[Josey Wales]

ok, heres a new guitar i got, my friend gave it to me free... i'm gonna totally sand it down, re-finish. at this point i don't know if i want to even put any money into it.

if anyone can tell me what this is that would be great. i also want to know what the on board electronics are. theres a battery port. some kind of circuit board. there was an antenna like wire through the whole body. what purpose does this all serve???? the switch is broke i can't try it out.



]

[Rainer.]

That style of electronics is what we in the BIZ like to call "a mess". A big scary mess.

[Josey Wales]

Originally Posted by Rainer.

That style of electronics is what we in the BIZ like to call "a mess". A big scary mess.

i know this..... but what is it's purpose... and can i just get rid of it, and have a standard guitar, or do i need this junk...

apparently this stuff is for active pickups, but what are active pickups.

[Rainer.]

Active pickups are pickups that are low output, but are amplified to high output by an onboard preamp. This is supposed to reduce noise and give a clearer, more balance tone.

Yes, you can remove the preamp, but then you'll end up with a really low output guitar.

But man, if I saw something like that, I'd just replace everything with a nice passive setup.

[Josey Wales]

Originally Posted by Rainer.

Active pickups are pickups that are low output, but are amplified to high output by an onboard preamp. This is supposed to reduce noise and give a clearer, more balance tone.

Yes, you can remove the preamp, but then you'll end up with a really low output guitar.

But man, if I saw something like that, I'd just replace everything with a nice passive setup.

ok, that makes sense, thats probably why when i plugged it into my amp with no batteries i had to turn it up all the way on the guitar to get sound, when i keep my strat at level 3 and it's really loud, and i just leave the amp volume alone.....

i would replace it, but i really don't want to put any money into it, i really think it's junk. maybe it ccan be cool wall decor.

[thesteve]

The weird part to me is...

why would you drop active pickups into a plywood body?

I guess someone must've really liked the way that thing played.

[martinedwards]

but if they liked the way it played, why paint a lizard puking on it?

I have an Encore Coaster strat that has a neck to die for that I've been modding for over 20 years.

Currently there are a pair of Dimarzio PAF pros and a piezo bridge with an internal preamp so just because the body is ply doesn't mean you can't load it up!!

[Giga Hertz]

I'm not convinced their active. If what you've identified as antenna is one, I think it may have a wireless transmitter (and perhaps it used to have a receiver).

My mate has an old Cort that is VERY similar to that. And it had a wireless transmitter.

[Major Tom]

Isn't that a Samick, going by the headstock shape ? Judging by the type of tuners, and if it is indeed a plywood body, I'd say it is one of their "entry level" models.

If it is plywood, I would advise against sanding ti down and refinishing. First, it is a a sub $100. ax, and not worth the trouble, but more importantly if you go down to bare wood it will be difficult to keep the lines of the plys from showing thru. If you did refinish, I would suggest sanding it, but not to bare wood - use an opaque color over the top of the existing finish.

[Josey Wales]

Originally Posted by martinedwards

but if they liked the way it played, why paint a lizard puking on it?

I have an Encore Coaster strat that has a neck to die for that I've been modding for over 20 years.

Currently there are a pair of Dimarzio PAF pros and a piezo bridge with an internal preamp so just because the body is ply doesn't mean you can't load it up!!

i thought it was a lizard puking too

Originally Posted by Giga Hertz

I'm not convinced their active. If what you've identified as antenna is one, I think it may have a wireless transmitter (and perhaps it used to have a receiver).

My mate has an old Cort that is VERY similar to that. And it had a wireless transmitter.

wireless could be kind of cool

Originally Posted by Major Tom

Isn't that a Samick, going by the headstock shape ? Judging by the type of tuners, and if it is indeed a plywood body, I'd say it is one of their "entry level" models.

If it is plywood, I would advise against sanding ti down and refinishing. First, it is a a sub $100. ax, and not worth the trouble, but more importantly if you go down to bare wood it will be difficult to keep the lines of the plys from showing thru. If you did refinish, I would suggest sanding it, but not to bare wood - use an opaque color over the top of the existing finish.

well i really just want to practice on it, not restore it for any real purpose, take it apart and kind of use it as a training guitar.

[Josey Wales]

this is what i plan to do with it

YouTube - Swirling a guitar to look like steve vai jem guitar - TheSwirling.com

[Josey Wales]

YAY crappy guitar, now complete with a monkey handle...



i sanded it, yep it's crappy chinese plywood.... looks like we gotta give it a solid finish ... looks like swirling it is that answer.

[Josey Wales]

i've taken the tuning machines out, and painted the knobs, and pickup covers green

[Josey Wales]

a little pre-paint artwork... i got bored, LOL

[Josey Wales]

well here it is with primer, and the green i put on the pickguard.