whole idea of this was to find out how these guitars actually are, in terms of quality and how to spot that they are counterfeits. In the last post I discussed the phenomenon of Chinese siunterfeits at large. I also did a survey here in sweden that showed that 36% of the readers actually had bought a counterfeit, for different reasons. I assume it´s like that even i your country. 

It is not criminal to buy a counterfeit, but it is criminal to manufacture and sell it as "genuine" and brand it with someone else name. The problem for a buyer is that one support this murky criminal business.

I also want to state out that I do not support counterfeits and my intention is NOT to help they market their stuff. My intention is to enlighten you to spot counterfeits and stay out of these guitars.  But I also wanted to investigate the Chinese actual ability to manufacture guitars nowadays. Last time I tested a Chinese copy was 10 years ago, and it was actually a very bad experience.

Nevertheless. If you read the different forums it seems to be a good chance to find good instruments, and thats probably the growing problem for the business. But you also risk to get a really crapy one.

I first chose to buy a really cheap guitar, a purple Telecaster branded "Fender". It cost me $160 including shipping. A real bargain don't you think? That means it´s in the price range of "absolute beginner's guitar." The target audience is obviously people who want to buy a really cheap guitar, either as a gift to some child or to hang it on the wall to "flash" of friends or as decoration.

After 12 days, the piece landed in a yellow packages of cellophane. Very well packaged, I must say.

At a first visual inspection of the guitar it seems really good. The finnish is clear as a bell a "Gitar Zombie Purple". The lacquer work is absolutely stunning, even though the pattern looks very "corny" to me. The neck is straight and there is a truss rod in it, which is often claimed opposite. It also comes with a tool for adjustment plus a strap that is too short, a guitar cord in plastic and two completely unusable guitar picks. The whole impression is "cheap".

I plugged it into my Vox AC15. Oh My God .... It sounded really bad, I doubt that you should even call the sound "electric guitar". Really lousy pickups and obviously they're bad wired. Plonk and flat throughout and the strings seem to be more wire than strings. I thought that a string replacement might help a little.

When I restring the beast, I discover that the strings have the wrong distance between the E string and A string. A construction error, the saddles are the wrong.
I ran to my local dealer, Halkans´s Rockhouse i Stockholm,  and got a new set of saddles and then straight back home to change them. And then the next problem slapped me in my face. It is virtually impossible to intonate the piece, it´s impossible.

The strings are badly high and the tuners are really bad, they actually barely works. It doesn't  matter if I adjust the "locking screws" either.

The guitar is a complete disaster, I gave up....

My hopes were down to minus 10, the day after, when I brought home another similar yellow packet. began I actually regret that I started the project at all.

The conclusion is that a $160 guitar clearly is a warning signal. Surprised? No, not particularly.


Stay Zombied

Fake guitars from China + participate in my survey about counterfeit guitars...

The market is flooded of Chinese copies of well known and established guitar brands. So it is. The globalized world we live in nowadays creates a fertile ground for an uncontrolled market of these copies. Forgery industry is associated with a variety of problems, ranging from child labor to environmentally damaging production etc, but note that there is a difference between copies (counterfeit) and clones.

Marshall's first amplifier was actually clones of Fender's best seller "Bassman", it´s important to understand that to be inspired is not equal to stealing. Burny guitars from the late 70s and early 80s are considered as fine and desirable instruments today, but when they were made, they were considered "pirate copies". All major brands have been victims of piracy, and it destroys the long term market. But good stuff has always been copied.

I want to point out that I don't  run any kind of campaign for the Chinese copies, I'm just interested in the phenomenon.

However, one should know is that the difference between clones and pirate copies.

Pirate Copy (counterfeit)
The first category is perhaps the one that instinctively feels problematic, Asian made guitars branded as Gibson, PRS, Fender, ESP or Gretch. This category is outlawed. In most countries it´s a criminal act to produce and sell pirated copies, or "fakes" as originals. But, and this is i big but, it´s not against the law to purchase copies. Therefore, if you do not have moral doubts, it´s legal to buy in a "Made in USA Gibson Les Paul" made in China.

