WEBLOG:
I just got a new shipment today and now I have five Strandberg models in my studio currently.
I don’t need all five–this is me trying to figure out which ones match my needs the most. After having done all the homework I could online (including painstakingly comparing the tonepedia audio clips), I couldn’t whittle my choices down, so I decided to just get them in the studio and play them for a bit and then decide.
Originally, I bought a Standard 6 Tremolo back in 2020, and the neck joint really bothered me, and I wanted a neck humbucker, so when I saw a Plini Neck-Thru refurbished on sale, I went for it. I love the neck-thru, but the Plini model’s tone options are very limited, and when at one point I took it to a luthier to try to rewire the pickups with a 5-way super switch, but it seemed Michael Frank Plini pickups weren’t designed for that (even though it does have a split coil in the middle position), and I’d maybe have to get another set of pickups, which I wasn’t willing to do at the time (though this idea is still viable and I might still do it).
When the NX models were released, I was tempted because I don’t like the neck heel on the Standard, but I didn’t like any of the finishes (I don’t understand why Strandberg doesn’t just keep the natural flamed and quilted finishes as a constant–I love those). Then recently when I saw the “rare” natural finishes, I decided to get the NX Standard to replace my older Standard so I can have a more comfortable neck heel joint. I also decided to get a Prog NX 7 tremolo since my main 7-string has been a Schecter Keith Merrow KM-7 FR S, which is nice (set neck!), but not ergonomic the way a Strandy is, and its tonal options are limited (although it does have the Sustainiac neck pickup, which for some people might be gimmicky). And then the Fusion, which is a model I’ve always wanted to try (hoping it could replace the Standard with its more flexible tonal options), and when I saw a used NX version with a finish I liked (it has the Suhr Aldrich pickups, and the original SSV/SSV+ are also included), I went for it.
That’s how I ended up with 5 Strandys in my studio currently.
Here are some thoughts/comments I have about these so far:
- So far I’m liking the Prog NX 7 the most. The tonal varieties are great–you get both active and passive voices, for both humbuckers and split coils, so there are 12 tones total.
- Both the Prog and the Standard NX have string buzz in the lowest strings, and I had that problem before with the older Standard. I had to relax the truss rod a bit and raise the saddles. When the Plini arrived, it was set up perfectly–no buzz. The Fusion is a used one (all the others were purchased directly from Strandberg), and it came set up just perfectly too.
- The new neck joint heel of the NX models are definitely more comfortable than the old vertical thumb wall, but it’s still nothing like a neck-thru. This makes me want to keep the Plini NT, but it has the most limited number of tones.
- The split coil of the Prog and Fusion are good, but the peak frequency isn’t the same as the neck single coil of the Standard, which I really like (a bit warmer). I can just EQ but it’s nice to not have to.
- I guess the ideal Strandy would be a Prog neck-thru tremolo with the flamed maple top, but there aren’t any out there. If I had that, I wouldn’t need the others–except maybe a 7 string version (and if I didn’t already have an Aristides H/08, also an 8 string version).
- Now I need to figure out which ones to keep/return/sell. I’ll definitely need the Prog NX7 and the Plini Neck-Thru. If I do go through with the Plini mod I mentioned, I might not keep any of the other ones. The thing is, I have no idea if/when Strandberg will release more neck-thru models (especially in a finish I like), so holding on to the Plini is a good idea IMO. I’m definitely selling the older Standard, since the NX version will replace it. But I’m not sure if I should keep the Standard NX or the Fusion NX. I was hoping the Fusion can replace the Plini and the Standard since it has both humbucker and split/single coil tones, but now that I know the NX neck joint heel still isn’t as comfortable as neck-thru, I’m holding on to the Plini, which gives me the humbucker tones I need. The Standard’s neck single coil pickup is more of the tone I prefer compared to the split-coil of the Fusion. (I’m leaving the Prog NX7 out of this consideration since it’s not a 6-string, even though I’m fairly happy with its tonal options). Ideally, I want to whittle down to as few as I can, since I’m not rich and I just don’t have room in the studio anymore.
And for context, here’s the updated version of the photo collage of my guitars and basses:
