Just commenting so the algorithm boosts your channel. Love the content. I appreciate your strict policy of 100 hours of playing before giving a guitar a full review. That adds a lot of legitimacy to your reviews.
Sad to see it go but honestly I would have made the same decision regardless of my financial state. When you get 95% of the guitar for almost 1/5 of the price it's kind of a no-brainer. Love the channel man, honestly didn't realize you didn't have 50k plus subscribers. Great content and I'm excited to see you grow!
I really appreciate your comment. This video is pretty old for me, as of late I've been experimenting a lot more, playing more aggressive and honestly, your comment helped to remind me that I should just play more like myself :)
I'm with you on the D'Angelico quality, feel, and sound, especially considering the cost compared to a Gibson 335. Got my 335 fix and am supremely happy with the D'Angelico DC.
This is why I’m willing to wait 12 months to get the custom Novo that fits my playing style from choice of fingerboard radius to nut width to jumbo frets to Lollar gold foil, it’s all about knowing what you need when you’re ready to spend almost $5K for a keeper (ordering the Miris T with the Lollar pickups)
The downside is that it’s pretty easy to know what you like and want “on paper”, but there is no 100% guarantee that the finished product will actually work for you or that you will be able to bond with it even if the specs work as you expected. I’m struggling with this right now for an acoustic guitar custom build I’m considering having done next year. I’ve been talking to the builder for a few months now and if I go through with it I will actually be involved in the whole process of choosing every detail and I’ll even get to choose the actual pieces of wood to be used. However, a few weeks ago I played a very nice guitar in a store that I could buy right now that is almost exactly what I want for about $2,000 less than the anticipated price of my custom build. I think I would love a Novo also, because “on paper” the Serus T seems like it would suit me. However, even though I only live about 60 miles from Nashville I have never even seen a Novo in person.
Man, the dedication you put in the content of your channel is commendable, so much work put into it, giving you’re still a relatively small channel. I think this channel will grow, I hope so. And then Novo should ask you to design a guitar with them, instead of you asking them to build a guitar for you. Small difference ✌🏻✌🏻
I love the flash of a "big body" at 4:36. Ha! The P-90s are a bit noisy but that noise cancels out in the middle position. I love the Mastery bridge and arm. In my opinion, the Novos are the best electric guitars on the market, and with a zillion options for colors, components and appointments. These are expensive, but worth it for the person who loves the feel and sound of a vintage Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker, or Gretsch. You are a fantastic player. You'll be back....Novo is waiting for you!
@@andrefludd I ordered a Novo Miris J with all the options I would want in a fine guitar. The option is now for a set of Lollar Gold Foils (too glassy sounding for me) or a pair of Fralin Alnico (NOISELESS!) P-90s. I am going with the P-90s. Buzzing problem is solved....
wow.. sad to hear that since I enjoyed watching your videos with the Serus, while waiting for my Novo arrive. I’ve been in the same situation.. I owned a Fano JM6 during DF era, but sold it because financial needs. After that, I owned several guitars like Suhr, Anderson, Tyler, but damn…these guitars are perfect and very nice… but the feels and resonance of DF’s guitar is something else. I really missed it. Sometimes it’s not just about the spec.. That’s why I finally decided to pull the trigger to order a Novo last year. I really hope in the near future, you’ll get your new Novo with your own spec!
Just got a Novo Voltour, P-90 and HB. Incredible instrument. It’s even bigger than the Servus models, this one does not have a trem, but that’s ok with me. I bought it “used” (it’s basically brand new) for $3400 (incl.$200 shipping). After I saw the D’Angelico on your channel, I was very interested in that, but the price has gone up more than twice of what you paid. They are $2000 now, before tax. The novo is still more but not 4 times the amount. All the things you mention, body size and carves, the neck, tuners, etc.; love all of it. Still might check out the D’Angelico but there’s no way I’m selling the Novo. Thanks for your review, yours are among the best, period.
I definitely get where you’re coming from. I have a D’Angelico Deluxe Bedford (not the Weir model, though Grateful Dead are my favorite band and seeing Bobby playing one is initially what caught my eye with this model) and it is the best-playing guitar I have by a pretty good margin. It is just smooth as silk, man. I own Gibsons, Fenders, PRS, and my Bedford beats them all. Perfect neck, great fretwork at every single fret, absolutely stunning ebony fretboard with abalone inlays, and a beautiful semi-hollow offset look that I really love. The offset alongside the art deco headstock and gold hardware make it quite the looker! It gets a ton of play time when I’m home practicing, but every attempt I have made at using it live has really left me wanting more. For starters, the middle and neck tele-style pickups are incredibly dark. Like, I’ll even put my amp (Super Reverb) bright switch engaged, crank the treble on the amp, etc. and just can’t get the tone anywhere near the brightness I desire. They are probably the two darkest pickups I have played. It wouldn’t be a huge issue, but the bridge mini humbucker is like stupid bright. It truly gives my tele a run for its money in terms of brightness, so that contrasted with the incredibly dark other pickups just ultimately keeps me from using it live very much. That combo just doesn’t work for me. I have thought about swapping out the pickups, but for now it’s just a practice/studio guitar for me, which is a shame considering how much I spent on it and how stunningly beautiful it is along with the incredible feel and comfort of playing it. Mine is actually number 7 out of 50 that they made of my particular model, so I’m hoping the value may increase over time, although I have no plans of selling it at the moment. I enjoy hearing your perspective, so I’ll definitely check out your review for the guitar! Thanks for the content, man!
Thanks for the support! I also Love the looks of D’Angelico. Check out the full review if you get a chance I think you’ll like it as a fellow fan of the brand
@@andrefludd will do! Yeah man, I must say the looks are really what drove me to want this guitar the most. I wanted something different that I don’t see a ton of players using so that I could make it my “signature guitar” where people who see me play might associate me with that guitar. And like I said, it plays better than any other guitar that I have, but ultimately the tone doesn’t fit very well for the style of music I play. I still say it is really a great guitar, despite all of the issues I have run into. Love your channel and love when creators get involved in the comment sections of their vids, so props to you there as well! ‘Preciate ya!
Interesting presentation and one I relate to pretty strongly. I prefer being a player over being a collector and while I don't buy a lot of instruments I'm definitely in the camp of not keeping a guitar I'm not playing frequently. Having a couple of instruments that I play often is more to my liking than having a bunch that sit in cases and are rarely handled let alone used for making music. Congrats on working your choice 👍.
Love that you share the experience of learning design from experiencing these guitars. Was messing around on warmoth site to design a body as it displays a nice graphic as you work. I think I want an offset tele: tele bridge (3 saddle) and bridge pup and a jazzmaster neck pup. Be curious to see your builds there.
Love that sad melancholy Jeff beck song at the beginning. Very appropriate. Even when you don’t bond with a guitar it’s still sad to let them go. I have a few that need to go but can’t bring myself to do it yet. Just like you’re journey though I’m dialing in what I really want out of a guitar. I’m becoming an offset guy and I’m realizing that you don’t need to spend thousands to get a great guitar. I like my cheaper guitars more than most of my expensive ones. That Bob Weir Bedford is on the top of my possibilities list. I have to make some room in the collection first and that’s the hardest part!
I have a few others I also have to let go. Every day I say, I’ll put these for sale tomorrow. Tomorrow never comes haha. Thanks for the support! Offsets are amazing
I discovered my comfort with offsets when I was 16 (1996) and found a MIJ Jazzmaster in a store that just felt “perfect”. I had a strat, and had only played strat-like guitars before that (started in 1994). I have accumulated lots of guitars of differet styles since then (almost 3 decades), but that Jazzmaster is still my #1. Is has a new paint job, replaced pickups, and a mastery bridge and I wouldn’t sell or trade it. Ever. I am glad you have given offsets a fair chance, many never do. They are a special thing that a lot of us just dig!
I actually never even picked one up until maybe late 2021, the second it was on my lap it was VERY CLEAR this body is way better for me personally. I wish I had tried one sooner.