Clones
The second category is not at all associated with criminal activity. It´s very difficult to protect a circuit board by a patent. For those who want to create a clone of an amp for example, just have to design the circuit board and mount the circuits differently so it no longer looks the same and  and able it with their own brand. Protecting the shape of a guitar is also difficult, most clone manufacturers change just enough in the shape or  make a deal and pay a license etc. The clans are inherently interesting and creates an additional range on the market, but without "destroying" it.

Our world has changed
The change that made this huge wave of copies available is simply the availability of knowledge and skills and everyone can learn how to make great instruments. The big brands found countries with cheap labor for their instruments to make bigger profits. So the big companies greed lead to more competitors and "piracy of high quality".

Lots of "good enough guitars" is manufactured in China today, legally under trusted brands and illegally under brands owned by others. Chinese manufacturers are on the go when it comes to the handcraft of building guitars, and one big difference from the past is that they are curious and skilful today, and that they have learned how to make money. This force them to do what ever they can to produce better and better stuff. Thats how capitalism works in a way. One thing to note is that many of the dealers on the Internet is well aware of that the customers rule the market. A negative feed back from a customer is immediately handled. At least most of the time.

The market
An interesting question is "where does all these copies end up"? There's a whole bunch of websites where you can buy a pirated guitar from. If you dive in to these you'll find that most of them lives in Russia, Argentina, Australia, Spain, US and even where I live (Sweden). Practically the world buy Chinese guitars. I think this has to do with generally high priced guitars. Gibson guitars today costs over 3000 dollars, and that in itself creates a fairly large group of hungry people who want a Gibson but don't have the actual money. A Chinese "Gibson" goes for 10% of the price of an "authentic". That means the audience that buys copies probably wouldn't  buy a "real deal" in their lifetime. In a long perspective this will damage the business for the big brands.

Quality?
When it comes to the quality of a Chinese copy, it is much better today compared to the quality ten years ago. But there are many manufacturers out there and all of them are not that great. There are really bad items actually. But there are some really nice guitars for pennies in the context. If you don't  have moral problems with buying a Chinese brand guitar you can make really good buy, there's no doubt about that.

A good copy guitar is like any other good guitar, but of course not comparable to something like "Les Paul Custom Shop" or "Fender Custom Shop". You can't  compare them in any way with the originals, of course.  One should remember that if you buy a "copy" you a "copy" and not the original quality. But it's not quite that simple actually. Quality is a subjective concept, and should also be contrasted with "how much you pay" and what you have as the minimum requirement for your instrument of choice.

Do not sell fakes to others
One should NOT sell copies to others as "authentic", it's really not ok. It can be difficult to determine if a copy is a copy though.

International survey about counterfeits
Before I go any further I would like to know if you have ever bought a "Chinese copy". The survey is anonymous and simple. I would really appreciate if you could answer as honestly as you can. I will display the result in a couple of days.

Have you ever bought a "fake" or "copy" guitar?

Yes

No

poll

Ceriatone makes affordable amps that sounds unbelievably great ...

Are you constantly searching for a guitar sound based on one of the classic Marhall or Fender amps, but never been able to find the cash needed? Then handmade point to point from Asia may be your thing. Imagine a great sounding Marshall Plexi, JCM800, Fender Blackface or Hower Dumble Series for a pittance in the context? Asia is a big area and knowledge is developing rapidly in today's globalized world. I think we should get used to the idea that stuff from Asia can be as great as stuff from USA or Europe. 

A while ago I interviewed Tobias Egge from the Swedish band "Imperial State Electric", the interview will be published soon. He was kind enough to let play one of his amps from Asia. It was a clone of the iconic Marshall Plexi. I was totally stunned, the amp sounded absolutely magical. It was warm, had a great bottom and a great "string separation". Tobias told me that he and Nicke Anderson had ordered them because they were quite affordable, I think they paid $ 600 each or something like that.

The manufacturer, Ceriatone, creates affordable "boutique clones" of classic amplifiers without compromising on quality. When I checked it out thoroughly, it appeared that Ceriatone, founded by entrepreneur Nik S Azam, started to make hand-built amplifiers back in 2000. Now they're exporting to 70 countries, mostly to EU, USA, Japan and Australia. But very few people seems to know about these guys, which is odd considering that their amps sound so good.

