# 2018 Blackmachine B6 Review + Resonance test



## Velokki (Jan 20, 2019)

Many of you probably read or took part in the “The truth about Blackmachines” thread which I started. It’s had over 13,000 hits, which does still signal significant interest towards these guitars. Personally I got so interested during the discussion that I decided I need to own one.

Now I've had one for a while – albeit a Feline one, so I can’t really provide any opinions on Doug’s mythical handiwork. What I can, however, is to give my 2 cents regarding the design and quality of a 2018 Feline built Blackmachine.

Well – is this guitar perfect?

Yes. For some players.

For what I hear for ex. Misha Mansoor doing and appreciating in a guitar, I find this kind of everlasting resonance and clear tonality to be everything they’d want in an electric guitar of this kind. The Doug-designed Blackbird pickups are really something tasty, and I really do like them. The neck sounds kinda stratty, (e.g. Misha’s tone on some of his solos on Juggernaut). Overall they have a very clear sound, but not to the extent of being surgical tools like the Juggernaut. They are clear, but still have plenty of grit to them. Highs even felt a tiny bit lacking at first, but once I recorded some parts, I realized they’re there, they’re just not icepicky or overpronounced at all (which I’m used to). They also have some proper spank to them, which works extremely well in this guitar. The guitar’s core sound is clear, but warm.

One guy said that they feel that after playing a Blackmachine, all other guitars feel like they have “latency” to them. I find this description to be quite accurate – I have never played a guitar where you’d get such an immediate, tactile resonant response to the notes played. For the 90s Playstation kids, it’s like the first time you picked up a Dualshock instead of a non-vibrating controller. As much as the Blackmachine’s core design contributes to this, I also I think the barebones natural finish lends itself to boost this effect. I mean, there aren’t layers of paint deadening the tone. It’s feels like it’s made for pure performance.

I did a quick resonance test, which you can see here:


Talking about the design, it’s quite a beast. A beast that weighs nothing! It’s laughably light. The iconic headstock is really nice, and the fretwork is peerless. The neck-joint is super-tight. QC and all-around craftsmanship is definitely 10/10. I’m really convinced that Jonathan of Feline Guitars is one of the best luthiers out there at the moment. I had heard from a local friend that his work is flawless, and the facts that he’s worked extensively with Doug and one of his team helps Chris from Carillion, are of course references to note. After playing this guitar, I wouldn’t hesitate to order anything from him.

Here's a 4K video of the guitar:


One thing about the design really bothers me. The jack socket placement. It’s in the middle of the body, next to the strap pin (which ironically I forgot to film). Looks great (kinda stealthy), but you can’t really play it in a classical position on your left leg… and I always like to play like that. This is kind of a deal-breaker for me. When standing up, it’s fine of course, but I play the majority of the time in the studio, seated in front of my PC. This is when songwriting and recording takes place. And if I can’t comfortably use the guitar in that scenario, it’s really not the ideal instrument for me.

Another thing to note about the guitar is tuning stability. I remember a friend (who owns many Doug-built Blackmachines) saying that they go out of tune constantly. This B6 went out of tune every now and then, and the neck seems to be very sensitive. It’s hard as a rock and resonates like a tuning fork, but when you apply some pressure to it, you can almost use it like a whammy bar. Ok, that was really exaggerating, but it’s quite sensitive in a way. One part of me enjoyed it a lot, but I kept wondering if you’d ever hit it really badly, it could just snap. I don’t know, now I’m just rambling.

I regret to say that I didn’t do a proper photoshoot with it. What I did take, is a 4K video before shipping it away.

_Wait…. ship it away? Why?_

Long story short; the day after I bought the guitar, I got hit with significant unexpected expenses. Technically, I could’ve still kept the guitar, but it just didn’t feel logical, or at least I wasn’t comfortable with keeping such a piece of kit in that kind of situation. So I had to move it forward.

I would have kept it, if it was the perfect instrument for me. Turns out it isn’t. Only two things keep it from being perfect. I would like more tonal options (piezo, Skervesen WDM or something of the sort) and a different jack placement, so the cable wouldn’t be in the way. I have many other guitars with similar specs that so to say “compete” with this guitar for its place, guitars that fill quite the same needs. Most of them aren’t as nice as this guitar, though, but have other features which I appreciate.

