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Post subject: No TBX in CS EC Strat!! Why?????
Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 9:08 am
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Specs show that the CS Artist EC Stratocaster has a 'master tone' pot
as opposed to the 'TBX' tone pot in the production Artist series guitar.

Among the "subtle'' differences in these two instruments which are not clearly explained, does anyone out there know why the difference in the circuitry??

Are we paying more for less???


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Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 1:46 pm
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EC's own Strats do not have a TBX.
I own one Todd Krause MB Strat done as an exact replication (with two others) of EC's one and it has no TBX and a very slim and narrow satin finish V neck.

Alain


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Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 5:38 pm
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alainlafrance wrote:
EC's own Strats do not have a TBX.
I own one Todd Krause MB Strat done as an exact replication (with two others) of EC's one and it has no TBX and a very slim and narrow satin finish V neck.

Alain


Thanks Alain. Now we're getting somewhere!

I had my suspicions that the CS guitar was closer to the artist's preference but not 'exactly dimed'.

From the Christie's catalog I had learned he wanted his signature off the headstock of his stage guitars. A dealer told me there was a difference in the neck profile of the CS as you described.

In postings elsewhere I had expressed some veiled skepticism regarding the true nature of 'signature' guitars. The descriptions seemed to represent that what we were getting with respect to Clapton was 'as played on stage.' Obviously, it is not.

The thing that's beginning to bug me about Fender, supported by many of the postings in this forum, is a 'things are seldom what they seem'' situation regarding what the company represents to be true.

Can you offer any impressions of what the TBX adds or subtracts from this intrument?

Thanks.

Doc


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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 9:59 am
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Hi Doc

I'm also of the opinion that ,due to the presence of an active Mid Boost the TBX seems superfluous.
I have one on my old EC Strat and I seldom use it.

Regarding EC's Strats the ones offered by the CS are of a better quality and feeling than the production one.
But they are not clones of the ones Eric uses on stage. Although his taste for neck profiles is evoluting as time goes by, the trio masterbuilt by Todd Krause (who is EC's main MasterBuilder) has been made "as if " for EC.
No signature on the back of the headstock and this very slim and narrow neck many people wouldn't like save for that silky feeling.
It was a specific order and I'm not sure too many people would find the neck to their taste.
That's probably why the CS Teambuilt neck is a more "standard" EC neck just as on the GoldLeaf EC Strat.

Alain

Alain


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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:40 am
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alainlafrance wrote:
Hi Doc

I'm also of the opinion that ,due to the presence of an active Mid Boost the TBX seems superfluous.
I have one on my old EC Strat and I seldom use it.

Regarding EC's Strats the ones offered by the CS are of a better quality and feeling than the production one.
But they are not clones of the ones Eric uses on stage. Although his taste for neck profiles is evoluting as time goes by, the trio masterbuilt by Todd Krause (who is EC's main MasterBuilder) has been made "as if " for EC.
No signature on the back of the headstock and this very slim and narrow neck many people wouldn't like save for that silky feeling.
It was a specific order and I'm not sure too many people would find the neck to their taste.
That's probably why the CS Teambuilt neck is a more "standard" EC neck just as on the GoldLeaf EC Strat.

Alain

I had a '93 Clapton which I traded up for my CS the only mods of which were finish, color of hardware, and pickups. They didn't get the neck right the first time. It came in as a '62 "C". I had it sent back for the V-neck which, when finally delivered, did not seem to possess the same aspect as my '93. I love the guitar but I am certain that I would find the neck on yours much more acceptable.

I am of the opinion that the early Claptons, from inception, were closer to 'as if' if I can borrow your usage and, as time passed and demand increased, they paid less attention to detail to get the product out. I may just keep my eyes peeled for an 'oldie'. The one traded was a beauty. Well cared for, and nearly mint. It brought a surprisingly good price towards my CS.

Regarding the TBX, I know that you are aware that it is intended to provide a broader palate for tone coloration and it is likely that Eric does not require such given the nature of his personal amp mods and signal processing which he uses not only in concert but in the studio.

Thanks for your input and keep us up to date with your collection. The Forum seems to really enjoy it.

Doc.

