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  • NGD - KVMG Pro

    No pics yet, but you've seen it already



    KVMG Pro with snapped-off high E tuner from Music123.

    It arrived late yesterday afternoon, so I haven't done much more than unbox it and twist the fine tuners. I'll see about gluing the tip on it this weekend. It's a jagged enough break that glue should hold. Shouldn't have to drill and dowel anything. Might do it anyway.

    At any rate, let's get to the important stuff.

    Neck:
    -construction: 3-piece no-scarf-joint, with a 5-piece head (and we see how that worked out here, what with the last piece snapping off).
    -profile: Feels kinda round and narrow. Reminds me more of the older H-S-S DK2 neck than the DK2M or USA KV2 neck. Comfy for sure (to me, anyway). The oil treatment feels nice and smooth. Not USA-style, of course, but better than painted. It's nearly 1/32" narrower than the locking nut, judging by feel. The nut hangs over the edges (evenly!) just a hair. You can feel it, but it's not like "OMG! "
    -inlays: not sure what they are. Looks like stainless steel. Definitely plastic. Very dark when viewed from playing position. Even when viewed straight-on, they're dark; about a shade lighter than the board.
    -fretboard: if it ain't ebony, it's well-ebonized. Black as Sully's soul, for sure Very tight grain (could be a plastic laminate, it's so tight )
    -binding: White. I'da done Ivoroid, personally, but white's ok. Stands out better. Black side dots should offer a great contrast for those of you who will be playing on blackout stages Not over-the-frets.
    -frets: nice fret work. Ends are sooth, not jagged like I expect from Injunesia.

    Floyd: It's a Floyd Rose. FRT1000 or Special, I dunno, but doesn't say "licensed" or "Germany". Haven't done anything with it, so as far as I'm concerned, the jury's still out on their quality compared to a Schaller.

    Weight: Not as heavy as my late 70s/early 80s Vantage roundhorn V, or my (alder) WarAngel. About the same as a SoCal. It's very resonant, though, as the trem springs are passing sympathetic vibrations like a mufugger.

    Serial numbering: This is an Indonesian guitar. Says so right on the serial number sticker on the back. Serialization for these apparently follows an entirely new (for Jackson) scheme, which is:

    IWJ followed by 7 numbers.

    Not sure of the rationale behind the numbers, however (nor the IWJ, for that matter). The first two do not appear to be Year (unless this thing is 2 years old. Given the buildup on the board, that's possible.) If this was a store-demo and never sold, it was heavily favored by chugga-chuggers more than meedly-meedlers. First three frets might need looking at under the E and A. Nothing major like dents, but severe scratches in the tops.

    Pickups: Real EMGs, it appears. Battery box has a wonky lid - you gotta push on the top corner to make sure it seals. May just be me.

    Misc:
    -The part that struck me as incredible is the backplates are brushed aluminum like the USA and 1990-era Pros (!). I truly expected them to be plastic.
    -Output jack on the top wing like a USA KV.

    I haven't strapped it on yet, so I can't say how well it wears.

    Definitely needs new strings. Got a nice rubber-band acoustic tone with whatever's on it.
    I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

    The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

    My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

  • #2
    Cool. Interesting there's no scarf joint. Good luck in fixing it up.
    I feel my soul go cold... only the dead are smiling.

    Comment


    • #3
      HNGD! Fantastic price and good luck with the repair. Newc, it's my understanding that the first 2 digits represent the year. When that number format first appeared in 2012 on Mexican, Indonesian and Chinese guitars they read: MXJ12xxxxx, IWJ12xxxxx and CSJ12xxxxx respectively. Last year the 13's appeared and if my theory is correct the 14's will appear shortly.
      Originally posted by Newc View Post
      Not sure of the rationale behind the numbers, however (nor the IWJ, for that matter). The first two do not appear to be Year (unless this thing is 2 years old. Given the buildup on the board, that's possible.)
      96xxxxx, 97xxxxx and 98xxxxx serials oftentimes don't indicate '96, '97 and '98.

      Comment


      • #4
        Good to know. Should help keep things sorted in the years to come.
        I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

        The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

        My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

        Comment


        • #5
          Congrats! I really want one of these for the unfinished neck.