@@andrefludd I understand how it can happen, though. So much is made of “oh jazz boxes are for jazz, les pauls are for classic rock, ibanez/jackson for shredding, and offsets are for surf/grunge”. Even though it’s obvious that you can play what you want on whatever guitar you want, that stuff colors our outlook even if we know better. I played a floyd rose equipped guitar once in the mid-90’s and still won’t touch them because I hated it so much then. It’s fun seeing people change their mind about things they thought were foundational. Thanks for the videos and conversation!
I've just built an offset guitar for a friend with my favourite P90's which are Kent Armstrong Stealth Noise Cancelling P90's. All these pickups need is a slightly deeper route to accommodate the extra coil. With shielding I built him a 99% noiseless guitar. Also used a bright and dark tone circuit switch which he really likes.
If you ever end up with an opportunity for another Novo, I hope you get to try one out with some of the Fralin noiseless P90s with alnico rods. It's currently an optional pickup configuration on the Serus J and standard on the Miris J. The alnico rods bring a little bit of Jazzmaster pickup feeling into it, but they're still pretty distinctly P90s while also being completely noiseless.
Yep I just installed a fralin p90 style called p94 in a cs Gibson and with a new wrap around and gotoh locking tuners all together it became magical … and silent 😉
Fralin P90s are awesome, the mojotone 56 quiet coil P90s sound mellower, but I'm liking them a lot, especially with flatwounds (I put them in a PRS SE Soapbar ii)
I released a Fralin noiseless comparison to a SD set a couple years ago. IMO it’s hard to say any noiseless sounds the same as a P90, But I went down the rabbit hole.
Suhr has a feature that allows you to use traditional noisy single coils (including P90), but have them be silent due to a noise suppression circuit that’s built into the guitar itself. I think it’s called SSCII. There’s also a similar system that you can install after market on other guitars, but it’s a rather complicated procedure.
I really enjoy your content and the methodical way that you break down your thoughts and opinions during your gear reviews. Regarding the Novo, wonderful guitar, but for that price it has to be incredible in all aspects. That being said, after watching several of your videos, I’m really interested in trying out both Parker and D’Angelico guitars. Having relatively small hands, neck size is always a concern for me. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Again, great content!
I know this is an old video, but that extra noise from the offset style bridge/vibrato could probably be fudged diy with some foam, as it’s the noise of the extra length behind the bridge and not anything in the vibrato system. As for the clicking noise, I’m pretty sure that’s not standard on mastery vibratos, so it could be a setup issue
I'm taking notes, lol. I really like how you analyze and think about an instrument. It's also nice to see you mention the vega trem, I've been thinking of making those standard on my Omega models. They seem to have rave reviews. You really deserve so many more subs.
Thank you :). I’m going to keep working and let’s hope the subs and views catch up ;). Also, I said it already, but I’d love to try one of your guitars. I mean that
Leo got it right with the split shaft tuners. I like locking, but have no problems with the split shaft. I don't mind a large body, more cushion, y'know? Have to be careful with G.A.S., usually diminishing returns imo.
That’s a bummer to hear about the Mastery bridge being noisy. I have 2 Fender CS guitars (Jazzmaster and Jaguar) with vintage tremolo’s that have none of the noise your bridge exhibits. I would have assumed it just needs adjusting but I’m sure you went through all of that.
@@andrefludd hey Andre I know I already asked you this but what is the name of the bracket you put on your guitar to lift it into a more comfortable position. Thanks again and by the way, Phil McKnight mentioned you and your show yesterday on KYG. God Bless
I switched to a helix from my pedalboard because I couldn’t take the single coil him I was getting in some venues and the helix has a great noise gate. With your playing style, the P 90s humming away would drive me nuts too.
I had a custom guitar built by a local lithier to be similar to a novo. I went with black limba instead of tempered pine though, and while it looks amazing with the burst, it's not as light or resonant. That's the main thing I wish I did.
Guitars come in such a wonderful diversity of styles now, that there is something for everyone. Not every player is a cork sniffer. I have some valuable guitars, and I love them. Sometimes though it’s nice to try different flavours. My current desire, is to get a squire affinity Jazzmaster, and do a very OCD setup on it, then perhaps change the electrics and hardware to something that more suits my tastes. Probably could do all of that for less than AU$600. We’ve never had such a plethora of aftermarket parts to choose from, as we do today. A lot of what’s out there is very good indeed. Keep up the great work, yours is becoming the thinking man’s guitar channel.
My #1 is a J Mascis Squier Jazzmaster. Amazing guitar for the money. It has similar pickups and vibrato to this one. I replaced the bridge with one that doesn’t cause buzzing like the stock one and replaced the pickguard with a cool mint green one that I used copper shielding tape on to cut down on noise. That and my Boss noise suppressor pedal help a lot. I wonder if they shielded the pickguard well enough on the Novo?? I’d hope that would be the case on a $4k guitar!
Offsets were made to be sat with really. Regarding lightweight woods, look into Paulownia (Empress) super light wood that is more readily available than some others. Use foam to silence bridge springs :) I ordered a Serus J with stainless steel frets earlier this year. I still have a few months to wait.
If you want something light you really can’t go wrong with paulownia. It’s what Fender uses on the Brad Paisley signature models. Mario Martin/Guitar Mill in Murfreesboro, TN uses some, too. I recently played one their “Strats” made of paulownia and it was great.
I've bought and sold guitars for almost 15 years. I am now happy with what I have. I recently got a Yamaha Revstar RSS02T Swift Blue after 5 months wait, for me it is a phenomenal guitar, can't fault it. I like the P90's, they are loud makes me feel like someone is morse coding me! I also have a Fender strat professionnel one, love it and an Aria Pro 2 TA40 with burstbucker pick ups. My favourite is my Telecaster Relic Age custom guitar, lollar single coil pick up in the bridge and a humbucker neck. It's a French guitar, good to check them out. Now my guitar journey I can say is over, I have a six and twelve string acoustic and a bass also. 7 guitars is enough for me. Rhett Shull has a couple of nice Novo's, his reliced one looks beautiful. Thanks for this video and I hope that you get the perfect guitar for you.
@@andrefludd You are welcome. Oh yes, definitely worth the wait. I originally ordered the Sunset Burst but I would have had to wait until 2023. The Swift Blue is beautiful though and I have no regrets.
Loved your comment about 4x the price doesn't equal 4x the satisfaction. We can clearly see the Novo brought you happiness when describing your favorite features. But it feels like we live in a time where quality has improved at all levels to the point where no one should feel like they are missing out by not shelling out several grand for a guitar. While it's possible that someone might have very specific needs for what a guitar must do and require a bigger budget, it is also very possible something off the shelf may also fit the bill and there's no shame in that. Thanks for sharing your journey with us.
Thank you for always supporting the videos. I enjoy seeing you and I assume your daughter pop up in my feed. God willing, I'll have a daughter of my own one day.
When you talk about the buzzing or noiseyness are you talking about the strings behind the saddles? That area? Probably one of my fave things about my jaguar is those sympathetic vibrations going on behind the bridge. It makes it seem as tho its alive in a way. Anyway if thats what it is and you dont like it, you can get a fender mute and install it backwards so that when engaged it mutes the behind the bridge area. Also fender mutes are not compatible with mastery bridges but you can make them compatible just by widening the holes a small amount with a stepped drill bit.
I find this to be a common issue with modern day guitars. There are so many high quality alternatives costing far less than "boutique" instruments, that offer almost everything the high priced guitars do. That's not to say the high priced guitars aren't worth their cost, they may very well be, however, it's highly subjective and a very competitive market!
I love my Novo. It’s the only guitar I can grab anytime even after transport and it’s in tune. It’s super light, it feels like a broken in baseball glove. I really want a smaller body though as I’m smaller. They are designing a new strat style body I believe. As far as the noisy bridge (the ring) you can put a a strap on the strings at the bridge to quiet it. I don’t have an issue w any click and my p90s are not noisy at all. That being said the size makes it not perfect for me. And if they make a smaller strat version I might trade it. Or if I ever get a d Angelico. Although I don’t like headstock on that either. I get having to sell a guitar when finances are tight though. All my guitars are sellable at anytime I need the money. Sorry you have to let this one go.
