How to Reflexes sound?

[Pott]

How do Reflexes sound?

I'm saving up for my dream electric and it'd either be a Silhouette special HSS, a SuperSport HH, an Albert Lee HH or a Reflex. All hardtails.

Stock of Reflexes and MMs in Europe is VERY limited and I've never seen any. I'd have to order my exact model online from the US and hope it all arrives safe and take a hit on taxes/customs... but there's no way out of it.

I'd ideally get a black reflex with maple neck, if I go the Reflex route.

What do these tend to sound like..? I've never had any specific interest/disinterest in chambered guitars so I've no idea what they would sound like.

Thanks

 

[DrKev]

I'd have to order my exact model online from the US and hope it all arrives safe and take a hit on taxes/customs...

But you can't do that. You can order a used instrument from a store in the US but not a new one. Same for most of the major brands actually. It's a territory/warranty issue. Even you travelled to the US and bought the guitar in person (or you found a store that would ship one to you) if ever you had a problem with it you have no warranty in Europe and no European dealer has any obligation to help you out. (That's not to say that they won't but...)

Whether it's a new instrument or second hand, taxes and customs charges will be ~23-25% of the TOTAL of the declared/insured value of the instrument AND shipping costs. i.e. if the instrument was 700€ and shipping was 300€ you would pay 25% of (700+300) and you total would be about 1250€. You could try to declare a lower value but if anything happened to the instrument you can't claim any more money back than what you declared or insured as it's value. If somebody suspects you have falsified the value of the instrument to avoid taxes you could be fined too, or even lose the instrument.

Wouldn't it be nice if the distributors had a showroom where you could see one example of each model and then order directly through them...

 

[ozzyrules]

As far as sound goes, my 25th(Reflex) has a tone that is unmatched by any other guitar that I've owned. My Axis SS has a bit 'beefier' sound but is distinguishably different from my Reflex. I love them both!!!!!!!

 

[Chaka5150]

i am wondering about this and don't see many clips with the reflex. I am likely selling my JP6 BFR and will be either going for a fully loaded (standard-basswood/maple neck) JP or a reflex gamechanger possibly.

 

[browndog]

Might not be important to you but like every Ball, it sounds fantastic unplugged when you’re just noodling in your chair watching TV.

 

[ScoobySteve]

My favorite wood combo is a basswood body with a maple cap. The 25th is the same plus the mahogany tone block. I really like how it slightly warms and adds resonant sustain without darkening the tone. I love my 25th. It's so wonderfully versatile. Tonally there isn't much it can't do. It covers clean tones beautifully in parallel and rocks well from overdriven tones to hi-gain situations. The pups do handle gain well and can melt faces but it doesn't do "tehz br00talz" or hardcore metal. More of a pickup limitation than anything. Which is fine for me. The neck pup is the best neck bucker ive ever played. So musical and organic.

Also for reasons which should be obvious it doesn't give true single coil tones but you can get a nice quack in positions 2 and 4 in parallel.

For me a 25th, an SSS Al or Silo Spec, and a JP is the best arsenal for versatility
EBMM wise.

Then there's the Gamechanger........

 

[RobertJFortner]

The Reflexes are really cool. I have one in my shop. Tonally its a real different guitar from the other guitars you want. The guitar shares the same pickup switching as the AL HH minus the series and parallel switch. Its a handy switch. Personally I wonder what it would be like minus the switch and add another volume knob. Its hard to explain the sound of the Reflex. IF you haven't seen the Bonamassa vid of him playing the 25th. I think thats a good idea of what it sounds like.
YouTube - Joe Bonamassa - Mountain Time (Live from The Royal Albert Hall 2009)

 

[ScoobySteve]

Joe B does the Reflex tone so much justice. Such vocal and musical qualities to the tone. Blues Saraceno does a nice job showing off the rock tones!

YouTube - Blues Saraceno and the new Ernie Ball Music Man Reflex Guitar

 

[mb99zz]

Lots of good comments here. I loved how bright yet warm the guitar was. Hard to describe.

 

[ScoobySteve]

YouTube - Joe Bonamassa - Mountain Time

A better version. Joe B was one of the reasons that pushed me over the edge to trade in my JP6. That tone cannot be denied.

 

[straycat113]

Kev are the import tax laws the same for you in France too? I really dont get it and I talked about this before but I buy 4 Guitar Magazines from the UK monthly and there are always two big EBMM adds in each ,usually one for strings and a full page most of the time for either the AL HH, Reflex or a JP model. I read the reader feedback colums first all the time and a lot of guys over there have EB guitars and then in the back where they have stores and stock I always see stores saying they have EB guitars. I thought you guys were doing better than us over here availability wise until a few threads like this appeared. I will say over here in the states this year it seems EB turned the corner and you can find store stocked better then ever before. Do you guys have a Guitar Center or what would be the Store that would be like our GC over across the pond.

 

[DrKev]

As far as I know the tax laws are pretty much the same everywhere in Europe. Everything I've heard from other people suggests the basics are the same, the exact percentages vary a little but that's about it.

No, we've got nothing like GC over here at all, certainly not on a European level. Maybe the Germans might have a chain of stores people can actually visit (Schmidt/Session Musik has six stores?) but that's about it.

 

[fbecir]

There is a Reflex for Sale in France :
Vend ou Echange MUSIC MAN REFLEX (neuve)

The guy is located in Isère (38), perhaps a bit far away from Luxembourg

 

[DrKev]

Gold top! Nice!

 

[Pott]

Thanks for the tips guys. Looks like there's just no good news to be had... I don't have a car and indeed Isere is a way off..!

'Good' news is, they do sell them in Europe...:
MUSIC MAN REFLEX HH TREM BK - Thomann Luxembourg Cyberstore

But at this price I think it's a matter of principe to wait for a second hand one... Wow.

 

[Pott]

Might not be important to you but like every Ball, it sounds fantastic unplugged when you’re just noodling in your chair watching TV.

Know what... this is pretty much the way I try my guitars. I never plug in when I'm in stores, I just listen and feel. I barely plug in whenever I noodle around and this is the most important thing in any guitar for me: unplugged tone and feel.

 

[Stratty316]

Do you ever get dirty looks for doing that in a store? I do all the time because I almost never plug them in until Im about to shell out some money.

 

[Pott]

Nope then again I don't look at how others look at me when I play in stores, I'm too busy hiding (I suffer from Storeitis, where you never know what to play when you're in public or it sounds really horrible).

Best way to find out a guitar's sound is to strum a chord, stick your hear to the wood and just hear and feel it.