It’s an absolute beast of a tool for what it’s made for. I think that everyone who appreciates custom builds and boutique guitars should get to play these sometime, and after packing and shipping it away, I do miss it. I understand the hype now, because there really is a kind of magic to how fluid and effortless these guitars are to play, and how they respond to your playing. I guess when many areas in a guitar (sound, resonance, build quality, comfort, looks) are exceptional and are tied seamlessly together, that’s when it starts to have “magic” or “mojo”. Of course in the case of Blackmachines, it has gone too far thanks to the internet, but it’s not for nothing that these instruments have garnered so much fame for.

Also; one thing. I can’t fathom it being any better _for what it is_. There’s seems to be a cult-like mystique around these guitars, especially those assembled by Doug - but they're still the same design (now talking only about B6s). I mean, have you ever played a perfectly executed PRS Custom 24? A flawless Ibanez Prestige? An exceptionally well-built Martin D-15?
Once you’ve played a really fine specimen of a certain type of guitar, that just oozes mojo and inspiration, you wouldn't care if there’s a “better” one, if even possible.

This is just my opinion, but I don’t think it’s really possible to make a guitar of this exact design much better than this guitar was made. At least for me, it was 10/10, _for what it was_. To me personally, it also makes people who try to flip older silver-plated B6s for 5-10K€ look like opportunistic clowns 
Granted, a brand new one doesn't have microscopic pieces of Doug's skin under the oil coating... but it's NEW... and for half the price!  In my opinion, if you want to experience Blackmachine, a new Feline B6 is your ticket.


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## possumkiller (Jan 20, 2019)

So another glowing review for a black machine sold straight after being bought...


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## Velokki (Jan 20, 2019)

possumkiller said:


> So another glowing review for a black machine sold straight after being bought...



Haha. I understand the irony. But it truly was a stellar instrument. If the specs and features are up your lane, I'd say go for one.

I think what makes people sell these, is that they expect an overhyped instrument of this caliber to magically fill _all their needs_. And then they realize it's just a guitar with two humbuckers. For me, it would've gathered dust - the jack location was just stupid, which prevented me from enjoying it, even though it sounded amazing.

Take it for what it's worth!


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## Velokki (Jan 20, 2019)

P.S. I do recommend people to check the resonance test - I think it gives a pretty good view on how these sound, compared to many other guitar designs!


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## Wolfhorsky (Jan 20, 2019)

On that vid it sounds like my Skervesen Chiroptera ;-)
Anyway, if You like this type of a guitar, with lots of custom options, for 1/2 price - go to Skervesen )


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## Velokki (Jan 20, 2019)

Wolfhorsky said:


> On that vid it sounds like my Skervesen Chiroptera ;-)
> Anyway, if You like this type of a guitar, with lots of custom options, for 1/2 price - go to Skervesen )



Got two Skervies - a Raptor 7FF and 4AP. They're absolutely great guitars, and would recommend to anyone. But neither one's resonance could touch what that B6 had. The resonance was like no other guitar I've ever tried. You probably got a real gem with that Chiro


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## Wolfhorsky (Jan 20, 2019)

That Chiro was kinda normal or even slitty dull at first, but after a year or so and after my mods it became super resonant. My Skerv Lupus is even better but less snappy because it is neck-through-body. Anyway, my experience and knowledge is that super dried and super lightweight thin swamp ash body plus super stiff maple neck is the way to go. Some of the guys at Skervesen are my friends as I am long lasting customer. They have very similar observations to mine.
Also Pao ferro rosewood necks sound thinner than maple ones - at least that is my experience.
The main problem with custom guitars is option paralysis. We often choose what looks nice over what sounds nice. 
And BKPs are much overrated imho. They sound shrill, metallic and dry. No fat, no meat with strange upper mids spike. IMHO the most frequent orders are with BKPs which ruin these guitars imho.


