Post by Tony Ravenscroft on Sept 1, 2018 17:10:03 GMT -6
Since they began offering electrics, Washburn has heavily favored dual-humbucker guitars, followed by the "Fat Strat" h-s-s configuration -- of course, these two seem to dominate the marketplace in general.
I still have my first h-s-s guitar, and don't particularly want to part with it. It was my first decent electric with ANY single-coil pickup, and I remember very clearly what a tonal eye-opener it was. But in recent years I've finally made peace with the bridge single, which involved everything from confidence in my playing to getting an amp intended for this pickup (fwiw, a Sunn-factory solid-state Fender). That led to the X-33.
And so I wondered as to how many s-s-s models Washburn has produced, in hopes that Washburn's quality and quirks would let me add an even better Stratoclone to my collection.
Well, that won't be easy: the s-s-s Washie is rarer than I'd have thought. Over a few days, I put together a list -- someday I might even dig through the catalogue PDFs, but if you know of any I've overlooked, feel free to chime in.
I've grouped them by approximate SRP in relation to the X-33, and this also reflects their degree of rarity.
ENTRY LEVEL
BT-3
WS-4
S-1 Sonamaster
JOURNEYMAN
X-33
MG-43
LS-93
LS-103
JB-80
Force 30V 1983-4
Force 3 (G-3) 1984-5
Force G-3 1987-8
S-3X Sonamaster
PRO
MG-113 Performer
MG-230 Special
KC-30
JB-100
JB-100 MIDI
COLLECTOR
X-50 PRO ACD Chris Duarte
N-5
(Others might group the Force models together, as well both JB-100, shrinking the list further, but I felt there's enough build differentiation to keep them combed out.}
That's about it, then -- 19 models since 1978. Half are high-end and/or rare. The upside, I suppose, is that Washburn has pretty much avoided becoming yet another company to mindlessly churn out cheap Strat clones.
I still have my first h-s-s guitar, and don't particularly want to part with it. It was my first decent electric with ANY single-coil pickup, and I remember very clearly what a tonal eye-opener it was. But in recent years I've finally made peace with the bridge single, which involved everything from confidence in my playing to getting an amp intended for this pickup (fwiw, a Sunn-factory solid-state Fender). That led to the X-33.
And so I wondered as to how many s-s-s models Washburn has produced, in hopes that Washburn's quality and quirks would let me add an even better Stratoclone to my collection.
Well, that won't be easy: the s-s-s Washie is rarer than I'd have thought. Over a few days, I put together a list -- someday I might even dig through the catalogue PDFs, but if you know of any I've overlooked, feel free to chime in.
I've grouped them by approximate SRP in relation to the X-33, and this also reflects their degree of rarity.
ENTRY LEVEL
BT-3
WS-4
S-1 Sonamaster
JOURNEYMAN
X-33
MG-43
LS-93
LS-103
JB-80
Force 30V 1983-4
Force 3 (G-3) 1984-5
Force G-3 1987-8
S-3X Sonamaster
PRO
MG-113 Performer
MG-230 Special
KC-30
JB-100
JB-100 MIDI
COLLECTOR
X-50 PRO ACD Chris Duarte
N-5
(Others might group the Force models together, as well both JB-100, shrinking the list further, but I felt there's enough build differentiation to keep them combed out.}
That's about it, then -- 19 models since 1978. Half are high-end and/or rare. The upside, I suppose, is that Washburn has pretty much avoided becoming yet another company to mindlessly churn out cheap Strat clones.
but that does lend some insight into the factory's construction methods.
In no particular order...