Regarding P90s and noise, I have a 1967 Framus semihollow with P90s plugged in right now and it is absolutely 100% silent. I can lean it against my amp, with the guitar volume at max and the amp up too loud for home use, and no noise. I'm not exaggerating. I don't know why some guitar builders don't include circuitry to eliminate noise in single coil guitars. My highway 1 Telecaster is also completely silent, but I did do some extensive shielding and grounding in it.
My daily player these days would likely be a serious contender for the money against your “Novo” quibbles. It’s a Performer Jazzmaster. This model has a strat term/bridge which, like my Nitefly, allows me to palm the bridge (I know, a bad habit, but I’m an old dog and it’s my thing), old style tuners that you appreciated, and hum cancels in the middle position. I play seated, mostly, and I totally agree with your comfort observations.
Just looked it up, I never saw this model of Fender before. It looks to address all of my issues! I still might put a vega trem on it though haha. Thanks for sharing. Great find.
I have the same problem of being overly particular about everything and not finding all my desired features in one guitar, while simultaneously not having tried everything out there to really know exactly what I would like best so it's even harder to commit. I dream of figuring it all out and building my own guitar.
The closing song reminds of Pokémon on the gameboy. I done mean that negative at all. It just feels nostalgic. It’s that little tremolo flourish. I love it
Lately I really like guitars made from beetle kill pine, it has interesting wood grain and colours. Texas Toast guys use it alot, and I saw some custom shop Fenders made of it.
Sorry to see it go. I'll never part with mine. I agree about the tuners: a properly functioning split-shaft tuner with enough winds on the post is perfectly stable. I don't understand why Gibson always used the hole-through design. Split-shaft is better in every way in my opinion.
Regarding pickups: gold foils are single coils…. They hum. I won’t use single coils because of the noise. I do however make great sounding hum canceling P-90s. (Coney Island Guitars) If you put some foam or felt under the strings behind the bridge that noise will stop. Bjt not the clicking.
To be honest I didn’t realize gold foils were single coils. I never actually tried them. Maybe I should be looking at tv jones instead. I’d love to try some of your pickups some time :).
M’man, as I function on way less budget than 4K per plank… I’ve arrived at the following for an offset: A Squire Mascis sig with the following mods: (what sold me on it is the fantastic neck with jumbo frets) Mastery bridge & Trem and, as I noticed someone’s already mentioned, Lindy Frailin’s noiseless units. Your luthier will have to re-fill then, re-drill for the Mastery thimbles but, ultimately I wound up VERY close to your Novo experience for under a grand.
I did notice those buzzing pickups on the intro jam, not even a high gain sound and VERY noisy. If you're interested in making a guitar, I recommend getting a kit first. It'll give you an idea of the different stages (and time needed).
when I do my kit, I’ll def work with a luthier. I don’t love getting my hands too dirty, I end up too worried that I messed something up. Thanks for the comment
black and grey, ftw! I throw in an occasional splash of beige, too :) your videos are excellent, and I really enjoy your style of play. too bad about the novo, but real life matters more than gear.
@andrefludd did you by chance sell it to guitar center cuz it looks exactly like the one I fell in love with in Pasadena. I went back 2 weeks later and considered getting it but it was gone
Great content i just subscribed. Love that D'Angelico! Been eying a yamaha revstar standard with P90s and now wondering whether it should be that or the Bob Weir 🤔 you tried the revstar? I still don't understand the hum fully. My tele hums like crazy at my friend's house but zero hum at my house!
Thanks for the sub! Both are great guitars. Luckily, they are also both easy to find so I'd recommend going to a local SamAsh or Guitar Center and just picking them both up for a couple minutes. I'm sure you'll resonate with one slightly more.
Just a FYI, the D’Angelico Bedford BW model, sells in Australia, used, for around AU$1265.00. Our dollar, isn’t doing so well right now. I’ve seen the Novo Serus J, selling here, between AU$ 7,000 and AU$ 9,000.
Thanks for a great video… SO INTERESTING! I build two Novo inspired guitars and documented it on my channel. One with Gold Foils and one with a Hum cancelling P90. I love the Novo Serus J but I don’t have the money… So I build my own 🎉😅 thanks for sharing 🙏🏻
Andre can you review Yvette Youngs signature guitar from ibanez? I sm looking to buy one and wanted to see what your opinion of then would be. They look really cool and could be right up your alley. Its an offset guitar with a nice neck and the pickups are really good. I like the look of the old Tallman Ibanez guitars that these are modeled after. She has the YY10(strat configuration) YY20( tele configuration). For $1100 new I think it packs a lot of punch for that price point. Great video btw, I am definitely going to check out that D'Angelico guitar. I love the look of that Novo though a bit better.
@@andrefludd hey Andre Phillip McKnight gave a shout out to you and your channel on his podcast that he did on Friday. He mentioned 3 TH-cam channels that he thought his audience would like, yours was the first recommendation.
I am wanting a Novo as my main guitar and I live in Taiwan and there are 0 Novos here to try. I want to ask you if you only could have one guitar of those two in the video would you still let it go for the other? Thanks for your videos
Vintage tuners with the hope are the only tuner I really like. Also, I bought a Les Paul Special that already had Fralin noiseless P90's with Alnico rods installed. I thought I'd like *true P90's better so I had Fralin P90's put in. Turns out I like the noiseless Alnico Rod set better so I'm going back. They are prettier sounding with more chime and closer to a Fender sound which is what I normally play yet definitely have that P90 punch.
It’s a really good idea to design your own guitar and get something completely fitted for you, and you will learn so much about how it all works. Trouble is there are so many options and little compromises you need to make, that will probably mean that it’s not a one time deal. You will need to iterate, possibly many times; But it’s fun! I’m on #3 now, and already thinking about the next one😂
Andre, I can't agree with you more about p-90s. I am trying to start a guitar company, and I have researched some baritone guitars. One of them was a squier paranormal that I had some similar issues with. I just found the pickups to be unusable really, and it just seems an odd choice, I dunno what they were thinking really. I would think Chapman is outselling them on Baritones. The vid is available on my channel. I would like to give mini hums a try, but I am struggling to find them hot enough.
I have a MIM Jazzmaster with hi output P-90's, and after some listening I couldn't stand them. Switched to 1965 Fender pickups, much happier. Those Fender pickups were cheap too, maybe $70 or the pair.
There are other $4k guitars,,,, it will be sad not to hear it on the channel. One point you've hit that I have argued with people about that style fender tuners really do work as good as locking tuners and are easy to restring. I'll add I also agree not a fan of jazz master/jaguar bridge and tailpiece . I built a Warmoth offset telecast/telemaster that has the offset body with the telecaster bridge and pickup.
@@andrefludd they have an American made jazz master with the strat style bridge as well ,G&L make almost the same guitar I think the model is called the Doheny , I think you would love the g&l necks and the two point vibrato they use
if you choose to have custom thats light,try looking for red cedar cedar dibetou they are very light good tone woods(i have been making guitars for six yrs at the moment i have made with mahogany southern ash nothern ash and other woods but thos three have been with really good results in my own experience)
I see the plastic is still on your Rick Beato, is that on the chopping block too? I thought about your other vid where you mention you have to dig into the guitar a bit more. After putting more hours in mine I think the change is that these have small frets.
New subscriber here. This is the first one of your videos I've seen. I wanted to say how much I enjoyed how well thought-out and how well expressed you expressed your decision making process.
Fantastic video. I too have found I like oversized offset guitars with great necks after buying a Dunable Yeti. Best guitar I’ve ever played hands down. Have you seen or played them?
@@andrefludd incredible looking and playing custom shop guitars out of California that also has a cheaper Korean line. Huge in the doom metal community but I think the rest of the guitar community is sleeping on them.
