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5K views 31 replies 16 participants last post by  CrossingStar 
#1 ·
I just had an idea for a discussion that could be interesting. I know we've had a dream guitar thread, but I'm interested in what you'd get if you could get a custom guitar made, but had to keep the price as low as possible. So, basically, list the specs of a custom guitar that has only the things you'd absolutely need to have to be happy with it (i.e. cosmetics are not important, but you can pick a colour :lol:).
 
#3 ·
Good thread, twohands.

Neck and hardware borrowed off a 7620, preferrably powder cosmo, but whatveer i could get, really. alder body, front routed with a brushed aluminum pickguard. Two pickups, set up like a JS control scheme with a push/pull on the tone for coil tap (but no high pass filter). sky blue (think a bottle of Bombay Sapphire) body, stained, with a tung oil finish. either Air norton/Evo 7, or maybe a SD Jazz/JB 7 combo- i haven't quite decided. And, if the budget allows, having the board stripped off the 7620 neck, and having it replaced by maple with blue abalone dot inlays. This would probably be more expensive than the body work, but i love the look and feel of maple.

-D
 
#4 ·
Price as low as possible, eh? Hmmm... well, since I'm getting a custom guitar here for this mental exercise, I'll assume money is no object since I can afford to have a custom built in the first place, but! I'll be realistic and make it obtainable.

Mahogany RG 7-string style body with flamed maple top. Burnt umber type burst finish, with a white pickguard. White bound 27" maple neck (Birdseye?) with ebony board and stainless steel frets, no inlays, RG style headstock. Black hardware, piezo non-floating trem, locking tuners, graphite nut, stereo output, 2 humbuckers with 5-way switching, either Dimarzios or Duncans probably. (White '59-7/JB-7 combo would look and sound cool I think. :wink: ) Straplocks... oh! And a Sustainiac Stealth, also white. There it is! If I had to, I could live without the Sustainer.

What would your guitar have, Twohands?
 
#5 ·
Hmm...well, I'd get a 6-string and a 7-string to the same specs probably:

Basswood body (RG/UV/JEM)
Maple neck (24-frets, 27"-scale)
Rosewood fretboard
2 HBs (throw in stock Ibanez or the "New 7s" I guess)
1 volume
1 tone
3-way selector
Hardtail
no pickguard
Make it black so it matches the rest of my guitars :lol:
 
#6 ·
Hmmm... Let's see...

RG7 body:
Basswood with a Quilted maple top

Wizard 7 Neck:
3 piece Maple
Bound Rosewood fretboard
Off-set dots
Reverse Ibanez headstock

Hardware:
All Chrome
Edge 7, lock nut, Planet Waves tuners(you know the ones that automatically cut the string)
5way Switch, 1 Volume

Pickups:
Evo 7 bridge
Air Norton 7 neck

Blue 'ten top' stain finish on the body, tung oil on the neck.

That would be my 'perfect' 7 string.. :D
 
#7 ·
Unfinished mahogany telecaster body, 24 fret maple fretboard, Edge bridge, and a Tone Zone 7 in almost the bridge position but maybe 3/4 of an inch closer to the neck, with a single volume control and a three-way switch for: 1) full humbucker 2) both coils in series, 3) just the coil closest to the neck.
 
#8 ·
rg6 and rg7 with:
3pc maple neck-thru (same profile as the neck on my 2027)
birdseye maple fretboard with 12th fret double-dot black pearl inlay
alder body wings
locking tuners, fixed bridge, graphite nut
1 volume, 1 tone knob
5way switch
royal blue finish, think rg421, matching headstock
now THIS is what I want!
 
#9 ·
My ideal is the following -

Universe777bk neck,Rg body,Amber/orange flame top ... White DiMarzio Blaze setup,No scratch plate,Chrome hardware ... And it's almost reality :)

If money was no object,i'd got for the same neck,But solid quilted natural finish body ... Same hardware options

I'm a simple guy ;-)

Rob
 
#10 ·
RG7 shaped swamp ash body, no finish (2 piece, bookmatched if possible, otherwise I don't care)
3 piece maple neck, ebony board- 2027 profile, maple dots
Duncan Jazz 7 neck, Evo 7 bridge pickups - both black
master volume, master tone, 3 way Tele switch (petrucci wired), piezo on off mini switch, piezo volume
Chrome hardware -Gotoh tuners, Ibanez double edge 7 tremolo
and a nice UV1000 case
 
#11 ·
ash, alder, or mahogany soloist style body style
maple neck with ebony board
preferably neck-through construction, but I can live with bolt-on
no neck inlays
Jackson 3+3 style headstock
TOM bridge, strung through body
standard tuning machines
one vol. pot and a three-way switch
dimarzio X2N bridge, air norton neck
guitar body, neck, and headstock finished in black
 
#13 ·
toshiro said:
Hmmm... Let's see...

