just got a G&L Tribute Legacy - some obversations, questions

Hello,

I used to have a U.S. Legacy, but the neck was too narrow for my tastes. Since I got the U.S. Legacy used, I didn't realize at the time that there were alternative necks I
might have liked better on this particular model G&L.
I went on to owning a Fender Strat and kind of forgot about acquiring a Legacy for a while. Recently, I
found myself "Stratless" and longed for a whammy bar Strat-like guitar, whether by Fender or another company. A friend recommended I try out
a Legacy, so I got a new blue Swamp Ash model. It weighs quite a bit and is very resonant and has a very Strat-like tone. I know G&L has evolved many of the Fender models, but this Tribute Legacy
reminded me of the Strat I used to own.
I would have loved to try out a U.S. made Legacy, but perhaps in the future somewhere I will stumble upon one.

Some questions:

1. I believe the Indonesian Tribute I got has U.S. made pickups and guitar is no more than a few months or so old from the factory. Have the pickups changed in recent years?
They sounded more trebly in the previous U.S. Legacy I owned. This Tribute had a good balance between treble/mid/bass frequencies.

2. The U.S. Legacy was a lot lighter. Do the U.S. and Tribute models vary a lot in weight from one guitar to another? Or, is the U.S. guitar usually lighter in weight?

3. How does the weight of the Tribute Legacy affect the sound? My theory is that there is a bit more sustain and fullness to the tone (like my old G&L Broadcaster), though
I know there is a lot of debate on weight of woods versus sustain and general tone.

4. The tremolo is very tame compared to the Fender. I think it stays in tune better on the G&L, but I can't seem to get the range that my Fender Strat's whammy had (i.e. doing
your J. Hendrix dive bombing etc..). Should I remove a spring? I eventually will get the guitar adjusted, but I was curious to how the stock whammy setup is supposed to be.
I guess the way it is now, you can barely do some surf type tremolo. I will do some searching on this board and on the web to see if there is any info. on adjusting a
G&L whammy. I think the U.S. Legacy whammy was set up a lot better, even though it was a used Legacy. Are there any after-market whammies available for the Tribute
for experimentation? The shape of it appears to be custom shaped for the Legacy.

5. I feel a U.S. Fender's neck, if you get a good one, has a better feel than the Tribute, but the Tribute smokes most of the "mid-priced" Mexican models.

6. I am a little confused on the U.S. versus imported parts in the Tribute Legacy. As I understand, the Tribute pups are identical to the U.S. pups. Is the Whammy the same?
I think the tuning pegs look a bit cheaper on the Tiribute.

7. What is the difference in the swamp ash on the Tribute and swamp ash on the U.S. Legacy? Are they almost identical in tonal quality? Or, is the U.S. swamp ash
considered better tone wood? Where does the Tribute swamp ash come from? Is it native indonesian wood or is it imported from the U.S.?

I realize that a U.S. made $1300 or so guitar is going to be better than a $500 imported model, in many cases, but I was curious about the practical differences between
the U.S. Legacy and Tribute Legacy, noting that I believe the old U.S. Legacy I owned was clearly more handmade than the Tribute.

Thanks so much for any answers/opinions to the above questions on the Tribute Legacy.

Welcome,

Here's a set-up guide that will help give you an idea of the stock set-up,
http://www.guitarsbyleo.com/GALLERY2/main.php?g2_itemId=366

I've found that given enough space between the bridge plate and body the limiting factor of dive bombs is the shape of the whammy bar, I think removing a spring would just affect the resistance, but not the overall throw of it. Maybe your bridge needs to be raised some, 3/16" above the body is the recommended starting point.

I've noticed the newer pickups are a bit brighter than the older ones too.

Congrats on finding a G&L to your liking.

Craig (our moderator) might be able to help find some answers that you still have after browsing the forums and gallery etc.

cheers

If you're not getting a satisfactory range (and I'm assuming you're talking about going down in pitch) then you'll need to tighten the springs in the back of your guitar. You can purchase bridges (and most other hardware) from the G&L website. the prices are good, but if you live outside of the US then shipping is going to cost about as much as your guitar....

As to weight of guitars, there isn't really any common opinion that heavy or light is better. I have guitars which are heavy and ones which are light. They're both good to me, though given the choice I'd go for a lighter one as the feeling of a lightweight body reverberating in my hands is lovely. And yes, weights vary hugely, even on the US made guitars. This is because no two trees are identical.

A lot of factors affect the feel of the neck - fingerboard radius, shape, widths, frets, scale length - so finding one which you like is a great thing! I love the #1 G&L neck (12" fingerboard radius, C-shape), it's perfect for me.

Enjoy your guitar, and welcome to the forum!

I was interested to read your comments re. the old Legacy pickups being bright. My USA S-500 has 1996 Legacy pickups in it (long story) and I too find them very, very bright. If the newer pickups are definitely more mellow I'd like to get rid of the bright ones.

Reading your post, I'm always bewildered by the price difference in Tribute instruments between Australia and the USA. The Aus $ and US $ are almost equal in value, the guitars are made in Indonesia (just a stone's throw from Australia), but a new Tribby will cost about $1300 in Australia and $500 in the US. Hmmm. Something doesn't add up there. Please don't tell me the Tribby's are shipped from Indonesia to the USA and then back to Australia!

I've noticed the same thing with the Australian tribute prices... they're made closer to home, yet cost as much as a secondhand USA model here. (They obviously get to see a lot of the world before touching down on Aussie shores!)

I was interested to read your comments re. the old Legacy pickups being bright. My USA S-500 has 1996 Legacy pickups in it (long story) and I too find them very, very bright. If the newer pickups are definitely more mellow I'd like to get rid of the bright ones.

I have an early USA Legacy with Seymour Duncan pups. I find them to be too bright and too low output for my taste. My taste runs towards clean and bright, but these are too much. They're all spank and sparkle with no supporting meat. I've not played a Legacy with the G&L made pickups, I would really love to do so.

Reading your post, I'm always bewildered by the price difference in Tribute instruments between Australia and the USA. The Aus $ and US $ are almost equal in value, the guitars are made in Indonesia (just a stone's throw from Australia), but a new Tribby will cost about $1300 in Australia and $500 in the US. Hmmm. Something doesn't add up there. Please don't tell me the Tribby's are shipped from Indonesia to the USA and then back to Australia!

The Tributes are shipped to the Fullerton factory, checked and set up there and then shipped to the dealers.
As mentioned on the G&L website on the Tribute specs pages: Outside USA please contact your G&L distributor for availability.

Hope this helps.

You said:

>I have an early USA Legacy with Seymour Duncan pups. I find them to be too bright and too low output for my taste. My taste runs towards clean and bright, but these are too much. >They're all spank and sparkle with no supporting meat. I've not played a Legacy with the G&L made pickups, I would really love to do so.

I believe the old USA Legacy had the Seymour Duncan pups - this was a long time ago, but I am fairly sure they were Seymour Duncans. I agree with you on the brightness.

I am also convinced many of the tributes don't come close playing as easy as a U.S. G&L or Fender.

But, I really love the sound of the Tribute Legacy and it plays quite well at a substantial savings off a U.S. G&L Legacy or Fender Strat.

The tone is very similar to first Hendrix CD.

I believe the old USA Legacy had the Seymour Duncan pups - this was a long time ago, but I am fairly sure they were Seymour Duncans. I agree with you on the brightness.

Yes, that is correct. The 1992-1994 Legacy models had the SD pickups.
See our List of pickups used in G&L guitars for details.

Hope this helps.