#guitarmakeover

It took quite some time, mistakes, some non-working parts and efforts, but the N2 is finally done ! I inverted the volume pot and the pickup switch, installed a tone pot and 2 mini-switch to get 3 sounds from the pickups (Humbucker/Split/Parallel). I also fixed the vibrato bar not staying in place issue by putting a piece of earplugs at the bottom of the cavity. And I added some screws to fill the holes left by the screws that were holding the pickguard. Now the guitar plays like a dream, with the most comfortable neck I’ve ever played. The small body feels amazing too. A huge part of what make this guitar great for what I do is the OMNIA pickups by @havenpickups . They are no less than the pickups I’ve always wanted to have. They are the most clear sounding and well balanced humbucker pickups, so much that even if the split & parallel sounds are a welcome addition to one’s sound palette, they are not an absolute necessity: You can play anything, just with the Humbucker option: from cristal clea post-rock arpeggios to funk, reggae, etc… They are incredibly well balanced too. But the most impressive thing about them is their behavior: they are consistent. You get the same kind of reaction whatever the note. It’s especially important when half of what you do rely on the interaction between sounds, playing techniques and effects… I’ll make some video to show that up. So big shout out to Till who made those and was great to talk too. . . . . \#guitar #newguitar #ngd #vintageguitar #guitarmakeover #washburnn2 #ambientguitar #experimentalguitar #texturalguitar #havenpickups #omniapickups https://www.instagram.com/p/CoumTCwtIoy/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

It’s a #LesPaul kind of evening courtesy of @perkins28 and @brittonnash. . (I know it’s getting repetitive, but thanks Ian for loaning me all your cool #guitars!). . #ianperkins #thegaslightanthem #thehorriblecrowes #brittonnash #nashguitars #guitarmakeover #gibson #lespaultraditional #guitar #guitarra #chitarra #guitarre #electricguitar #gibsonusa #reissue #gibsonguitars #tone #guitargear #guitarsdaily #guitarsofinstagram #geartalk #guitargear #vintagegear #guitarsdaily #gibsonsofinstagram #guitarphotography https://www.instagram.com/p/BuKPZRSha0X/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=zhyk0lb14jvw

I received my 2 OMNIA pickups from @havenpickups today and decided on the wiring. Time to order the rest of the parts. . . . . #guitar #newguitar #ngd #vintageguitar #guitarmakeover #washburnn2 #ambientguitar #experimentalguitar #texturalguitar #havenpickups #omniapickups  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnm5D_gNlIV/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Let's look under the hood of the Washburn N2 to see what kind of work there is to do... Pic 1: The removing of the steel pickguard left some marks, which was to be expected. I don't think there's much to do apart from trying to hide the screw holes. Time and usage will take care of unifying the wood color. Notice the screws holding the pickup rings are pickguard screws, which are much too big. Pic 2: We were only getting started with the weird screwing business. Removing the vibrato backplate reveals another level of mess. The plate wasn't original, and, too small, hence the new holes. I've tried Stratocaster plates and they are too small indeed so I guess I will just not use a vibrato plate. It will make setting up the vibrato quicker: Not a bad thing. Pic 3 & 4: Biggest WTF moment was when I discovered the insides of the electronic cavities. The "shielding" was done with several small pieces of aluminum paper without anything making conductivity possible between those and they are not grounded.. This is a great example of how NOT to make a Faraday cage. This DIY shielding is pretty much useless. Oh, and the switch cavity plate was closed with pickup rings screws ! Pic 5: I managed to remove the aluminum foil and what seems to be double-side tape. It turned into a gooey mess while doing so. There's still some traces but it's not gluey anymore so I guess it's good enough to make a proper Faraday cage. Not sure if I'll do it in the switch cavity because it's very small and it might touch what I'll put in there (it won't be a switch...) Now I'm waiting for the pickups to get here so I can decide on the wiring and what parts to order. To be continued... . . . #guitar #newguitar #ngd #vintageguitar #guitarmakeover #washburnn2 #ambientguitar #experimentalguitar #texturalguitar https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnkdpiht5Dd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

(This is part 3 of the story of how and why I bought this highly modified 30 years shredder guitar... See previous posts for part 1 & 2) 5 days later, the guitar was delivered to me... So how is it ?? Well, the bare wood, smaller than usual body feels really great and the neck is absolutely fantastic ! It's very flat (14" radius), wide and thin, which suits my crooked fingers very well. It is really a revelation that makes me wonder why I hadn't try those types of guitar before. The body of the guitar has its share of battlescars, which I'm OK with. It makes me less scared of damaging a vintage guitar. The pickguard will go and the pickups too. The "fake" Bill Lawrence is incredibly shrill sounding and the neck one, A DiMarzio PAF Pro sounds OK. There's a whole horror story to the screws and cavities that I'll  tell later, as I'll work on the guitar makeover. Some news pickups are on their way and I plan to get creative with the wiring to make it very useful for what I do... more on that soon... 🙂 . . . . #guitar #newguitar #ngd #vintageguitar #guitarmakeover #washburnn2 #ambientguitar #experimentalguitar #texturalguitar https://www.instagram.com/p/CnhXgtftQwR/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

So yes, I bought a "shredder guitar" 🙃 ... Here is the story of how and why: Those past couple of months, I got back to live-looping improvisations (lots of new stuff are coming up for @kolyder in 2023 !) and got to experience the mild frustration of using synths as sound sources in that context. No matter how much effects or modulations I use, synths have always felt too static for me. By  contrast, what I like about guitars is that you can't really play the same note in the same way twice: there're all kind of subtleties, overtones, interactions and resonances happening, and also an immediacy I've never found in synths. So I started to think about relying heavily on guitars again and about ways to emphasis these organic characteristics... Having a Floyd Rose equipped guitar came to mind and seemed like a good way to play with micro-pitch variations and resonances, add variety to my phrasing and more. ....Story to be continued in next post.... . . . . #guitar #newguitar #ngd #vintageguitar #guitarmakeover #washburnn2 #ambientguitar #experimentalguitar #texturalguitar https://www.instagram.com/p/CnhWwFJt_CC/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Something a little different from me. Gave my guitar a little makeover with help from @neckillusions. Scroll across for a lovely carousel of images + a preview of the video I just uploaded to my channel ⠀ ⠀ (youtube.com/walwinmusic)⠀ ⠀ #guitarmakeover #customguitars #customguitar #neckillusions #sistinechapel #creationofadam #fenderduosonic #duosonic #orangeguitar #orange #guitarphotography #customfender https://www.instagram.com/p/B_rtb1bgBh4/?igshid=1bt5xh0pzdyf

This guy was rescued right out of the trash. I’ve got a few different pickups in a box at home. Time a for a little guitar makeover maybe? Should I keep the spray paint over poly? Also let’s have a vote on which @decoboomdesign guard needs to go on here. . . #strat #stratocaster #partscaster #guitarmakeover (at Florence, Alabama) https://www.instagram.com/p/BnWkO2Th0Ow/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=r6xclzdn4800