Am I missing something about Variax?

[SRD86]

I bounce back and forth between this forum and another local music forum, and the people there have such a hard on for VARIAX guitars it blows my mind.
I just don't get it.
Any thoughts?

[heartfielder]

Yeah,

My thought is I think they suck. I've played a few of them and they feel like cheap guitars. I wouldn't want one.

There you have my thought.

[BTB007]

I owned a black 500 and a blue 600. The acoustic guitar with an XTL is way cool! But, I just couldn't stand the actual guitar, especially the 600 neck. Yuck!

[SRD86]

ok, now I feel a little better, they felt cheap to me too.

[danastas]

Some pros think they're great. Bob Mould chucked his Ibanez Rocketroll and Fender Masterbuilt for a Varizax. He says they're built well, just as well as his Fender Strat, and they make playing onstage a breeze. They allow him to carry off a show without pausing. Everything is preset. He says he wishes he had them his entire career. Me, I never played one.

[heartfielder]

May I ask who Bob Mould is ?

[nateb]

From what I understand, alot of people are taking the variax guts and putting them in custom guitars. Warmoth and a few other companies are different bodies to support the guts of the variax. Personally, I have played them.



Cant stand em. Stuff feels like you are playing a tech demo.

-Nate

[Newc]

I liked the concept but I would prefer to have the guts in a Jackson.

I'd also like for them to update the models to more modern guitars and pickup tones.

Imagine being able to select Rhoads, KV, Kelly, JEM, Jazz'R, Soloist, and PRS models with Duncans, DiMarzios, or EMGs.

[danastas]

Bob Mould http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Museum/7147/eqnote.html

You Tube Mould

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFjlWlqJDos&mode=related&search=

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUTQIlOnM7U&mode=related&search=

My favorite song of his/theirs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=salbSLGlePM&mode=related&search=

[heartfielder]

Oh ..... that's Bob Mould .....

[mrsung]

wheres that thread about the guy that hand-builds the PRS types and sticks the Variax guts in them?? that was a good read.

[ambitotpuphang]

He says he wishes he had them his entire career.

Yea, he could get all those money for endorsing years later.

[Sanctuary]

I liked the concept but I would prefer to have the guts in a Jackson.

No reason why you couldn't actually do that.

[gemini8026]

Ive put a Variax through it's paces. I owned one for a few months (a red 600)

Now yes it's cool, but at the end of the day, for any serious recording it doesnt (or didnt) work for me. For high gain sounds, they are very uninspired, and for everythign else it has a distinctive sound that isnt 100% pure. You can notice elements of the Piezo.

Acoustics were cool (I liked the 12 string) but once again for serious recording, it never fit the bill. My mic'd cutaway sounds worlds better!

At the end of the day it's a fun guitar to mess around with for inspiring creativity and such, but for serious recording I felt a true electric guitar sounds much better, and the mic'd acoustic more pure and true.

It was no comparison when I recorded back to back samples, everyone agree'd the true electric sounded much better under my recording conditions.

Fun to dink around with, but not as good under studio conditions!

(thats my results at least)

[danastas]

Yea, he could get all those money for endorsing years later.

as far as I know, he didn't endorse them. He just uses them. I don't think he's ever endorsed a guitar in his life, because the one he used for 15 years was an illegal (lawsuit) guitar.