The Junior II and Deluxe II -- P90s and 'Buckers On Tap
G&L ASATs: Great players have been workin' 'em and G&L's been moddin' 'em for nearly 30 years. Ash, Alder, Mahogany, Korina ... solid and semi-hollow ... MFD and Alnico single-coils, humbuckers, P90s ... two-pickup, three-pickup -- you get the point: the ASAT's a tone machine, and now G&L's Tribute Series is growing by two tweaked-for-tone ASAT models: the ASAT Junior II and the ASAT Deluxe II.
The ASAT Junior II carries two Paul Gagon-designed P90 pickups, specially spec'd to deliver stellar tones in each position and with matched output for more truly usable rhythm/lead switching. The ASAT Deluxe II sports two Gagon-designed humbuckers straight from the award-winning ASAT Deluxe Carved Top, complete with push/pull coil tap to wring out every last drop of tone.
Both of these ASATs feature easy-playing, medium-C profile necks with 12" radius and 1-5/8" nut width for a classic ASAT feel that greets the hand like an old friend. Add on Tone-Pros bridge/tailpiece hardware, delicious Irish Ale-finished Mahogany bodies and Hard Rock Maple necks with Rosewood boards and you've got two versatile ASATs that effortlessly cover a wide range of sonic territory.
The Junior II and Deluxe II models have popped up before in short-run Custom Creations models made at G&L's Fullerton, California shop, but this is the first time they've been this widely available. On top of that, they're part of G&L's Tribute Series, which has been garnering rave reviews for more than a decade thanks to its solid combination of tone, quality and value.
Yet again the ASAT has proven that versatility is deep in its DNA.
Find out more about the Tribute Series ASAT Junior II here.
Find out more about the Tribute Series ASAT Deluxe II here.
My heart is in a raging war with my brains on this one.
My brains tell me this is absolutely the right move to bring these guitars to market. They are great models, great wood, great pups, and everything is there for a very affordable price.
My heart is chewing out Dave and his team for devalueing my Junior, my Korina Collection Junior II, and my Korina Collection ASAT II to the point of wanting to write an angry letter and demand compensation for this loss of value and chiding them for abandoning statements made on their website on the exclusivity of Limited Edition CCD models.
Now, my brain is objecting that Korina is still an exclusive wood only used for the Korina Collection (and as top on the Savannah Collection where the otherwise never before used Okoume for the bulk of the body) and that other Limited Editions e.g. only differ in finish used (think Blomdie here) or winding in pickups (20th and 25th Anniversary). But then my heart interjects that it was thinking that the Kalamazoo look and feel of these models was entirely reserved to Limited Editions and a large part of what made these guitars special and out of the ordinary. And as far as specs go, what's so exclusive about them now? To which my brain only has a feeble counter argument in that the heart merely assumes something that was and is never explicitly stated ...
A peace envoy has been sent in to see if a truce can be worked out ...
Jos. I understand your reaction and shared your thoughts but I guess you answerd yourself on this one: your guitars are Fullerton made and with korina. Have to find a way through this, right? And I do believe it makes a difference.
Another thing I don't get (even if I understand that, for Dave, it's about blending G&F words) is the use of a TOM/stop tail bridge. I believe that the saddle lock is a more comfortable and G&L specific design that could benefit a 2xP90 guitar. But it could be argued that they would be too close to the ASAT special (and ASAT deluxe for a 2H) Tribute models. But then to avoid overlapping , I'd better see a 2 MFD humbucker design... Did you say 25th anniversary?
Anyway, I guess G&L gotta keep moving and it may also be considered that some Tribute lines were available only for a couple of years. What will be with these ones?
Xochitl wrote:Jos. I understand your reaction and shared your thoughts but I guess you answerd yourself on this one: your guitars are Fullerton made and with korina. Have to find a way through this, right? And I do believe it makes a difference.
+1
in fact, i think the value would have lowered if the junior was as a standard in the fullerton production...
hey dude ! the only real guitar value it's the value it has in your hands...
Xochitl wrote:Jos. I understand your reaction and shared your thoughts but I guess you answerd yourself on this one: your guitars are Fullerton made and with korina. Have to find a way through this, right? And I do believe it makes a difference.
+1
in fact, i think the value would have lowered if the junior was as a standard in the fullerton production...
hey dude ! the only real guitar value it's the value it has in your hands...
Well stated guys!