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## guitar4tw (Jan 20, 2019)

The resonance test was interesting. It also shows how different woods, finishes (clear coat, natural etc.), neck designs and what not, will affect the timbre of the guitar. Especially the LTD was quite a bit darker sounding than the B6, with more boomy low-mids. An identical set of pickups would react very differently to these two guitars.

I never understood the controversy in the tone wood debate. Everyone knows that different wood configurations make a huge difference in acoustic guitars (just listen to an all mahogany versus spruce demo, for instance). This difference is carried over in the electric guitar realm as well, just a lot less pronounced. But still there.


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## spudmunkey (Jan 20, 2019)

guitar4tw said:


> .
> 
> I never understood the controversy in the tone wood debate. Everyone knows that different wood configurations make a huge difference in acoustic guitars (just listen to an all mahogany versus spruce demo, for instance). This difference is carried over in the electric guitar realm as well, just a lot less pronounced. But still there.



The difference is that an acoustic guitars body is producing the tone you're hearing, acting like a microphone and speaker. On an electric guitar, any differences would be from the solid body vibrating in such a way as to dampen the spring's natural vibration in such a way as to impact its tone that in turn gets picked up by the pickups. Apples and oranges.


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## guitar4tw (Jan 20, 2019)

spudmunkey said:


> The difference is that an acoustic guitars body is producing the tone you're hearing, acting like a microphone and speaker. On an electric guitar, any differences would be from the solid body vibrating in such a way as to dampen the spring's natural vibration in such a way as to impact its tone that in turn gets picked up by the pickups. Apples and oranges.



I thought I made it quite clear that I wasn't making an apples to apples argument. But, electric guitars have acoustic resonance as well, and the wood does affect the timbre. Yes, it doesn't amplify and project like an acoustic, so there's much less impact, but there is still enough for it to be very noticeable between guitars.


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## guitar4tw (Jan 20, 2019)

Take an Ibanez Prestige made of swamp ash and one made of mahogany. Both from the same series with the same routing for the pickups, electronics and bridge, the same strings, neck, fretboard and also the same thickness of clearcoat. Given their (almost) completely identical form one would think that the unplugged tone should be just as identical. But somehow they immediately sound different acoustically. And it's not just a difference of loudness/resonance, but timbre. The swamp ash sounds brighter and harder unplugged.

Even if you call this _"the solid body vibrating in such a way as to dampen the spring's natural vibration in such a way as to impact its tone that in turn gets picked up by the pickups", _that is still the woods making the difference. And that difference is picked up by the pickups. Whether you want to call this "acoustic properties", or something else, is just semantics.


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## diagrammatiks (Jan 20, 2019)

Tone wood!

Glad you sold it before hyping it though. Good jorb


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## narad (Jan 20, 2019)

Velokki said:


> This is just my opinion, but I don’t think it’s really possible to make a guitar of this exact design much better than this guitar was made. At least for me, it was 10/10, _for what it was_. To me personally, it also makes people who try to flip older silver-plated B6s for 5-10K€ look like opportunistic clowns



Yea, when you consider Feline's making the parts in either case, so the Doug difference is in bolting the stuff together and doing a setup. And since the ones Doug assembled are super old now, there's 0% of that setup remaining. Another couple thousand because Doug used a screwdriver on it once please! 

But yea, I think you kind of went off the deep end with the review as well. It's an electric guitar. Why make up something called "a resonance test". Bottom line: guitars with layers of plastic on top of them aren't as acoustically loud as those that don't. Absolutely nothing you can methodically point to in the B6 design. You have to think scientifically about these things rather than starting from hyperbole ('all other guitars feel like they have “latency” to them.') and working backwards.


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## MoJoToJo (Jan 20, 2019)

Wolfhorsky said:


> And BKPs are much overrated imho. They sound shrill, metallic and dry. No fat, no meat with strange upper mids spike. IMHO the most frequent orders are with BKPs which ruin these guitars imho.



Yes someone that is not a sheep & does not follow the crowd. Overrated & overpriced.


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## Humbuck (Jan 20, 2019)

I have a B6 with BKP's and it sounds absolutely huge. Baa.


