# Strandberg Boden OS6 - my review.



## cubix (Mar 25, 2016)

Strandberg BODEN - the biggest and boldest step in electric guitar evolution.

Since I can remember I've always been a fan of lightweight instruments. There is something about it that makes you feel like you're not fighting the guitar when you play. That's the first thing that drew me to Strandberg guitars. I was not a fan of the headless design for many many years, but I realise today that it was simply because you need a right body shape for a headless neck to make it work visually. Ola Strandberg hit it just right and as soon as I saw his instruments they quickly grew on me. I've waited a long time and as soon as the Boden OS series (manufactured in Korea) was available in Europe I pulled the trigger. When it arrived I was really amazed, I had to weigh it because I couldn't believe how light it was. The scale showed 2.1kg - shocking! It came with a nice gigbag and the fit and finish were spot on. The Boden OS6 comes stock with Seymour Duncan pickups. While these are great pickups and will suit many people out of the box, I've been using EMGs for the longest time and I decided to put the new EMG 57/66 set in the guitar. It's a great fit, I couldn't be more happy with this combination!

Why is the Boden such an amazing instrument in my opinion? Let's start with the hardware, because that's where most guitars failed me over the years. This is the first revolution that should've happened decades ago - the hardware is almost all stainless (the crucial bits at least). The bridge itself is aluminium, while the saddles are stainless steel, the same thing goes for the string locks. For me rust has always been an issue, I take care of my instruments but you keep your hands on the hardware for a long long periods of time and they will rust out on you eventually (for me it was very quick). Especially when the saddles get rusty you will have string breaking issues constantly. Plus the bridge gives you full access to the strings like a Tune-o-Matic bridge, wonderful for palm muting etc. Only thing that wasn't stainless was the tiny set screws for the saddles, but Ola mentioned that he's trying to implement nylon set screws so they don't damage the saddle threads - innovative once again!

The bridge itself has a great design, and the guitar holds the tuning like no other guitar I had in the past. That includes guitars with locking tuners. The Strandberg tuners are a bit hard to turn at the beginning, but they wear in nicely after a while. It's no problem though, because you really barely have to touch them anyways. If you just want to jam by yourself you won't have to tune it for a very long time (unless you need a perfect pitch, then you might need to tweak it from time to time). Putting new strings on takes easily half the time of what it used to take me. You stretch the strings once, tune them back to pitch and you're done!

If we're on the subject of stainless let's talk about frets. These are also Stainless Steel, still not many production guitars offer them and the benefits are amazing. Again - no rust or dulling issues, superb wear resistance. The Boden also features a fanned fret design with 25.5" scale on the low E and 24.75" on the high. It's the best of both worlds - the tighter feel of the wound strings and smoother bending on the plain strings. It was a very natural transition for me, and right now I find coming back to a regular one scale instument very hard. The Boden also has a 0 fret, what that gives you is the same exact sound of an open string vs a fretted string. Really piano like and the whole guitar is extremely resonant and snappy. One negative I must mention is for someone who likes a very low action the 0 fret is a bit to high compared to the other frets, and you might want to get a tech to shave it down just a bit - that's the first thing I did to mine. Talking with Ola he mentioned they are in the process of figuring that out and hopefully soon all 0 frets will be lower. Overall the fretjob was very nice out of the box, because I love very low action I had to fix one fret that was slightly high, but this wasn't an issue before I lowered the action.

The neck has the patented Endurneck profile. This was the thing I was most sceptical about, but it turned out to be such an amazing feature and beneficial in a few ways. Over the years I was obsessing about very thin neck profiles - that's what I was looking for in all guitars. But ever since I got my Les Paul Studio with a fatter neck I realised I was playing it much more than my other guitars. The neck was actually MORE comfortable. The Endurneck is quite fat and it's the same thickness all the way, but profiled in such a way that the comfort is really amazing. From someone with wrist problems I can definately say it helped me out alot. Another benefit to this neck is how incredibly stable it is. Combining the geometrical shape with some carbon fiber enhancement you have a neck that barely moves at all! With 10-52 string set it stays absolutely flat! That's quite amazing. You actually have to use the double action trussrod to give it a slight relief. The Endurneck took a bit of time to get used to but it was definately worth it and didn't take long at all.

Two more modifications I did on my Boden is flush mounted Dunlop straplocks (really fitting for this streamline design) and changed the knobs to some knurled metal ones. The wood knobs are nice, but very slippery and don't give positive feedback on how much you've turned them.

