GearDump

I want to start off saying: “I am a Stratocaster-haulic.” These guitars attract my attention more then any others because they are so versatile and to this day do things in a unique way that no other manufacturer has matched (save for G&L). When I heard there was a new American Standard strat coming out last year I was very excited to see how they had altered the design from the previous one which had been around for almost a Decade.

Much to my dismay the alterations seemed to be something that is either harder to justify or more sinister. I didn’t care to much for the last American Standard because it still had some obvious flaws. For one the bridge had this awful tone block. It should have been made of brass, though it would probably have added fifty dollars to the end user I certainly would have paid it. I also never cared for the American Standard’s Pickups.

The new Stratocaster seems almost rediculous. They went back to vintage style saddles with a modern two bolt fulcrum tremolo. Come on Fender, ALL OR NOTHING! The saddles did improve the tone slightly but anyone who has played Stratocasters with vintage bridges for long periods of time knows that they develop burrs and have to be replaced. The truth is Fender cut costs by switching to only vintage style saddles on all it’s guitars. This would save them from having other machines and other personnel to make the new style andold style saddles. I can hear you now, “The bridge block is an improvement.” It’s still not Brass. Lets face it you don’t see people playing copper trumpets and tubas do you? I’m not even going to ask what the word Copper Infused could actually mean. One of my employments is through a Metals manufacturing organization and I can say that Copper is just a bit above Zinc in terms of Cost.

This thinner coat of laquer crap is the funniest thing they did. At first thought you might really buy into it. I can see the logic: “hey if it can vibrate because it’s not stifled by the finish then the guitar’s natural wood sound will shine through.” That may be partially true, but unless it’s nitrocellulose I doubt your going to see that large of a difference. The real way to get a guitar to sound better is to use a finish that soaks into the guitar and really enriches the tone as the guitar dries over the years. The real reason they thinned the laquer was because it would soften their material costs.

That wasn’t the real kick in the teeth from Fender. They really hit players upside the head when the American Standard price increased by 30% as a result of their economic price hike EVEN AFTER they cut their costs. Sorry Fender, you failed in my book.

Honestly I don’t see any reason to get an American Standard strat when there are so many great stratocasters of recent years languishing in Pawnshops and on Ebay. Hopefully I’m not the only one seeing it this way so we can all give the FMIC a bit of a wake up call!

WAKE UP FENDER!

The Fender Superchamp is one of those rare Fender Amplifiers that given the right endorsee may become as popular as the Vibroverb. The Superchamp was the first in Fender’s redesigned early eighties line. The designer was Paul Rivera, who at the time had been well known as a custom guitar equipment designer and top notch amp technician.

Paul Rivera had just gotten back from working with Yamaha on a complete design of their amplifier line in the late seventies. Fender was looking to re-invigorate their line. At the time no one knew that CBS was planning on selling off Fender, and bringing in Paul Rivera was sort of a last ditch effort to make the company look more viable.

Anyway, this thing is a little two channel monster. This amp was in a lot of ways, Fender’s definitive answer to the Mesa Boogie lineup. It featured a 10 inch speaker, which was made by Eminence or EV depending on the model you purchased. It featured 2 7025 tubes (12ax7)  a 12at7 rectifier tube, and 2 6l6 output tubes along with an additional 6c10 in the pre-amp. The 6c10 was basically three halves of a 7025 in a single tube.  If you see one of these for sale, consider buying it even though the 6C10 is not a current production tube MANY of them exist, and there are mods available that will allow you to use 2 12ax7’s in it’s place.  As with all Fender amplifiers until the mid eighties, these were hand made in the U.S..

The first thing that many people mention about this amp compared to the standard Fender Champ is that it is a really loud amplifier and easily gig-worthy. The tones that the superchamp generated were quite warm. The clean channel was very blackfaceish and the overdrive was extremely usable as well. The usable overdrive was a first for Fender at the time since during the CBS reign their goals were predominately to be loud and clean. On the few Superchamp amplifiers I have heard the overdrive sounded somewhat Mesa like. This is due in part to the 6L6 output tubes. The footswitch on these amplifiers is something of a rare commodity as well. It features an led based switching as I understand it, and there simply aren’t any modern footswtiches available that can be used with this amplifier. Unlike the 6c10, there are a few people who are custom building these footswitches.

Ironically, this amp has gained a cult following due to it’s portability. The SuperChamp at max weight only weighed 30lbs and was in a tiny cabinet. Paul Rivera has never lived this Amplifier down either. In fact in some of his marketing materials for his grab and go Clubster and Pubster amplifiers, he mentions that they contain the heart and soul of a Fender Champ. Those amps are a forced to be reckoned with in their own right.

Perhaps most interesting about the Superchamp was it’s unique cabinet design which depending on which model you locate was either a natural cabinet with woodgrain on prominent display (think Mesa MK I without the basketweave) or the standard blackface appointments.

Fender was really making some great stuff prior to the CBS sale. These amps were definitely proof of Fender’s longevity even during their alleged dark age. Though Leo Fender had left the company prior to their design I’m sure he was pleased to see these little bastards in clubs everywhere. If you ever get the chance to check one out, I highly reccomend it. Their prices seem to increase daily on Ebay so if you really want to snag one of these rare gems I suggest you do it now because at this point it looks unlikely that Fender will be making a period faithful reissue of these amps.

Robben Ford is an unforgettable modern blues/jazz player. Honing his chops with Miles Davis and Larry Carlton will do that to most players. Carlton has an uncanny ability to take a normal blues progression and infuse it with color tones the likes of which most human brains can’t even comprehend.

Ford tends to favor Gibson Les Pauls and owns, among quite a few Fender Twins, at least two Dumble Overdrive Specials. Lately he has also been playing a Telecaster and some 335’s. There are also a few Japanese custom guitars he uses on stage as well.

He usually runs some sort of Rack with high quality reverbs and delays being a component of the Rack.

Despite Robben Ford’s extraordinary array of instruments and Amplifiers, it is his talent that captures most imaginations. Ford is one of the few players who can really take a chord progression and simply lay waste to it with nearly any instrument. Despite his unrelenting skill, he, unlike some guitar players, has an excellent ear for tone. His musical style is really a tasty hybrid of Jazz and Blues. If you are familiar with Larry Carlton, he sounds similar to Carlton but takes what Carlton has done and goes a step farther.

If you don’t know Robben Ford I highly suggest you check his music out.