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## diagrammatiks (Jan 20, 2019)

Wolfhorsky said:


> That Chiro was kinda normal or even slitty dull at first, but after a year or so and after my mods it became super resonant. My Skerv Lupus is even better but less snappy because it is neck-through-body. Anyway, my experience and knowledge is that super dried and super lightweight thin swamp ash body plus super stiff maple neck is the way to go. Some of the guys at Skervesen are my friends as I am long lasting customer. They have very similar observations to mine.
> Also Pao ferro rosewood necks sound thinner than maple ones - at least that is my experience.
> The main problem with custom guitars is option paralysis. We often choose what looks nice over what sounds nice.
> And BKPs are much overrated imho. They sound shrill, metallic and dry. No fat, no meat with strange upper mids spike. IMHO the most frequent orders are with BKPs which ruin these guitars imho.



I feel personally attacked.


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## MoJoToJo (Jan 20, 2019)

Humbuck said:


> I have a B6 with BKP's and it sounds absolutely huge. Baa.


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## Ziricote (Jan 20, 2019)

Arent you supposed to use an angled cable jack for the placement that bothers you? This always solve that issues. Youre welcome 

Thank you for review of B6. Its nice when people take the time to produce these types of video


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## Velokki (Jan 21, 2019)

narad said:


> Why make up something called "a resonance test". Bottom line: guitars with layers of plastic on top of them aren't as acoustically loud as those that don't. Absolutely nothing you can methodically point to in the B6 design. You have to think scientifically about these things rather than starting from hyperbole ('all other guitars feel like they have “latency” to them.') and working backwards.



This is what intrigues me. The B6 was a breeze to play, and sounded super nice. I'm not that competent to scientifically point out what made the difference, but I know I've played many naturally finished guitars (even straight-out copies of a BM design) and none sounded like this.

And the "latency" thing comes from how immediately the resonance seems to travel throughout the guitar. It's immediate. You can really feel it in the neck, in the palm of your hands. Trust me, I'm no person to use superlatives normally, but this guitar was *STELLAR*. In retrospect, I'm still amazed by some of its properties. Being just "well, it was fine" is not an option, I wanna tell the truth. Where it tried to perform, it truly did and delivered.



Ziricote said:


> Arent you supposed to use an angled cable jack for the placement that bothers you? This always solve that issues. Youre welcome
> 
> Thank you for review of B6. Its nice when people take the time to produce these types of video



Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! Normally people just only hate anything about BMs! 

I tried an angled cable. Still bothered me too much. Probably would've been fine for some, but didn't enjoy that feeling against my leg.


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## narad (Jan 21, 2019)

I mean, Jonathan's an experienced builder and he's going to build a good guitar. But this latency thing...dude, play a nice telecaster side-by-side. I'm guessing you're riffing on some combination of brightness/tension/bridge properties, but you know, guitar isn't played over a modem, so it's these kinds of nonsensical adjectives that I hate to see quoted over and over. I mean, it's your opinion, but reality suggests there is a better description of what you're experiencing.

I've owned a B6 and it was a totally fine guitar but nothing to write home about. But then again, it's a $3-4k guitar. I'm judging its worth with respect to many other $3-4k guitars. Will it blow the doors off a $800 LTD? You betcha!


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## Velokki (Jan 21, 2019)

narad said:


> I mean, Jonathan's an experienced builder and he's going to build a good guitar. But this latency thing...dude, play a nice telecaster side-by-side. I'm guessing you're riffing on some combination of brightness/tension/bridge properties, but you know, guitar isn't played over a modem, so it's these kinds of nonsensical adjectives that I hate to see quoted over and over. I mean, it's your opinion, but reality suggests there is a better description of what you're experiencing.
> 
> I've owned a B6 and it was a totally fine guitar but nothing to write home about. But then again, it's a $3-4k guitar. I'm judging its worth with respect to many other $3-4k guitars. Will it blow the doors off a $800 LTD? You betcha!



I did play a handmade Tele next to it. Acoustically it was quite loud, but didn't sound nearly as "full", you know? Sounded kinda boxy and missing some body. Then again, it is finished with paint - a custom-shop grade, natural Tele would've probably been a more serious contender. The guitar was in a different tuning, so didn't take a video of it for the resonance test.