Strandberg is a young company, but they have a great future ahead of them. I like the direct customer support. You can get all the answers and help you need from the man himself - Ola Strandberg. He really cares about the customer feedback and that helps him improve the product even more. Overall in my opinion, this is one of the biggest steps in electric guitar evolution. As of now there are no other production instruments that can be compared to the Boden, because of the set of features it offers: 

Headless, extremely lightweight,
Fanned Stainless Frets,
Stainless hardware (SS + aluminium),
Endurneck profile

Really the biggest drawback of Strandbergs is the fact that after playing it for a longer period of time other guitars will never feel the same again. It has a very unique (great) feel to it, and really spoils you in many ways. I've really stopped looking at other instruments and my next guitar will definately also be a STRANDBERG.


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## pondman (Mar 25, 2016)

Do you like it then ? 

Congrats and a great review.


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## asher (Mar 25, 2016)

That's a _killer_ top you got there, man! HNGD!


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## cubix (Mar 25, 2016)

Thanks guys, this is a review after 7 months of ownership, way past the honeymoon stage  So yeah, I really like it


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## accidental (Mar 25, 2016)

That's sweet... I'm currently gassing for one of these but i want to try the neck before I make any impulsive descisions... That or a jp7... HNGD!


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## Haun (Mar 25, 2016)

Very well written  Love your git. You got lucky with the woods. I like the mods you've done as well. Though I'd keep the Duncans, I could surely see me changing the knobs and mounting flat mount straplocks  Very stealth like.


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## imnotnollynollynolly (Mar 25, 2016)

Sexy! Love these things, they look so elegant and well thought out.


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## shadowlife (Mar 25, 2016)

Awesome review, thanks for taking the time to write it up.


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## Ludgate (Mar 25, 2016)

Great review! Those are pretty tasteful mods to what is an already great looking guitar.


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## Bdtunn (Mar 25, 2016)

Great review. I too have been moving away from my obsession with finding the thinnest neck out there. 
Great top on that one as well!!


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## the.godfather (Mar 26, 2016)

Nice review!  Thanks for taking the time putting it together. I enjoyed reading it.

I've been wanting to order one of these for a little while now but can't actually find them anywhere in stock currently, so I'm waiting patiently.


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## technomancer (Mar 26, 2016)

Nice guitar but the review really does read like a commercial...


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## cubix (Mar 26, 2016)

Thanks guys, trust me it's not a commercial. It might read like that because I'm really excited that someone addressed so many things that have been bugging me for all the years  Especially the corrosion resistant hardware.


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## HighGain510 (Mar 26, 2016)

technomancer said:


> Nice guitar but the review really does read like a commercial...



Haha I thought the same thing when I first read it!  I love my Strandbergs too so I get all the reasons to be a fan of the design honestly, just the way it was written came across a bit like a paid advertisement...  Good call on the flush-mount straplocks too, keep meaning to put straplocks on mine and I'll likely do the same!


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## McBrain (Mar 26, 2016)

How do you like the neck joint. How is the access to the higher frets? That's the only thing on the Strandbergs, that doesn't look perfect to me. It just looks really long and thick (yeah yeah, I know...)


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## cubix (Mar 26, 2016)

It's definately not an AANJ like you get on an Ibanez, so the very highest registers can be a bit harder to get to, I come from a Les Paul so I can't complain, but I do also have an Ibanez S and that has a better access. If they would round off the edges of the joint more that would definately help. It is by no means a dealbreaker but if you like playing fast and very high on the neck a lot then you might not like it I guess.


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## ihunda (Mar 26, 2016)

Congrats! This OS line is the reason why I am not getting a used washburn one as the quality of these sounds great and they are cheaper, even new direct from strandberg website.

Now if only that quality of tops was guaranteed!


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## wakjob (Mar 26, 2016)

Thank you for taking the time to post this. Your guitar is beautiful.

I have a Suhr that I don't play. Might have to put it up on the chopping block to fund a Strandberg.


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## Metalworker (Mar 26, 2016)

A $2000 Korean made guitar? Bolt on neck with padded gigbag? Am I missing something? I mean its cool and all, but....


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## cubix (Mar 26, 2016)

Missing the point ? lol  I do agree it is slightly overpriced, but it's the technology that goes in it and the manufacturing process that's more difficult. They are offering a new model that's gonna be around $1200 I believe. Plus it's better made than quite a bunch of more expensive guitars on the market IMO.


