Important! NEW GUITAR! TOSIN ABASI

[DrKev]

This is amazing!!

Ernie Ball Music Man: New at NAMM 2022

NAMM 2022 is here and we’re kicking off with an announcement of all the Ernie Ball Music Man instruments and collaborations. Make sure to follow along on our social media channels starting Friday, …

blog.music-man.com

 

[DrKev]

Video…

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1532471617548234752

 

[Mixolydian82]

Between the new model, the killer new finishes, and the new pickups, I think it's safe to say EBMM knocked it out of the park. Wow. Just wow.

 

[Astrofreq]

Man, that new Abasi guitar is wild looking!

 

[beej]

Wow- there's a lot to unpack there. Wild!

 

[racerx]

Very interesting to see the TOM on a StingRay. Always seemed like the perfect mashup of a JM and LP to me.

Cool to see such a focus on the “futuristic” stuff with Abasi and Petrucci leading the charge.

 

[Rbg]

I love those cases!

 

[Sweat]

That new model is very different, not my cup of tea but very unique and different. Love the new Mono cases!

 

[jayjayjay]

I hope the new Mono cases include shoulder straps (so much easier to travel), but it didn't look like it from the video.

That Kaizen - I don't know if I should try one. If I do, I suspect I'll be purchasing.

I've long thought EBMM is one of the few manufacturers out there that consistently pushes boundaries in design, and continues to innovate. They continue to impress!

 

[GWDavis28]

I hope the new Mono cases include shoulder straps (so much easier to travel), but it didn't look like it from the video.

That Kaizen - I don't know if I should try one. If I do, I suspect I'll be purchasing.

I've long thought EBMM is one of the few manufacturers out there that consistently pushes boundaries in design, and continues to innovate. They continue to impress!

It looks funky that's for sure. Different appeals sometimes. I'd like to check it out when the 6 string is available next year.

Glenn |B)

 

[xjbebop]

I applaud EBMM for making this!!!

 

[dibart77]

Interesting stuff. The Kaizen looks different... I'd be interested to check it out.

I also noticed that it looks like every Majesty model/color will be offered in 6, 7, and 8 string. Those who lamented the limited 100 run of 8-strings, you're all good now! Not for me, but still a noteworthy development.

I'd be interested to hear the new HT pickups.

The Mono cases? I am not digging that. I keep my guitars stacked in their hardshell cases. Literally 8 feet high. I stand like 7 cases on their end, and then stack like 5 more flat on top of that! Ain't doing that with foam cases... Like this (I did this in photoshop as the guitars are at the studio and I am home):

 

[DrKev]

Full length Videos

 

[QuietSpike]

The Kaizen looks amazing. Probably not for me, but I’ve always thought about trying a multi scale, so now I know which one I’m getting…

The mono cases… yeah, not feelin it. I get they’re probably cheaper than the hard shell, and 2 lbs lighter times 8,000 guitars shipped every year saves MM $$, but no bueno IMO.

 

[racerx]

The mono cases… yeah, not feelin it. I get they’re probably cheaper than the hard shell, and 2 lbs lighter times 8,000 guitars shipped every year saves MM $$, but no bueno IMO.

I think this change is probably polarizing. I leave my hardshells at home and always gig with a nice padded gig bag. I personally like the Mono change, but I understand why others won't.

 

[Ventanaman]

Just wow. Taking risks and innovation - one of the best things about EBMM. I can't wait until the 6-string Kaizen is available!

As for the Mono cases - I have been using the 2-guitar Mono case for all gigs for the past 10 years and it has surpassed all of my expectations - my hard cases never get used, but I get why people like them.

I am most skeptical about the HT pickup technology. Do we really need higher output pickups? There is so much gain available with modern amps, I have actually gone the other way with PU output. You can get HEAVY tone from well-made PAF-style pickups when paired with the right amp. I guess I will have to just try it out and see.

 

[jayjayjay]

I am most skeptical about the HT pickup technology. Do we really need higher output pickups? There is so much gain available with modern amps, I have actually gone the other way with PU output. You can get HEAVY tone from well-made PAF-style pickups when paired with the right amp. I guess I will have to just try it out and see.

I'm wondering if one possible advantage to having hotter pickups is noise floor. If you can achieve the same tone but dial back the gain, you get a quieter amp, because you're not amplifying the silence, as it were.

I also wonder what the hotter pickups will do in terms of feel and dynamics.

 

[Ventanaman]

I'm wondering if one possible advantage to having hotter pickups is noise floor. If you can achieve the same tone but dial back the gain, you get a quieter amp, because you're not amplifying the silence, as it were.

I also wonder what the hotter pickups will do in terms of feel and dynamics.

Over the past 2 year I have experimented with about 8 different types of pickups in my Axis/Axis SS - my 3 favorites were the BKP Mule (Vintage), Suhr SSH (Vintage Hot), and the BKP Polymath (Modern). To me, each of these were improvements (with less output) over the DiMarzios in terms of frequency range, dynamics and compression. YMMV.

There is so much high-end loss and compression with the high output PU, I agree this may be EBMM's attempt to get some of the feel and response back.

 

[Rbg]

I wonder if those HT pickups will go to the other models as well?

 

[tbonesullivan]

I know it's probably some "secret sauce" thing, but I'm always curious as to what exactly is heat treated, and what it is supposed to do. Increase the induction? Align the crystal structure in the pole pieces? Or is it something done to the magnets? I Thought that heat usually was a bad thing for magnets. I know that bare knuckle pickups say that heat treating the steel is supposed to allow easier passage of the magnetic field.

Also, I do kinda hate to say this, but now that I have an Axis... my Morse and Stingray barely make it out of the case. It's a design from the 1990s, and I don't think it can be surpassed in some ways. And of course another part of me is like "dangit I just got a Stingray guitar, and now, it's obsolete". I guess I hate looking at guitars as "tech", instead of instruments.