Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1741
llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Fri Nov 21, 2025 2:25 pm
TylerDeadPine wrote: Thu Nov 20, 2025 10:12 am Happy with my squier XII, no desire to do anything to it or replace it ever
It reminded me of the sound from Echo & the Bunnymen’s Killing Moon so much that I had to look up what that guy used - Vox electric 12 mic’d up acoustically. That tracks!
That was exactly why I bought mine - and I found myself at Styx? and Tommy Shaw brought out an old Jazz XII and the hockey stick headstock was just deadly.

I thought I would have to do some fretwork on it, showed up and was pretty damn well perfect? Nut needed a bit of work but who doesn't like to work the nuts.

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1742
llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Fri Nov 21, 2025 2:25 pm
TylerDeadPine wrote: Thu Nov 20, 2025 10:12 am Happy with my squier XII, no desire to do anything to it or replace it ever
Never found a big deal with the newer Squiers I played in person, but I kind of get it now. For $300 shipped sight unseen this thing is crazy.
It's really amazing how good they are right out of the box. Some were from refurb places, but even one some random Reveber showed up amazingly playable

on the way: Latent Lemon Audio Hurts, because sure, why not just keep buying HP clones until my place is filled up with them?
"I got to tell you, if I went to a show and an opening band I never heard of lugged a Super Six on stage, I am paying attention." - Owen

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1743
You guys convinced me, so I also bought one of the $299 Squier Paranormal Jazzmaster XIIs from Reverb, which arrived moments ago. Sherwood Green with mint pickguard.

Supposedly it's a B stock or something? I can't tell, still has all of the plastic on it. Might need a very slight dressing on the ends of the frets, but besides that, it feels great. I'm going to let it acclimate for a couple days then do a setup and see what's what. I've heard that the bridge pickup on these is too hot.

I had an Agile 12 string years ago, sold it, then regretted it. It's not something I use often, but it's a good flavor to have around the studio.

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1744
Those Squiers do rule. We got them from the same place apparently - they were even cheaper on Black Friday but went back up.

Oddly enough, the Squier pickups are hotter than the import HB1 humbuckers in the Guild.

I actually like the Guild better in all respects besides string spacing, but that is going purely off of the pickup a guitar and write a riff test. But i’m a Gibson boy at heart - Fenders I have to think about.

The Guild neck isn’t wide, so it’s a bear to play until you stop thinking about it. The Guild’s nut is more unevenly as well. The 12 string sound is a bit more subtle though, so when you dial in a rock rhythm sound that is more Neil Young than Roger Mcguinn, you get something really special.

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1745
After spending a bit of time with the Squier XII, yeah, the pickups aren't great. They're too smeared and crunchy. Not articulate enough for a 12 string. It actually sounds like a 12 string when I play it unplugged. I lose most of that when I plug it in. The mini humbuckers in that Agile 12 I had sounded much better.

I also found the blemish that may have put it into B-stock territory: there's a small spot of flaked-off chrome in the corner of the bridge at one of the screws. Hard to see unless you're really looking for it.

I ordered a set of Bootstrap "Lake Surfers" for it after reading some suggestions. $80 shipped for a pair of hand-wound AlNiCo pickups seemed like a no-brainer. I'm going to shield the cavity while I'm in there, and probably put a new set of 500k pots in. The fretboard also needs to be oiled.

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1747
Nate Dort wrote: Sat Nov 29, 2025 5:08 pm After spending a bit of time with the Squier XII, yeah, the pickups aren't great. They're too smeared and crunchy. Not articulate enough for a 12 string. It actually sounds like a 12 string when I play it unplugged. I lose most of that when I plug it in. The mini humbuckers in that Agile 12 I had sounded much better.

I also found the blemish that may have put it into B-stock territory: there's a small spot of flaked-off chrome in the corner of the bridge at one of the screws. Hard to see unless you're really looking for it.

I ordered a set of Bootstrap "Lake Surfers" for it after reading some suggestions. $80 shipped for a pair of hand-wound AlNiCo pickups seemed like a no-brainer. I'm going to shield the cavity while I'm in there, and probably put a new set of 500k pots in. The fretboard also needs to be oiled.
The pickups in mine are Alnico and sounded pretty decent, maybe I got lucky or I have no taste.
Hand winding pickups matters?

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1748
TylerDeadPine wrote: Wed Dec 03, 2025 3:36 pm
Nate Dort wrote: Sat Nov 29, 2025 5:08 pm After spending a bit of time with the Squier XII, yeah, the pickups aren't great. They're too smeared and crunchy. Not articulate enough for a 12 string. It actually sounds like a 12 string when I play it unplugged. I lose most of that when I plug it in. The mini humbuckers in that Agile 12 I had sounded much better.

I also found the blemish that may have put it into B-stock territory: there's a small spot of flaked-off chrome in the corner of the bridge at one of the screws. Hard to see unless you're really looking for it.

I ordered a set of Bootstrap "Lake Surfers" for it after reading some suggestions. $80 shipped for a pair of hand-wound AlNiCo pickups seemed like a no-brainer. I'm going to shield the cavity while I'm in there, and probably put a new set of 500k pots in. The fretboard also needs to be oiled.
The pickups in mine are Alnico and sounded pretty decent, maybe I got lucky or I have no taste.
Hand winding pickups matters?
From what I've read, Fender advertises the pickups as being AlNiCo, but they certainly look like ceramic. They're also wound really hot. I'll record some before/after samples so I can make a somewhat objective comparison.

No, hand-winding doesn't matter. What I really meant to say was "small manufacturer, somewhat local to me." I'm sure the guy has a winding machine.

Re: What are you buying, What's on its way?

1749
Nate Dort wrote: Wed Dec 03, 2025 3:44 pm
TylerDeadPine wrote: Wed Dec 03, 2025 3:36 pm
Nate Dort wrote: Sat Nov 29, 2025 5:08 pm After spending a bit of time with the Squier XII, yeah, the pickups aren't great. They're too smeared and crunchy. Not articulate enough for a 12 string. It actually sounds like a 12 string when I play it unplugged. I lose most of that when I plug it in. The mini humbuckers in that Agile 12 I had sounded much better.

I also found the blemish that may have put it into B-stock territory: there's a small spot of flaked-off chrome in the corner of the bridge at one of the screws. Hard to see unless you're really looking for it.

I ordered a set of Bootstrap "Lake Surfers" for it after reading some suggestions. $80 shipped for a pair of hand-wound AlNiCo pickups seemed like a no-brainer. I'm going to shield the cavity while I'm in there, and probably put a new set of 500k pots in. The fretboard also needs to be oiled.
The pickups in mine are Alnico and sounded pretty decent, maybe I got lucky or I have no taste.
Hand winding pickups matters?
From what I've read, Fender advertises the pickups as being AlNiCo, but they certainly look like ceramic. They're also wound really hot. I'll record some before/after samples so I can make a somewhat objective comparison.

No, hand-winding doesn't matter. What I really meant to say was "small manufacturer, somewhat local to me." I'm sure the guy has a winding machine.
I would buy that, they don't look particularly Alnico, nor necessarily sound 'it' - wound hot, I kind of like it - I'm making poo poo music so

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