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## Metalworker (Mar 26, 2016)

Didn't mean to come off like I didn't like it. I do... that's why I went to the website and then shat myself when I saw the price... dudes laughing all the way to the bank with those guitars. They are cool though.


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## marcwormjim (Mar 26, 2016)

The iron's hot, and Ola didn't quit his day job to lower his standard of living - I give his business sense the benefit of the doubt in assuming the pricing is intentionally borderline.

The upside for consumers is that other Korean and Chinese manufacturers are capitalizing on the trend by bringing their headless multi-scales to NAMM, and selling the unsold display-models on eBay and Reverb. Someone did me the favor of buying the Aphrodite trem-model that was tempting me away from the OS line, and I'm eager to see how much more competitive these Asian companies are in 2017.


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## cubix (Mar 26, 2016)

I guess we could argue about the price, if there was a real competition, if the product is somewhat unique the situation is different. Sure I'd like to see more headless multiscale instruments for let's say $500, but that's not gonna happen any time soon I think. Just the cost of making CNC milled bridges and string locks vs some die cast pot metal is where the difference starts.


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## narad (Mar 26, 2016)

Metalworker said:


> Didn't mean to come off like I didn't like it. I do... that's why I went to the website and then shat myself when I saw the price... dudes laughing all the way to the bank with those guitars. They are cool though.



Laughing all the way to the bank implies it's at the expense of someone, often due to their stupidity or ignorance. They're nice guitars and Ola's working his ass off to build that company up. You really can't bring anything to the guitar market without having a bunch of people piss and moan.


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## Metalworker (Mar 26, 2016)

marcwormjim said:


> The upside for consumers is that other Korean and Chinese manufacturers are capitalizing on the trend by bringing their headless multi-scales to NAMM, and selling the unsold display-models on eBay and Reverb.



If thats the case I'd bet these will be had at the $700-800 dollar range within a couple years, you know, where they SHOULD be. Then I might think about looking for a used one lol.


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## Metalworker (Mar 26, 2016)

narad said:


> Laughing all the way to the bank implies it's at the expense of someone, often due to their stupidity or ignorance.



Didn't mean to call anyone stupid or ignorant, but yea, that pretty much sums it up.


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## cubix (Mar 26, 2016)

Thanks for the clarification, but I think you might be the ignorant one  I'm sure in a year or two people will be paying YOU to take a Strandberg off them... lol


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## narad (Mar 26, 2016)

Metalworker said:


> Didn't mean to call anyone stupid or ignorant, but yea, that pretty much sums it up.



If OP is super happy with a guitar and you come in complaining about the price of a not-even-that-expensive-guitar non-stop it doesn't make him look stupid, it makes you look poor and uncouth. 

Good luck with your hunt for a $700 .strandberg* seeing as you seem to think these are on par with epiphone les pauls and iron label ibanez. Of course the market is just flooded with tons of fanned-fret, headless guitars with legit pickups, proprietary hardware, and a non-veneer flame top in that price range.


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## yellowv (Mar 26, 2016)

Metalworker said:


> If thats the case I'd bet these will be had at the $700-800 dollar range within a couple years, you know, where they SHOULD be. Then I might think about looking for a used one lol.



The bridge and headpiece alone cost nearly $700 that is a big part of why these guitars cost what they do.


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## Metalworker (Mar 26, 2016)

Sorry guys, meant no harm. Happy NGD.


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## Casper777 (Mar 27, 2016)

Nice one! Great top and color... Is it looking that dark in real? Always been afraid that their red was to bright. I like how it looks in your pictures! 

Flush mount srap pins are sexy... As long as you don't Forget your strap


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## cubix (Mar 27, 2016)

Yes it's actually quite dark. Some OS7's I've seen were brighter, so it might depend on the batch or the actual top wood aswell.


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## Simic (Mar 27, 2016)

I have a question about the strandberg bridge that maybe someone here could answer; 

Does it feel like a TOM in a sense that the strings are raised away from the body or more like a hipshot style bridge where the strings are parallel to the body?

I hope this question makes sense


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## Thrashman (Mar 27, 2016)

I would say its definitely more towards the hipshot feel.


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## Opion (Mar 27, 2016)

You have one of the nicest strandberg's I have ever seen! Lovely review man. It's almost like some people, when they see someone so happy with their purchase, want to make you feel bad about it...shocking, right?  Oh, SS.org...

Here's one thing I wanted to ask: I've not heard the same thing everywhere, but I have heard mentioned that some strandbergs neckdive? Is that true for yours, or is that maybe for the 7 and 8 string versions?


