# Has anyone tried the SubZero Rogue VI?



## CptnBps (Aug 13, 2020)

I'm looking at it as a way into the super baritone world and it seems like a bit of a bargain!
https://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-a...aritone-Electric-Guitar-Tobacco-Sunburst/2NR9
Obviously the pickups are gonna be a bit crap, but I'm already prepared for that.
If you've tried one though, how does it feel? What's the build quality like?


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## I play music (Aug 13, 2020)

DrSadisticPhD said:


> Obviously the pickups are gonna be a bit crap, but I'm already prepared for that.


Not obvious for me? Why?


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## GunpointMetal (Aug 13, 2020)

I play music said:


> Not obvious for me? Why?


The two things almost always skimped on with inexpensive instruments are electronics and final finish (fret dressing, paint/finish QC).


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## Zhysick (Aug 13, 2020)

Well... I haven't tried that guitar but I wouldn't mind... it actually looks fking cool!!!! Nice arm rest, not the standard jazzmaster shape but modern and a bit more "pointy", reversed inline headstock and pointier than standard on these guitars... and dual humbuckers. 

If I had the money and were looking for a 30" guitar I would definetely get it.


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## btbg (Aug 13, 2020)

I play music said:


> Not obvious for me? Why?



Because apparently people hear with their eyes.


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## CptnBps (Aug 13, 2020)

btbg said:


> Because apparently people hear with their eyes.


It's more that traditional PAF style humbuckers probably won't fit in that well with the stuff I'll be using it for, based on my experience with traditional PAF style humbuckers


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## Demiurge (Aug 13, 2020)

Lower-output pickups might not be a bad idea, though. From experience, you really want to take it easy with the gain with a Bass VI-style so it doesn't fart-out.


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## CptnBps (Aug 13, 2020)

Demiurge said:


> Lower-output pickups might not be a bad idea, though. From experience, you really want to take it easy with the gain with a Bass VI-style so it doesn't fart-out.



Yeah definitely. I use BK Juggernauts in my main guitars and that's a bit lower output (13.3k vs 15.2k stock) and I like the tightness. A HB sized P90 might be cool too though (for more of a Baritone Jazx feel).
The main thing for me is the general feel and quality of the materials. I can swap pickups, tuners, hardware, dress frets, etc. if I need to, but if the guitar itself is firewood, it's never gonna be worth it.


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## CptnBps (Aug 19, 2020)

Update:



So I suppose I'll be able to give a bit of an update in a few days!


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## CptnBps (Aug 21, 2020)

So here are my quick first impressions after a few hours.
I bought this as 'nearly new' (could be b-stock, or repaired, or just a return) for £166 and for that price, I'm genuinely pretty amazed at the quality!
It has a good weight to it, but sits very nicely balanced. It's acoustically pretty resonant too, which is nice. The pickups are basically how I assumed they'd be - fairly generic PAF sounding humbuckers without any splitting. They'll definitely do for now, but I'll probably put something a bit less flubby in it at some point.
The neck is satin finished and feels pretty thicc compared to my strats, but not overwhelmingly so, and the fret ends are noticeable, but definitely not a dealbreaker. Could easily be smoothed over with a leveling file/beam when I give it a proper setup.

The only major finish flaw is a slightly rough bit of binding at the heel end of the fretboard, but that seems to be it. Everything else could be put down to being used/b-stock
I've got it strung with a low .90 and tuned to drop/open E right now (like David Maxim Micic's tuning, but lower) and overall I'm really impressed!
I'll probably complain about it here when I get sick of it


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## Carl Kolchak (Aug 21, 2020)

DrSadisticPhD said:


> They'll definitely do for now, but I'll probably put something a bit less flubby in it at some point.



A simple cure for flubbery would be a nice SD Black Winter.


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## CptnBps (Aug 21, 2020)

Carl Kolchak said:


> A simple cure for flubbery would be a nice SD Black Winter.


Nah man, I was thinking about a Gibson EB mudbucker. Only way to get that authentic djent tone


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## Zhysick (Aug 22, 2020)

DrSadisticPhD said:


> Nah man, I was thinking about a Gibson EB mudbucker. Only way to get that authentic djent tone



Tightest tone ever but you won't dj0nt unless you file the cutaways to look like an SG duuuuude...

Jokes aside: good to know about the guit... bass... basstar is playable and all that, for the price being playable is more than fair actually. LOL.
Set that pickups low and deep and rise the screws of the polepieces... probably will get quite a bit of clarity, a bit of a single coil quality to it or even you coul completely remove the screws and make'em almost single coils... will get a bit more of bite and loose output.


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## CptnBps (Aug 23, 2020)

@Zhysick Honestly it's got me thinking about the list of mods already!
I was thinking about either my usual BK Juggernaut, or an SD P-Rails in the bridge, then making up an adaptor plate and putting a single coil in the neck. Maybe also side mount the jack, move the pickup switch down to where the jack was, then put a Reverend/G&L style bass rolloff where the switch was.
With something so cheap, the possibilities are almost endless.

As a quick update, I'm getting a bit of fret choke on all strings starting just below the 12th fret. The problem is, adjusting neck relief and action to work between a .090 and a .014's gonna be tricky to find a balance. Who knew a weird instrument would have weird setup issues?


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## TheEmptyCell (Aug 28, 2020)

I’m curious about this one, too. I’ve got a Harley Benton Guitarbass VI that I love, but a dual HB Bass VI is also tempting.


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## Emperor Guillotine (Jan 3, 2021)

Necro-bumping this thread. I was curious to ask if anyone else has gotten some thoughts or even hands-on experience with one of these in the past few months. Loathe popped up with a guitar playthrough for their song "Broken Vision Rhythm" last month, and their guitarist Conner is playing one of these SubZero Rogue VI baritones in the video.



Out of curiosity, I took a look at the guitar on Gear4Music's website, and the expected shipping date based on availability was between Jan. 6th through 13th. (Somewhere in that ballpark.) I check back a day later (literally like 24 hours later), and suddenly the expected shipping date had been pushed seven months to Aug. 6th through 12th. I assume it was due to the item selling out in their inventory and them having to await a new batch from the manufacturer's supply. However, these are guitars that have been sitting on "pre-order" for months. Not in-stock. "Pre-order". And even then, the "pre-order" date initially said Jan. 6th through 13th.

After spending a bit of time on Google, it seems that G4M has a lengthy history of doing this. They'll blatantly lie or misrepresent shipping/delivery dates on their website to get money in, then push dates back by months, and then refuse any post-order assistance for folks who are eager enough to make a purchase. Just seems super sketchy. G4M has _*so many*_ horribly negative reviews on the internet.


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