I've played a lot of custom shop instruments, and none have matched this kind of resonance. Perhaps I've not played the best of the best, then.


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## mastapimp (Jan 21, 2019)

I'm hearing fixed bridge plus new strings. Next.


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## GatherTheArsenal (Jan 21, 2019)

Great review, resonance test was unexpected but appreciated all the same!


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## Velokki (Jan 21, 2019)

GatherTheArsenal said:


> Great review, resonance test was unexpected but appreciated all the same!


Really appreciate that! Thanks.


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## Alex79 (Jan 21, 2019)

That thing about the neck being so easy to bend sounds like it would be a nightmare guitar for me. All of my guitars must have super stable necks, as I put too much pressure on them, and that tuning wobble drives me mad!
The downside is that you loose some resonance of course with super stable woods!


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## KnightBrolaire (Jan 21, 2019)




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## Bastian93 (Jan 21, 2019)

Thanks for the well writen review and the interesting resonance test video. 

I didn´t even know that Feline Guitars builds the Blackmachine guitars now, but tbh i did not follow the Blackmachine hype that much as I wasn´t in the market for one.
Seems most comments about the BM design are either "BM=best"-hype or the complete opposite of that, never really understood that. 

But I guess it´s the same for other guitars as well, because good sound and tone is just different for everybody.


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## crackout (Jan 21, 2019)

Velokki said:


> Many of you probably read or took part in the “The truth about Blackmachines” thread which I started. It’s had over 13,000 hits, which does still
> One thing about the design really bothers me. The jack socket placement. It’s in the middle of the body, next to the strap pin (which ironically I forgot to film). Looks great (kinda stealthy), but you can’t really play it in a classical position on your left leg… and I always like to play like that. This is kind of a deal-breaker for me. When standing up, it’s fine of course, but I play the majority of the time in the studio, seated in front of my PC. This is when songwriting and recording takes place. And if I can’t comfortably use the guitar in that scenario, it’s really not the ideal instrument for me.



Yes, that is one of the main flaws of these guitars. The other being the lack of a belly cut. Both deal breakers for me.
That's why I built them myself and added these ergonomics.


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## oversteve (Jan 21, 2019)

mastapimp said:


> I'm hearing fixed bridge plus new strings. Next.


This
+lack of paint and bolt on construction to some extent

At some point I had 2 ESP Eclipses, one with thick clearcoat over paint and another with a relatively thin matte finish and they exibited the same behaviour - acoustically one with thinner finish was huge compared to the other. However plugged in they both sounded almost the same


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## Lorcan Ward (Jan 21, 2019)

The latency thing I'd call directness or quickness to a note, some people use attack but that's not a good describing word since it means several things. I've a US Schecter with the same specs as a B6 and it has the same quickness to a note you are describing, Doug tried mine and another one saying they were almost B6 7 strings tonewise. I'd attribute it to the bolt-on construction and swamp ash body, it feels like it has a noise gate on top of it so notes are super punchy but don't bleed out into the next as much as my other guitars.


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## Snarpaasi (Jan 21, 2019)

Lorcan Ward said:


> The latency thing I'd call directness or quickness to a note, some people use attack but that's not a good describing word since it means several things. I've a US Schecter with the same specs as a B6 and it has the same quickness to a note you are describing, Doug tried mine and another one saying they were almost B6 7 strings tonewise. I'd attribute it to the bolt-on construction and swamp ash body, it feels like it has a noise gate on top of it so notes are super punchy but don't bleed out into the next as much as my other guitars.



In 2019 even wood has a noise gate! Glad I don't need ISP Decimator anymore. Just kidding..

Good review OP, thanks. The only thing that bothered was the picking hand motion  Each beat(1-2-3-4) should have a downstroke that brings the flow to it.


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## blacai (Jan 21, 2019)

Sorry if my question is stupid... but why is important that a electric guitar is "resonant". Does it have anything to do with the "tone wood magic thing"?
I mean, with such high output pickups and levels of distortion what does a "resonant guitar" bring tothe table?