RG7 body:
Basswood with a Quilted maple top

Wizard 7 Neck:
3 piece Maple
Bound Rosewood fretboard
Off-set dots
Reverse Ibanez headstock

Hardware:
All Chrome
Edge 7, lock nut, Planet Waves tuners(you know the ones that automatically cut the string)
5way Switch, 1 Volume

Pickups:
Evo 7 bridge
Air Norton 7 neck

Blue 'ten top' stain finish on the body, tung oil on the neck.

That would be my 'perfect' 7 string.. :D
Do planet waves make auto trim tuners for 7 strings?
 
#14 ·
jim777 said:
guitarkatana said:
Jackson 3+3 style headstock
Won't that leave you one string short? :wink:
Who says this thread is only for 7-strings ;) It's for any number of strings you want (technically a 1-string guitar would probably be cheapest :lol:)

Fear_Factory said:
Do planet waves make auto trim tuners for 7 strings?
If they don't, you might be able to buy them individually, and then you've got your problem solved ;)
 
#18 ·
Well, you could always do what I do, and that's use the Rich Harris stringing method, where you run the strings backwards through the tuners, so that the ball ends stop at the tuner, and then cut off an inch or so past the bridge saddle, and viola! No more punctured fingers. (Thanks Rich! :wink: Been using that method for 2 years now, and it works great.)

'Course, you have to have a Lo-Pro or Floyd type bridge to do this. :cry:
 
#19 ·
If it's a "do it as cheap as possible" thing... then probably a Warmoth hollow Tele body from the thriftshop (or is it Showcase now?), have a 26.75" scale neck custom made, but just plain maple with a nice rosewood fingerboard made.

Then I'd do the wiring and assembly myself and take it to my regular tech for the fine-tuning and set-up. :)
 
#20 ·
Two hands31 said:
pawel said:
You did post it in 7-string section... :wink:
Yea, but that's because we don't have a generic "Guitars and other stringed-things" section :lol:
Hey, "Stringed-thing" is my little term. Oh well, maybe I don't care.

I'd love to get my custom made as a 7, 8, maybe even 9 string axe, but there's a couple problems with that. One, custom guitars with any more than 6 strings can get really expensive. And two, X2N is only available for 6 string guitars.
 
#21 ·
Wordwolf said:
Well, you could always do what I do, and that's use the Rich Harris stringing method, where you run the strings backwards through the tuners, so that the ball ends stop at the tuner, and then cut off an inch or so past the bridge saddle, and viola! No more punctured fingers. (Thanks Rich! :wink: Been using that method for 2 years now, and it works great.)

'Course, you have to have a Lo-Pro or Floyd type bridge to do this. :cry:
I used to do this, a long time ago.. :) There's no way I'd be able to get that .060 or .058 from my 7620 into the tuner that way.. :lol: It became a matter of looks.. :D

I think the Planet waves tuners are cool.. No winds on the headstock, and no need for clippers, the lack of a needle to stab you is just cool too... :)

Now, if they'd just make them in Cosmo Black. ;)
 
#22 ·
guitarkatana said:
Two hands31 said:
pawel said:
You did post it in 7-string section... :wink:
Yea, but that's because we don't have a generic "Guitars and other stringed-things" section :lol:
Hey, "Stringed-thing" is my little term. Oh well, maybe I don't care.
I was wondering who said it first and hadn't gotten around to looking, the credit is definitely yours tho :D
 
#24 ·
I'm currently building an economy 8-string that's costing me well under $1000. Normally a custom job like this is 2800+.

Specs...
Ibanez RG7 style ash body, tung oil finish
25.5" Maple neck, brazilian rosewood, no inlays, 24 frets, Schaller locking tuners, matching ash veneer on headstock
Hipshot hardtail bridge (custom), string through body
2 EMG pickups (custom DC45s)
2 volume knobs (one for each pup), no tone
EMG Afterburner push/pull pot
3-way LP style pup selector
Electronics configuration ala JPM style
 
#25 ·
revsharp777 said:
I'm currently building an economy 8-string that's costing me well under $1000. Normally a custom job like this is 2800+.

Specs...
Ibanez RG7 style ash body, tung oil finish
25.5" Maple neck, brazilian rosewood, no inlays, 24 frets, Schaller locking tuners, matching ash veneer on headstock
Hipshot hardtail bridge (custom), string through body
2 EMG pickups (custom DC45s)
2 volume knobs (one for each pup), no tone
EMG Afterburner push/pull pot
3-way LP style pup selector
Electronics configuration ala JPM style
Mmmmmmm,Tasty ... You'll have to review those EMG's dude :)

Rob
 
#26 ·
I fit a .068 through there, Toshiro. Well, the string... part of the end sticks out, maybe 3/4" or so, but I just point it back towards the body, and no hassles. Plus, it looks cool, as it lines up with the strings going into the tuners.

Revsharp, you're using an Afterburner with EMG pickups? :eek:
Well, I guess output won't be a problem. You could turn a Fender Twin into a Boogie with that combo I bet! :twisted:
 
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