Hey Doc, you ever make a guitar? I would be interested in seeing a guy like you really thoughtfully cobble together a stewmac then boost it up a notch with some niche parts...and i know youre into the niche parts, bruh. Moreover you know how to make the steel sing, so maybe give it a think? My conjecture is that you would get something out of the exploration and that the rest of us plebs would learn a lot.
Davvy from the Toby and Davvy TH-cam channel hand built his own guitar and has a video about it. Like Andre he is a tall guy so he made the body very large, used custom brass hardware and nut, on board effects loop etc. He is more of a Grateful Dead, Jerry Garcia kind of guy but the guitar build is interesting to watch and gives some unique ideas. th-cam.com/video/QIMzdsMOqpo/w-d-xo.html
I think it‘s a good decision. The reason why I never bought such an expensive guitar is because I‘m always thinking of rather getting a custom build. So I can have everything exactly how I want it. It feels wrong to me to swap pickups on a guitar more expensive than 2K or maybe even less. One question, what are the pickups in that black guitar you compared it to. Are the noiseless P90s or just less noisy ones? Cheers, great video and playing btw!
Use at least some of the money you get out of that Novo to get another top spec guitar. I can't wait to see what other guitar I'll have to try after you recommend it.
I sold both of my PRS guitars. A 10 top DGT and a CE24 Semihollow last month. Both lovely guitars. Granted the CE24 was a raffle win. But even so I picked up a Japanese Tokai ES120 (335 copy) and that suits me so much more. I don't see the point in keeping something "just because". Like yourself the DGT was a lovely guitar but I didn't feel it was four times the guitar the Tokai is. It took me a while to realise how comfortable and familiar I am with the control knob layouts on SGs and strats.
@@andrefludd one thing which bugged me was the layout of the volume knobs. The bridge volume pot is closest as, he uses it for swells etc. The other thing was the high E String spacing. I kept pinging it off the neck. Again it was a lovely guitar. I thought I'd use the facility for blending pickup volumes far more than I did. I think a Custom 22 or an S2 would suit me. I remember reading that the 10 top option is a £500 costed extra. Sure it is pretty, but it's just bragging rights imho. Its just bits of wood and metal at the end of the day. Took me 20 years of playing to feel comfortable spending that much om a guitar.
@@MRBRANDYWINETHETHIRD Off high e spacing is a pet peeve of mine. Since I play with an .008 on the high e, if the spacing isn't right it ALWAYS goes off. With light strings and a light tough, sometimes things have to be so dialed in to flow. I know, I'm so prissy haha.
I have a novo on order … but I also play a white falcon a lot …so I’m pretty sure the novo will feel small when I get it …good video and honest ! Cheers
I do feel like Nels Cline talked about the size of guitar body as well. he's pretty tall and uses Jazzmaster, which isnt that small of a body so works for him, or something. actually now that I think about it, I think he uses Novo guitars now too.
@@andrefludd Wow cool yes the paranormal squire series I didn't realize are so cool and less then 300 for Black Friday!, mine I made from an mjt body and a handmade neck from Amantea guitars in Italy. Stainless steel frets, abalone inlays very nice.
That's my argument on a lot of guitars. I have a $450 G&L Tribute Fallout and a G&L Fullerton Deluxe Espada. Love the Espada and it is probably my favorite to play. It is 4 times the cost of the Fallout, but not 4 times better of a guitar.
The original floating trem and bridge design is actually quite awesome and perfectly stable when the guitar is set up perfectly. It's not the same physics when the Mastery is added. Although Fender style bolt ons don't have the refinement of Ken Parker's archtops with their knob for adjustable neck angle, shims and an easily removable neck are the next best thing. This is of primary importance with the floating trem design, because it requires a steeper break angle to work properly. Adjusting action happens by bringing the fretboard to the strings. So I can respect and prefer the choice of a bolt-on neck. Anyway, the Novo isn't the perfect setup or take on the offset design for me either. For one thing I would be hesitant to mod and tweak a $4000 instrument vs an $800 instrument, and I kind of need to tweak, mod and set up my offsets to how I like them. De-creaking the trem is next.
@@andrefludd Ideally with the expensive guitar, that's not necessary, My personal dream offset is one where the concept of archtop meets slab guitar is finally taken more seriously. The ergonomics are different. Maybe still too far ahead of its time. A standard bridge is kind of a known quantity that works. It is better than ignoring that concept and just using a Mastery for stability. Also, have to mention I love the Nitefly, also way ahead of its time (sadly I need to find and re-purchase one).
I made and released this video before Jeff Beck’s unfortunate passing. My dramatic parody in the video was in no way meant as a parody of him.
No surprise to me. I noticed right away that it didn't say Parker on it anywhere.
D’Angelico doesn’t say Parker anywhere either. I don’t care about the brand!
😂
Still a funny comment...c'mon doc, we know u🙂
;)
Just commenting so the algorithm boosts your channel. Love the content. I appreciate your strict policy of 100 hours of playing before giving a guitar a full review. That adds a lot of legitimacy to your reviews.
Thank you! It will mean I don’t get to review nearly as many guitars, but the ones I give a 100 hour review to, I’m very confident in.
Sad to see it go but honestly I would have made the same decision regardless of my financial state. When you get 95% of the guitar for almost 1/5 of the price it's kind of a no-brainer.
Love the channel man, honestly didn't realize you didn't have 50k plus subscribers. Great content and I'm excited to see you grow!
Thanks for the support!
@@foxguy67 it’s beautiful
Dude, seriously your soft style has motivated me to practice this. I've been a "dig in" player my whole life. But your tone is very peaceful.
I really appreciate your comment. This video is pretty old for me, as of late I've been experimenting a lot more, playing more aggressive and honestly, your comment helped to remind me that I should just play more like myself :)
I'm with you on the D'Angelico quality, feel, and sound, especially considering the cost compared to a Gibson 335. Got my 335 fix and am supremely happy with the D'Angelico DC.
This is why I’m willing to wait 12 months to get the custom Novo that fits my playing style from choice of fingerboard radius to nut width to jumbo frets to Lollar gold foil, it’s all about knowing what you need when you’re ready to spend almost $5K for a keeper (ordering the Miris T with the Lollar pickups)
I totally get it. I would wait 12 months for one too
The downside is that it’s pretty easy to know what you like and want “on paper”, but there is no 100% guarantee that the finished product will actually work for you or that you will be able to bond with it even if the specs work as you expected.
I’m struggling with this right now for an acoustic guitar custom build I’m considering having done next year. I’ve been talking to the builder for a few months now and if I go through with it I will actually be involved in the whole process of choosing every detail and I’ll even get to choose the actual pieces of wood to be used. However, a few weeks ago I played a very nice guitar in a store that I could buy right now that is almost exactly what I want for about $2,000 less than the anticipated price of my custom build.
I think I would love a Novo also, because “on paper” the Serus T seems like it would suit me. However, even though I only live about 60 miles from Nashville I have never even seen a Novo in person.
Killer vid man! Keep em’ coming . I see this channel blowing up very soon.
Man, the dedication you put in the content of your channel is commendable, so much work put into it, giving you’re still a relatively small channel. I think this channel will grow, I hope so. And then Novo should ask you to design a guitar with them, instead of you asking them to build a guitar for you. Small difference ✌🏻✌🏻
That would be great one day :) thanks for the support and putting the good vibe out there
I love the flash of a "big body" at 4:36. Ha!
The P-90s are a bit noisy but that noise cancels out in the middle position. I love the Mastery bridge and arm. In my opinion, the Novos are the best electric guitars on the market, and with a zillion options for colors, components and appointments. These are expensive, but worth it for the person who loves the feel and sound of a vintage Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker, or Gretsch.
You are a fantastic player. You'll be back....Novo is waiting for you!
Thank you :) I def will be back. I've been looking at their site very often ever since.
@@andrefludd I ordered a Novo Miris J with all the options I would want in a fine guitar. The option is now for a set of Lollar Gold Foils (too glassy sounding for me) or a pair of Fralin Alnico (NOISELESS!) P-90s. I am going with the P-90s. Buzzing problem is solved....
