2014 .strandberg* Catalog Proves the Future is Now

2014 is looking like it will be quite the year for gear. I’ll have to let you know when I get back from NAMM, but my confidence is high that my mind will be blown by a great many things. One I am really looking forward to putting my grubbies on is the 2014 line of .strandberg*s (and maybe asking Ola what the deal is with pluralizing that word, what with the asterisk) because they all look pretty sick.

ADVERTISEMENT

The multi-scale or fan fret guitar is not a new concept by any means. Ralph Novak holds a patent for it from 1986, which makes it just slightly younger than myself. But as the saying goes, pioneers are never masters, and now on your .strandberg* for 2014 you can get a headless, multi-scale 8-string guitar that ALSO has True Temperament frets. :drops the mic and walks away: WHAAAAAAAAA??

True Temperament frets are those wiggly frets you may have seen on Mattias Eklundh’s signature Caparison guitars that make up for some of the weird intonation issues that plague guitarists (why does a second fret A chord always sound like garbage?). It makes your guitar look a little weird, but it’s supposed to make it sound like butter all over the neck, and I hope that we’re not THAT shallow.

But if you are, there are also a number of very metal-sounding finishes available for this year’s production Boden models, including Perpetual Black, Redrum, Fangorn, Lava, and Space. Scale the Summit‘s Chris Letchford’s signature CL-7 model is also now available in a chocolate brown finish, which I can’t fathom choosing over the original blue, but what do I know.

In the future, only grandpa’s guitars have frets that go straight across.

Check out the catalog here.

Written by

As Editor-in-Chief of Gear Gods, I've been feeding your sick instrument fetishism and trying unsuccessfully to hide my own since 2013. I studied music on both coasts (Berklee and SSU) and now I'm just trying to put my degree to some use. That's a music degree, not an English one. I'm sure you noticed.

Latest comments
  • Reminds me of this guy’s guitars, although they’re obviously built for different purposes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYK_PF9WTRE

  • Nothing really new, Steve Vai used it briefly on his jem guitars a few years ago. Nowadays, he doesn’t use it anymore. Wonder why.

  • in my opinion guitars should be of 6 strings not 7 and 8 of course sometimes profesional guitar players uses acoustic and electric 12 strings guitar depending the song and their style like Richie Sambora and Steve Vai, but this now a huge mistake, they are like transforming the guitar in something that should not be done guitars of 7 and 8 strings are no no for me and this thing is a cero.

    • if the whole world thought like you we would still be cave men in hunter gatherer tribes…………

      • is not like that, tecnology, clothing and many things are diferents, music instruments should not change to this form of stupidity, guitars are what they are I love my guitars with six strings, floyd rose bridges, or tremolo or les paul guitars 12 strings guitars, why they did not do this to a violin or to a chelo a Bass, besides is my opinion if that is your opinion which is very drastical to say good for you, but I wouldnt spend a dime in one of this guitars never the less almost 4000 dollars.

        • … I bet this is how lute players felt as they saw their beloved instrument stripped of its beauty and complexity and reduced to six simple strings.

          • 6 simple strings is all a great guitar player needs, I dont see Santana, Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Paul Gilbert, John Petrucci, Joe Perry, Jeff Peck, Richie Sambora, Nuno Betacourt, Orianthi and more using this shit. AND FUCK OFF ALL OF YOU.

          • Vai and Petrucci uses 7-string.. You sound really ignorant!

          • I know sometimes they use 7 strings guitars, but not always and I am talking about this neck, one thing is an scaloped neck like Yngiew uses but this looks very strange, any way hope you can all have the money to buy one you will be playing for a month and then you will say I prefer my regular guitar 6 o 1000 srtrings.

          • Ummm Google Ibanez Jem and Steve Vai. Do you even guitar bro

        • That’s the most idiotic thing I’ve red on the internet in months. Are you a creationist?

          • i think the idiotic is you, first learn english before then write it mother fucker, is read not red, im not creationist, is just my fucking opinion

          • Insecure shit bucket. Your opinion is a pile of incoherent shit. Is my grammar ok now mister nazi?

          • > first learn english

            AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

            Maybe you should take your own advice asshole. You don’t capitalize anything, your sentence structure is incorrect, and you can’t even fucking conjugate. So maybe you should take an English class or two yourself.

        • You seem to fear change.. I wonder if acoustic fan bois back in the day had the same reaction when electric guitars were first invented.. Or what the reception was to the Floyd Rose when it was invented in the 70s?
          Totally agree on the part about not paying four grand out for a geetar though.. But that’s because I’m too poor..

          • its not afraid to change simply I dont like 7 and 8 strings guitars and I hate this ones.

          • seriously shut the fuck up you sound like a fucking idiot if you dont like 7 and 8 dont play them but you make yourself look like a bigger ass telling ppl the things they like are shit your opinion is not important to anyone but you so keep it to your fucking self
            and if you reaally hate 7 and 8 strings that much why are you even here on this page i guess you just really wanted ppl to be forced to hear your biased opinion

          • what ever man buy an 8 string guitar with a very thick neck and put it into you ass. have a nice day.

          • good one bro

          • Just for the record, 8 strings don’t have thick necks. The same is true for 7 strings. They’re not pointless or stupid either. They give you a larger range to play with. It’s cool that Carlos Santana uses 6 string guitars just like a majority of guitar players, however, having an extended range gives you more to play with.

            Just remember, opinions are like assholes; everyone has one and they all stink.

          • Some do have thick necks, but they are usually not quality. Jackson FTW!

        • So you’re saying that people shouldn’t make these types of guitars because you prefer more basic ones? Then use the basic ones and let other people play and make whatever they want.

          • well like you said I play the basic ones which is all a good guitar player needs with good pedal efect boards and amps and you let me say whatever the hell I wat to say.

          • the worst thing anyone could do is pay attention to the asshole that doesn’t like 7 or 8 string guitars. he is not willing to give a name and his opinion is garbage. fuck you “guest” your retarded. no one cares what yo like. go to a page that hates 7 strings. your a douche and you spread hate. love you .

          • Every single one of you need to calm down. While you’re at it, learn correct English.

          • I agree with whomever posted this comment, About guitars not being 7 or 8 strings, I like your idea of originality, you have my vote and support

          • A good guitarist doesn’t need effects. See what I did there?

      • I don’t think it’s a matter of how many strings the player uses. It all boils down to what the player does with those strings. A person with a 6 string guitar who just plays One Direction songs is about as useless as a person with an 8 string guitar who doesn’t know how to utilize it (Not all, but some Djent players). To me, it doesn’t really matter how many strings the fiddler plays; what matters is the music.

    • *applauds the stupidity of the silly qualms of the internet*

    • They all serve a purpose. I was Anti-7 until I bought my SLAT 3-7. It now gets played more than any of my 6 strings. It forces you to approach playing differently which to me is a good thing. I hate becoming and feeling stale in my playing.

  • It kinda looks a little weird. But if the change it makes is a positive one then I’m all for it. 4g’s tho is a bit much to pay for twisted fret bars. What evs tho to each their own.

leave a comment