Take Two - NGD - SE DGT McCarty Burst Goodness

[Mikegarveyblues]

The replacement for the SE DGT I had to return arrived today and thankfully it’s a winner!!!

The store I bought it from promised to give it some extra TLC on the fretwork and they didn’t disappoint. Frets are silky smooth and the fret ends are much, much smoother feeling than the butchery seen on the last guitar. Certainly no gouges out of the fretboard this time, so a bit of a dream to play.

One negative: The nut slots are cut a little too low. Not so bad I have to get it sorted immediately but it will need looking at. Seems to hold tuning well though, so there’s that.

Not the fanciest veneer top I’ve seen, especially when next to the Bernie but it is still nice. I particularly like the fact the back and headstock are not as dark as on some of the others I’ve seen. In fact, under the right light it appears a darkish reddy brown with the wood grain clearly visible. Nice!

Apart from the nut the build quality and finish is flawless. A good example of what the Indonesian factory can do when they up their QC.

But most important of all it sounds great and plays great which is what matters the most!

Oh, you want pics…?

20240425_183549 by MikeGBlues, on Flickr

20240425_183642 by MikeGBlues, on Flickr

20240425_184057 by MikeGBlues, on Flickr

 

[Tom Bradovich]

Glad the replacement far exceeds the turd you received the first time. Too bad about the nut slots, though. There's supposed to be something you can fill in the slots and then file them to then proper depth, but - - - I'd never do that. I'd replace the nut. Probably call the PTC first.

Nice pics, btw

 

[Alnus Rubra]

Congratulations Mike, glad you got this sorted almost how you wanted.

You’re not wrong about the veneer, bearing in mind they’re usually about 0.4mm thick, you’d think they could break the bank and use a more figured one.

Hope it’s a veritable Tone Machine for you.

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Glad the replacement far exceeds the turd you received the first time. Too bad about the nut slots, though. There's supposed to be something you can fill in the slots and then file them to then proper depth, but - - - I'd never do that. I'd replace the nut. Probably call the PTC first.

Nice pics, btw

Cheers Tom!

I’ll just replace it at some point with a Graphtec one. See how the tuning holds up with some whammy bar use. Probably get a tech to make one from a Tusq blank like he did with the Bernie so it’s a perfect fit.

 

[Tom Bradovich]

See how the tuning holds up with some whammy bar use.

Yeah, there's that. But there's another problem with nuts cut too deep. Open strings, and even fretted ones close to the nut can have the tendency to buzz, even with a properly set up truss rod.

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Congratulations Mike, glad you got this sorted almost how you wanted.

You’re not wrong about the veneer, bearing in mind they’re usually about 0.4mm thick, you’d think they could break the bank and use a more figured one.

Hope it’s a veritable Tone Machine for you.

This was one of the better examples too! Some were so plain they may as well have just left the veneer off.

That said, these pickups are fantastic. Very articulate and the coil split / tap is genuinely useable.

Might be the only other guitar (except for my Fender Am Pro II Strat) where I’m not automatically thinking of upgrading the pups.

 

[Slo-mo]

I actually like the understated top with that burst on the edges! I still have not been able to try out either SE or core DGT. They never stay in stock around me long enough to try one out. Aren't the frets like super-jumbo or something? I thought I read someone saying they were taller than jumbo.

 

[vchizzle]

Glad you got it sorted out!!!

 

[Prina]

Awesome pair!

The two best SE signature models

 

[Bogner]

NICE!

 

[dmatthews]

VERY nicely done sir! Congrats on a winner!

 

[IRG]

Nice! I have the gold top version on the way. I’ve had issues with SE nuts as well, although my SS SE stays in tune nicely.

 

[aphantomvaper]

That looks so nice! Congrats on getting an axe you enjoy!

 

[Black Dog]

Very nice congrats.

 

[shimmilou]

Nice pair!

 

[Alnus Rubra]

Nice pair!

Nope, you ain’t getting me

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Nice pair!

And I’m cheap enough to flash them to anyone who cares to look!

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

I actually like the understated top with that burst on the edges! I still have not been able to try out either SE or core DGT. They never stay in stock around me long enough to try one out. Aren't the frets like super-jumbo or something? I thought I read someone saying they were taller than jumbo.

The frets on my Strat are narrow tall. I think these are as tall but they are big in width too. Make the Bernie feel like a fretless! Actually desperate to refret that with taller frets but even after well over a decade of use there is very little wear.

 

[bodia]

If at first you don't succeed.....

Nice!

 

[LaxActium]

I have to say the veneer top on the McCarty Sunburst is more miss than hit. Mine looks terrible head one but decent from one angle or the other!