Tweet
After drooling and GASing over these since they first appeared, i finally managed to snag an Elite series King V in gloss black! 
After finally finding a stable job and being able to actually make some future plans i grabbed it brand new with financing. It arrived on Monday evening and tonight i finally got some time to change the factory 9's to my preferred D'Addario 11's and give it a nice setup. This is easily one of the most monstrous guitars i've ever played! Right out of the box it practically played itself even though it was a bit out of tune, the Floyd was pulled up a bit and the strings were a bit too floppy for my tastes. Now that i've had some time with it though, i'm completely blown away by it. It balances perfectly on a strap and the neck is so fucking perfect it plays like butter.
The craftsmanship and attention to detail is impeccable. The fretwork is top-notch, perfectly smooth and rounded with no sharp edges sticking out, you can barely feel them on the edge of the fretboard. The creme binding adds a really classy touch while the chrome pickup rings, locking nut screws and string clamp screws on the Floyd are great little details as is the matching chrome headstock logo. I usually hate chrome hardware on black guitars because i think it screams cheap but it works perfectly on this guitar because of the hardware details which really set it off. I was anticipating the inlays to be more of a mirror finish to match the bling of the chrome but i was pleasantly surprised to find that they're actually more of a metallic silver tint. The ebony fretboard looks like obsidian and is tightly grained and smooth. I love the brushed aluminium cavity plates, not common on an import Jackson and gives an even further nod towards the whole 'Elite' vibe. The Dunlop straplocks included were greatly appreciated too!
Soundwise, unplugged it resonates wonderfully and has a really full sound. Plugged in, the SD Jazz (if i'm not mistaken, i forgot to pull the pups to take a look at them when i changed the strings) in the neck sounds full, rich, dynamic and almost reminiscent of an LP while the JB in the neck is fat, crunchy and organic. I'm really used to EMGs but miss the dynamics and warmth of passives so think i might prefer something a bit more hot and with a bit more bite and response in the bridge eventually. I'd happily take some recommendations in the meantime! The mid-boost pot is a pretty cool and unique feature to have; i don't really see myself using it much so maybe in the future i'll replace it with an EMG afterburner, momentary kill switch or marshmallow peep but for the time being, i'm leaving the guitar bone stock until i get a better feel for its character.
Anyway, on to the porn.
My apologies for the shitty cellphone pics.
After finally finding a stable job and being able to actually make some future plans i grabbed it brand new with financing. It arrived on Monday evening and tonight i finally got some time to change the factory 9's to my preferred D'Addario 11's and give it a nice setup. This is easily one of the most monstrous guitars i've ever played! Right out of the box it practically played itself even though it was a bit out of tune, the Floyd was pulled up a bit and the strings were a bit too floppy for my tastes. Now that i've had some time with it though, i'm completely blown away by it. It balances perfectly on a strap and the neck is so fucking perfect it plays like butter. The craftsmanship and attention to detail is impeccable. The fretwork is top-notch, perfectly smooth and rounded with no sharp edges sticking out, you can barely feel them on the edge of the fretboard. The creme binding adds a really classy touch while the chrome pickup rings, locking nut screws and string clamp screws on the Floyd are great little details as is the matching chrome headstock logo. I usually hate chrome hardware on black guitars because i think it screams cheap but it works perfectly on this guitar because of the hardware details which really set it off. I was anticipating the inlays to be more of a mirror finish to match the bling of the chrome but i was pleasantly surprised to find that they're actually more of a metallic silver tint. The ebony fretboard looks like obsidian and is tightly grained and smooth. I love the brushed aluminium cavity plates, not common on an import Jackson and gives an even further nod towards the whole 'Elite' vibe. The Dunlop straplocks included were greatly appreciated too!
Soundwise, unplugged it resonates wonderfully and has a really full sound. Plugged in, the SD Jazz (if i'm not mistaken, i forgot to pull the pups to take a look at them when i changed the strings) in the neck sounds full, rich, dynamic and almost reminiscent of an LP while the JB in the neck is fat, crunchy and organic. I'm really used to EMGs but miss the dynamics and warmth of passives so think i might prefer something a bit more hot and with a bit more bite and response in the bridge eventually. I'd happily take some recommendations in the meantime! The mid-boost pot is a pretty cool and unique feature to have; i don't really see myself using it much so maybe in the future i'll replace it with an EMG afterburner, momentary kill switch or marshmallow peep but for the time being, i'm leaving the guitar bone stock until i get a better feel for its character.
Anyway, on to the porn.
My apologies for the shitty cellphone pics.
Comment