LETTERS
Not a Dumb Question at All
Boy, I hope this isn’t the dumbest question
ever – But what’s with the frets on the
guitars Steve Vai is holding on October’s
cover? I see it in other shots, too. I’m
guessing it’s just a visual gag he digs for
photos. What I’m hoping for is that it’s
some insane customization thing he does
for a particular style of his. I’ve never seen
anything like it.
Eric Townsend
Eric wasn’t the only reader that wondered
about the seemingly “crooked” frets on
Steve Vai’s guitars on the cover of our
October 2009 issue. The True Temperament
Fretting System is the brainchild of Swedish
guitarist and inventor Anders Thidell. In a
nutshell, Thidell developed unique cast silicon
bronze Curved Frets™ that actually fine-tune the intonation of every single note on
the guitar without affecting the instrument’s
playability in any way. And Vai isn’t the only
major artist to fall in love with Thidell’s frets;
this month’s featured artist, Dweezil Zappa,
is also a big fan. To learn more about the
True Temperament Fretting System, check
out our video demo from NAMM ’09 on
premierguitar.com, or visit the company’s
website at truetemperament.com.
More Cigar Box Guitars
Thanks for the great article on Cigar Box
Guitars (August 2009). Your story served as
an inspiration for me to go out and build
my own. The cigar box I used had been
sitting in the dirt for years. The neck is of
unknown origin, the bridge is a carriage
bolt with one side of the head ground
down, and all other parts were in my spare
parts box in my garage. Total cost: $0.
And it sounds very good acoustically and
electric. It’s a real “sleeper.” Thanks again!
David Ross
Hey David, and thanks so much for providing
us with a picture of your very own personal
Cigar Box creation. It looks great! When you
think about it, it’s not really that difficult to
do, especially if you’ve got a spare neck and
a pickup or two lying around. There’s a great
scene of Jack White building his own cigar box-type guitar in the movie, This Might Get Loud,
that’s pretty cool, too. Let’s hope that White—
and our article—inspires other gearheads
to go out and build their own unique cigar
box guitars, or anything else that resembles
a guitar, and join this modern-day society of
CBG builders that seems to be growing by the
minute. Thanks again for sharing!
Gimme Some ’Mo Bass
Hi there everyone! I was just checking out
your September 2009 Premier Guitar issue
and the bass on the cover is extremely
similar to my blond Fender Squier bass that
I purchased recently from an acquaintance.
I have other, more expensive, Fender
basses, but I really like playing this one a
lot. Can you give me any information on
it? It is the exact same color and style, but
with Telecaster-style control knobs, black
pickguard, blonde body, and a single split
pickup by the bridge. Is it a throwback to a
’ 51 Fender bass maybe? And please, keep
up the good work … I really love your mag!!
Randy Price
Well Randy, first of all,
thanks so much for
your kind words. We’ll
certainly try and “keep
up the good work.”
Second, it’s kinda
difficult to properly
identify your bass
without seeing it,
but we’ll give it a
shot anyway. Based on the information
you provided, your Squier appears to be
a model from Squier’s Classic Vibe series;
specifically the Classic Vibe Precision bass with
1960s features, including a split, single-coil
pickup with a contoured basswood body. It
could also, however, be a P-bass model from
Squier’s Affinity Series, but without seeing it
we can’t really be sure. Whatever it is, we’re
sure it’s an awesome bass, as more and more
artists—like Green Day’s Mike Dirnt and Fall
Out Boy’s Pete Wentz—are putting their
names behind Squier’s P-bass line with their
own signature models. For more information,
be sure to check out Squier’s website at
squierguitars.com.
Correction: In our “Pimp Your Pedalboard”
article (November 2009), we incorrectly stated
that the Batt-O-Meter was compatible with all
9V devices. It is compatible with most, but not
all. We apologize for the oversight.
Keep those
comments
coming!
Keep those comments coming! Please send your suggestions, gripes, comments and
good words directly to
info@premierguitar.com. You can also send snail mail to
Premier Guitar, Three Research Center, Marion, IA 52302. Please remember
to include your full name. Selected letters may be edited for clarity.
26 PREMIER GUITAR DECEMBER 2009
www.premierguitar.com