Hey, Mr Fludd, great video, and I love the channel. Phillip McKnight recommended your channel on his latest Know Your Gear Live. That's so awesome.🎸🎶👏
Omg! I’ll have to go thank him. Thanks for telling me.
As someone interested in guitar building I really appreciate your detailed guitar reviews. Cheers 😊
My pleasure thank you!
I agree with you on split shafts tuners. They are so much better than typical modern tuners. I learned that from bass.
They really are. Idk why it isn’t a more common design.
thats why i always end up changing strings / playing my classic vibe squier over MIM fender
wow.. sad to hear that since I enjoyed watching your videos with the Serus, while waiting for my Novo arrive.
I’ve been in the same situation.. I owned a Fano JM6 during DF era, but sold it because financial needs. After that, I owned several guitars like Suhr, Anderson, Tyler, but damn…these guitars are perfect and very nice… but the feels and resonance of DF’s guitar is something else. I really missed it. Sometimes it’s not just about the spec.. That’s why I finally decided to pull the trigger to order a Novo last year.
I really hope in the near future, you’ll get your new Novo with your own spec!
Thanks for the support! You have great taste in guitars ;)
Just got a Novo Voltour, P-90 and HB. Incredible instrument. It’s even bigger than the Servus models, this one does not have a trem, but that’s ok with me. I bought it “used” (it’s basically brand new) for $3400 (incl.$200 shipping). After I saw the D’Angelico on your channel, I was very interested in that, but the price has gone up more than twice of what you paid. They are $2000 now, before tax. The novo is still more but not 4 times the amount. All the things you mention, body size and carves, the neck, tuners, etc.; love all of it. Still might check out the D’Angelico but there’s no way I’m selling the Novo. Thanks for your review, yours are among the best, period.
I definitely get where you’re coming from. I have a D’Angelico Deluxe Bedford (not the Weir model, though Grateful Dead are my favorite band and seeing Bobby playing one is initially what caught my eye with this model) and it is the best-playing guitar I have by a pretty good margin. It is just smooth as silk, man. I own Gibsons, Fenders, PRS, and my Bedford beats them all. Perfect neck, great fretwork at every single fret, absolutely stunning ebony fretboard with abalone inlays, and a beautiful semi-hollow offset look that I really love. The offset alongside the art deco headstock and gold hardware make it quite the looker!
It gets a ton of play time when I’m home practicing, but every attempt I have made at using it live has really left me wanting more. For starters, the middle and neck tele-style pickups are incredibly dark. Like, I’ll even put my amp (Super Reverb) bright switch engaged, crank the treble on the amp, etc. and just can’t get the tone anywhere near the brightness I desire. They are probably the two darkest pickups I have played. It wouldn’t be a huge issue, but the bridge mini humbucker is like stupid bright. It truly gives my tele a run for its money in terms of brightness, so that contrasted with the incredibly dark other pickups just ultimately keeps me from using it live very much. That combo just doesn’t work for me. I have thought about swapping out the pickups, but for now it’s just a practice/studio guitar for me, which is a shame considering how much I spent on it and how stunningly beautiful it is along with the incredible feel and comfort of playing it. Mine is actually number 7 out of 50 that they made of my particular model, so I’m hoping the value may increase over time, although I have no plans of selling it at the moment. I enjoy hearing your perspective, so I’ll definitely check out your review for the guitar! Thanks for the content, man!
Thanks for the support! I also
Love the looks of D’Angelico. Check out the full review if you get a chance I think you’ll like it as a fellow fan of the brand
@@andrefludd will do! Yeah man, I must say the looks are really what drove me to want this guitar the most. I wanted something different that I don’t see a ton of players using so that I could make it my “signature guitar” where people who see me play might associate me with that guitar. And like I said, it plays better than any other guitar that I have, but ultimately the tone doesn’t fit very well for the style of music I play. I still say it is really a great guitar, despite all of the issues I have run into. Love your channel and love when creators get involved in the comment sections of their vids, so props to you there as well! ‘Preciate ya!
Interesting presentation and one I relate to pretty strongly. I prefer being a player over being a collector and while I don't buy a lot of instruments I'm definitely in the camp of not keeping a guitar I'm not playing frequently. Having a couple of instruments that I play often is more to my liking than having a bunch that sit in cases and are rarely handled let alone used for making music. Congrats on working your choice 👍.
Thanks for all your effort. I hope your channel keeps growing and helps with your finances.
Thanks for the support !
Love that you share the experience of learning design from experiencing these guitars. Was messing around on warmoth site to design a body as it displays a nice graphic as you work. I think I want an offset tele: tele bridge (3 saddle) and bridge pup and a jazzmaster neck pup. Be curious to see your builds there.
I like the offset teles fender has made in their paranormal series.
@@andrefludd ya it's cheaper to just rout one of those for the neck pup. the possibility of having a purple guitar is clouding my judgement :)
Always appreciate ur honest take!!! Saw you got a shout out from Phil Mcknight and KDH on their channels...that means ur making waves!!! Good work!!!
Thanks for the support :)!
Love that sad melancholy Jeff beck song at the beginning. Very appropriate. Even when you don’t bond with a guitar it’s still sad to let them go. I have a few that need to go but can’t bring myself to do it yet. Just like you’re journey though I’m dialing in what I really want out of a guitar. I’m becoming an offset guy and I’m realizing that you don’t need to spend thousands to get a great guitar. I like my cheaper guitars more than most of my expensive ones. That Bob Weir Bedford is on the top of my possibilities list. I have to make some room in the collection first and that’s the hardest part!
I have a few others I also have to let go. Every day I say, I’ll put these for sale tomorrow. Tomorrow never comes haha. Thanks for the support! Offsets are amazing
I discovered my comfort with offsets when I was 16 (1996) and found a MIJ Jazzmaster in a store that just felt “perfect”. I had a strat, and had only played strat-like guitars before that (started in 1994). I have accumulated lots of guitars of differet styles since then (almost 3 decades), but that Jazzmaster is still my #1. Is has a new paint job, replaced pickups, and a mastery bridge and I wouldn’t sell or trade it. Ever.
I am glad you have given offsets a fair chance, many never do. They are a special thing that a lot of us just dig!
I actually never even picked one up until maybe late 2021, the second it was on my lap it was VERY CLEAR this body is way better for me personally. I wish I had tried one sooner.
@@andrefludd I understand how it can happen, though. So much is made of “oh jazz boxes are for jazz, les pauls are for classic rock, ibanez/jackson for shredding, and offsets are for surf/grunge”. Even though it’s obvious that you can play what you want on whatever guitar you want, that stuff colors our outlook even if we know better. I played a floyd rose equipped guitar once in the mid-90’s and still won’t touch them because I hated it so much then. It’s fun seeing people change their mind about things they thought were foundational. Thanks for the videos and conversation!
Interesting video!
I’d like to hear you play more. Would be really nice!
Cheers from France!
More to come!
The Jeff Beck allusion alone makes this extra golden.
Thanks for the update. See ya! 👍🎸🎶
Thank you!
The buzzing in the beginning explains it all. :)
I've just built an offset guitar for a friend with my favourite P90's which are Kent Armstrong Stealth Noise Cancelling P90's. All these pickups need is a slightly deeper route to accommodate the extra coil. With shielding I built him a 99% noiseless guitar. Also used a bright and dark tone circuit switch which he really likes.
Sounds like an awesome guitar! I'll have to look into those pickups for a different build. Thanks for sharing.
If you ever end up with an opportunity for another Novo, I hope you get to try one out with some of the Fralin noiseless P90s with alnico rods. It's currently an optional pickup configuration on the Serus J and standard on the Miris J. The alnico rods bring a little bit of Jazzmaster pickup feeling into it, but they're still pretty distinctly P90s while also being completely noiseless.
Thanks for that! I’ve yet to try any type of Fralin, but I hear nothing but good things.
