Vola guitars in general are are a really great value, and this one is right up there! Guitar link/info: volaguitars.com/ You can use my name (DARRELL) to get a bit of a discount too! Enjoy :)
OK, thanks Darrell. I'm not 100% sure that I've got the correct model selected, because I too get a "not valid" reply for the "DARRELL" code). (UPDATE: My bad when entering the code. Oops.) It's a nice feature of their web site that they provide prices in $CAD for those of us up past 54N. I'll give it another try - pretty sure I have selected that model. Thanks for the great review. I have a 1980 MIJ SuperStrat, all original. Amazing workmanship and attention to detail even then - glad to see that with this one!
That's a nice guitar. Really like the P90 in the neck. Speaking of fair priced MIJ guitars, I'm still surprised that no FGN has been featured on this channel.
I just recently purchased a Vola Vasti with their new modern C profile and have to say the quality along with the fit and finish is every bit as good as my USA made PRS CE24, and my Music Man Cutlass for less than 1/2 the price. Great value for an awesome guitar.
Definitely a value piece from Vola. I really like the idea of the neck positioned P90, and that metallic black with that pick guard and roasted maple neck looks absolutely awesome.
I got a Harley benton fusion 3 for $315 with all of those same specs except different pickup configuration and not the “premium” electronics. And the thing plays and feels like a guitar at this “affordable” $1,100 price point. I could put the most expensive pickups and electronics in the fusion and still barely go over half the amount of the Vola
Very good review, thanks! It is important to highlight the perfect balance between both Pickups and the variety of tones you can get with them, from jazz, fusion and rock. In addition to being a very easy instrument to play, extremely important for playing contemporary techniques
Lol....I love his idea of 'value price'. I've been a gigging, touring, session playing musician for 40 years plus. I currently gig with a 89$ Grote strat that I put 3 generic Alnico pickups in at a whopping 33$ for all 3. And a CXS built Squier with same pickup upgrade. I bought that one at the EZ Pawn fer 60$. 🧐 I guess my idea of 'value,' is a bit different. I'm cool with folks playing pricey axes but I sure wish I'd see just one RU-vid vid where folks were a bit more down to earth on what a professional full time picker actually needs.
Another great review Darrell ! Super playing. I have listened and watched the Vola KJM review you did in the recent past, quite a few times. It was just getting to be too much to take. So I ordered the Vola KJM as I wanted a reasonably light guitar that was versatile. You reviewed the white version, which is my favorite. However, I picked up the black version with the gold hardware...the satin finish reduces the excessive glam factor. Normally black guitars do not appeal to me. What a superbly crafted instrument...so solid and loaded with first rate quality features + the s.s. frets ! Fortunately, I did get a super deal, this guy is a very happy camper. Marty
Free shipping, no taxes at checkout, so yeah...its a deal. Im 70/30 certain people are eventually going to figure out Japanese made guitars are superior to USA built and that theres going to be a shift in pricing but for now, wow. Vola isnt screwing around, and theyre too big to get poached or go broke, so this should make Fender/Gibson/PRS look at what they do for a grand then start adding features (or slashing prices) and value to catch up. The Chinese are fighting it out for the entry level market, now the Japanese have de-pantsed the big brands at the mid range. Competition is good for the consumer. This is good.
Hey Darren, Vola's are sweet. I actually have been sweet on the Tokai Love Rocks myself. I have 2 and I like them as good or better than my 2022 Les Paul standard 60's. Yes another MIJ. The craftsmanship from most Japanese manufacturers is impeccable!.
There's a 311 from Yamaha for half the price. It just substitutes perfectly good Yamaha pups for the Seymour Duncan's in the 611. Both are better value than Darrell's concept of 'value'. The problem with guitar features on YT these days is this level of disconnect with what most people can afford.
Neck is slightly off center from what I see in the video which could result in the high E string be a little close to the fretboard edge. Hard to tell of the bridge was installed off center or the neck pocket off center.
Not that it’s exactly a household name but this is a signature model - back of headstock is shown with the signature and no mention. “Maycown Reichembach”
When one drops the tag "best value" or merely includes the word "value" in describing a guitar model to the guitar buying community, that usually translates to an instrument being somewhere south of 1k.
