A very SPECIAL day

[blargfromouterspace]

My name is Jamie and it's been over two years since I last bought a G&L. Today I finally got myself an ASAT Special. I've been watching out for a long time for something like this to come up. It's in pretty good nick, a few dings in the neck but, surprisingly, none on the body. I've given it a good de-gunking, a set-up (action was way too high for my liking) and a fresh set of strings. It plays really nicely now and sounds fantastic. Unsure of the exact neck specs, but I'm guessing it's a #2. Definitely a 7.5" radius on a thickish neck. It feels great. The neck has a glossy finish too, satin would have been nicer but I couldn't pass it up. Medium weight body, nice and resonant. All in all it's a lovely guitar. Unfortunately I'll have to sell my Jerry Jones to pay for this one but it's worth it.






It's about a '97. I'm guessing a late '97 as it has the 'B' on the serial number plate, and has the top-hat switch tip as opposed to the fantastic white ones which never fall off...

Three bolt baby!




Sparkle-arkley!


It came with a silver-sparkle pick guard too, but I really prefer the black.

[KenC]

Gorgeous!

[kakerlak]

Man, that's right up my alley!

[offplanetfilms]

VERY, VERY NICE!! ...I was eyeballing that one on the Aussie bay too, but I was waiting for an ASAT Classic Signature to arrive at the time, so I had to yield,(to avoid too much wife "stink eye"). Glad to see she went to one of the GBL gang!

[StratsRock]

Sweeeet!

[yowhatsshakin]

Nice score Jamie!!!! Beyond the pickguard and the absence of a signature on the headstock, it looks otherwise just like a John Jorgenson Sig.

- Jos

[blargfromouterspace]

That's exactly what I thought Jos. It came from the factory with a silver sparkle pick guard - the black was retro-fitted by the chap I bought it from - making me think that maybe it was at some point destined to be a Jorgy, but didn't make it off the line before the sponsorship deal turned sour. Were glossy necks an option in '97?

[Miles Smiles]

Nice guitar!

That's exactly what I thought Jos. It came from the factory with a silver sparkle pick guard - the black was retro-fitted by the chap I bought it from - making me think that maybe it was at some point destined to be a Jorgy, but didn't make it off the line before the sponsorship deal turned sour. Were glossy necks an option in '97?

If anyone hasn't read that and is interested in Johns story:
http://guitarinternational.com/2010/01/ ... isneyland/

Best sentence in that, John having an very good sounding, but not sparkled Telecaster: Oh yeah, because the thing is, some people can hear the difference, but everyone can see.

[blargfromouterspace]

Actually, this looks - in the parlance of our times - "fully sick, maaaate". Black or sparkle? Whaddya reckon!?

[offplanetfilms]

WOW! ...My vote goes to the sparkle pickguard! What a nice dazzler!

[louis cyfer]

definitely sparkle guard. looks like a no guard look, with this finish you want that. i don't normally care for sparkle, but with the sparkle guard, i really dig this one.

[gitman001]

Hey Jamie,

Great score, welcome to the Flake club!

The Black guard is hot... but the sparkle is SMOKIN'

Enjoy
Scott

[darwinohm]

Jamie my boy, you finally got some sparkle in your life and a sweet one it is. I'm not sayin' it's blingy but those Aussie Dollies are going to be hangin' stuff on this one that will make you loose it! Sweet axe and I would swap the pickguards once a month and the ladies will think that you have another new guitar every time they see you. They will think you have deep pockets and that is also a draw! Beautiful Sparkler!!!!!! Darwin

[KenC]

Jamie,

I like the sparkle guard. Yours looks nicer than the one on my Jorgenson sig. Does it have a layer of sparkle sandwiched between two plies of clear Lexan, or is it a ply of sparkly plastic on a ply of white plastic? Mine is the two ply sparkle/white, and doesn't quite match the size or shine of the finish flakes.

Ken

[meowmix]

Welcome to the Sparkle club. Very nice guitar there Jamie. Keep the sparkle pickguard. Maple fretboard looks better than ebony with that silver.

[Xochitl]

Congrats.
Both guards are nice but for my tastes the black one helps at the same time set off and tame the silver. Nice contrast.

[asphalt-abate]

Love the ASAT Jamie. If I had to choose I'd pick the black guard. It's a really nice offset to the sparkle. It makes the guitar look more fit and trim.

Tom

[yowhatsshakin]

That's exactly what I thought Jos. It came from the factory with a silver sparkle pick guard - the black was retro-fitted by the chap I bought it from - making me think that maybe it was at some point destined to be a Jorgy, but didn't make it off the line before the sponsorship deal turned sour. Were glossy necks an option in '97?

I believe it was one of John's requirements to have a glossy neck and the JJ Sigs were produced in '95. So they should have been available in '97. I like the sparkle guard too. Another interesting tidbit: there weren't many JJ Sigs with a maple board; like my JJ Sig, most have rosewood.

- Jos

[kakerlak]

You know, I thought JJ, too when I saw this the other day. Personally, I like the black guard better -- gives some visual structure to the instrument. With the sparkle guard, it's kind of a washout.

[blargfromouterspace]

Thanks guys!

Offplanet - Looking forward to pics of that Sig.

Ken - It's the one ply white with sparkles on the next layer. It matches up just about perfectly with the body. The only difference is that over the years it has yellowed somewhat, but that's fine with me.