My most expensive guitar is a FGN LS 30(~2k€)and I have played and owned some Mayones Regius/Strandberg and what I would describe as resonant was not exactly something I would like to have :/


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## sakeido (Jan 21, 2019)

mastapimp said:


> I'm hearing fixed bridge plus new strings. Next.



don't forget that it was the only hardtail bridge there and it sounded like the action was substantially higher than all the other guitars, especially the WM


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## Andromalia (Jan 21, 2019)

Funny how people restarting these topics always have a financial interest in doing so...

That aside, "resonance" is meaningless, what's the big deal about how an electric instrument sounds like unplugged ? It's like you'd rate a microwave by it's arerodynamic coefficient.


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## possumkiller (Jan 21, 2019)

Yeah I'm wondering how big of a profit was made flipping it.


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## Velokki (Jan 21, 2019)

sakeido said:


> don't forget that it was the only hardtail bridge there and it sounded like the action was substantially higher than all the other guitars, especially the WM



Agreed, that's what it sounded like. But not the reality here. Just took a look at the WM's action and I'd say it's higher than the BMs. When I pluck through those chords on the BM after the 1:00 min mark, you can hear how almost all strings are having a slight buzz, it's really on the verge of being too low. Definitely not higher than the others.
The WM-526s are notorious for being just dead wet planks, soaked in coats of paint. They're super dead. _(The backstory is that because of the closing of the Washburn Custom Shop, they didn't have nearly enough time to let the guitars dry properly)_ 
In the video, you're not hearing the notes dying out because of too low an action, it's because the guitar is as resonant as rubber and sustains like a snare drum. Love it to bits because of playability and looks, but it's really dead.



Andromalia said:


> Funny how people restarting these topics always have a financial interest in doing so...



Sorry, what do you mean by that?


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## diagrammatiks (Jan 21, 2019)

blacai said:


> Sorry if my question is stupid... but why is important that a electric guitar is "resonant". Does it have anything to do with the "tone wood magic thing"?
> I mean, with such high output pickups and levels of distortion what does a "resonant guitar" bring tothe table?
> 
> My most expensive guitar is a FGN LS 30(~2k€)and I have played and owned some Mayones Regius/Strandberg and what I would describe as resonant was not exactly something I would like to have :/



Good question. And just like who cares about sustain on electric instruments you’ll be run out of town for asking. 

The answer is none tho.


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## xzacx (Jan 21, 2019)

I appreciate the effort but without going all Mythbusters and building a machine that ensures that each strum is done with the same energy, it’s hard to put much merit in the results. And then there’s also the fact that I don’t know what the results would prove even if it was done scientifically—since “most acoustically resonant electric guitar” isn’t really a valuable measure IMO. That said, it was 100% worth watching for the WM-526 sighting.


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## Velokki (Jan 21, 2019)

Andromalia said:


> Funny how people restarting these topics always have a financial interest in doing so...





possumkiller said:


> Yeah I'm wondering how big of a profit was made flipping it.


Actually I slabbed the already-thin design of the B6 in half, and effectively sold two guitars. The first was sold for 4K to Samsung, they said they're using it as reference for their new Smart TVs. Not sure they understood what they were buying.

The second was sold to Muhammed Suicmez to track the new Necrophagist record. So yeah, don't hold your breath...




Spoiler



I took a loss. And there are new ones in stock at Feline, if you're interested


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## Cynicanal (Jan 21, 2019)

diagrammatiks said:


> Good question. And just like who cares about sustain on electric instruments you’ll be run out of town for asking.
> 
> The answer is none tho.


My understanding (which could well be wrong!) is that, since a solidbody electric doesn't have a soundboard, what you're hearing when you strum it acoustically isn't the vibration of the body (like it is on an acoustic) but rather the vibration of the strings themselves, which are what the pickups are picking up. That said, I don't know if this still applies to super-chambered guitars, since a lot of those are moving towards semi-hollow territory, where you definitely hear the wood vibrate if you strum it acoustically...

Most of the "unplugged sound doesn't matter" arguments I've read would also mean a hollow body and a solid body would have the same sound when plugged in if they used the same electronics, which we all know isn't true.


