luxxtone or suhr?

[Digital Jams]

Seems like it should be a fairly easy choice - I don't see a lot of overlap there. Luxxtone does the vintage hot rod stylized thing with their unique finishes and metalwork. Suhr does the custom superstrat-to-Modern thing. Which one do you prefer? Tricked out '69 Nova or a '12 M3? That should answer the question.

ps - not to argue with anybody in particular, but ALL guitars are handmade.

M5 for me

 

[ratter]

Seems like it should be a fairly easy choice - I don't see a lot of overlap there. Luxxtone does the vintage hot rod stylized thing with their unique finishes and metalwork. Suhr does the custom superstrat-to-Modern thing. Which one do you prefer? Tricked out '69 Nova or a '12 M3? That should answer the question.

ps - not to argue with anybody in particular, but ALL guitars are handmade.

M5 for me

Hey, if you're buying, I'll take one of each!

 

[steve_k]

Nothing wrong with production guitars mentioned in prior posts-but the market is saturated with them.

Did you have a change of heart on your Andersons?

See the last part of my comment.

Meh, they are pretty average compared to one of Jerry's guitars. Depends on what blows your skirt up.

 

[steve_k]

Seems like it should be a fairly easy choice - I don't see a lot of overlap there. Luxxtone does the vintage hot rod stylized thing with their unique finishes and metalwork. Suhr does the custom superstrat-to-Modern thing. Which one do you prefer? Tricked out '69 Nova or a '12 M3? That should answer the question.

ps - not to argue with anybody in particular, but ALL guitars are handmade.

Spot on with the first statement.

Dead wrong on the second part unless you are talking about programming the CNC machines!

 

[tjon]

Have Jerry build you a Luxxtone. For a 100% handmade guitar, the price is right and the set up is better than anything out of a box. If you decide you don't like it, you can recoup your investment within a few hours of listing it. His guitars are sold before they get the neck bolted on. As for the others, resale is about half your investment and like watching grass grow to get rid of. Nothing wrong with production guitars mentioned in prior posts-but the market is saturated with them.

100% handmade?

 

[Digital Jams]

Mike is correct, ultimately ALL guitars are made by hand in one way or another.

Frets are done by hand.

Sanding is done by hand

assembly is done by hand.

Wiring is done by hand.

Just some do more by hand as shown by builders that post progress reports of new builds.

 

[Page]

wow, so i guess the verdict here is overwhelmingly luxxtone. Im going to play both at tone merchants in 2 weeks but I'm glad that everyone has so much faith in luxxtone. Ive been wanting a suhr for the last four years and they make exactly what I want (strat with one piece maple neck, hss, blower switch, vintage trem) but these luxxtones really must be something special. My sole project is my indie band and I gig hendrix and van halen covers so "vibe" is crucial to me, but I also do guthrie stuff so comfort during those 8 finger tapping licks would be nice. But then again I've been playing them on a stock les paul with high action my whole guitar playing career so I'm used to having to fight the guitar a bit. Thanks for all the input everyone, Ill be sure to post specs of my final purchase when it happens

 

[ratter]

Seems like it should be a fairly easy choice - I don't see a lot of overlap there. Luxxtone does the vintage hot rod stylized thing with their unique finishes and metalwork. Suhr does the custom superstrat-to-Modern thing. Which one do you prefer? Tricked out '69 Nova or a '12 M3? That should answer the question.

ps - not to argue with anybody in particular, but ALL guitars are handmade.

Spot on with the first statement.

Dead wrong on the second part unless you are talking about programming the CNC machines!

I'd like to hear more about why you think I'm dead wrong. That's not a challenge but an honest request. And I'm not talking about the builders mentioned in this thread but just in general.

Here's where I'm coming from. I'm just a hack but I've built guitars with "ordinary" tools - pin router templates, spokeshave necks, etc. As well as with my own CNC machine that I program. The difference in the amount of handwork between the two is really only the neck carving part. And I'll gladly give up the spokeshave to know that with a CNC, once I have a neck carve I love, I can nail it each and every time. There is absolutely NO time savings in the time it takes me to build a neck, at least with my small CNC. It is actually a good bit slower and the learning curve is drastically steeper. Expense-wise, one is a few hundred bucks worth of tools while the other costs as much as a car. On top of all of that there are still hours of hand work left to be done after a neck comes off the CNC before it is ready for finish. And all that handwork is the important stuff - namely sanding and fretwork. It's a tradeoff in the name of consistency.

