Just for the record, there's been some confusing about the long neck version of the new Synapse. It's actually spelled TranScale with one 'S'. I've seen it spelled both ways in the Yo lit, and I've been using two. Just got clarifaction for the record. Boy, as a reference you'd think the Gibson press release would have at least gotten it right ;-)
Also the model names & conventions are as follows:
SS-2F and SS-2F Custom
======================
SS = Steinberger Synapse
2 = humbuckers (2)
F = Fixed Bridge
Custom = Flamed Maple Top
ST-2FPA and ST-2FPA Custom
==========================
ST = Steinberger TranScale
2 = humbuckers (2)
F = Fixed Bridge
P = Piezo
A = Active
Custom = Flamed Maple Top
XS-1FPA and XS-1FPA Custom = 4-string basses
XS-15FPA and XS-15FPA Custom = 5-string basses
For those keeping track of this kind of thing. . .
Posted by andyyak 7/30/2004 07:30:16 PM
NAMM RECAP
Well guys, it was another whirlwind Nashville trip. I know many guys are especially curious about the details of last night's preview. I'll give the major points now, do a flight of ideas post about the
whole trip a bit later this week, and then organize it all to post to the website next week.
Ned and Jim Rosenberg, head of Epiphone/Steinberger/MusicYo, presented the preview of the Synapse line. It was very well received (even some oohs from the hardcore Kramer guys), very detailed, and full of lots of info. These details I can now reveal:
The instruments are a composite/wood hybrid. It's in an L shape, but has a bit larger body. Top is not flat, but has a gradual radius. They've added a belly contour/scarf on the back for a more
comfortable fit. Both guitar and bass have a strap bar that extends out from the body to mimic a horn. On the bass they even extend the body a little bit more on the top and the bar is longer to provide even more extension for balance. This replaces the pivot plate design. The input jack is directly behind the bridge and faces out the tuner end so the cord stays out of the way. Folding leg rest was pretty standard design. It's new, but didn't notice any major changes. Battery placement is the same general area as before.
These pre-production units had screwed in covers but the next production ones will have flip up battery compartments. One nice addition are two holes in the tuner end where the allen wrenches are stored. The two that are included allow you to make all adjustments to the headpiece and bridge (pickups retain standard Philips head).
Guitars had 9v, 5 string bass 18v. Active EMG's all the way. They're using a new housing design that stabilizes the pickup better. None of that wobble that's common. It also eliminates the need for
pickup ring. EMG designed the whole electronics package to integrate with their pickups and the proprietary piezo system Ned designed. More on that later.
RE: construction. This is a true hybrid. The entire instrument is hard maple, but the internals of the neck are routed extensively. A U shaped composite beam is inserted along with a newly designed truss rod system (access from headless end). This isn't just narrow reinforcing strips added. I got the chance to examine the "beams" at the factory. It's maybe 5/8" square and in a tap test sounds exactly like an original blend neck. This beam is extremely rigid and uniform and carries the load of the neck. It's made by a pultrusion technique. Most guys are familiar with extrusion, where the stuff is pushed through molds to shape. In pultrusion it's pulled through at low speed instead. In this instance large spools of fibers feed through a run of resin vats and dies. The vats coat the mixture and dies successively shape the piece, which is then cut to length. This results not only in uniformity from piece to piece, but exact placement and proportions of all the fibers. Very exact. Even though they were meticulous about weighing and measuring the material when making the necks and L's in the past, it was still a hand laying operation. So necks could and do vary a bit from instrument to instrument. This insures even more consistency both up and down the neck, and from instrument to instrument. There was a name for the neck system on the PowerPoint presentation they shared, but I'd not heard it before and they rushed through that page.
Oh, and they're using phenolic fingerboards which also adds to a similar original type sound.
They first showed a burst guitar with a standard scale 25.5" length neck and hardtail. EMG 85 in the bridge & 81 in the neck. Only saw two hum config at this time. Integrated adapter type headpiece that accepts both double and single ball strings. The saddle was really refined.
Unlike all the other guitar bridges that have two height screws, this one mimics the 4 string bridge design with a single height screw and then an intonation screws that adjusts from the front. Much easier to fine tune I can assure you. Also interesting to note that it does have a side saddle lock screw. But rather than have the screw directly lock against the E string, there's now a small like 3/8"
piece that the screw goes into, and this then presses against the saddle. Seems to keep it much firmer with no play in the saddle.