Darwin - As usual, that's sage advice

[Dave_P]

That is a beauty! nice snag Jamie

I can't decide on the pickguards they both look great. If it were mine I'd probably go with the black one though.

-Dave

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

.

Congrats on the new guitar Jamie. The silver will go well with your spurs.

I prefer the black pickguard for all of the previously mentioned reasons. Plus, with the sparkle guard I immediately thought of a metal trash can used to BBQ turkey while the black guard looks like an invincible shield of a superhero. On the other hand I think swapping out pickguards periodically is a good idea for everyone.

[Philby]

Very nice pick up there Jamie. I was watching this one on Aus E-Bay too - glad she's gone to a good home! The same seller has offloaded a Legacy, two S-500's, a gorgeous blonde ASAT Classic and now your Special over the last 12 months. I wonder what he'll be selling next?

BTW, I like the black guard with the sparkle. It is the perfect counter balance to the silver bling. Mind you, the silver sparkle is kinda restrained compared to some of the other sparkle finished coming out of the G&L factory these days.

Do give us a tone report when you get a chance.

[blargfromouterspace]

Very nice pick up there Jamie. I was watching this one on Aus E-Bay too - glad she's gone to a good home! The same seller has offloaded a Legacy, two S-500's, a gorgeous blonde ASAT Classic and now your Special over the last 12 months. I wonder what he'll be selling next?

Do give us a tone report when you get a chance.

I believe, but may well be mistaken, that this was the last of his G&L's - the big surprise is that he's probably 5 years younger than I am He has a pretty good band too, if you're into modern disco/funk music. I tried the ASAT out before I bought it through his Bassman. F*ckin hell, what a sound. The two are made for one another. It's hard not to buy something when it sounds that good.

Tone report - Happy to oblige. This may be a little gushing as I've had a very few large cans of Polish beer and it's new... In a word, awesome. It feels and plays like a guitar that a company could be founded on, no wonder they decided to start G&L. The saddle lock bridge is the best bridge out there, bar none. You read all this muck about the ASATs inability to twang like a telecaster. It's complete bollocks. I've been swapping between it and my '97 Classic with Klein Broadcaster style pickups in it and you'd be hard pushed to pick the twangier of the two. I really like the large MFDs, but I could use a little more solid low end. For some reason it seems a little lacking in power/presence, though this might be a pickup height thing.

All said, it's a truly excellent update to the telecaster and I wish 'd gotten one sooner. Really looking forward to next weekend when she'll be put to the live band situation test.

It'll be staying as the sparkle pick guard for a while at least. It has approval from several female friends, as well as my girlfriend. Chicks dig shiny things - so predictable!

[Philby]

It'll be staying as the sparkle pick guard for a while at least. It has approval from several female friends, as well as my girlfriend. Chicks dig shiny things - so predictable!

Ah yes, I should've anticipated this. You'll have to buy your girlfriend a sparkly handbag to match!

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

It'll be staying as the sparkle pick guard for a while at least. It has approval from several female friends, as well as my girlfriend. Chicks dig shiny things - so predictable!

Ah yes, I should've anticipated this. You'll have to buy your girlfriend a sparkly handbag to match!

When the girlfriend sees the attention Jamie is getting the sparkly compensation may have to fit her finger and involve her own band to set her at ease.

[desertrat07]

Chicks dig shiny things - so predictable!

So true, and I believe it's something they're born with. I just asked my 5-year-old daughter whether she likes the guitar better with the black guard or the sparkly one and she chose the sparkly one without hesitation. (She's also obsessed with jewelry, the shinier the better, and has been since she was old enough to speak). I have to agree with her on this one - definite wow factor with that sparkle guard. Nice guitar!!!

[sam]

Jamie,

You always get the best looking girls!

you lucky bastid!!!

[blargfromouterspace]

Crikey Mikey! Your worse than her grandmother!

Sam - Maybe, but I wait a looooong time between them

Thanks again gentlemen, I'll put a sound clip together soon(ish)

[offplanetfilms]

Definitely tinker with the pickup heights to find the sweet spots. My ASAT Special tribby transformed into absolute magic with a few minor height adjustments (usually slightly lower than spec).

[supereiv]

Jamie, a very nice ASAT for sure, I would go with the black pickguard, but hey, it's up to you I guess
I have to agree with the previous post though, pickup height definitely needs to be tweaked. By the way aren't you aware of this, for you're playing several ASATs with MFD ?

[darwinohm]

Between a neat girlfriend and a sparkle G&L, who has time to mess with pickups??????-- Darwin

[blargfromouterspace]

Jamie, a very nice ASAT for sure, I would go with the black pickguard, but hey, it's up to you I guess
I have to agree with the previous post though, pickup height definitely needs to be tweaked. By the way aren't you aware of this, for you're playing several ASATs with MFD ?

Hey Xavier, my other ASATs all have different pickups, none of have the MFDs in them. I've tinkered with the large MFDs a bit since, now they just need a fine tuning with the individual pole-pieces.

...usually slightly lower than spec.

I've noticed on a few ASAT's I've played that the pickups have been set very low by the owners, and this one was the same. They were so low that the output was less than the vintage style pickups. Must be a trick I don't know about. I'll try backing them off again today and see what happens. Thanks!

Between a neat girlfriend and a sparkle G&L, who has time to mess with pickups??????-- Darwin

You'd know that for sure Darwin