If you're using the term "handmade" to mean the opposite of CNC, what you're really talking about 99% of the time is pin routers and templates. And oftentimes those templates were purchased or hired out to other shops who CNC or laser'ed them for the builder! Where's the romance in that? I just don't get it. To me it shows a lack of understanding of the processes.

I think most people who have done both would agree with me. I read once where a big-name builder said "the only guys who aren't using CNC are the ones who either can't afford it or can't figure it out." That's hyperbole but it probably applies more often than some would like to admit.

IMO it's all good. I find something to love in pretty much any guitar or amp. But sometimes I have to scratch my head at the perceptions.

Back to the topic at hand. If I'm not mistaken, Luxxtone necks are CNC made from a very high-quality source. From where I sit that should be a point of pride. Whether you're doing it yourself or somebody else is doing it, you are paying for it either in cost per neck (if you are hiring it out to a quality shop like USACG, Wildwood, etc.) or the cost for your own machinery and know-how. And Suhr...it seems like Suhr has grown to the size where people now lump him in with other large factories. I don't get that. The same could be said of PRS, I think. The size of the operation doesn't HAVE to mean that the process loses quality. It can mean that, obviously, but it doesn't have to. The proof is in the end product, IMO.

ps - by the same token, the people who bag on "parts" guitars show a lack of understanding of how much skill, specialized tooling, and effort it takes to finish a guitar and then make it play great. In a lot of ways, that's where the rubber meets the road because that's where you interface with the player/buyer. 9/10 buy with their eyes. If they get past the eyeball check, then it comes down to the feel and setup. None of that happens by magic. It requires effort (by hand), time, and expense.

 

[Digital Jams]

I have blasted parts guitars but only for certain circumstances which I will not really get into as that would really derail the thread. To get them right I have never questioned though, hell it took me hours to align the pickguard, bridge, tone controls and pups on my Summers project and that process made me realize the final assemby and set-up was going to a pro. The Allparts neck I received I had 3-4 hours into to strip poly and dress fret ends to my liking.

I have no idea how much money can be made making guitars from good parts unless you are getting killer wholesale pricing, parts and paint for my tele was $1300. Paint alone was $450 for a thin nitro 3 color burst where double binding had to be scraped after paint. Parts are all top flight though and I could have been cheaper in certain areas.

I am sure if you have wholesale pricing some profit can be had.



Speaking of the Summers Mike I should be getting a call any day now

 

[IntenseJim]

I think the resale of a Suhr will have a broader market if you had to sell it on Evilbay, Craigs list or even TGP etc.; Luxxtone is still known in a small circle or two. But hopefully you'll never have to or want to sell this guitar.

 

[Page]

thats true, but I've been seeing suers go pretty reasonably priced lately... its crazy how cheap used gears getting. BTW, does anyone know when the new jazzmaster type luxxtones are going to be available?

 

[IntenseJim]

...Moi? I'm probably going to order a Luxxtone as soon as I can get my OCD under control and decide on the color(s) I want. Other than that I have the guitar spec'd out. Jerry's repuation is impeccable and Dave (Sharkdiver) is a man I would trust to babysit my kids (if they were small again).

I placed my order for a unique Chopper S (I'll keep the details covert until the guitar is finished) this Saturday. Jerry and Dave got back to me the same day in less than an hour! Jerry followed up with more e-mail details/discussion on Sunday. That's a pretty good start.

I assume I'll be sending my deposit later on this morning after everybody wakes up.

 

[steve_k]

Seems like it should be a fairly easy choice - I don't see a lot of overlap there. Luxxtone does the vintage hot rod stylized thing with their unique finishes and metalwork. Suhr does the custom superstrat-to-Modern thing. Which one do you prefer? Tricked out '69 Nova or a '12 M3? That should answer the question.

ps - not to argue with anybody in particular, but ALL guitars are handmade.

Spot on with the first statement.

Dead wrong on the second part unless you are talking about programming the CNC machines!