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## Opion (Mar 27, 2016)

You have one of the nicest strandberg's I have ever seen! Lovely review man. It's almost like some people, when they see someone so happy with their purchase, want to make you feel bad about it...shocking, right?  Oh, SS.org...

Here's one thing I wanted to ask: I've not heard the same thing everywhere, but I have heard mentioned that some strandbergs neckdive? Is that true for yours, or is that maybe for the 7 and 8 string versions?


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## cubix (Mar 27, 2016)

It makes total sense. I would say it's somewhere in between. Because the strings are raised it feels a bit like a ToM bridge (I like that, gives you full access to the strings right from the breaking point and I think that helps with palm muting, I've always liked ToM bridges for that reason) but the saddles are not sharp as on some ToM bridges, and are not that wide so you definately feel them less.

The strings are of course parallel to the body, neck is mounted straight not on an angle like it is on most ToM fitted guitars, but the strings are not SUPER close to the body. They are about 0.5 inch away from the body.


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## imnotnollynollynolly (Mar 27, 2016)

yellowv said:


> The bridge and headpiece alone cost nearly $700 that is a big part of why these guitars cost what they do.



Dayum! That explains a lot. Does the OS line have the same hardware as the custom stuff?


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## asher (Mar 27, 2016)

imnotnollynollynolly said:


> Dayum! That explains a lot. Does the OS line have the same hardware as the custom stuff?



Yup, it's the real deal stuff.


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## Bdtunn (Mar 27, 2016)

Also for the "higher" price remember they are not a big company per say as compared to most of the others that utilize this manufacture. I don't think ola can make the same numbers as say schecter so there will be a cost for for production. I'll gladly pay a few bucks extra to support them.


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## cubix (Mar 27, 2016)

Opion said:


> You have one of the nicest strandberg's I have ever seen! Lovely review man. It's almost like some people, when they see someone so happy with their purchase, want to make you feel bad about it...shocking, right?  Oh, SS.org...
> 
> Here's one thing I wanted to ask: I've not heard the same thing everywhere, but I have heard mentioned that some strandbergs neckdive? Is that true for yours, or is that maybe for the 7 and 8 string versions?



No neck dive on mine! Balance is right on the money.


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## littleredguitars2 (Mar 27, 2016)

i got to play Plini's strandberg before his show in boston last week and it was just like this. red with the maple fretboard and it was a beaut. this is the exact one i'd like to get. either that or hold out for when the blue OS's drop. happy NGD!


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## Cameron French (Mar 27, 2016)

This review was super insightful, thank you! Looks beautiful


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## crg123 (Mar 27, 2016)

but wait! There's more!

Jk. It's a beautiful instrument. I'm glad you're happy with it .


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## wakjob (Mar 28, 2016)

littleredguitars2 said:


> i got to play Plini's strandberg before his show in boston last week and it was just like this. red with the maple fretboard and it was a beaut. this is the exact one i'd like to get. either that or hold out for when the blue OS's drop. happy NGD!



Geez, how many does he own now?


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## HighGain510 (Mar 28, 2016)

wakjob said:


> Geez, how many does he own now?



Haha I think Ola sent a few OS models over for Aaron Marshall and Plini to use while they were touring the US.


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## Esp Griffyn (Mar 28, 2016)

Metalworker said:


> If thats the case I'd bet these will be had at the $700-800 dollar range within a couple years, you know, where they SHOULD be. Then I might think about looking for a used one lol.



Good luck with that.


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## Ape Factory (Mar 28, 2016)

Glad to see a few more of these on SS.org. I had a high zero fret that I had to take care of as well but $50 later, it was a non-issue. Ended up putting hipshot knobs as I too found the stockers too slippery. Anyway, great guitar and enjoy it in good health.


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## littleredguitars2 (Mar 29, 2016)

HighGain510 said:


> Haha I think Ola sent a few OS models over for Aaron Marshall and Plini to use while they were touring the US.



aaron now uses a custom boden i'm pretty sure. its a 6 string to match his old 7 string. since most of his stuff is 6 now. he had it on his IG page

plini's got quite a few but i believe highgain's right, i think he was sent at least the red/maple os just for the tour.


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## eugeneelgr (Apr 1, 2016)

Metalworker said:


> If thats the case I'd bet these will be had at the $700-800 dollar range within a couple years, you know, where they SHOULD be. Then I might think about looking for a used one lol.