Yep I just installed a fralin p90 style called p94 in a cs Gibson and with a new wrap around and gotoh locking tuners all together it became magical … and silent 😉
Fralin P90s are awesome, the mojotone 56 quiet coil P90s sound mellower, but I'm liking them a lot, especially with flatwounds (I put them in a PRS SE Soapbar ii)
I released a Fralin noiseless comparison to a SD set a couple years ago. IMO it’s hard to say any noiseless sounds the same as a P90, But I went down the rabbit hole.
Suhr has a feature that allows you to use traditional noisy single coils (including P90), but have them be silent due to a noise suppression circuit that’s built into the guitar itself. I think it’s called SSCII. There’s also a similar system that you can install after market on other guitars, but it’s a rather complicated procedure.
Yes I’ve seen this. I think noiseless p90s are good enough for me
I really enjoy your content and the methodical way that you break down your thoughts and opinions during your gear reviews. Regarding the Novo, wonderful guitar, but for that price it has to be incredible in all aspects.
That being said, after watching several of your videos, I’m really interested in trying out both Parker and D’Angelico guitars. Having relatively small hands, neck size is always a concern for me. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Again, great content!
I know this is an old video, but that extra noise from the offset style bridge/vibrato could probably be fudged diy with some foam, as it’s the noise of the extra length behind the bridge and not anything in the vibrato system. As for the clicking noise, I’m pretty sure that’s not standard on mastery vibratos, so it could be a setup issue
I'm taking notes, lol. I really like how you analyze and think about an instrument. It's also nice to see you mention the vega trem, I've been thinking of making those standard on my Omega models. They seem to have rave reviews. You really deserve so many more subs.
Thank you :). I’m going to keep working and let’s hope the subs and views catch up ;). Also, I said it already, but I’d love to try one of your guitars. I mean that
@@andrefludd I have every intention of having you play one of my guitars! I'd be truly honored. I'll send you an email and we can discuss.
Leo got it right with the split shaft tuners. I like locking, but have no problems with the split shaft. I don't mind a large body, more cushion, y'know? Have to be careful with G.A.S., usually diminishing returns imo.
Very true. But it’s fun to try things for the channel
That’s a bummer to hear about the Mastery bridge being noisy. I have 2 Fender CS guitars (Jazzmaster and Jaguar) with vintage tremolo’s that have none of the noise your bridge exhibits. I would have assumed it just needs adjusting but I’m sure you went through all of that.
good job Andre, Im going to check out that other video and the dangelico . Thanks
Please do!
@@andrefludd hey Andre I know I already asked you this but what is the name of the bracket you put on your guitar to lift it into a more comfortable position. Thanks again and by the way, Phil McKnight mentioned you and your show yesterday on KYG. God Bless
@@ernieb3626 it’s called a performaxe. There’s a review on the channel.
I switched to a helix from my pedalboard because I couldn’t take the single coil him I was getting in some venues and the helix has a great noise gate. With your playing style, the P 90s humming away would drive me nuts too.
Just glued pine wings on a central alder piece to make a pink superstrat for my daughter, I traced a cort G100 body but made it a bit larger.
You sound like a great father.
I had a custom guitar built by a local lithier to be similar to a novo. I went with black limba instead of tempered pine though, and while it looks amazing with the burst, it's not as light or resonant. That's the main thing I wish I did.
Great channel. Thank you for you insight
Thanks for the support!
Loving these videos Andre, glad I found your channel
Glad you like them!
Guitars come in such a wonderful diversity of styles now, that there is something for everyone. Not every player is a cork sniffer. I have some valuable guitars, and I love them. Sometimes though it’s nice to try different flavours. My current desire, is to get a squire affinity Jazzmaster, and do a very OCD setup on it, then perhaps change the electrics and hardware to something that more suits my tastes. Probably could do all of that for less than AU$600. We’ve never had such a plethora of aftermarket parts to choose from, as we do today. A lot of what’s out there is very good indeed.
Keep up the great work, yours is becoming the thinking man’s guitar channel.
Thank you! I have to agree, it seems I’m attracting a lot of smart, thoughtful people. The energy has been great here thanks to you all.
My #1 is a J Mascis Squier Jazzmaster. Amazing guitar for the money. It has similar pickups and vibrato to this one. I replaced the bridge with one that doesn’t cause buzzing like the stock one and replaced the pickguard with a cool mint green one that I used copper shielding tape on to cut down on noise. That and my Boss noise suppressor pedal help a lot. I wonder if they shielded the pickguard well enough on the Novo?? I’d hope that would be the case on a $4k guitar!
It’s shielded fine. My house is a mess haha
I read on a Fender site they make some sort of inert pickup that they link to the single coil to cancel out the hum
Offsets were made to be sat with really. Regarding lightweight woods, look into Paulownia (Empress) super light wood that is more readily available than some others. Use foam to silence bridge springs :) I ordered a Serus J with stainless steel frets earlier this year. I still have a few months to wait.
I bet you'll love. thanks for the wood tips
If you want something light you really can’t go wrong with paulownia. It’s what Fender uses on the Brad Paisley signature models. Mario Martin/Guitar Mill in Murfreesboro, TN uses some, too. I recently played one their “Strats” made of paulownia and it was great.
I think you might be interested in a framus storm bender. It’s a ridiculously oversized guitar with some modern appointments and a nice cutaway!
I’m also a huge Devin Townsend fan. I’d love to check one of those out.
I really like your honest take in this video, great stuff. That Novo is gorgeous, sounds gorgeous but the price is definitely not gorgeous.
Thanks :)
I've bought and sold guitars for almost 15 years. I am now happy with what I have. I recently got a Yamaha Revstar RSS02T Swift Blue after 5 months wait, for me it is a phenomenal guitar, can't fault it. I like the P90's, they are loud makes me feel like someone is morse coding me! I also have a Fender strat professionnel one, love it and an Aria Pro 2 TA40 with burstbucker pick ups. My favourite is my Telecaster Relic Age custom guitar, lollar single coil pick up in the bridge and a humbucker neck. It's a French guitar, good to check them out. Now my guitar journey I can say is over, I have a six and twelve string acoustic and a bass also. 7 guitars is enough for me. Rhett Shull has a couple of nice Novo's, his reliced one looks beautiful. Thanks for this video and I hope that you get the perfect guitar for you.
Thanks for sharing! The Revstar is a great guitar!
@@andrefludd You are welcome. Oh yes, definitely worth the wait. I originally ordered the Sunset Burst but I would have had to wait until 2023. The Swift Blue is beautiful though and I have no regrets.
Loved your comment about 4x the price doesn't equal 4x the satisfaction. We can clearly see the Novo brought you happiness when describing your favorite features. But it feels like we live in a time where quality has improved at all levels to the point where no one should feel like they are missing out by not shelling out several grand for a guitar. While it's possible that someone might have very specific needs for what a guitar must do and require a bigger budget, it is also very possible something off the shelf may also fit the bill and there's no shame in that. Thanks for sharing your journey with us.
Thank you for always supporting the videos. I enjoy seeing you and I assume your daughter pop up in my feed. God willing, I'll have a daughter of my own one day.
@@andrefludd That's correct! Had to get her started early of course.
When you talk about the buzzing or noiseyness are you talking about the strings behind the saddles? That area? Probably one of my fave things about my jaguar is those sympathetic vibrations going on behind the bridge. It makes it seem as tho its alive in a way.
Anyway if thats what it is and you dont like it, you can get a fender mute and install it backwards so that when engaged it mutes the behind the bridge area. Also fender mutes are not compatible with mastery bridges but you can make them compatible just by widening the holes a small amount with a stepped drill bit.
Thanks for the suggestion!
I find this to be a common issue with modern day guitars. There are so many high quality alternatives costing far less than "boutique" instruments, that offer almost everything the high priced guitars do. That's not to say the high priced guitars aren't worth their cost, they may very well be, however, it's highly subjective and a very competitive market!
Very true!
I was really sold on the D'Angelico Bob Weir model based on your first video. What a glowing endorsement!
If you ever try one, let me know what you think! About 3 or 4 subscribers have tried them since the review and they all agree.