So here an update: the heart has unconditionally surrendered after it was pointed out that the Black Ice Collection already introduced the TOM to a non-limited production run of instruments.
Xochitl wrote:Jos. I understand your reaction and shared your thoughts but I guess you answerd yourself on this one: your guitars are Fullerton made and with korina. Have to find a way through this, right? And I do believe it makes a difference.
+1
in fact, i think the value would have lowered if the junior was as a standard in the fullerton production...
hey dude ! the only real guitar value it's the value it has in your hands...
Well stated guys!
So here an update: the heart has unconditionally surrendered after it was pointed out that the Black Ice Collection already introduced the TOM to a non-limited production run of instruments.
- Jos
And before the Black Ice Collection, the Ascari model and Fiorano model were the first on the Tribute Series side.
I suppose I just don't understand the marriage between Kalamazoo and Fullerton. Was this a shotgun wedding? Did Mr. P-bass get funky with Lucille?
I like the use of a variety of woods, but why a tun-o-matic, Gibson pups and that little LP pick guard?
It reminds me of a very bad rock tune - "mind bender" , which ought to at least be accessed as free public-domain theme music for the Deluxe II and Jr II ("My mamma was a Gibson, my daddy was a Fender...").
I hope this works for G&L, but I like all things Leo much more!
I knew the right day to stop by! I've said it before, no better place to do your G&Ling than with James at The Guitar Store.
I'll do a NGD post later after some pictures get taken. Played it through a Miller amp when I got home and it just sounded great in every position (even with me playing it). G&L definitely got it right with the Savannah woods and stuff.
Jos, I wanted to reply to your post. I felt that way for a few minutes too, after all I also spent the bigger money on the Super, Jr and Korina Jr. I then realized, for every tribute sold at the quality the ones I touched at James' store today.....there will be a buyer for those that will long even more for the ones in the custom creations and limited runs. Not everyone can or wants to drop the cash that it takes to get into a Korina model or the like, so this fills a different void. An awful lot of people that start out with Epiphone Les Pauls and Fender Squire Strats end up later on with the "real deal" versions of their guitars. I've always thought the Tributes are either a great introduction to future guitars and also meant for touring folks that need a great backup or road guitar. Hell, I wanted that tribute today with the humbuckers but can't justify buying one with what I have.
Disclaimer-I am a dealer--Take what I saw with heavy grains of salt.
Back to reality.
I have not played the Deluxe yet. There is a customer playing one now in a so so amp and he looks happy. The sounds are sharp and dynamic with a big low end.
I just got these two in today. I am taking a JR home. I really like the 90's. The neck which is usually weak on p90 double pick up guitars is thick and raw. I would usually spend most of my time in the bridge because I am a cretin. I will spend a lot of time on the neck here. Feels great, light and well finished.
James Schultz-Owner-
The Guitar Store
Now with two locations!
Seattle and Bellevue, WA www.seattleguitarstore.com
206.397.4438
Swamp ash wrote:I suppose I just don't understand the marriage between Kalamazoo and Fullerton. Was this a shotgun wedding? Did Mr. P-bass get funky with Lucille?
I like the use of a variety of woods, but why a tun-o-matic, Gibson pups and that little LP pick guard?
It reminds me of a very bad rock tune - "mind bender" , which ought to at least be accessed as free public-domain theme music for the Deluxe II and Jr II ("My mamma was a Gibson, my daddy was a Fender...").
I hope this works for G&L, but I like all things Leo much more!
Not only G&L, but FMIC is doing the same sort of thing, with some Gretsch thrown in from time to ("La Cabronita" Tele, anyone?). I think it's mostly about mass-produced off-the-shelf hardware and pickup sources located near the Asian factories holding down the costs involved in bringing out a new model -- as opposed to designing something truly new from scratch that would incur costly tooling expenses. So, we wind up with models that take advantage of the wide proliferation of inexpensive parts made to established Gibson and/or Fender specs -- otherwise nice, sensibly-priced guitars that tend to look and perform like the de facto hybrids they are. Not a bad thing, per se, but certainly not Leo's way of getting it done.
Good example of this marketing scheme is Fender announced a swirl finish this week in one of their lower priced models. G&L had beautiful swirl finishes years ago. I wish G&L would bring it back as it was awesome. -- Darwin
I love affordable cool guitars, and since they're limited I grabbed one of the swirls. Gonna hot rod the heck out of it! The white part isn't camera glare, it actually is that white. I had a swirl metallic Climax in blue, and it's the one listed on an overpriced ebay auction at the moment. I should have kept it, and am still waiting for it to drop so I can once again own it. I'd be a sucker for G&L swirl once again. I also liked the Goldburst finish G&L had, guess my taste is a bit odd!