          Comment


          • #6
            I haven't tweaked the setup yet - giving it time to acclimate - so I don't know how low it can go. What it came with is a bit high for my tastes, especially with 9s. If it cant go low enough, I might take it up to 10s and drop it to D standard.
            I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

            The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

            My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

            Comment


            • #7
              Ok, so these inlays are "alumiloid". WTF is that supposed to be, plastic aluminum? At any rate....

              They put the backplates on while the paint's still wet, like with the ProMods, so if you get one, be prepared for a fight.

              And while mine is 2 years old and things change, and it may very well be a used guitar as opposed to "the store whore", there's an 89 in the neck. The volume is a push/pull. The spec sheet says 81/85. Judging from the neatness of the wiring job, it's either factory or a very anal-retentive previous owner. Solder joints are clean, excess wire is tied down neatly.

              I did lower the trem a bit, but the neck doesn't look like it needs to go any flatter, so the action is a tad higher than I'd like (and can usually get, even on imports). But then again, part of the reason I'd prefer this model to be a bolt-on is so that I can put "the right neck" on it and get unbelievably low action.
              A finned DK2M neck would kill on this axe. Fuck all that "blacker than black" gothtard horseshit

              The trussrod cover is somewhat thinner and more flexible than Japanese models were, in case that interests you. Either that or they're made of a less rigid material. Either way, it flexes fairly easily, but it's not like you can fold it up like tin foil. Imagine the thickest regular-sized guitar pick just shy of being a bass pick.

              It's very well-balanced, as well. No neck diving, even with a standard non-locking nylon strap and a cotton t-shirt.
              But of course it's a Jackson pointy-tip V, so watch your surroundings.
              I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

              The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

              My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

              Comment


              • #8
                Looks amazing, and a simple enough fix. Score!
                http://www.amazon.co.uk/Steven-A.-McKay/e/B00DS0TRH6/

                http://http://stevenamckay.wordpress.com/

                Comment


                • #9
                  I would never buy a guitar with damage like that. Best of luck.
                  Fuck ebay, fuck paypal

                  "Finger on the trigger, back against the wall. Counting rounds and voices, not enough to kill them all" (Ihsahn).

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Not everyone would, but it's an easy fix. One of my WR Pros came to me with a head that was snapped completely in half during transit. It was in the old 90's crapass import case (looks great from the outside but isn't worth a fuck since the inside is just felt-covered plywood with no padding) and the guy left the wrenches in the holder on the back of the head - snapped right across the big wrench. I glued it back together and AFAIK it's still holding.
                    I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

                    The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

                    My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I'd imagine regular PVA (good quality stuff) would hold that in place fine, but it would be a simple enough matter to add a couple of plates at the top and bottom. Even add one at the back if you wanted to be OTT about it. I'm sure it'll be fine.
                      http://www.amazon.co.uk/Steven-A.-McKay/e/B00DS0TRH6/

                      http://http://stevenamckay.wordpress.com/

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Thought about a brass plate across the front and back, mounted by the tuners, but I went with drilling holes through the broken piece, then through the rest of the head and inserting dowels. Sadly, I kinda muffed the holes on the 2nd drill, so the dowels were kinda slippery. Found an unopened bottle of Krazy Glue, but it was so old it solidified in the bottle

                        Found a more recent bottle and glued it and the dowels, and used a couple of wood blocks on either side of the head for clamps with some vise grips. 3 hours later, I put the tuner back on and tuned it up. Works fine.

                        I did get the action down low enough to keep 9s on it, though.
                        I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

                        The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

                        My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          You used crazy glue on wood? You crazy bastard!
                          Imagine, being able to be magically whisked away to... Delaware. Hi... Im in... Delaware...

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            I can't find my bottle of wood glue. When it breaks again, I'll pick up another bottle
                            I want to depart this world the same way I arrived; screaming and covered in someone else's blood

                            The most human thing we can do is comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

                            My Blog: http://newcenstein.com

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Newc View Post
                              there's an 89 in the neck. The volume is a push/pull. The spec sheet says 81/85. Judging from the neatness of the wiring job, it's either factory or a very anal-retentive previous owner. Solder joints are clean, excess wire is tied down neatly.
                              I am pretty sure that is a mistake with the spec sheet. I played a KVMG and an RRTMG and both had 89's with a push-pull tap.

                              Also, even the stock photos clearly show the red/bronze colored logo for the neck pickup.

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