I love my Novo. It’s the only guitar I can grab anytime even after transport and it’s in tune. It’s super light, it feels like a broken in baseball glove. I really want a smaller body though as I’m smaller. They are designing a new strat style body I believe. As far as the noisy bridge (the ring) you can put a a strap on the strings at the bridge to quiet it. I don’t have an issue w any click and my p90s are not noisy at all. That being said the size makes it not perfect for me. And if they make a smaller strat version I might trade it. Or if I ever get a d Angelico. Although I don’t like headstock on that either. I get having to sell a guitar when finances are tight though. All my guitars are sellable at anytime I need the money. Sorry you have to let this one go.
It really is a great guitar. A strat style would be cool
Just saw you had a great mention on Phil McKnight’s Know Your Guitar live show on Friday.
Yes I'm very grateful for that! Phil seems like a real person, which is shockingly hard to find.
Regarding noise (singlecoil hum) I highly recommend installing Ulbrick NRS. My strat is quiet like my LP but with no tone loss! Cheers!
That sounds pretty awesome. Thanks for sharing!
Awesome video.
Regarding P90s and noise, I have a 1967 Framus semihollow with P90s plugged in right now and it is absolutely 100% silent. I can lean it against my amp, with the guitar volume at max and the amp up too loud for home use, and no noise. I'm not exaggerating. I don't know why some guitar builders don't include circuitry to eliminate noise in single coil guitars. My highway 1 Telecaster is also completely silent, but I did do some extensive shielding and grounding in it.
It’s my residence. This place is a hum magnet.
My daily player these days would likely be a serious contender for the money against your “Novo” quibbles. It’s a Performer Jazzmaster. This model has a strat term/bridge which, like my Nitefly, allows me to palm the bridge (I know, a bad habit, but I’m an old dog and it’s my thing), old style tuners that you appreciated, and hum cancels in the middle position. I play seated, mostly, and I totally agree with your comfort observations.
Just looked it up, I never saw this model of Fender before. It looks to address all of my issues! I still might put a vega trem on it though haha. Thanks for sharing. Great find.
My Serus J, like yours, but different color. I’m loving it. Different, but in a way that’s conducive to what I play. I’m 6’2” so that size works
I miss mine.
I have the same problem of being overly particular about everything and not finding all my desired features in one guitar, while simultaneously not having tried everything out there to really know exactly what I would like best so it's even harder to commit. I dream of figuring it all out and building my own guitar.
I think we all have that dream!
Good breakdown.
Thank you!
The closing song reminds of Pokémon on the gameboy. I done mean that negative at all. It just feels nostalgic. It’s that little tremolo flourish. I love it
The song is cause we’ve ended as lovers :). But I’m glad you enjoyed it either way!
Lately I really like guitars made from beetle kill pine, it has interesting wood grain and colours. Texas Toast guys use it alot, and I saw some custom shop Fenders made of it.
I’ll have to look that up!
Sorry to see it go. I'll never part with mine. I agree about the tuners: a properly functioning split-shaft tuner with enough winds on the post is perfectly stable. I don't understand why Gibson always used the hole-through design. Split-shaft is better in every way in my opinion.
Agreed
Regarding pickups: gold foils are single coils…. They hum.
I won’t use single coils because of the noise. I do however make great sounding hum canceling P-90s. (Coney Island Guitars)
If you put some foam or felt under the strings behind the bridge that noise will stop. Bjt not the clicking.
To be honest I didn’t realize gold foils were single coils. I never actually tried them. Maybe I should be looking at tv jones instead. I’d love to try some of your pickups some time :).
M’man, as I function on way less budget than 4K per plank… I’ve arrived at the following for an offset: A Squire Mascis sig with the following mods: (what sold me on it is the fantastic neck with jumbo frets) Mastery bridge & Trem and, as I noticed someone’s already mentioned, Lindy Frailin’s noiseless units. Your luthier will have to re-fill then, re-drill for the Mastery thimbles but, ultimately I wound up VERY close to your Novo experience for under a grand.
I heard lots of great things about that squire. I almost bought one in the summer, I probably still will in 2023. Thanks for the suggestion!
Great video. Just subscribed to your channel 👍🏾
Thanks for the sub!
I did notice those buzzing pickups on the intro jam, not even a high gain sound and VERY noisy. If you're interested in making a guitar, I recommend getting a kit first. It'll give you an idea of the different stages (and time needed).
when I do my kit, I’ll def work with a luthier. I don’t love getting my hands too dirty, I end up too worried that I messed something up. Thanks for the comment
black and grey, ftw! I throw in an occasional splash of beige, too :) your videos are excellent, and I really enjoy your style of play. too bad about the novo, but real life matters more than gear.
Thanks for the support :)
@andrefludd did you by chance sell it to guitar center cuz it looks exactly like the one I fell in love with in Pasadena. I went back 2 weeks later and considered getting it but it was gone
Great content i just subscribed. Love that D'Angelico! Been eying a yamaha revstar standard with P90s and now wondering whether it should be that or the Bob Weir 🤔 you tried the revstar? I still don't understand the hum fully. My tele hums like crazy at my friend's house but zero hum at my house!
Thanks for the sub! Both are great guitars. Luckily, they are also both easy to find so I'd recommend going to a local SamAsh or Guitar Center and just picking them both up for a couple minutes. I'm sure you'll resonate with one slightly more.
@@andrefludd thanks i wish one of those stores existed somewhere in the same continent as me 😂
Just a FYI, the D’Angelico Bedford BW model, sells in Australia, used, for around AU$1265.00. Our dollar, isn’t doing so well right now. I’ve seen the Novo Serus J, selling here, between AU$ 7,000 and AU$ 9,000.
Wow. That is an ISANE, amount of money. Plus you have those giant spiders to worry about…
Thanks for a great video… SO INTERESTING!
I build two Novo inspired guitars and documented it on my channel. One with Gold Foils and one with a Hum cancelling P90.
I love the Novo Serus J but I don’t have the money… So I build my own 🎉😅
thanks for sharing 🙏🏻
I’ll check yours out!
I’d like to give a go to a D’angelico, but I bloody hate the headstock.
Andre can you review Yvette Youngs signature guitar from ibanez? I sm looking to buy one and wanted to see what your opinion of then would be. They look really cool and could be right up your alley. Its an offset guitar with a nice neck and the pickups are really good. I like the look of the old Tallman Ibanez guitars that these are modeled after. She has the YY10(strat configuration) YY20( tele configuration). For $1100 new I think it packs a lot of punch for that price point. Great video btw, I am definitely going to check out that D'Angelico guitar. I love the look of that Novo though a bit better.
I will add this to the list, but please understand, the list is VERY long haha. I never considered this particular guitar, but I do love Ibanez.
@@andrefludd hey Andre Phillip McKnight gave a shout out to you and your channel on his podcast that he did on Friday. He mentioned 3 TH-cam channels that he thought his audience would like, yours was the first recommendation.
@@jasonmizuno6117 Yes I saw! Thanks for sharing
The modified Jazzmasters and Jaguars have the vibrato closer to the bridge which reduces some bridge noise. I don’t know about the clicking tho
Thanks for that!
Have you ever tried Kiesel? They make great guitars. I owned several Carvins before the name change.
I am wanting a Novo as my main guitar and I live in Taiwan and there are 0 Novos here to try. I want to ask you if you only could have one guitar of those two in the video would you still let it go for the other? Thanks for your videos
Vintage tuners with the hope are the only tuner I really like. Also, I bought a Les Paul Special that already had Fralin noiseless P90's with Alnico rods installed. I thought I'd like *true P90's better so I had Fralin P90's put in. Turns out I like the noiseless Alnico Rod set better so I'm going back. They are prettier sounding with more chime and closer to a Fender sound which is what I normally play yet definitely have that P90 punch.
Thanks for sharing!
the D'angelico honestly just by looking at it has literally everything the other has but does it even better. Best example:Bridge trem
Agreed
It’s a really good idea to design your own guitar and get something completely fitted for you, and you will learn so much about how it all works. Trouble is there are so many options and little compromises you need to make, that will probably mean that it’s not a one time deal. You will need to iterate, possibly many times; But it’s fun! I’m on #3 now, and already thinking about the next one😂
I will def do that for the channel in the future. Perhaps 2023 is the year of testing guitars and 2024 is the year of building?
