Bought my first G&L last month

Hi,

I have been playing guitar off and on for 45 years. I had never played
a G&L. I stopped by a local guitar retailer who happened to be a G&L
dealer. I picked up a USA Legacy and was immediately awe struck.
Without a doubt it is the best guitar I've ever played. The moment
I picked it up it by the neck in just one hand I knew it was different
- it felt solid unlike other guitars. By solid I mean integrated or continuous
- don't know the exact word to describe the sensation. I asked the store
owner if they accepted trades. He said yes. So I hopped on my mountain
bicycle and quickly rode home (up hill 12 miles and I made it faster than
the down hill ride past the store!). I packed my two remaining e-guitars (USA made
from Leo's first company) into my car and drove back quickly before
the store closed (it was late on a Saturday - I just made it in time).
I've never connected with a guitar like this before. It's also the first guitar
I've ever named - I call her "Destiny". It took me a long time to meet
my destiny - hence the name! I also wrote a song by the same
name the following week! The finish is Fullerton red with rose wood
fingerboard on a #1c "U" neck. I had enough credit left over on the trade
to almost cover the price of a new SB-2 tribute bass which I picked out
2 weeks later for home recordings. The only other name I came up
with was "awesome"!

John

Welcome, John!

Great story - destiny indeed!

When you get a chance, please post a pic or two of your
new G&L instruments. We never get tired of seeing another
G&L (and some here require proof ).

Great story. Welcome! I love the vintage sound of those G&L alnico single coils. And yes, the necks are something special.
Before long, you're going to want to try an ASAT, so beware.... - ed

PS: Craig's right. We need photos!

+ 1
Pics are pretty much mandatory...
And don't forget to register that bad bear....

Congrats John. Indeed a great story!

- Jos

I'll get pictures posted soon!

Yes I'm already thinking about an ASAT. I've been listening to as
many as I can online on youtube to try to get an idea of the tonal
qualities of each. This is hard to assess since you don't know the
control settings or the eq's on the amp. I heard an old ASAT
Classic III and it knocked my socks off. There's no way G&L
will make a new ASAT Classic III is there? Can you still order
a new ASAT Classic S? I still see some new ones online for sale
but the G&L website seems to indicate they are out of production or
else not a standard production model. The ASAT special sounds
really beefy and that bridge seems to add a lot. I'm trying to imagine
how it would sound in a mix and arrangement. While it sounds good
solo I not sure if the tone is as serviceable in an arrangement/mix?
Does any body have examples of the Special in recordings? I was
trying to figure out which INXS songs used the ASAT special but
there doesn't seem to be any way of knowing. I'll probably end up
with an ASAT Classic. I already got a named picked for this guitar
(Sunshine). This will be the second time I've named a guitar in
my life! I've been back to the regular chain guitar
store and there is nothing in there I want to play anymore after
becoming a G&L convert. Some day these current G&L's are going
to be the new classic vintage instruments kids in 2040 wish they
could find for less than a fortune. "It's Morning Again" in guitar land!
I'm going to get started on the song "It's Morning Again" and I'll
play it the first time when I receive "Sunshine". Can't wait!

Welcome and congrats on getting HOOKED on G&L

ASAT Classic is just that, classic.

I have an ASAT Classic Bluesboy, ASAT Special Deluxe and a Legacy, all great. I mean great! Loving the special deluxe just cause its new (kinda like a tele on steroids) but my goto is the legacy, why? feel of the neck in my hands, its better than the rest that way, its maple with satin, not sure if that makes the difference or not, the other two have gloss finish.

Hmmm, why not a legacy with the bridge of a special, wow that'd be cool.

Either way, they are all wonderful.

I also just bought my first G&L, an ASAT Classic and also just joined the forum. Much as you described, I felt the same kind of quality and felt that something just made everything fit and work together the first time I picked her up. I'm far from an accomplished player, but even I could feel it. I love my Classic and am intrigued by the Bluesboy, too. You won't be disappointed if you pick up a Classic.

I heard an old ASAT
Classic III and it knocked my socks off. There's no way G&L
will make a new ASAT Classic III is there? Can you still order
a new ASAT Classic S?