Next up was a white extended neck TransScale guitar. The TransScale includes an integrated capo, and with baritone strings allows you to go down to B. There are slots running along the side of the neck, and a rubber rolling wheel assembly slides up and down these slots. Goes down two positions from what we know as E, and up to A. Works very well and easy to use. You can adjust the pressure of the roller by two set screws. This unit had a piezo bridge & same pickup config. The integrated string adapter in the headpiece allows you to use standard (albeit longer) single ball guitar strings, but I also noticed packaging for double ball extended sets as well.
The piezo bridge approach is unique. I'd had in-depth talks with Ned about this in the past. He was not trying to make it sound like an acoustic per se, but was trying to get a "truer" full range sound of
the instrument. There are difficulties with trying to insert piezos into each saddle piece, so he decided to go with an acoustic style one piece saddle. It's not fixed - it can be rotated along 3 axes to intonate. It also has an angled & step pattern to mimic how most saddles set up on a standard guitar. On the pics later you'll notice a "butterfly" route for the saddle itself. This allows it to be rotated horizontally if necessary. It's a single piezo element (no hex capability), which simply rests in the saddle bridge mount. This allows the full vibration of the string to come through, without
compressing the signal/sound by clamping the saddle down. Plus with one element Ned contends the definition from string to string is much more uniform. The standard bridge will come with an aluminum saddle, but they will also sell a graphite and ebony one for those wanting to try other sounds.
Controls: On guitar with only mags it's volume / tone. On piezos there is a larger knob for overall volume + 3 more knobs which control piezo/mag blend, and high and low tone. The level controls
for both mag/piezo are on the inside of the guitar. There are two for guitar and three for bass - the piezo is also split for low and high tone on bass. Even the knobs are custom. For production they
will be matte black with an easy to see dot marker. You should be able to see them in the pics.
Last up was a 5 string bass. It was a sharp looking matte black finish. It has a single bass pickup (EMG P5 I believe) placed on the sweet spot for the strings. Again the body is asymmetrical with the upper (horn) extending a bit for balance and the strap extension going out even further. As you'd expect from Ned it balanced extremely well and the strap "bar" setup works nice. None of use
plugged in, but I found the bass to have a good weight & balance to it. They will also be making a 4 string and 6 string bass, but I don't know if they'll show up at first.
These models will have a naming scheme just like the other USA & Spirits models. However I must admit I forgot them as I was focusing on understand the features & options and there was obviously a lot to try and soak in. As you see in the photos we all got a chance to see, inspect, and strap on these instruments. I was impressed, and head very glowing comment for all those who had a chance to try them out. I'm sure those members who got a chance to do so will post here
in the upcoming week. Personally I was blown away. Nearly every single piece (down even to the knobs) on these instruments (even the knobs) are custom designed and its form and function considered. Even the logo and upcoming ad they showed were very cool. The fact that our group got this exclusive preview was exciting and humbling.
I did ask Rosenberg the bottom line questions as well: when can I get one, where can I get one, and how much will it cost? Expected release is Q4 this year. They will be going "retail" and not through
MusicYo. It's likely they start with web retailers before trying to get them into physical stores. Street price (not suggested list but what you'd expect to pay) will be in the $800-$1200 range: $800ish
for standard models, piezo, TransScale & others costing more.
Here are some quick photos. I'll be getting the pro shots from MusicYo this week:
Standard Synapse guitar
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/synstdgtr.jpg
TransScale guitar neck
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/transscale1.jpg
Member Troy Fancil (tfancil) playing TransScale Synapse guitar
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/transscale2.jpg
Close-up of guitar piezo bridge
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/piezo1.jpg
5 string Synapse bass
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/syn5bass.jpg
Prototype L2 bass (circa 1978) & new Synapse 5 string bass
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/first-next.jpg
Back of Synapse guitar at factory showing strap extension and contours
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/synback1.jpg
Back of TransScale guitar - note output jack behind bridge
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/synback2.jpg
Member Troy Fancil (tfancil) playing TransScale Synapse guitar
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/synback2.jpg
Shot of standard fixed bridge
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/synapse/fixedbridge.jpg
Sorry this post is kind of quick and ranting, but know many of you wanted the details ASAP. Again I'll be editing and appending this info into a full blown write-up a bit later this week. We also
should have some digital video footage and the official pictures & notes. Until then feel free to drool while I try to catch my breath. . .