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## Humbuck (Jan 21, 2019)

Yeah, there is no successful B6 flipping going on since they are readily available both used and new, yet people still need to chime in claiming a good review is some way to make money. Everybody knows what they go for. It's not a mystery.

He already sold the guitar as was stated right in the original post. How is this a pump and dump?


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## feraledge (Jan 21, 2019)

narad said:


> I've owned a B6 and it was a totally fine guitar but nothing to write home about. But then again, it's a $3-4k guitar. I'm judging its worth with respect to many other $3-4k guitars. Will it blow the doors off a $800 LTD? You betcha!


This. The hype around this things has just been otherworldly and for reasons we are all too familiar with. A $3-4000 guitar should be really fucking awesome, doesn't make them magically worth 3-7 more.


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## prlgmnr (Jan 21, 2019)

Cynicanal said:


> Most of the "unplugged sound doesn't matter" arguments I've read would also mean a hollow body and a solid body would have the same sound when plugged in if they used the same electronics, which we all know isn't true.



I'm not quite sure that follows as straightforwardly as you think it does.


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## Humbuck (Jan 21, 2019)

feraledge said:


> This. The hype around this things has just been otherworldly and for reasons we are all too familiar with. A $3-4000 guitar should be really fucking awesome, doesn't make them magically worth 3-7 more.



They're not though worth 3-7 more though. They go for 3 to 4k every time. Every now and then someone says they have an early "Doug built" B6 up for sale at an especially high price and it doesn't sell for that price. These are the only people who are using that angle and they are free to believe what they want even if they are incorrect. Let the buyer beware. People who are hip to these things (should) know enough about them know there are no "Doug built" B6's or whatever and that the asking price is too high.


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## Lorcan Ward (Jan 21, 2019)

Snarpaasi said:


> In 2019 even wood has a noise gate! Glad I don't need ISP Decimator anymore. Just kidding.



Think of when you're doing really fast triplets where the stop and start is instant cause of a tight gate. That's what it feels like. A few people notice it straight away when they play it and then go back to a different guitar. That's not always a good thing though, it can get thin and snappy so it's very unsuitable for certain tones and riffs/leads.



blacai said:


> Sorry if my question is stupid... but why is important that a electric guitar is "resonant". Does it have anything to do with the "tone wood magic thing"?
> I mean, with such high output pickups and levels of distortion what does a "resonant guitar" bring tothe table?/



A lot of these things is how it feels when you play it but that might not translate in a recording. A really resonant guitar feels different to play. One of my friends plays classical and doesn't like electric but he really enjoyed playing my Ibby because of how he could feel it more when he played. It responded more like his acoustics. So it's more about how it feels and responds and respond when you play it which means a lot to the player but doesn't mean it won't just sound like every other guitar on a recording.


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## blacai (Jan 21, 2019)

ok, I see, because in fact, it was that different feeling the only thing I noticed with my most resonant guitar (a strandberg) and I didn't like it at all.


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## TheUnknownOne (Jan 21, 2019)

And what about that evertune LTD ?


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## Velokki (Jan 21, 2019)

TheUnknownOne said:


> And what about that evertune LTD ?



Haha, what about it? Such a great workhorse, that one. Great guitar, no question. Bang for the buck in that is really surreal - I got it for 650€ brand new!

Gonna swap some Fluences in soon to replace the 81/85 set.


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## Meeotch (Jan 21, 2019)

Velokki said:


> Gonna swap some Fluences in soon to replace the 81/85 set.



I have an earlier version of that LTD (gloss black, rosewood board) and agree, it's a killer workhorse guitar. I just replaced the stock EMG's with Fluence Moderns, and I'm not all that thrilled. It's fun to have the 2 voicings, but that's about it. I'd say it sounds a touch different than the EMG's, but not necessarily better. YMMV.

I think I'm gonna tear it all out and try some Black Winters.


