MartyGrass Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 I only had 20 minutes to check it out. Medium neck with very low action. For aesthetics, I'm undecided about gold for the pups. They look pretty darn good the way they are in person. The sound is amazing. There is not a hint of mud. Pitch separation is incredible. Mid tones are not scalloped out like I expected. The extra pickup does not seem redundant in tone. It is noticeably heavier than my two H150s, and the extra weight anchors the body down. The balance is fine. The guitar is classy and it has gravitas. (No, not the Dick Cheney kind of gravitas. More like Jimmy Page.) The only tweaking might be to split the middle pup, probably the bridge coil if it is out of phase with the bridge pup coil next to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredZepp Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Man, that thing is freakin' cool. I love the top and the abalone inlays. It has a look, as in ...Satans Guitar Extraordinaire. If it were mine, I'm not sure what I'd change, if anything. And it sounds good, so no changes needed really. But yeah, the middle pickup should have some type of a different tone or tone options, just because. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smurph1 Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Ummmm..SWEEEEETTTT!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yoslate Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Speaking as one who lives in a house which still has Formica, that 157 is the marble counter top of guitars! "Gravitas." Exactly! And I would think gold p'ups would only distract from that exceptional looking top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spectrum13 Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Very interesting, very cool! What kind of pickups? Only thing I would change (not a big gold fan) chrome/nickel bridge/tail and tuners but keep the buttons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffB Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Looks great. Nice score. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted December 6, 2010 Author Share Posted December 6, 2010 The pickups are some form of Bill Lawrence's work. The seller said XL500's. I have no reason to doubt that. Some day I'll pull them off and see what I can learn about them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millennium Maestro Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 The pickups are some form of Bill Lawrence's work. The seller said XL500's. I have no reason to doubt that. Some day I'll pull them off and see what I can learn about them. typical would be a xl500 bridge and 2 r500's middle and neck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skydog52 Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Nice one Mark. I like the gold idea. That is a beauty. Inlays are special! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HRB853370 Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 I only had 20 minutes to check it out. Medium neck with very low action. For aesthetics, I'm undecided about gold for the pups. They look pretty darn good the way they are in person. The sound is amazing. There is not a hint of mud. Pitch separation is incredible. Mid tones are not scalloped out like I expected. The extra pickup does not seem redundant in tone. It is noticeably heavier than my two H150s, and the extra weight anchors the body down. The balance is fine. The guitar is classy and it has gravitas. (No, not the Dick Cheney kind of gravitas. More like Jimmy Page.) The only tweaking might be to split the middle pup, probably the bridge coil if it is out of phase with the bridge pup coil next to it. Was this on Ebay? I believe I saw it and liked it, except for the aftermarket pups. What kind are they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mgoetting Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Was this on Ebay? I believe I saw it and liked it, except for the aftermarket pups. What kind are they? Bill Lawrence's pups. See above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronalr Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 A real beauty!!!....stunning....congratulations Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted December 6, 2010 Share Posted December 6, 2010 Black tuners are a nice touch. Excuse my French, that thing is badass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zookroo1 Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 I don't know if you can get gunmetal colored hardware (I don't think I've ever seen it), but that would look pretty amazing if you ever replaced the gold. Anyhow, me likey!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 I don't know if you can get gunmetal colored hardware (I don't think I've ever seen it), but that would look pretty amazing if you ever replaced the gold. Anyhow, me likey!!! I have never thought of that. Case hardened steel! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 pics of case hardening Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtpatty Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 mark: if those are Bill Lawrence XL 500's give them a chance...I had one in the bridge of a LP Custom years ago and that thing was sho' nuff Baaaaad! Very warm and they rock.... Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brentrocks Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 MORE PICS!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbp810 Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Love that top, lots of quilt and flame going on there! Personally, I like the way the pups look as is - doesn't divert any attention away from the top or the abalone inlays on the neck. It just seems to all come together quite nicely! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big bob Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Well done my friend... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schundog Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 Wow!! That trans-black 140 you had a few months ago looked great, but not to the extent that this 157 has it "going on!" Enjoy it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 I restrung the 157 last night with 11s and played it a fair amount. The neck is on the fat side. The action is very low. Frets are in good shape. Neck is straight. All of the electronics work perfectly. I pulled out the bridge pup. It says Bill Lawrence USA, which I expected. It doesn't state what model. It's hot so it must be the XL500. The other pups balance well with it, so MM is probably correct. The volume pots for the bridge and the neck are in the usual spot. They use the old style wiring, so you can shut off a pup while the other still can be heard. The bridge tone knob position controls all tone. The middle pup is always on, regardless of the toggle position. The neck tone knob position controls the volume. This configuration allows you to blend any combination of pups with any volume ratio you want. Quite slick. The middle pup is either out of phase or split, probably split. It doesn't hum and is very chimey. So there it is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredZepp Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 MORE PICS!!!! +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartyGrass Posted December 7, 2010 Author Share Posted December 7, 2010 I can take more pictures. Maybe some action shots or group poses? I suppose I could do a cavity shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steiner Posted December 7, 2010 Share Posted December 7, 2010 I have never thought of that. Case hardened steel! And a fingerrest made of diamond plate! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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