The Comanche ($1,500; $1,750 as reviewed with ebony fingerboard, painted headstock and pearloid pickguard) is a real looker. Its two-tone blueburst finish looks stunning alongside the pearloid pickguard and chrome knobs. Equally dramatic is the trio of offset “Z” pickups.
A revision of the Comanche model G&L offered in the ‘80s, the new version [...]
AXL Jacknife
Looking a bit like Flying V that was given a makeover by medieval armorers, the Axl Jackknife ($299 retail/$224 street) sports decent fretwork, a good setup, and feels surprisingly light and nimble for a guitar of its proportions.
It’s a good sounding guitar, too, with a voice that’s as fat and squawky as you’d expect [...]
Designed by exotic Swiss guitar maker Claudio Pagelli (pagelliguitars.com), the Pagelli ($795 retail/$450 street) is one of sleekest and most distinctive Cort models we’ve ever seen. This set-neck guitar plays fabulously, and it sounds lively and resonant. Its tones are warm and sustaining, and, thanks to its clear-yet-strong pickups, it can handle blues, rock, jazz, [...]
I read that Eddie Van Halen waxes his pickups and boils his strings. Can you tell me why he does this and how I can do it myself?
Tim
xxxx@cs.com
Winding in the pickup tend to become loose over time. Waxing (or “potting”) a pickup prevents loose windings from vibrating and becoming microphonic, a condition that results in [...]