Nice Marbling Jeff,
(let's call it what it's been for hundreds of years, eh? . disclaimer: being a Marbler I am sensitive about related nomenclature )
elwood
p.s. A Vocoder is not an Auto-tune ...damn whipper snappers !
darwinohm wrote:Good example of this marketing scheme is Fender announced a swirl finish this week in one of their lower priced models. G&L had beautiful swirl finishes years ago. I wish G&L would bring it back as it was awesome. -- Darwin
G&L had been working on the Swirl finishes. You might have missed this prototype which was available to G&L dealers and posted in the G&L Guitar Prototypes page.
Special Features: G&L offered three colors of “swirl” finishes in the 1990s. The finish process requires a few layers of paint to achieve the swirl effect, and occasionally the layers may delaminate. Though failures were infrequent, concern about the stability of this finish caused them to be discontinued. Though requests from dealers continued, G&L refused to take more orders. Well over a decade later, the team decided to revisit the process using more contemporary materials and modified techniques. This red swirl ASAT Deluxe was the third attempt and has has held up for about eight months. Satisfied that the performance of this prototype, the team has released it for sale. As of June 2012 no decision has been reached regarding the return of swirl finishes to production.
When I was down at the factory during Winter NAMM, I saw some bodies in the Paint shop with this finish and asked Malcolm about them. He said they
still were not fully satisfied with them and they would likely shelve the project for the time being.
editorjuno wrote:
Not only G&L, but FMIC is doing the same sort of thing, with some Gretsch thrown in from time to ("La Cabronita" Tele, anyone?). I think it's mostly about mass-produced off-the-shelf hardware and pickup sources located near the Asian factories holding down the costs involved in bringing out a new model -- as opposed to designing something truly new from scratch that would incur costly tooling expenses. So, we wind up with models that take advantage of the wide proliferation of inexpensive parts made to established Gibson and/or Fender specs -- otherwise nice, sensibly-priced guitars that tend to look and perform like the de facto hybrids they are. Not a bad thing, per se, but certainly not Leo's way of getting it done.
With the G&L Tribute Series, the MFD and Legacy pickups are from the Fullerton factory and the G&L humbuckers and G&L P-90 pickups are designed
and specced by Paul Gagon. Paul spent a lot of time working with the pickup builders over there to get them to build them exactly to his specs. So, no
off the shelf pickups are used in the G&L Tribute models.
editorjuno wrote:
Not only G&L, but FMIC is doing the same sort of thing, with some Gretsch thrown in from time to ("La Cabronita" Tele, anyone?). I think it's mostly about mass-produced off-the-shelf hardware and pickup sources located near the Asian factories holding down the costs involved in bringing out a new model -- as opposed to designing something truly new from scratch that would incur costly tooling expenses. So, we wind up with models that take advantage of the wide proliferation of inexpensive parts made to established Gibson and/or Fender specs -- otherwise nice, sensibly-priced guitars that tend to look and perform like the de facto hybrids they are. Not a bad thing, per se, but certainly not Leo's way of getting it done.
With the G&L Tribute Series, the MFD and Legacy pickups are from the Fullerton factory and the G&L humbuckers and G&L P-90 pickups are designed
and specced by Paul Gagon. Paul spent a lot of time working with the pickup builders over there to get them to build them exactly to his specs. So, no
off the shelf pickups are used in the G&L Tribute models.
I wasn't referring to the entire Tribute line, just these two models. I'm aware of the Fullerton origin of all MFDs too.
No disrespect or offense to Mr. Gagon (or the care he put into instructing vendor personnel) intended, but YAGPV (Yet Another Gibson Pickup Variant) built on an Asian armature and packaged in an off-the-shelf Gibson-style housing doesn't count as a new design in my book -- it amounts to specifying some changes to an Asian rendition of a decades-old Gibson design (or in this case, two of them) and making sure it's manufactured correctly. This is not to say they aren't absolutely terrific pickups or that it didn't take major skill and effort to make them happen -- it just reflects my personal (and of course debatable) view of what comprises a pickup design, so naturally YMMV.
Swamp ash wrote:I suppose I just don't understand the marriage between Kalamazoo and Fullerton. Was this a shotgun wedding? Did Mr. P-bass get funky with Lucille?