I'd like to hear more about why you think I'm dead wrong. That's not a challenge but an honest request. And I'm not talking about the builders mentioned in this thread but just in general.

Here's where I'm coming from. I'm just a hack but I've built guitars with "ordinary" tools - pin router templates, spokeshave necks, etc. As well as with my own CNC machine that I program. The difference in the amount of handwork between the two is really only the neck carving part. And I'll gladly give up the spokeshave to know that with a CNC, once I have a neck carve I love, I can nail it each and every time. There is absolutely NO time savings in the time it takes me to build a neck, at least with my small CNC. It is actually a good bit slower and the learning curve is drastically steeper. Expense-wise, one is a few hundred bucks worth of tools while the other costs as much as a car. On top of all of that there are still hours of hand work left to be done after a neck comes off the CNC before it is ready for finish. And all that handwork is the important stuff - namely sanding and fretwork. It's a tradeoff in the name of consistency.

If you're using the term "handmade" to mean the opposite of CNC, what you're really talking about 99% of the time is pin routers and templates. And oftentimes those templates were purchased or hired out to other shops who CNC or laser'ed them for the builder! Where's the romance in that? I just don't get it. To me it shows a lack of understanding of the processes.

I think most people who have done both would agree with me. I read once where a big-name builder said "the only guys who aren't using CNC are the ones who either can't afford it or can't figure it out." That's hyperbole but it probably applies more often than some would like to admit.

IMO it's all good. I find something to love in pretty much any guitar or amp. But sometimes I have to scratch my head at the perceptions.

Back to the topic at hand. If I'm not mistaken, Luxxtone necks are CNC made from a very high-quality source. From where I sit that should be a point of pride. Whether you're doing it yourself or somebody else is doing it, you are paying for it either in cost per neck (if you are hiring it out to a quality shop like USACG, Wildwood, etc.) or the cost for your own machinery and know-how. And Suhr...it seems like Suhr has grown to the size where people now lump him in with other large factories. I don't get that. The same could be said of PRS, I think. The size of the operation doesn't HAVE to mean that the process loses quality. It can mean that, obviously, but it doesn't have to. The proof is in the end product, IMO.

ps - by the same token, the people who bag on "parts" guitars show a lack of understanding of how much skill, specialized tooling, and effort it takes to finish a guitar and then make it play great. In a lot of ways, that's where the rubber meets the road because that's where you interface with the player/buyer. 9/10 buy with their eyes. If they get past the eyeball check, then it comes down to the feel and setup. None of that happens by magic. It requires effort (by hand), time, and expense.

Splitting hairs mate and you can win. After all, you did type a lot and if they are all the same to you, then it would be pointless anyway. Going out to play my Ken Lawrence Explorer.

 

[ratter]

No worries. Your non-response tells me all I need to know. Have fun!

 

[glassjaw7]

I choose G&L or Anderson

 

[Gainzilla]

How much for that?

 

[MisterBulbous]

What are the current delivery times for each supplier? When I ordered my Suhr, it took nearly 8 months to recieve and unfortunatly when I got it, I wasn't happy with it. Throw in the long delivery time and it makes for a bad experience that I would have liked to avoid.

 

[RG955TT]

I own 3 Pro series Suhr's and two customs, they are the best guitars I've ever played or owned. Never played a Luxtone so I can't say. I personally are not really into the beater look but that's just me. I take care of my stuff and don't understand why people will pay more for something that looks like it was thrown around like a rag doll and beaten/chipped like that but I know some like it so be it. I really like my Suhrs and use two of them for gigging, the pro series are every bit as good as the customs and all sound great and are super consistent. With the pickup options I have every different tone I need (HSH w/coil split on 5tone pot for pos 1 and 5)

 

[IntenseJim]

For gawd's sake don't turn this into a relic love/hate thread. There's plenty of mud to roll around in on TGP if you want to trash relics. And many Luxxtone offerings are not relics.

I think Jerry and Dave of Luxxtone quoted me about 10 weeks on the build time which is remarkable and ambitous.

 

[RG955TT]

No bashing relics, just stating my opinion. Seems a lot of love here for Luxtones, never even seen one so I can't say good or bad but most of what I've seen if not all are relic'd.