My new Sterling SUB AX3

[noise5150]

I just got a new Sterling SUB AX3 and I wanted to show a pic and do a mini-review. I am extremely impressed with this guitar. I was lucky enough to get it for well under $200 as a project guitar. I have a USA Axis and in many ways this guitar is an exact duplicate. The neck is extremely similar in feel as is the overall weight and balance of the guitar. The neck has a very nice satin finish. There are a few slightly sharp frets towards the upper end of the neck but its not bad at all. Even the binding is just like the USA version! The pickups are surprisingly good on this guitar. Im not saying they are as good as the USA versions but they are not something you must replace. I did also order a Dimarzio Tone Zone along with this and I may still throw it in at some point. After initially trying it out with the stock strings, I put on 10s and put some graphite in the nut string slots which not only improved the tone but also helped to keep the guitar in tune better. The trem is not a Floyd Rose so obviously it is not designed for divebombs. The top apparently from what Ive read is not even a real veneer but I don't care because it looks great. Anyone else own one of these??

 

[mystixboi1]

Hey... It's john mendoza. Congrats again and enjoy!!!

 

[noise5150]

Hey... It's john mendoza. Congrats again and enjoy!!!

Thanks John!!!

 

[ksandvik]

I have not seen those recently at GC stores which is a shame as me thinks those are one of the best new guitars you could get for that price. I'm very impressed with the Indonesian made Sterlings. They should move all Sterling factory work from China to Indonesia, me thinks.

 

[engage757]

Nice guitar and a hell of a score man!

 

[SBMM]

I'm very impressed with the Indonesian made Sterlings. They should move all Sterling factory work from China to Indonesia, me thinks.

Well, with the exception of a small run of Silo20 and a few prototypes, all of our production is in Indonesia. Not sure who told you different

 

[ksandvik]

I have a China made Silo...

 

[edhalen]

I have a China-made Silo30 also. So you definitely did a run of those in China. GREAT guitar btw. I put an old Dimarzio Dual sounds pickup in it from the mid-80's and the thing SCREAMS!

 

[noise5150]

I have a China-made Silo30 also. So you definitely did a run of those in China. GREAT guitar btw. I put an old Dimarzio Dual sounds pickup in it from the mid-80's and the thing SCREAMS!

I got a new Dimarzio tone zone to put into this guitar but I have to admit the pickups are so decent I wonder if its worth it!

 

[edhalen]

Try it - I'll bet you like it.

 

[kevdog]

I just bought a new blue AX3 and love it. Got it for $225 delivered and the blue is darker than in the pictures I've seen, I really like the color. Reading online reviews people loved everything but were not thrilled with the pickups so I was able to get a pair of new take off pickups from a Sterling AX40D, which are the same as on the Axis model.

The fret edges were pretty rough but otherwise setup was pretty good. I dropped it off at my luthier and had him install the AX40D pickups and give the guitar a full setup. Just picked it up yesterday and LOVE IT!!! I asked my luthier how he liked the new pickups and he said “You did the right thing.” He said the stock pickups are good but the new ones are much better.

I’m now into the guitar for about $350 (guitar, pickups, setup) and could not be happier. This guitar is very light, much lighter than my Silhouette Special. I highly recommend picking up one of these guitars. The only future enhancement I might do is locking tuners.

 

[noise5150]

I've tried a lot of under-$500 guitars and even owned a few over the years. I am rarely impressed. Dont get me wrong, most modern sub $500 guitars are good for the money and its not like I've tried every single one on the market but the ones I've tried feel "cheap" its hard to explain. The AX3 is the best inexpensive guitar I've played in years and with some upgrades and a little fine tuning, its a real player. The thing that I find most remarkable is that they really got the "feel" down correctly. I've A/Bed it with my USA Axis and the neck is really similar and even the weight and balance are really close.

 

[Freo Guitar]

Right! That's it. I'm getting one.

Not wanting to upgrade unnecessarily though I did think the bridge bock looked skinny in comparison to the AX30D. Is there some place I can get upgrades for this guitar if necessary.

Cheers.