I like the use of a variety of woods, but why a tun-o-matic, Gibson pups and that little LP pick guard?
It reminds me of a very bad rock tune - "mind bender" , which ought to at least be accessed as free public-domain theme music for the Deluxe II and Jr II ("My mamma was a Gibson, my daddy was a Fender...").
I hope this works for G&L, but I like all things Leo much more!
Not only G&L, but FMIC is doing the same sort of thing, with some Gretsch thrown in from time to ("La Cabronita" Tele, anyone?). I think it's mostly about mass-produced off-the-shelf hardware and pickup sources located near the Asian factories holding down the costs involved in bringing out a new model -- as opposed to designing something truly new from scratch that would incur costly tooling expenses. So, we wind up with models that take advantage of the wide proliferation of inexpensive parts made to established Gibson and/or Fender specs -- otherwise nice, sensibly-priced guitars that tend to look and perform like the de facto hybrids they are. Not a bad thing, per se, but certainly not Leo's way of getting it done.
Yep, tun-o-matics are very cheap - there ain't nuttin' to 'em... And the pups are all well-known and foreign-sourced. You are correct, FMIC and G&L are merging ever more closely with their models and offerings. I wouldn't be surprised to see the corporate bottom-liners find better profits in selling G&L to FMIC down the road. Marketing now seems more about recycling old and often competing products and marketing visual appearances rather than any true innovation.
Granted, marketing is a important key, however, long-term it is about identifying and maintaining image "branding". Fender has been able to operate via name recognition only. This won't work for G&L - they need to find a Branding niche.
I'd be happy to provide consultation, but, they would have to make me the guitar(s) to my specs, first
yowhatsshakin wrote:My heart is in a raging war with my brains on this one.
My brains tell me this is absolutely the right move to bring these guitars to market. They are great models, great wood, great pups, and everything is there for a very affordable price.
My heart is chewing out Dave and his team for devalueing my Junior, my Korina Collection Junior II, and my Korina Collection ASAT II to the point of wanting to write an angry letter and demand compensation for this loss of value and chiding them for abandoning statements made on their website on the exclusivity of Limited Edition CCD models.
+1 on the last bit. My main concern is that these are Tribute versions of a limited series. I don't think a Tribute version lowers the value of the instrument, as can be seen in the standard models available in the Tribute and US ranges. However, I bought my Korina Jr under the impression that it might be the only chance to get a G&L with those specs. Guess I misunderstood the meaning of "limited". VERY disappointed.
I don't think its going to effect anybody's value of limited guitars .... none of the Tributes have kept me from buying Fullerton guitars , I've paid a good bit more for my used ASAT Classic and Comanche than the equal models of the Trubute series cost new
Wow, that looks a lot like home. I have one of the original Juniors, and it's not feeling devalued, because It will never be for sale and no P-90 will ever replace the big MFDs. On the stand with it is an ASAT Deluxe (Tribute). But I pulled the buckers out of there and put in filtertrons. Made myself a Cabronita Deluxe!. Sounds wonderful. I agree about the bridges, though. The Junior has been my #1 since I bought it new in....98? I love that guitar. But I like the saddlelock bridge better. Best palm-muting bridge I've ever touched.
I still have not played the Deluxe enough to give a real opinion of the pick ups. I do know that three of them sold from the store this week including one to the guitar player in a local band Below Blackstar. I was told he recorded with in on Thursday night and they are in the studio today so we will be able to hear that soon enough.
I absolutely love the p90's. Like others I would be happy to try them out with a saddle lock and a mahogany body but, I may have to get that done with the US pick ups and a guitar built in Fullerton. Digression aside the JR is a fantastic rock machine. I have played it clean into a Lonestar with the volume way up. I got that tight raw feeling I expect from my 56 Gibson Jr with the definition the 56' lacks. With an Apeblaster Fuzz into a Miller these p90s really woke up every nasty garage laden sound I could have wanted. With the light weight of the mahogany, good looks of the finish and out of the box set up I would be happy to have this one with me at any time.
I am happy to see G&L moving forward with an expanded range of quality guitars built with a budget in mind. I can't wait to see what this forces the Fullerton shop to respond with.
James Schultz-Owner-
The Guitar Store
Now with two locations!
Seattle and Bellevue, WA www.seattleguitarstore.com
206.397.4438
...damn whipper snappers !