Hey John,

G&L has a long history with 3-pickup ASAT models. Even before the model you are raving about, they produced the ASAT III from '87 until '92. I would claim that these guitars even sound better that the Classic III So bare with me on some history here. Even while the pre-BBE ASAT III's were produced, their pickups underwent some changes. There is some debate what pickups are used at what time, but this is the extend to which I have been able to trace it down. The ASAT III has Skyhawk pickups, although there are ASAT III's known to be in existence that sport early, i.e pre-1990, S-500 pups with even less windings. Now most documentation will say that the ASAT III's have S-500 pickups. George Fullerton states in his book 'Guitars from George & Leo: How Leo fender and I Built G&L Guitars' that the Skyhawk pickups are used in the "modern-day S-500". However, he is talking about the S-500 as produced in '90-'91. So in these years many models sported similar pups. Clear is that the pre-BBE ASAT III has MFD pickups, non of them reverse wound, but certainly not the modern-day S-500 pups which are hotter than the pre-BBE version and use poly-coated wire instead of enamel.

As you might have read, the ASAT Classic III uses the same pickups as the ASAT Classic with an additional reverse-wound neck pickup used in the center. Also an incredible sounding instrument with more highs than the old ASAT III. Since this is a Limited Edition, you can be sure no more than the initial 100 will be produced. Which leaves the ASAT Classic 'S'. Although initially a Special Built instrument, which means produced in limited runs but with the option to have later runs, by now it has de facto become a production model. So you can go to any dealer or go online (e.g. here) to order one. (NOTE: said dealer is only provided as an example. There are many other good dealers available.) I wish I could tell you what sonic difference the reverse wound (modern-day) S-500 pup provided versus the reverse wound Classic neck pup but the Classic 'S' is one of the few models I have not been able to lay my hands on . Still waiting for that opportunity to get me a 2007 Butterscotch specimen ...

Hope this helps,

- Jos

P.S. I saw a Fender Deluxe Tele 'Nashville model' while visiting my local GC last Friday. Numerous Nashville cats have made that mod themselves but I had never seen a production version before. When did they finally jump on that bandwagon? Or have they been around forever and I just wasn't paying attention?

Hi Jos,

I think it must have been an ASAT III that I heard versus the ASAT Classic III. The
one I heard had the saddle lock bridge and not the ash tray. That was the
best sounding tele style guitar I've ever heard in my life! It had the mini toggle
switch too and the three bolt neck. Looking in the Custom Creations link on the
G&L site the nearest I could come to it was the listing for the ASAT Classic III
so I assumed that was it with only a special ordered saddle lock bridge and
some other pickups. But it appears from your post it was an entirely different
animal, i.e. the ASAT III with Skyhawk pickups. I think it may have been built
in early 1996 but that is just a guess. The sound was heavenly. Not quite like
(as fat as) today's S-500 so that is why I was wondering about the pickups
being different. The description for the ASAT Classic III on the Custom
Creations page mentions 3 classic pickups versus 3 vintage S-500 pickups.
Even so Dave McLaren attached a special note to the ASAT Classic III page
saying: "The one specification we can't really make clear is the unbelievable
tones this guitar has." I would gladly settle for a ASAT Classic III if that's
the case! Craig asked a couple years back on the forum which vintage G&L's
we would like to see reissued. I think the ASAT Classic III would be grand.
I supposed I could order a 3rd classic pickup and have a local luthier install
it for me. In that case I would get the neck and middle pickups the same
color covers as the pick guard so from a distance it would appear to be a
stealth esquire. I know about the dealer you mentioned - very good folks.
I have a new local retail dealer where I bought my Legacy so when it comes
time to order I'll support my local dealer. This reminds me of the old Lays
Potato Chip commercial where the kid says "I bet you can't eat one." I'm
still trying to decide which ASAT I want. I would like to eat one and be
filled - at least that's my plan.

John

Hi Arizona,

Like you, the moment I picked up the Legacy I knew it was different
from other manufacturers' guitars. Unplugged it had a beautiful tone.
So I thought okay - I'm going to order one. I tried out a few
others: comanche, other legacies, etc. But the first one I picked
up had the #1C neck. So I go back to it and I'm holding it asking
the store owner questions about ordering one. By the time I finished
describing what I wanted I realized hey I'm holding the guitar I want.
So I said I'll be right back with my trades. As I was riding home
I thought am I going to have buyer's remorse over this and miss
my two guitars I'm trading (they were visually pretty). After all
I wasn't intending to buy a guitar today. I was just out for a mountain
bike ride and the old rail road trail I was on went by the store (only 100 yards
from its back door when I decided to stop in.) That
thought immediately passed when I remember how good the legacy
felt and played. I knew I was going to have a G&L Legacy one
day so why not today. This is the best guitar I've ever owned
(and I've own most of the USA brands over the years some costing
almost 3 times as much). Leo and George would be really proud of
the quality of the current production models.

John