 

[Freo Guitar]

Got it. Unbelievable bang for buck. Incredible set up out of the box and faultless neck and frets (in comparison to my Ibanez Rg 920 which cost me more than 4 times as much!) Video demo to come!

 

[Freo Guitar]

A few more photos. Youtube video coming....absolutely love this axe. Plays better than almost all my guitars (on a par with my Charvel) at only a 1/3 of the price of my cheapest guitar. Played it at a jam today....performed unbelievably and never once went out of tune. Fingerboard also getting dirty, which I like, and noticed there is some Birdseye on the headstock!

 

[Another Noob]

A few more photos. Youtube video coming....

Looks killer! So uh, whats up with that video?

 

[Freo Guitar]

Looks killer! So uh, whats up with that video?

Thanks man. Getting together a video demo of the guitar which I will post soon. Loving this guitar....unbelievable bang for buck!

 

[EssEff]

Hey Freo guitar.

I'm in Freo too and just got an Ax3 as a bit of a project too. Great little guitar... love it.

I put in a pair of Tonerider Generator pups (sound awesome) mounted in cream surrounds (hate the look of direct mount - cheap n nasty imo), Wilkinson wave trem (great looks and big solid steel string block - std is very light cast zinc, has stainless steel solid saddles and pivot bolts too), locking Gotoh tuners and quality pots n cap.

With the new bridge I took the opportunity to adjust the string alignment. Seems most SBMM guitars have the strings a little low (high e close to the neck edge). I used a round file to adjust the position of the bridge up a couple of mm. Now its perfect. Also replaced the bridge mounting studs with the much beefier Wilkinson supplied ones. I was nervous about drilling out the holes but it turned out perfect and no damage to the finish.

I also dressed the fret ends to make them smooth n comfy. They are pretty sharp from the factory.

Now it looks even awesomer (?) and it plays and feels awesomer (?).

I would have bought an Ax30D but I really wanted the trans red and maple fret board. Now for 2/3 the cost I have an even better spec guitar and the fun of personalizing it to exactly what I wanted.

 

[edhalen]

Nice job EssEff! That looks killer!

 

[Freo Guitar]

Hey Freo guitar.

I'm in Freo too and just got an Ax3 as a bit of a project too. Great little guitar... love it.

I put in a pair of Tonerider Generator pups (sound awesome) mounted in cream surrounds (hate the look of direct mount - cheap n nasty imo), Wilkinson wave trem (great looks and big solid steel string block - std is very light cast zinc, has stainless steel solid saddles and pivot bolts too), locking Gotoh tuners and quality pots n cap.

With the new bridge I took the opportunity to adjust the string alignment. Seems most SBMM guitars have the strings a little low (high e close to the neck edge). I used a round file to adjust the position of the bridge up a couple of mm. Now its perfect. Also replaced the bridge mounting studs with the much beefier Wilkinson supplied ones. I was nervous about drilling out the holes but it turned out perfect and no damage to the finish.

I also dressed the fret ends to make them smooth n comfy. They are pretty sharp from the factory.

Now it looks even awesomer (?) and it plays and feels awesomer (?).

I would have bought an Ax30D but I really wanted the trans red and maple fret board. Now for 2/3 the cost I have an even better spec guitar and the fun of personalizing it to exactly what I wanted.

That's brilliant mate. Great work and I can't believe you're in Freo too.

My neck is aligned just how I like it with lots of space on the treble side and I suspect with the 5 bolt neck joint it's not moving anytime soon. The pickups I'm vaguely liking so I'm not changing them anytime soon. No issues with sharp frets on mine....better than my newish MIM strats which are pretty good anyway.

Only thing I'm trying to sort out is tuning stability with the trem...tried all my usual tricks which have worked for me with 2 point strat trems in the past. I'm struggling a little at the moment. I've found floating the whole trem by raising action at the trem posts and then lowering saddle height to compensate can help which is the next thing I'm gonna try.

I really wanted the plain maple fingerboard and headstock and that is one of the reasons I didn't go for the ax30 ..I also didn't want another floyd guitar so the ax40 was out.

Overall great guitar. Loving it!