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## Snarpaasi (Jan 22, 2019)

Lorcan Ward said:


> Think of when you're doing really fast triplets where the stop and start is instant cause of a tight gate. That's what it feels like. A few people notice it straight away when they play it and then go back to a different guitar. That's not always a good thing though, it can get thin and snappy so it's very unsuitable for certain tones and riffs/leads.
> 
> A lot of these things is how it feels when you play it but that might not translate in a recording. A really resonant guitar feels different to play. One of my friends plays classical and doesn't like electric but he really enjoyed playing my Ibby because of how he could feel it more when he played. It responded more like his acoustics. So it's more about how it feels and responds and respond when you play it which means a lot to the player but doesn't mean it won't just sound like every other guitar on a recording.



I have maybe noticed this "gate" thingy you say with one of my previous guitars. The response was instant but the tone was thin as heck. Snappy to a certain extent is nice tho which my neck thru is missing, hence lacking attack. However it sounds really full and meaty.

I'm on the resonance train (choo choo mofos!) and agree with your acoustic friend, they feel alive and different to play, that's enough for me. I'm happy to play one even unplugged most of the time.


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## Velokki (Jan 22, 2019)

Meeotch said:


> I have an earlier version of that LTD (gloss black, rosewood board) and agree, it's a killer workhorse guitar. I just replaced the stock EMG's with Fluence Moderns, and I'm not all that thrilled. It's fun to have the 2 voicings, but that's about it. I'd say it sounds a touch different than the EMG's, but not necessarily better. YMMV.
> 
> I think I'm gonna tear it all out and try some Black Winters.



Right... I'll probably have to test the Fluences properly before taking the effort to swap them in!


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## Smoked Porter (Jan 22, 2019)

"...after playing a Blackmachine, all other guitars feel like they have “latency” to them."

Placebo/nocebo effect is strong.


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## Velokki (Jan 22, 2019)

Smoked Porter said:


> "...after playing a Blackmachine, all other guitars feel like they have “latency” to them."
> 
> Placebo/nocebo effect is strong.


Not really  The guitar is just very immediate and resonant. You really do _feel_ every note you play. Some people won't even like it, some don't care. But I really like it when an oddly slim electric guitar just sings against my hand and body 

P.S. I honestly can't believe how many people have this inherently negative attitude towards these guitars. It's also ironic that most of the people who take their time to spread negativity around these instruments, are the very same people who always joke about people not having played them. Many of these people seem to _know_ that a certain type of guitar performs equally or better, and they _KNOW_ that a BM can't be that special... _*when they haven't played one*.
_


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## diagrammatiks (Jan 22, 2019)

Velokki said:


> Not really  The guitar is just very immediate and resonant. You really do _feel_ every note you play. Some people won't even like it, some don't care. But I really like it when an oddly slim electric guitar just sings against my hand and body
> 
> P.S. I honestly can't believe how many people have this inherently negative attitude towards these guitars. It's also ironic that most of the people who take their time to spread negativity around these instruments, are the very same people who always joke about people not having played them. Many of these people seem to _know_ that a certain type of guitar performs equally or better, and they _KNOW_ that a BM can't be that special... _*when they haven't played one*.
> _



you keep putting up this strawman
the people that have the most well reasoned responses and actually want to talk to you about it have all owned one. 

yet you ignore them. 

meh.


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## Velokki (Jan 22, 2019)

diagrammatiks said:


> you keep putting up this strawman
> the people that have the most well reasoned responses and actually want to talk to you about it have all owned one.
> 
> yet you ignore them.
> ...


Sorry if I was rude, what responses/point did I ignore?


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## Smoked Porter (Jan 22, 2019)

Velokki said:


> Not really  The guitar is just very immediate and resonant. You really do _feel_ every note you play. Some people won't even like it, some don't care. But I really like it when an oddly slim electric guitar just sings against my hand and body
> 
> P.S. I honestly can't believe how many people have this inherently negative attitude towards these guitars. It's also ironic that most of the people who take their time to spread negativity around these instruments, are the very same people who always joke about people not having played them. Many of these people seem to _know_ that a certain type of guitar performs equally or better, and they _KNOW_ that a BM can't be that special... _*when they haven't played one*.
> _



I'm sure it does play and sound great. But the only time I've experienced latency is from amp sims, not guitars, so forgive me if I'm more than a bit skeptical of that claim.


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