PRODUCT REVIEW
SBG3000
Yamaha 40th Anniversary
Limited Edition
Al McKay of Earth Wind & Fire played one.
Bill Nelson of Bebop Deluxe played one.
Carlos Santana made them famous. Yamaha
Guitars commemorates its 40th year selling
guitars in the United States by reissuing the
SBG3000 solidbody electric guitar. Originally
issued in the mid-70s, the SBG line became
celebrated for its cool looks, ridiculous sustain and awesome versatility. With its intricate
aesthetic detail and individually handcrafted
workmanship, it’s no wonder guitarists as
wide ranging as Bob Marley and Al Di Meola
took to the SBG series.
BY OSCAR JORDAN
the wood to replicate an original 1970s SBG,
or so they say.
I’m a big fan of these guitars and have owned
more than a few of the vintage models in the
SG and SBG line. Aficionados proudly call
these guitars, “The Les Paul Killer.” Its striking
non-traditional looks never fail to turn heads,
and its smokin’ tones send people rushing
online in hopes of purchasing one of their
own. Lucky for them Yamaha saw fit to reissue
these babies.
The Test
For a test comparison, I whipped out my trusty
tobacco 1978 Yamaha SG2000. It’s a great
instrument that I will never sell, and comes
equipped with that sought-after, creamy
Moonflower -era Santana tone. I felt sorry for
the reissue, because it had such a tough act
to follow. I was deeply concerned that I would
give this new guitar an inferiority complex, so
I took it nice and easy. The stock pickups in
mine are a little different than the ones in the
SBG3000, but it’s still in the tonal ballpark.
For amps, I plugged into a Fender ’ 65 Deluxe
Reverb, Peavey JSX, Fender ’ 65 Pro Reverb
and a Marshall JCM2000.
Features
Cracking the case on this bad boy and get-
ting an eyeful of its unadulterated glory was
love at first sight. The neck-through body
construction, carved maple top over a maple/
mahogany body is just plain hot. The ebony
fretboard is a thing of beauty. Aesthetically
speaking, I could see this guitar becoming
my new girlfriend. Its two Alnico V, covered
humbuckers allow you to get a Swiss Army
Knife range of sounds, with the aid of coil-
splitting push/push pots located on the tone
controls. Top-of-the-line hardware includes
gold precise torque tuning machines, a low-
mass bridge, mother-of-pearl/abalone
inlays, position markers and a gorgeous
binding. It’s a stunning piece of work-
manship—even the dorkiest guitar
player would look sharp as a tack
wearing this guitar on stage.
Although it’s historically accurate,
a new feature has been added.
Yamaha has utilized a proprietary
aging technique called Initial Response
Acceleration. It’s a manufacturing tech-
nique that accelerates the aging process
of their guitars. It makes a new guitar sound
vintage, by realigning the cellular structure of
Weighing in at around 9lbs, the SBG3000 has
some weight on it. If you plan to wear this
thing on stage for more than an hour, you’d
better get a good strap. If not, curvature of
the spine is imminent. It’s that ‘70s trade-off.
You don’t get those big righteous tones out
of a two-pound guitar. The weight, mahogany
body and neck-through construction all contribute to the tonal characteristics that make
this guitar the unique-sounding instrument it
is. The neck is chunky and full, so be warned.
If you have small, girly hands this may not be
the guitar for you. If you have big to medium
sized hands and enjoy the cramp-free support
of having a thick chunk o’ wood perfectly fill
that nook in your hand, this one’s for you. I
have long fingers, and I played a two-hour
R&B and jazz rehearsal with it. It’s very comfortable and the ebony fretboard is nice and
flat, and I love the frets. It’s excellent for
playing big jazz chords that are spread out,
but takes a little adjustment for Hendrix-style grips. The comfort cut in the back of
the body allows you to keep the guitar close
whether sitting or standing. Strat players will
need to put in some time to adjust to the
weight and balance. It’s a lot of guitar.
The Nitty Gritty
The guitar was set up perfectly right out of
the case. It was set up better than my own
Yamaha. Plugging into a couple of Fender
amps, it got great clean sounds. I was feeling the jazz vibe right away. With the neck
