SCORE! SLS3 $850 shipped!

[MetalMedal II]

Looks sweet! I like trying the creme ring idea. It might look good with chrome hardware, if you're lookin to switch out the black.

[Newc]

Let's get some feedback on how that baby plays! Can't find anyone around here that carries this higher end stuff....just tons of RRs & DKMs. They have WALLS of Les Pauls, Stratocasters & Dean crap. I get alot of " we can order that in for you" replies. If I am spending this kind of money on something it better "fit" for me.
My DK2 weighs in at 7lbs 6oz on my scale. I see this is about a pound lighter. Do you feel that difference? What about TONE? Does the neck thru & string-thru feel as solid as I think it would? How are the '59s?
Give me some details my Good Man!

Setup is everything, even in a cheap-ass guitar. I had an Agile Goldtop LP copy that played as well as my USA LP Standard once it was set up properly.

That said, the SLS3 so far hasn't needed much tweaking - three strings were not intonated properly. I haven't had to touch the trussrod or the action. The bridge pickup was cocked up on one side, but it sounds great so I'm not touching that.

The neck profile is definitely Soloist. Not as thin as the KV profile, but not quite as thick as a DK2M neck. It's even got the flat-spot running down the back. If you've not experienced this, you're missing out. It's like a compound radius for the back of the neck.

It's very light-weight, but not so much as to make you doubt its tonal abilities. It won't weigh you down, that's for sure.

As with most Strat-shapes, the location of the strap pins results in "Buddy Holly Pose", but this is an industry-wide failing, not just this model.

As for the construction and string-through feeling as solid as you think it would, only you can answer that question. Having owned literally dozens of neckthrough and bolt-on models, I can say with all honesty that just because it's neckthrough doesn't make it better than a bolt-on. Arbor made some shitty neckthroughs in the 80s.

I've never been a fan of the string-through design. I prefer a stopbar with a tuneomatic bridge. Stringthrough is too easy to screw up, whereas a stopbar allows for some play. If you botch a stringthrough alignment, you've got strings hitting the saddles at an angle. As well, given the nature of stringthrough, the strings break across the body of the bridge before they hit the saddle. The first and only thing a string should touch is the saddle, never the body of the bridge. It does not enhance sustain as the string is effectively dead at that point. A stopbar allows you to get sympathetic resonance behind the bridge, which translates to the stopbar and the body.

Lot's of people like to bash the SLS headstock, but straight string pull beats a right-angle any day of the week, and these are straight as pins.

I will say the factory strings are shit. They will not stay in tune. I'm assuming they're bulk D'Adarrios, as Jackson usually uses.

An upgrade to locking tuners wouldn't be a bad idea.

I also feel they took too much off the top of the body, given the tall bridge pickup ring and the nearly 3/8" of clearance between the body and bottom of the bride.

The 3-way blade switch is being replaced by a 5-way. Had it been a 3-way toggle, I woulda just put on some Seymour Duncan TripleShot rings, but since it's a blade, no sense in using a 3-way when a 5-way offers more versatility.


The pickups are nice and beefy under distortion, but a bit dark for me on cleans. Parallel switching sounds great with 59s, so the TripleShots may come later.

I do wish someone had been selling them this cheap sooner, I'd probably have a black one to go with this one

I've always said any Jackson neckthrough in playable condition is worth $1000, but that was back when the used market was overflowing with used early-90s neckthrough Pro models for under $1000. While the SLS3 is nice, $1000 new is still too close to Used USA and Old Pro prices.

[sixx_ gunner]

Thanks Newc for the feedback. I learned something about string-thru's. I just thought it would help resonate, but you have had a few more guitars then me.
Thanks again for your input and insight.

[bootleg_]

Sooo Nice! I've got serious gas for one now. I need one to compliment my SLSMG's. Congrats.

[Newc]

Just swapped the rings and put satin chrome knobs on.

Not a fan of satin chrome hardware, but they seem to be working on the white.

I'll give it a few days before deciding whether or not to put on the matching bridge and Sperzels.


And the pickups are 59s, but they're 2-conductor, so splitting them isn't an option

Put on a set of EB 9s and within just a few stretches they were set, so the strings that came on it were definitely crap.

Only one minor quibble - the screws for the bridge pickup ring are too short. They don't go into the wood and fall out easily.

[m2pmd70]

Been drooling over those. Congrats.

Never thought about the thru vs stoptail thing that way. I always assumed on otherwise identical guitars they'd sound the same. I just like the look of the stringthru better. So theoretically, if you could drill the stringthru holes at just the perfect angle so that they aren't breaking over the body you'd be rewarded with more sustain?

[Newc]

I'd say yes, if you could drill them far enough back from the bridge that the strings didn't touch the bridge body, just the saddles, you'd have slightly more sustain, or at least more resonance (a more bell-like tone).

As well, retuning wouldn't be so hard on the strings, as they're not dragging across another piece of metal. Bends would also not cause the strings to flex over the bridge base.

[ekalb09]

Thanks for the pics and reviewing Newc, it makes me want one even more haha! Can you tell me how wide the fretboard is compared to your USA charvels?

[Newc]

Binding always widens a fretboard more than a non-bound one, but only by 1/16th" at most.

As well, the Charvel board edges are rolled/rounded more than bound fretboards are.



I went ahead and put on the Satin Chrome Sperzels and bridge, and replaced the pickups with Duncan P-Rails and put on TripleShot rings. Definitely different

[Newc]

Final modded pics:

[ekalb09]

Newc I also meant to ask, how does the neck profile compare to a USA soloist? You said it was in between a KV2 and a DK2M, would that imply it's similar?