Reviewed by:
AAAAAAAAAARGH, on february 25, 2008
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 640.5
Purchased from: eBay
Features: This guitar was made in Korea, and features a Mahogany body, and a dark Maple neck. The fretboard encompasses 22 jumbo frets, with no inlays. The body and neck of the guitar have a glossy black finish, but this does not slow down playing on the neck, and is very smooth. Other finishes include crimson red and silver. The body style is Washburn's own 'Idol' series, and remotely resembles a few products in the Gibson line. The guitar uses Washburn's own 'Buzz Freiten' tuning system and bridge, which provides very stable tuning. The guitar has two passive humbucking pickups, the Seymour Duncan '59 in the neck, and the Seymour Duncan Custom in the bridge. A 3-way selector is included, to switch between the two pickups. A unique feature of the guitar is Washburn's patented VCC (Voice Contour Control.) This replaces the guitar's two tone nobs with a gradual coil tap, as the tone nobs are turned down the guitar's pickups take on a more single coil sound. This provides a distinct difference, and is very effective. // 10
Sound: The guitar can handle a large number of sounds and tones very effectively. It's Seymour Duncan pickups and solid Mahogany body can handle heavy distortion, and the guitar produces a thick and warm crunchy sound, comparable to a Gibson SG. Clean styles do seem a bit muddy at first, but by using the VCC and changing from humbuckers to single coils, the cleans get a lot better. Due to the woods used, it's a very warm sounding guitar. The pickups are fairly high output, and provide good rhythm and lead tones. I have used the guitar on a few amps, including a Peavey tube amp and my very own Roland Cube. The guitar sounds good on both, and provides an overall good tone. // 9
Action, Fit & Finish: Overall the guitar was set up very nicely. There was no fret buzz, and the action was very low. The only slight problem was that the intonation was off, but a quick setup of this resolved the problem. The pickups were adjusted fine, and were at the right height. The only complain I have is poor workmanship on the neck-body joint. It's sturdy, but it looks sub-par round the back. It is only aesthetic though, and doesn't affect sound. // 8
Reliability & Durability: This guitar is very sturdy. I've given it a few knocks and bumps and the paint job has stayed in place. The guitar could easily withstand Live situations, as long as it isn't being set on fire. The hardware and strap buttons are solid, and my strap has never come off within a year of owning the guitar. I would definitely gig with it, and wouldn't see much use for a backup. // 9
Impression: The music I play varies. I like to play metal, blues, and some cleans with funky reverb. The VCC enables me to play all these styles with ease. I have been playing for 2 years, and have played many guitars that are owned by various relatives. Washburn have a great line of products, and if this guitar were stolen then I think I'd choose another guitar from the Washburn line. This one's great, but it's nice to have some variety. I love everything about the guitar. The tuning is very sturdy, and the coil tapping opens a gateway to a world of different tones. I couldn't ask for much more with this guitar, and I recommend it highly. // 9
/ my profile 
Was this review helpful to you? 
