Schecters...

[Vox Stellarum]

How good are they.. how do u rate 'em..? tone and feel...?
..and abt their 7-strings...? how do they compare with the Ibanez 7-strings..?

thanx
cheers.

 

[Kenneth R.]

well. from my experiences:

they look really, really nice.

but the tone is less than desirable and the necks have a "sticky" slow feel due to the heavy glazing on them. in short, they're dressed up nice but they can't sing as well as they look.

 

[AmirH]

I disagree. It depends on the model though. Schecter c-1 classic= lose. Schecter c-1 elite=WIN. I've tried a couple I didn't like so well, and a few that I like a lot. Put it this way, I tried out guitars for 5-6 hours at GC and ended up with the schecter. You do have to find the right one though. Mine has a great tone, especially played unplugged. String thru bridge, set neck, arch top, mahogony body/neck and maple top= teh aweshum sustain and very warm tone. Pickups need swappin though- even if you get the ones that already come with SD's cuz they don't quite match the guitar.

About the "sticky" neck. Hmm- could it be that you just like oiled necks? Mahogony has to be finished. Maple necks definitely tend to be "smoother" but I prefer the warmer tone of mahogony over the bite of maple. At least for this style guitar. Haven't tried the 7 strings, but have heard good things. Doesn't jeff loomis use one?

 

[Kenneth R.]

oddly enough i play a 98' Jackson SL-1. its got a glossed neck, but the type of gloss is still smooth and quick, unlike the thick gooeyer (sorry there's really no word for it) neck of the Schecter and some Gibsons that i tried out of curiosity. i've got 2 sets of rails and a duncan custom in it, and those were the stock pickups. mine's a neck-through body so sustain is glorious. i just really liked the look of the schecters so i wanted to give it a try, and i played a few and didn't really like any of them.

 

[USMC0341]

I have a Schecter Blackjack 7 string...it's a great huitar for the money, but there are nicer models out there. I much prefer my Jackson SLSMG Soloist 6 string.

Joe

 

[AmirH]

oddly enough i play a 98' Jackson SL-1. its got a glossed neck, but the type of gloss is still smooth and quick, unlike the thick gooeyer (sorry there's really no word for it) neck of the Schecter and some Gibsons that i tried out of curiosity. i've got 2 sets of rails and a duncan custom in it, and those were the stock pickups. mine's a neck-through body so sustain is glorious. i just really liked the look of the schecters so i wanted to give it a try, and i played a few and didn't really like any of them.

Hmm, well I kinda know what you mean- but my guitar definitely doesn't have a "gooey" neck. So maybe it's just hit or miss eh? Like I said- I tried about 6 or 7 schecters and the only one that was like "WHOA" was the one I bought. I've tried jacksons too, but the only one that felt right in my hands was kinda clunky and the others just felt all wrong. Only tried two usa made jacksons(out of my price range anyway) and they still felt a bit... iffy. I don't know, I guess if I was looking for a shred machine I'd probably go for an ibanez. Every ibanez I've tried has felt awesome and they started making them without the floyd copies now. But like I said, I chose the schecter over those. Just feels "right."

On a side note- I really, really dislike the feel of ever new gibson I've tried. I want a "real" sg- but couldn't find one that played as nice as my 200 dollar knockoff Every paul I've tried from them has felt sub par as well. I think you either have to find a used one or buy a heritage with those types of guitars. I hear good things about hamer as well.

 

[AmirH]

yeah, I went to gc a bit ago to get some picks, and I'm gonna agree- most the schecters I tried off the wall had the gummy neck thing. But not all! Most of them had a worse set up then mine too. My action is literally... perfect.

I also had a revelation. Peavey xxx > mesa triple rect. At least at store volumes it was.

 

[Melodeath]

I like my Schecter C-1 Blackjack

 

[Kenneth R.]

triple rec has great sounds if you don't check out the clean channel

feel of a guitar is all perception. everyone's gonna like a different thing. i like the glossed neck but i want to be able to slide my hand across it easily. i also want the neck thin and wide (so jackson/ibanez does it for me) though i like the style and vibe of jackson better.

 

[AmirH]

We're a bit different when it comes to the neck then I like to feel like I'm holding something! Not too bulky of course, but generally the only time I like something as thin as an Ibanez neck is when I'm gonna try to shred it up. I'll keep trying jacksons when I come across them, I'm sure there must be one out there I end up liking.

I think the triple rec sounded like crap because I was playing it at guitar center volumes. It was still rather loud but I have this feeling you've gotta push that one to make it sound good. It just means the peavey would be a better fit because I'm definitely gonna want to be able to play at room volumes and still vibe off it when I finally give in and get a tube amp. I swear though... that thing just sustained for days! I was just holding a single note and doing some vibrato and it just kept going- a few guys looked over and commented on how sweet that was. Sounded like a violin. Twas playing a schecter blackjack thru it- which had a duncan jb in the bridge. The pup didn't do palm mutes too well, and the set up on the guitar felt all wrong. But lovely tone.

 

[Kenneth R.]

the irony of it all is i don't shred, i just like to jam hard

 

[Only Human]

I've got a Schecter C1+ with a Bill Lawrence L500-XL in the bridge, and I use it as my main guitar. The Bill Lawrence pickup makes all the difference in the tone: heavy, but clear and punchy, and the high strings cut through without the EMG 81 needle through your eardrum syndrome. They almost sound like a cocked wah pedal if you attack the strings right. My neck isn't gummy, but I've played several that suffer from that problem. I guess they're hit and miss. For example, I played a C1 Blackjack yesterday at Guitar Center, and the neck SUCKED. It felt like it was made for a child's hands (I didn't notice any gumminess, though).

Oh, and Hamers kick all colors, textures, and smells of ass. I bought a Standard (with hot rod flames) on eBay and put in EMG 85 (bridge) and 60 (not bridge...you figure it out) and it's a tone beast. The neck feels great, but not for playing really fast, so I use it for songs where I play more exclusively rhythm parts and easier solos.