I don't blame you for having doubts about whether a Korean made guitar should be in that price range with the stigma with asian made guitars. But you gotta factor in the features that it has (strandberg original hardware that are found on the made to measures as well, stainless steel frets, Seymour duncan pickups etc.) and you will see why it commands a higher price tag. Besides, Ola put alot of design work into his models, and you need to pay for that as well.

Try one, and I guarantee you, it suddenly all makes sense why they are one of the hottest brands now.


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## cubix (Apr 1, 2016)

They are indeed hot. Wanted to add one more pic to the original post but can't edit anymore, so posting here.


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## the.godfather (Apr 2, 2016)

That's a great shot! Great photo. 

How do you find the 57/66 combo in it so far?


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## eugeneelgr (Apr 2, 2016)

cubix said:


> It makes total sense. I would say it's somewhere in between. Because the strings are raised it feels a bit like a ToM bridge (I like that, gives you full access to the strings right from the breaking point and I think that helps with palm muting, I've always liked ToM bridges for that reason) but the saddles are not sharp as on some ToM bridges, and are not that wide so you definately feel them less.
> 
> The strings are of course parallel to the body, neck is mounted straight not on an angle like it is on most ToM fitted guitars, but the strings are not SUPER close to the body. They are about 0.5 inch away from the body.



Well I'm not sure if the fixed ones and trems are different, but the neck is not exactly parallel. It is angled ever so slightly and the strings too. Is your bridge pickup parallel to the strings? Mine is abit "SG" like in that the pickup is parallel to the body but at a slight angle to the strings.

@Opion when sitting down with the guitar on the right leg, it does have some neck dive. But it is perfectly balanced when using a strap.


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## cubix (Apr 2, 2016)

the.godfather said:


> That's a great shot! Great photo.
> 
> How do you find the 57/66 combo in it so far?



Loving it, very flexible and tight at the same time. Especially love the 57, I'm thinking about putting an EMG HX or EMG H in the neck (single coil in a humbucker housing). Always loved the single coil sound on the neck. This whole track has been done on the Boden, while it's not strictly SEVENSTRING material it's the last thing I recorded with it 

[SC]https://soundcloud.com/spring_of_86/back-on-track[/SC]




eugeneelgr said:


> Well I'm not sure if the fixed ones and trems are different, but the neck is not exactly parallel. It is angled ever so slightly and the strings too. Is your bridge pickup parallel to the strings? Mine is abit "SG" like in that the pickup is parallel to the body but at a slight angle to the strings.



My neck is definately parallel to the body, might be different construction for the trems ? Would love to hear from Boden OS Trem users how is the neck on them, if it's a custom thing or the OS series also has an angled neck for the Trem models.


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## Guamskyy (Apr 2, 2016)

I really like that track dude!!


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## the.godfather (Apr 2, 2016)

cubix said:


> Loving it, very flexible and tight at the same time. Especially love the 57, I'm thinking about putting an EMG HX or EMG H in the neck (single coil in a humbucker housing). Always loved the single coil sound on the neck. This whole track has been done on the Boden, while it's not strictly SEVENSTRING material it's the last thing I recorded with it



Great track! I never did gel 100% with the 57/66 combo I had in an old Setius, but that guitar never sounded great with any pickups I tried in it. I think it was just the guitar in the end on that occasion! I did love the 66 in the neck, very smooth and nice for cleans. 

I really want a Boden OS6 at the moment but they seem to be sold out everywhere currently so I'm patiently waiting. It looks and sounds like you got a good one there!


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## littleredguitars2 (Apr 6, 2016)

great pic. that looks like a seriously FUN set up. jealous.


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## J_Mac (May 17, 2016)

Haun said:


> Very well written  Love your git. You got lucky with the woods. I like the mods you've done as well. Though I'd keep the Duncans, I could surely see me changing the knobs and mounting flat mount straplocks  Very stealth like.



^ this - I have ordered an OS6 but judging by google photos most of the tops are fairly plain. It's a shame I can't see the actual top before committing. Your top is immense. 

Also, how do you find the attack on the 6th string with no pickup angle?


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## Ape Factory (May 17, 2016)

If you're in the states and you ask Ed really nicely, tell him what you're looking for and have him shoot a few iPhone pics.


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## Bdtunn (May 17, 2016)

There was a run of lefty Boden 7's done (that the guys just took delivery of) and the tops all came out amazing. I think they've stepped up the flamed game.