Posted by andyyak 7/25/2004 08:23:24 PM
NAMM - Day 1
Spent the whole day at the factory. Got a chance to catch up with the whole production crew again. Alo met with QC, the web crew and some of the Yo warehouse folks. Ned stopped by the factory and met with QC and production. Got to be a fly on the wall while he talked to those guys for about an hour. Showed them his aproach to general bridge & TT setup, Lots of other stuff. Interesting. Saw one of the new Synapses getting a final setup. Definitely more refined that even what I saw last year. I don't thnk they're at the NAMM show itself so only appearance will be at our Saturday event. Even then it'll only be a sneak peak. Lots of Epiphone & Gibson staff are attending. Seems to be a lot of buzz about it. I'm definitely outnumbered here though. Appears I'll be an island of Steinberger in a sea of Kramer. Hoping many of our faithful make a showing so I'm not so lonely ;-)
On the downside I've got a few less USA Steineys to show than I hoped. Bit of a mix up on some USA translucent GM's. Also the XQ's didn't turn out like th hoped, and producion didn't want to show them unless they are right. It's final detail type of stuff, and they still hope to have them for sale soon. I'll try to update during the afternoon while at the event. I'll have my laptop there and they have WiFi.
Posted by andyyak 7/23/2004 07:33:17 PM
Added some shots of the neck inlay process to the Headless Horseman web page we've been keeping:
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/special/horseman.htm
Looks to be shaping up rather nicely. Can't wait to see it completed & assembled.
Posted by andyyak 7/18/2004 10:05:30 PM
Have posted some finished body pics of the Headless Horseman custom GM:
http://www.steinbergerworld.com/special/horseman.htm
You have to click on the thumbs and study the larger pics. Eric says the level of detail in person is sick. Even in these low res web pics, just look at the textures & shading on the coat & the horse's
skin. You can even see the subtlety of the trees in the background. Amazing work!
Posted by andyyak 7/14/2004 11:18:56 PM
Things are gearing up big time for our inclusion at the big Kramer Konvention in Nashville during NAMM.
The Saturday show is really an all-day event. First off there are vendor exhibits from 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM. I'll be bringing most of my collection for guys to see & check out and would encourage others to do the same. MusicYo is providing a bunch of USA & Spirits for display and play. We'll also have two of the new XQ's – a 4 and a 5.
I'll be hitting the NAMM show early Saturday, so from about 2:00 on I'll then be manning my "booth". I would welcome the chance to talk with any and all of you about all things Steinberger. I'll be bringing along most of the old lit & brochures I have as well as all the videos on my laptop for viewing. I've even got an old damaged neck we sliced up so you can see what these things look like from the inside! Again we'll have both USA & Spirit instruments from MY there to check out as well
But it's the evening festivities that are the big event. It'll kick off around 5:00 PM and will feature 3 bands over the course of the evening. Sponsors will be interspersed, including Ned and Jim Rosenberg, head of Steinberger & MusicYo, previewing the new line. Ned will be available all evening to talk & sign autographs. There will also be a large number of current & former Steinberger staff attending, and a few are bringing some gems from their own personal collections to share. A local radio station, 105.9 FM "The Rock", is also co-sponsoring the event and will be doing giveaways and live updates. Some of the Yo guys have already heard the commercials on air.
You can check out the Kramer Konvention for all the info and up-to-date schedules.
I'd add it shows registration as $65 on their website. This is for vendors, those like myself who'll have a table for display, or anyone wanting to attend the entire event. However if you want to drop in during the day or hang at the evening festivities, it's only $20. You can just pay at the door when you arrive. Keep in mind this is not a corporate event per se, so the "cover charge" is big part of how this is getting paid for. So any and all support is appreciated.
I'll keep everyone updated on the Yahoo! Groups site as we get closer.
Hope to see many of you there!
Posted by andyyak 7/13/2004 12:56:12 PM
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