Lance Romance
Well-known member
Ordered an Albert Limited when they were introduced at NAMM in January, and it has arrived! Mine is a 3 X MM90 with trem, and I must say it has exceeded my every expectation. Firstly, the overall look is extremely classy. The gold hardware really jumps out from the very complex black finish, and mine has a really dark piece of rosewood for the fingerboard. My Musicman rep, the ever-amazing Glen Booth saw it yesterday and made the same comment I had when I opened it: This thing has a total Les Paul Custom elegance vibe going bigtime. I usually shy away from black guitars because all of mine get played live a lot and it's going to pick up some marks, but it was the only way to get a rosewood board. The weight is not as light as I hoped, but still totally disappears when you hang it on a strap. Actually, this is a point a lot of people miss with the AL; it is one of the best ergonomically-engineered shapes out there. The top edge of the body disappears, your palm falls right on the bridge, and your left hand is in the perfect place. Next time you checkout an AL, strap it on baby!
After a quicky setup (open-up three nut slots, 9-46s, slightly float the trem) it had that effortless playability thing MMs have going for them. I'm still tweazing the pickup heights, but my initial impressions of the Tone is the oft-used "strat on steroids". This is consistent with what I heard Albert himself getting at a recent clinic our store held. He switched from a 3 X single to the 3 X 90 version and while all the twang and snap remained, the guitar just sounded bigger and fatter and more in your face. I'll post a followup Tone Report after a rehearsal this weekend, and see if I can borrow a digital cam and snap some pics (although in person is the only way to appreciate the majesty of this axe).
Yeah of course I'm honeymooning, but my observations are tempered by this being my Career Electric #171, and in a 38-year pro music career have played, repaired, and built literally thousands of fine guitars. This stands-up to the finest, and is certainly one of the most unique, both in appearance and Tone.
Stay tuned for breaking news folks...-Eric
WOW!
After a quicky setup (open-up three nut slots, 9-46s, slightly float the trem) it had that effortless playability thing MMs have going for them. I'm still tweazing the pickup heights, but my initial impressions of the Tone is the oft-used "strat on steroids". This is consistent with what I heard Albert himself getting at a recent clinic our store held. He switched from a 3 X single to the 3 X 90 version and while all the twang and snap remained, the guitar just sounded bigger and fatter and more in your face. I'll post a followup Tone Report after a rehearsal this weekend, and see if I can borrow a digital cam and snap some pics (although in person is the only way to appreciate the majesty of this axe).
Yeah of course I'm honeymooning, but my observations are tempered by this being my Career Electric #171, and in a 38-year pro music career have played, repaired, and built literally thousands of fine guitars. This stands-up to the finest, and is certainly one of the most unique, both in appearance and Tone.
Stay tuned for breaking news folks...-Eric
WOW!