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## yellowv (May 17, 2016)

Yeah it seems their getting better tops. Also as said it doesn't hurt to ask Ed to pick you one. He will if he can. He's a heck of a good guy. Here is the top on my 7. Ed picked it out for me.


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## JoeChugs (May 17, 2016)

I played a stunning Boden 6 at Music Zoo couple weeks ago, I'm so stoked on these guitars. Hoping to get one some day


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## Lemons (May 17, 2016)

I'd love to try one of these out, unfortunately these things have a massive price markup in Australia.


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## cubix (May 18, 2016)

J_Mac said:


> Also, how do you find the attack on the 6th string with no pickup angle?



I was worried about that in the beggining but there is absolutely no issues here. The attack is sharp and solid, the pickup would have to be further from the bridge to change that. Maybe on a 7 string with straight pickups it would be noticable (Boden CL7?)...


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## J_Mac (May 18, 2016)

Thanks guys, I emailed Strandberg.eu:







And got this response:






Didn't expect a reply from the man himself! That's a nice personal touch, I'm impressed \m/ so the choice looks like natural/maple OS6 for me but there's a local classified ad for a red/maple at £1200 (£1549 is UK rrp). Good price but the top isn't amazing:






EDIT -- sorry, didn't realise those email clips would come out massive


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## zero_end (May 19, 2016)

I own a *strandberg as well, great guitar, but *I* have a problem with it:

The upper strap button is damn uncomfortable (to me).

Also, the upper fret access is good but no great (I find it better in my John Petrucci Music Man for example); maybe with a neck-thru design could be better. A bit of a subjective matter tho.

The zero fret "thingy", but that's fixable. Everything is more or less on point with your review  

I would like that the volume control to be more parallel to the bridge pickup, again, a personal preference.

I guess you can't have your cake and eat it too. Every design has its flaws. But this concept is definitely a step into the right direction 

Props to Ola for his promising concept 

I just hope Ola can get more manpower to speed up their custom shop delivery times.

Cheers.

A whish list for the OS line: to include fishman fluence pickups besides the EMGs.


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## J_Mac (May 21, 2016)

yellowv said:


> Yeah it seems their getting better tops. Also as said it doesn't hurt to ask Ed to pick you one. He will if he can. He's a heck of a good guy. Here is the top on my 7. Ed picked it out for me.



Thanks for the tip  I ordered the natural/rosewood in the end. Emailed EU customer support straight after, asking for someone to pick me out a nice flamed top. Got a reply from Ola very quickly saying he would do his best to make that happen. Gotta love that personal touch!



zero_end said:


> The zero fret "thingy", but that's fixable. Everything is more or less on point with your review



What's the craic with the zero fret?


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## wakjob (May 21, 2016)

For real?

I'd take a zero fret every time over a traditional nut. No question.


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## zero_end (May 24, 2016)

for the zero fret "thingy", I meant what the thread starter said, that if you like low action, the fret may need a little shaving, nothing a good guitar tech can do


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## BucketheadRules (May 24, 2016)

Metalworker said:


> Bolt on neck with padded gigbag?



I prefer both of those things... I get to a lot of my gigs and to uni by public transport and walking, so I'd much rather a good protective padded bag that I can sling over my shoulder than a big, bulky hard case to drag around, any day of the week.

And I prefer bolt-on necks. Something about the feel and the way they resonate just sits much more pleasantly with me than thru-necks etc. I don't know why, maybe it's just because I've grown up playing a lot of bolt-on guitars so it kind of feels like home.


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## yellowv (May 24, 2016)

I prefer a good bolt on any day. With a tight pocket and good body to neck connection you get all the sustain of a neck through with a lot more snap and attack. I was always a big supporter of high end guitars having to have a hard case. That was until I got a couple of really nice gigbags. They are smaller, lighter and the good ones are more protective than a hard shell case. That said the OS series standard gigbag is the only complaint I have with the OS. It is not the same case they offer with their CS guitars or even the deluxe OS models such as the CL7 and plini and Masvidal models. It is not protective at all. I don't see why at around $2000 the OS's don't have the deluxe gigbag. That said I think they are worth every penny and a case upgrade is totally worth it. I was able to aqquire the deluxe .strandberg* gigbag made by slickbag for mine and also mono and reunion blues make outstanding bags. Here is a pic of the deluxe bag and a pic comparing the OS bag to the deluxe bag and my Suhr deluxe bag. OS bag on the left, deluxe strandberg in the middle and Suhr on the right.


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