Andre, I can't agree with you more about p-90s. I am trying to start a guitar company, and I have researched some baritone guitars. One of them was a squier paranormal that I had some similar issues with. I just found the pickups to be unusable really, and it just seems an odd choice, I dunno what they were thinking really. I would think Chapman is outselling them on Baritones. The vid is available on my channel. I would like to give mini hums a try, but I am struggling to find them hot enough.
I have a MIM Jazzmaster with hi output P-90's, and after some listening I couldn't stand them. Switched to 1965 Fender pickups, much happier. Those Fender pickups were cheap too, maybe $70 or the pair.
There are other $4k guitars,,,, it will be sad not to hear it on the channel. One point you've hit that I have argued with people about that style fender tuners really do work as good as locking tuners and are easy to restring. I'll add I also agree not a fan of jazz master/jaguar bridge and tailpiece . I built a Warmoth offset telecast/telemaster that has the offset body with the telecaster bridge and pickup.
Fender has a paranormal guitar that is very similar. I almost bought it
@@andrefludd they have an American made jazz master with the strat style bridge as well ,G&L make almost the same guitar I think the model is called the Doheny , I think you would love the g&l necks and the two point vibrato they use
if you choose to have custom thats light,try looking for red cedar cedar dibetou they are very light good tone woods(i have been making guitars for six yrs at the moment i have made with mahogany southern ash nothern ash and other woods but thos three have been with really good results in my own experience)
Thank you!
I see the plastic is still on your Rick Beato, is that on the chopping block too? I thought about your other vid where you mention you have to dig into the guitar a bit more. After putting more hours in mine I think the change is that these have small frets.
Sold it!
I also like big bodied guitars but pointy ones...
New subscriber here. This is the first one of your videos I've seen. I wanted to say how much I enjoyed how well thought-out and how well expressed you expressed your decision making process.
Thank you :). If you want to see me when I'm full of emotion and lacking logic, I recommend the original Novo video haha.
Fantastic video. I too have found I like oversized offset guitars with great necks after buying a Dunable Yeti. Best guitar I’ve ever played hands down. Have you seen or played them?
Thanks for sharing. I hadn’t heard of them but I’ll have to check them out
@@andrefludd incredible looking and playing custom shop guitars out of California that also has a cheaper Korean line. Huge in the doom metal community but I think the rest of the guitar community is sleeping on them.
Hey Doc, you ever make a guitar? I would be interested in seeing a guy like you really thoughtfully cobble together a stewmac then boost it up a notch with some niche parts...and i know youre into the niche parts, bruh. Moreover you know how to make the steel sing, so maybe give it a think? My conjecture is that you would get something out of the exploration and that the rest of us plebs would learn a lot.
I will def do that one day!
Davvy from the Toby and Davvy TH-cam channel hand built his own guitar and has a video about it. Like Andre he is a tall guy so he made the body very large, used custom brass hardware and nut, on board effects loop etc. He is more of a Grateful Dead, Jerry Garcia kind of guy but the guitar build is interesting to watch and gives some unique ideas. th-cam.com/video/QIMzdsMOqpo/w-d-xo.html
Great title for the video 😂. Great playing as well.
Thank you :). It took me days to come up with it. haha
I think it‘s a good decision. The reason why I never bought such an expensive guitar is because I‘m always thinking of rather getting a custom build. So I can have everything exactly how I want it. It feels wrong to me to swap pickups on a guitar more expensive than 2K or maybe even less.
One question, what are the pickups in that black guitar you compared it to. Are the noiseless P90s or just less noisy ones?
Cheers, great video and playing btw!
Duncan designed P90s with some type of dummy coil system. Check out the full review for more on that! Thank you :)
Thanks, will do that!
Use at least some of the money you get out of that Novo to get another top spec guitar. I can't wait to see what other guitar I'll have to try after you recommend it.
I can’t right now unfortunately. But I do have some really cool stuff coming :).
I sold both of my PRS guitars. A 10 top DGT and a CE24 Semihollow last month. Both lovely guitars. Granted the CE24 was a raffle win. But even so I picked up a Japanese Tokai ES120 (335 copy) and that suits me so much more.
I don't see the point in keeping something "just because". Like yourself the DGT was a lovely guitar but I didn't feel it was four times the guitar the Tokai is. It took me a while to realise how comfortable and familiar I am with the control knob layouts on SGs and strats.
I really want to try a DGT…it seems up my alley
@@andrefludd one thing which bugged me was the layout of the volume knobs. The bridge volume pot is closest as, he uses it for swells etc. The other thing was the high E String spacing. I kept pinging it off the neck. Again it was a lovely guitar. I thought I'd use the facility for blending pickup volumes far more than I did. I think a Custom 22 or an S2 would suit me.
I remember reading that the 10 top option is a £500 costed extra. Sure it is pretty, but it's just bragging rights imho. Its just bits of wood and metal at the end of the day. Took me 20 years of playing to feel comfortable spending that much om a guitar.
@@MRBRANDYWINETHETHIRD Off high e spacing is a pet peeve of mine. Since I play with an .008 on the high e, if the spacing isn't right it ALWAYS goes off. With light strings and a light tough, sometimes things have to be so dialed in to flow. I know, I'm so prissy haha.
I have a novo on order … but I also play a white falcon a lot …so I’m pretty sure the novo will feel small when I get it …good video and honest ! Cheers
I love White Falcons!
Haha. Thats great. WF are darn cool
@@andrefludd I love mine it’s the Billy Duffy version !
I do feel like Nels Cline talked about the size of guitar body as well. he's pretty tall and uses Jazzmaster, which isnt that small of a body so works for him, or something. actually now that I think about it, I think he uses Novo guitars now too.
I’ll have to try and find that interview. Thanks for sharing
I love what your playing and I know the song but I don’t remember from who it is 😌
Jeff Beck
I see what you did there. Next up: Fender Roadworn Freeway Jam.
:)
I have a tele in a jazzmaster / jag body. You would love it.
I almost bought one of those from Squier haha.
@@andrefludd Wow cool yes the paranormal squire series I didn't realize are so cool and less then 300 for Black Friday!, mine I made from an mjt body and a handmade neck from Amantea guitars in Italy. Stainless steel frets, abalone inlays very nice.
That's my argument on a lot of guitars. I have a $450 G&L Tribute Fallout and a G&L Fullerton Deluxe Espada. Love the Espada and it is probably my favorite to play. It is 4 times the cost of the Fallout, but not 4 times better of a guitar.
Yep. It makes it hard to justify
What was the wrong picture that was flashed when he was talking about the body?
:)
The original floating trem and bridge design is actually quite awesome and perfectly stable when the guitar is set up perfectly. It's not the same physics when the Mastery is added. Although Fender style bolt ons don't have the refinement of Ken Parker's archtops with their knob for adjustable neck angle, shims and an easily removable neck are the next best thing. This is of primary importance with the floating trem design, because it requires a steeper break angle to work properly. Adjusting action happens by bringing the fretboard to the strings. So I can respect and prefer the choice of a bolt-on neck. Anyway, the Novo isn't the perfect setup or take on the offset design for me either. For one thing I would be hesitant to mod and tweak a $4000 instrument vs an $800 instrument, and I kind of need to tweak, mod and set up my offsets to how I like them. De-creaking the trem is next.
Yea, I def wouldn’t start modding the novo. Offsets really are a special animal and I’m not at all qualified to mod them.
@@andrefludd Ideally with the expensive guitar, that's not necessary,
My personal dream offset is one where the concept of archtop meets slab guitar is finally taken more seriously. The ergonomics are different. Maybe still too far ahead of its time. A standard bridge is kind of a known quantity that works. It is better than ignoring that concept and just using a Mastery for stability.
Also, have to mention I love the Nitefly, also way ahead of its time (sadly I need to find and re-purchase one).
Fralin makes a hum-canceling P90’s, if you like the sound.