Admittedly, prices have gone up a bit since Tobias bought his, but the prizes are still less than half of the prize for a new new Marshall Plexi reissue or a used "vintage" on eBay.

But more interesting is actually their really classic models, which most of us can't find at all. Ceriatone do not work in the vintage market, they are more of an alternative to the "digital stuff", for people like myself who don't have $ 100 000 for a 35 year old Fender.

Ceriatone makes in total over 40 amp models, mostly based on the Fender and Marshall, and all are hand made point to point with the only goal to make amps with high quality rather than trying to compete on price. The competition from China is a fact, but Ceriatone has found its niche and the reviews are overwhelming. So really, you could say that they actually compete with the major manufacturers' quality and stronger brands. The firm is small, 20 employees, and they don't  have a major marketing account. They sell almost solely on "mouth to mouth" by appreciative customers in various forums on Internet.

Ceriatones capacity is 100-200 amps per month, which is exactly where they want to be. A bigger business is often equal to lower quality in the long run. Nik is smart and passionate about guitar tones...

Their Overtone Special Series (OTS) is based on Howard Dumble series, one of the most sought after and most expensive boutique amplifier in the world. Dumble Amps are clones of the Fender Tweed and Blackface, and this is of interest. Because if you make clones and crave shameless amounts of money for it, then it is more appropriate than if you do equally great clones but prizing them low.  Then it becomes a "copy" in peoples minds. Weird....

According to the reviews, OTS sound very similar and authentic to Dumbles, but with one the major difference,  it costs about $ 1600 dollars compared to a Dumble Overdrive Special that runs loose in between $ 20,000 to $ 50,000 dollars. As you can't patent a circuit board, you just have to tweak it a bit, there is no issue of copying here. Ceriatone is not a "copy cat", they use their own brand inspired by others, just like everyone else...

Ceriatone OTS is one of the more expensive amplifiers they make, but most of them goes for $ 1,000 for fully working amp and with starting prices of $ 300- $ 500 if you're willing to do some of the work yourself.

I contacted Nik and asked if I could asked him for an interview, and if I maybe have the opportunity to buy an amplifier for testing later on. There is a long queue to get the hands of one and it takes a while to build stuff by hand.

How did your work actually start, and what is your background as an amp builder?
It was really just a hobby for me. I play the guitar, and of course the gear hunting bug got to me. I started tinkering and repairing vintage tube amps, and before you know it, it got a bit serious. I started by offering turret boards, and from there, I added things, including complete amplifiers. I am ECE by training (Electrical/Computer Engineer), as well.

Where are you stationed with your workshop?
We’re located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

What is your own preference, when it comes to music and amps?
I grew up with classic rock, and old school metal. So, it’d be the Fender and Marshalls, pretty much. That’s all we had, back then, really.

Even though your amps are inspired by other well known amps, you build them from scratch don't you?
Yes, we do build them from scratch. We draw/design our own chassis, boards, faceplates, etc. And the builds all start from the raw ingredients.

The average customer do they buy a kit and assemble them by their own or do they buy "whole amps"?
We actually sell more complete amps than kits.

I know that you are very truthful to quality, is there a thin line between less quality, by using cheap components, profit and sound experience in the business in general?
There is no silver bullet to kill all demon types. A component deemed not so great, might work excellently in certain parts of a certain amp. Plus, if you look at it, the passive components do not really cost much, esp in bulk. A Mallory 150 coupling cap, for example, is less than a dollar, while Sozo and such, they don’t go for more than five. 
And transformers?
Same thing with transformers. We use own own transformers for all the builds. They do cost less than bigger names, but that’s because it’s made here, where labor is cheaper. It is not the case that we haven’t opened up many vintage  transformers, to see how it’s done. The parts do contribute, as they have their own sounds, but the designer needs to hone his own ears as to what works best. Having said that, more percentage of quality is about quality control, including the testing of the amps. I test the amps personally, and I usually test them very loud, over long periods of time. Plus, we also burn in our amps, to ensure no infant death occurring.

