New Silo arrived! - First impressions

[Jason2112]

Here's how I got here: I have this 10yo Strat that needed a refret. Very long story short, the tech destroyed the neck and fingerboard and I'm taking the shop to court to recoup the cost of a replacement neck. That guitar was my #1 and it just hasn't been the same with the new neck So I decide to buy a new guitar, ordered an Am Std Strat and a MM Silo Special to compare (with the intention of keeping only one). The Silo arrived yesterday, and here's my thoughts....

I ordered the Silo from Musicians Friend , and given my experience with them in the past, I didn't have high hopes of receiving this guitar in new condition. To my surprise, it looks factory fresh (and I have hawk eyes). Thank you MF!

To sum it up, this is one of the best playing guitars I've put my hands on. The neck plays so effortlessly and notes sustain for days. I already primed myself for the maple/maple neck after playing the Axis SS in the store a few days ago, but consistency seems to be the key with MM's. At first I was a little put off by the acoustic tones, as it has a hollow "plastic-y" tone compared to my Strats, but the acoustics were definitely there and it resonated really well. Once plugged in, all I was hearing was sweet tones I can definitely tell the difference between the maple/maple neck on the Silo and the maple/rosewood necks on my Strat and the new Strat. The notes are well-rounded but have a brighter overall tone. I'd compare the neck pickup in the Silo to the mid pickup in my Strat. It will take some getting used to. Thankfully I have an awesome set of pickups in my Strat (Torres Very Vintage pickups with the BLuescaster wiring kit) that can cut/boost the midrange so I don't have to make amp changes all the time. Actually, I may just have Dan Torres custom wind some pickups for the Silo to dampen the brightness a bit to get closer to the Strat. That would be the winning ticket I think.

The carbon blue is a beautiful color and looks good with the pearloid guard. The only thing I wish this guitar had is a matched headstock. I am very happy with this guitar and I have no idea why I never considered a MM guitar in the past. I'm still on the fence about the ASS I saw the other day, but this one is definitely a keeper Sorry for the bad pic. Crummy camera (iphone) = crummy pics.

[robelinda2]

Gorgeous!!! Play that sucker!

[marantz1300]

Once you get used to it ,you wont change back.I love Fenders,but they feel like I,m playing a barge .My Silos feel like a very comfy speed boat.

[GuitarHack]

Congratulations on that great new SS, you done good! Sorry to hear about your #1 though, been there myself many years ago, and almost cried.

The SS seems very resonant to me -- and to my family. Just last night I was upstairs playing my HSS Silo Special through the POD with headphones, and my wife came up to tell me I was playing too loud, the kids were supposed to be going to sleep, but they could hear me and were shouting out song titles. They were a floor below me, my door was closed, and the guitar was unplugged...yeah, it resonates just fine for me

[fogman]

awesome!

welcome.

[jamminjim]

very nice Silo Special. Good choice.

[travs]

Right on! that is a great combo. enjoy it.

[mb99zz]

Congrats! I love the the Silos. So, who's going to start up a Silo/Silo Special club? We've got ALOC for our AL brothers...but we need a Silo club to show our love.

[Jason2112]

Once you get used to it ,you wont change back.I love Fenders,but they feel like I,m playing a barge .My Silos feel like a very comfy speed boat.

The neck (that got destroyed) on my old Strat was unusually thin for a typical production Strat, which I liked. The MM necks feel very fast with very little drag on the back of the neck (thanks to a lack of finish I suppose). Come to think of it, there's very little drag on the fingerboard as well compared to the rosewood boards I've played. I think that adds to the comfort increase I feel in playing the Silo vs any of my other guitars. The closest thing I have to this Silo neck is a Warmoth maple/maple neck that I have on a homemade Tele that has a sealer on it but no real finish per se. That neck feels like a baseball bat though.

EBMM really got it right with their necks!

[DJ.]

Congrats! gotta love the Silos.

[whitestrat]

GRAPHITE PEARL!!!!! Please... post clearer pics!!!! I beg of you!!!

Damn. It's carbon blue pearl? See? better pics would've saved me some embarrassment... Hahahahaha...

[John C]

Nice; the carbon blue and the pearloid pickguard work well together. I too came from a Fender background and have really bonded with mine; the neck shape seems to be made for my hands. Actually the one in my avatar is my second Silo Special; I stupidly sold the first one I had to get a reissue Fender. Nothing wrong with Fenders (particularly the reissues), but I should have kept the Silo Special and added the Fender to the collection instead. You can bet that my current one is going to be staying put.

Welcome to the Silo Special club!

[spkirby]

So are you keeping both new guitars?

How does the new 08 strat sound and play compared to the silo spec?

[Jason2112]

So are you keeping both new guitars?

How does the new 08 strat sound and play compared to the silo spec?

The Am Std Strat felt solid and the neck and body were darn near perfect (for a production Fender). It played really well, had good acoustics and decent resonance. Based on my expectations of how a new Fender USA Strat should play, it was spot on. With that said, the trem had major issues and all 3 vol/tone pots were sticky to varying degrees. I would have had to take it in to Fender to get this stuff fixed even if I did decide to keep it (no biggie since I'm not far from their factory).

In the end, the Silo has a far superior neck, much better sustain and resonance, and better playability. The Silo has raised the bar for what I expect out of a Strat-style guitar from this point on....