Hi there,
I'm pleasantly surprised to know that there're guitar enthusiasts here at Jaben. I've been playing and performing for quite a number of years now, and I indulge in my guitar interest at other forums such as SOFT, Harmony-Central and thegearpage. I'm sure some of you guys are members in those various forums too.
Anyway, back to the topic of dream guitars. Well, I always wanted an Ibanez Prestige and a Telecaster. And I do own both of them now, so I can say that I'm pretty lucky. My resources used to go to guitar-gear, but nowadays I'm getting more and more into hi-fi audio equipment, hence Jaben and this forum. Guitar-gear is just as expensive a hobby as hi-fi gear. I used to spend a few hundred bucks on a single 'boutique' pedal. And usually, one is not enough. However, I've stopped most purchases nowadays and have learnt to be content with what I already have.
I used to play heavy metal exclusively, hence the need for a screaming, hi-gain guitar that is heavy and hot as hell itself. And that's where the Prestige come in.
Mine's a humble Ibanez Prestige RG1570, with a basswood body, maple neck and rosewood fretboard. Jumbo frets, and of course, the metal arsenal is never complete without a nice, stable, floyd-rose bridge for some howling pitch wanking fun. I replaced the original trem arm with another one, but I cannot remember what's the brand name. Anyway, I hate it when the stock trem arm swings about. It's very difficult to precisely grab it, especially during frentic gigs when timing is of the essence. The current trem arm is stiff as hell, and it just stay puts there, which is what I like.
I replaced the stock V8 pickups with a pair of Stan Hinesley Hellions, which are very much hotter than the V8. The basswood body is also another reason why I chose this guitar, I like basswood for it's girth and weight, tonally. It's dark, recessed, has a pronounced low-end and handles hi-gain very well, the rosewood fingerboard just makes things even darker. It's a bit inarticulate, but that's okay when my sole purpose for this axe is heavy metal in all its various incarnations.
In the past year or so, my tastes have mellowed quite a bit, and I found a new joy in the blues. It's an entirely different approach, where a single well placed, well chosen note can have much more of an impact that the flurry of notes that I used in playing metal. And it also takes a lot more skill to play with feeling and to express your innermost, complex emotions.
And for the blues, I got myself a MIJ Telecaster. It has an one piece ash body, maple neck and fingerboard. All for that classic Tele-twang. You really can't get the same effect with other guitars.
I swapped the stock bridge and saddles out for some brass ones, and also replaced the stock pickups with a pair of Lindy Fralins Blues Special. All for that oh-so-desirable roadhouse tele-twang!
Here are some pictures, the Prestige is the one hanging off the wall.
Here's my guitar-gear photo album if you guys are interested,
http://www.flickr.com/photos/22227297@N04/sets/72157603568848629/Anyway, thanks for reading! I usually don't post long replies here, because I don't know enough to contribute constructively. My purpose here is to learn about audio equipment.
But I'm glad I'm able to share about stuff that I know and love today, thanks!