Can you describe you quality process?
Our process is, I test the amps for voltages, functions, tone. And then, we burn in for abt 15-16 hours total, over 3 days. Ie, about 4-6 hours a day. Then, I test it again. The chassis is then put into the cabinet, and I test again, before shipping. Other than that, I really emphasize on the execution of the wiring, especially soldering. There is an art to it. It's not complicated, but it's time consuming for sure. 

The best amp you have ever built?
There is no best amp, it depends on what you want to achieve, your moods, etc. I could be happy with an OTS, and I could be happy with my Champ Ultra.

The best amp you have ever heard, and who played it?
We have noticed that for a given vintage amp X model, some are good, some are not, and a couple are just perfect. I think, our S&M OTS (which is ODS based, but tweaked), when the magic happens, is just perfect. The S&M was actually our first OTS. Having been accustomed to Fenders and Marshalls, it was very hard to get used to the Dumble ODS sound, especially the OD. I think lots of people find this as well, you need to adjust your playing to accommodate that, in a way. So, the S&M is more like, at the time, a culmination of my experience and influences, expressed through an ODS platform. 

Does any well known players use Ceriatone?
There are. But understand this: Endorsement deals is something we do not do, it is how we conduct business. I do understand, endorsement or the potential for endorsement is something that could mean revenue for the artist. So, I usually don’t name names, because we did not pay the artist to advertise our stuff, and we do not want to hurt their chances to get one, from another company.  I think that’s fair... Of course, if the artist wants to tell, it’s our honor and pleasure. We’re about trying to make the best amps, with the lowest possible price.

Tell me a little about the Yeti stuff?
The Yeti is the Jose Arredondo type of mod done to Marshalls, which were very popular in the 80s rock/glam scene. Of course, I have added our own tweaks to it, to suit my tastes. 

On the #35, did you built in out of the sound or did you look in to AFD100?
We had some info on the circuit, and went from there. I do not think it’s possible to just hear an amp, and a circuit comes on like a light bulb in your mind. There are so many ways to tweak, and the original SIR #36 definitely had weird things going in it (hindsight is always 20:20, of course).

It´s PPIMV in that one, is that the power scaling used by AFD100?
Usually, I refer/compare our amps to the vintage/ real issue. The PPIMV was added as a feature for low volume playing. The reissue AFD has some sort of power scaling, it’s not the same. Power scaling allows for the voltages to go down, in tandem with scaled biasing. PPIMV is simpler.

How well do you think Marshall nailed the AFD tone?
I haven’t played the reissue.

Is there any differences in the #35 tone compared to the "original" on the album.
You’d definitely get in the ballpark, but there are other things than just the amp involved. Post production, for one, and you cannot really buy that in the store.

Do you work with the power supply when you develop gain, or what philosophy do you have?
Yes, that’s quite critical, you have to know your PS.  But I don’t really have any philosophy behind it, as you can tweak so many parts of the amp.

Which amp is the best selling and best reviewed by users?
We sell lots of the Yeti and Chupacabra amps, as well as the OTS series. Now, we have the OTS lunchbox, and they do sell real well.  We will have more lunchbox type amps in the future – easy to make, sell, and ship.

Have any big company tried to get close to you to buy you out?
No, actually. I am not sure if they even know Ceriatone exists. On a personal basis, Playgirl approached me, but I tastefully declined.

Do you have any "idols" in the business, who build awesome amps beside you?
Leo Fender and Jim Marshall, they started it all!  But I think all builders are cool. A lot of times, it’s labor of love. Nowadays, I don’t tend to mod or make custom 1 offs that much, because of time constraint. But the amps are made with lots of care, lots of testing, each of them. I am sure it’s the same with other small time builders, so it takes lots of dedication.

Do you have any new amp models coming out soon?
Yes, we do release new models from time to time. We’d lunchbox the Yeti, and we’d do a modern type high gain amp as well. You know, for those drop tuned 20 string guitars. 

Thanks for talking to me and letting me borrow some of your time...
My pleasure...

I will get back when I have a review of the the Chupacabra 50...

Meanwhile.....Stay Zombied