cjlloyd
Modern seagull
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2021
- Messages
- 103
Thought I would share with you what I’ve been up to this weekend as I made a few upgrades to my CE.
I bought the SE bridge upgrade kit from John Mann which comprises a brass block, new springs, and higher quality saddles and mounting screws. I have to say everything is beautifully machined and finished. I can practically see my reflection in the saddles they’re so highly polished. Definitely a massive upgrade on what seem to be the pot metal castings that come stock.
https://i.imgur.com/ZVxHQFH.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VL8AIHw.jpg
It’s hard to tell immediately what kind of difference this has made to the sound as it’s a fresh set of strings, but it sure is singing at the moment and I’m fairly certain it’s sustaining a bit better as well. My hope was that the brass block would help to accentuate the mids and tame the high end on what is a pretty bright sounding guitar.
The trem arm you can see above is also from John Mann. It’s longer and a little thicker (ladies…) than the stock one. For me it sits in a better position, higher off the body and with the end hanging over the top of the neck pickup, just beyond the screw coils. I’ve never liked the look or feel of the plastic tips so this is a big improvement for me.
Finally, I bought the silver sky tuner thumb screws which was a bit of a risk as I didn’t know for sure whether or not they’d fit. Turns out they do, and I reckon they look great. They look like standard non-locking posts from a few feet away which is sort of what I was going for.
https://i.imgur.com/7jiRs1v.jpg
Overall I’m very pleased with how it’s turned out, and as far as I’m concerned there’s nothing really separating this from a “proper” core instrument anymore, as the bridge was the only significant compromise.
I bought the SE bridge upgrade kit from John Mann which comprises a brass block, new springs, and higher quality saddles and mounting screws. I have to say everything is beautifully machined and finished. I can practically see my reflection in the saddles they’re so highly polished. Definitely a massive upgrade on what seem to be the pot metal castings that come stock.
https://i.imgur.com/ZVxHQFH.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VL8AIHw.jpg
It’s hard to tell immediately what kind of difference this has made to the sound as it’s a fresh set of strings, but it sure is singing at the moment and I’m fairly certain it’s sustaining a bit better as well. My hope was that the brass block would help to accentuate the mids and tame the high end on what is a pretty bright sounding guitar.
The trem arm you can see above is also from John Mann. It’s longer and a little thicker (ladies…) than the stock one. For me it sits in a better position, higher off the body and with the end hanging over the top of the neck pickup, just beyond the screw coils. I’ve never liked the look or feel of the plastic tips so this is a big improvement for me.
Finally, I bought the silver sky tuner thumb screws which was a bit of a risk as I didn’t know for sure whether or not they’d fit. Turns out they do, and I reckon they look great. They look like standard non-locking posts from a few feet away which is sort of what I was going for.
https://i.imgur.com/7jiRs1v.jpg
Overall I’m very pleased with how it’s turned out, and as far as I’m concerned there’s nothing really separating this from a “proper” core instrument anymore, as the bridge was the only significant compromise.