Darrell is a good, honest man! For those complaining that he says every guitar he reviews is great, that's a half truth. He won't review a guitar that he knows is problematic. So no, not every guitar is good, but he chooses not to waste our time reviewing bad guitars. He chooses to not be toxic in an otherwise toxic world. I tip my hat to that! For well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool, by making his world a little colder. And Darrell is not that kind of fool.
Huh, so it's a Maycown Reichembach signature guitar. It''s ok at best (imo). I do like the P90 in the neck. Had to chuckle over all the comments about that QR code on the headstock.
I really like the look and sound of Vola guitars but the standard 20% (of the price of the guitar) re-stocking fee they charge on returns is the barrier that stops me from buying one. It’s hard to reconcile Vola’s 20% fee when you can pay standard shipping costs or get free returns elsewhere.
2 capacitor tone stack is likely a 0.022uf and something around 0.015/0.010 mark? I noticed the CDE serial number so they're genuine "Sprague" orange drops as Cornell Dublier bought Sprague way back or so I'm lead to believe ✌️
Loved the P90...the split humbucker sounded really harsh to my (admittedly damaged) ears. The clean middle tones were great, but I didn't care for the dirty tones at all...
Stunning guitar, all of my Fenders are Japanese. I've had several Japanese guitars, always really happy with them. However the price point seems a little high, but I guess, as I'm old, quality is remembered long after price has been forgotten 🤔🤔 It looks great quality at a VFM price (if the purchaser isn't a brand snob🤔🤔). Interesting review pointers - thanks 👍💜😊🐍 I thought we were going to hear you play the Edge of Darkness motif 🤔✌️💜👍😊
If you have the olden Japanese Fenders , with the MIJ pickups, those are terrible... They are decent guitars, of course better than their MIM counterparts, but I still can't understand how Fender let the Japanese branch use their own pickups... They have no life to them, and do NO justice to the instrument as a whole...
@@oldschoolfunkster1 very good point 👍 I'm also a lefty so my options can be very limited...but my hats off to Fender for expanding their left handed lineup
NGL I've been eyeing this exact one because of the humbucker & p90 combination. I'm just fearful of ordering a guitar without being able to feel the neck. Since yeah, I do have a specific taste that I absolutely can't stand 😂 And apparently it's widespread.
For a few hundred bucks and some parts shopping I can put together a reasonable version of this. On the other hand, check out Revelation Guitars for " best deal " contention in the $300-500 USD range. Prorietary pickups and tone mods, great players. Guitar Boutique in Bethany Ontario is the only importer in Northern Hemisphere and he will ship. I just visited his store and he has lots of higher priced stock as well. Burney, Heritage and Deusenberg. Tell him I sent you:-)
A “Super Strat” with no locking tremolo as a “best value” at $1,150? Oh Darrell. I appreciate we all need to make a living, but let’s try to stay real.
For a few hundred bucks and some parts shopping I can put together a fairly close version. On the other hand , take a look at Revelation guitars for " best deal out there" contention. Guitar Boutique in Bethany Ontario is sole North American distributor and those guitars beat everyone in that $300-500 USD price range. I just visited him and he has lots of higher priced brands if you want those too. Burney, Heritage and Deusenberg.
Darrell does adverts, not reviews. How else do you explain that every guitar is the best he has ever played? The playthroughs are useful and the points raised are interesting but the conclusions should be taken with a pinch of salt. He's quite open about the sponsorship
It seems nice and all but its not a super strat unless it has a floyd style locking trem. This is just a two point trem standard strat style circa 1980ish. Thats like seeing a triple single coil strat and calling it a fat strat. Words mean stuff. I dont mean to be a jerk about it but come on. You must know by now what super strat means lol
We’re putting too much stock in country of origin here - there’s plenty of better values out there from Korea, Mexico, etc. if we knew a specific builder or even factory that would be one thing but ALL guitar makers in Japan aren’t outright superior than other places
Okay... I'm at @2:27. I'm guessing on the low side it's $900.00, and on the high side, it's $1,300.00. EDIT: Okay... I'm at @3:02. I was wrong. It was smack dab in the middle of what I said.
I'm not sure how a guitar that costs over a thousand is a value guitar considering you can buy a fender for less. I think you may have gone beyond my price range if this is "value"
Because of 3 decades of stagnation and recent Yen weakness, labor costs in Japan are less than half of that in the US. Korea now has hjgher labor costs than Japan