Alain


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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 11:44 am
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I just bought a new Custom Shop Eric Clapton Blackie, and it *seems* to have the TBX control in the center between the master volume and mid-boost control. Is this proper, or am I mistaken on this? The center tone control has a detent at "5". is this a Delta Tone or a TBX??? Thanks for any info on this.: )


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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 1:34 pm
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lespaul666 wrote:
I just bought a new Custom Shop Eric Clapton Blackie, and it *seems* to have the TBX control in the center between the master volume and mid-boost control. Is this proper, or am I mistaken on this? The center tone control has a detent at "5". is this a Delta Tone or a TBX??? Thanks for any info on this.: )


....that is correct!!

Curiouser and curiouser????

Certainly does not reflect what we've been told. I trust the Shop logo is on the back of the headstock and you obtained it from a dealer. If so, you might want to question the variation from specs description and what we just learned from consumer relations, unless this circuit is preferential to you and you don't much care.


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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 1:45 pm
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It was purchased from a Fender dealer. Quite strange, though. It does have the Custom Shop logo and signature on the back of the headstock, as well as the backplate, as well as the CZ followed by 6 digits serial number. proper certificate, case and accesories. Now I am starting to really wonder about this.


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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 2:12 pm
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lespaul666 wrote:
It was purchased from a Fender dealer. Quite strange, though. It does have the Custom Shop logo and signature on the back of the headstock, as well as the backplate, as well as the CZ followed by 6 digits serial number. proper certificate, case and accesories. Now I am starting to really wonder about this.


Saw your query in the Custom Shop section as well. Take it back and have the dealer make some phone calls for you. You can also access consumerrelations@fender.com.

Also, find alainlafrance's post in response to my question about this. He has an 'as built for' in his collection.....that's the 'real deal' guitar.

I think we would all enjoy knowing the resolution of this. It's going to my observation that there are things about this company approaching the
"things are seldom what they seem" stage.

Doc


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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 5:51 pm
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I haven't heard back yet from Fender Customer Service, But a friend of mine has a 2007 Custom Shop EC, that has this Center Detented TBX? control as well. I have a feeling that either that only the MasterBuilt models *exclude* the TBX for the regular tone control, or maybe there's an error on the specs on the Custom Shop website. Any other takers on this one?


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 8:46 pm
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lespaul666 wrote:
I haven't heard back yet from Fender Customer Service, But a friend of mine has a 2007 Custom Shop EC, that has this Center Detented TBX? control as well. I have a feeling that either that only the MasterBuilt models *exclude* the TBX for the regular tone control, or maybe there's an error on the specs on the Custom Shop website. Any other takers on this one?


My last most recent email to Consumer Relations on this is still pending a response. The specs say the CS Artist guitar did not have it and the production Artist did. Now you are speculating that what they sell as CS Artist is Team Built NOT Masterbuilt and that is the difference. It's one lousy pot! What difference could it make in the assembly? That's interesting, and likely, because my CS Strat is TEAM built, is a Clapton platform, and has the TBX. Alalnlafrance has "THE" guitar and his post speaks for itself.

However, this stuff of discussion is positive if it puts the company on its toes. I have no doubt that they are aware that they have an intelligent and informed consumer base.

You should make it clear to them that this is undergoing heavy discussion on the Forum and those of us who are shelling out the big bucks are not necessarily pleased at this point.


Last edited by ZZDoc on Wed Apr 09, 2008 9:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 9:00 pm
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I couldn't agree more...I'm eager to see the response I get from CS on this. I really love the guitar. It's intonation is near perfection, it's a great sounding piece of wood, and plays great. The thing that really makes me wonder, is if these are the same as a production Artist Model, What is really the difference? This is meant with no offense at all. 8)


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 9:08 pm
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lespaul666 wrote:
I couldn't agree more...I'm eager to see the response I get from CS on this. I really love the guitar. It's intonation is near perfection, it's a great sounding piece of wood, and plays great. The thing that really makes me wonder, is if these are the same as a production Artist Model, What is really the difference? This is meant with no offense at all. 8)


Precisely the point I raised here, and elsewhere. I've been writing about it in several areas that I've kind of lost the string.


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Posted: Tue Apr 15, 2008 8:41 am
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zzdoc wrote:
lespaul666 wrote:
I just bought a new Custom Shop Eric Clapton Blackie, and it *seems* to have the TBX control in the center between the master volume and mid-boost control. Is this proper, or am I mistaken on this? The center tone control has a detent at "5". is this a Delta Tone or a TBX??? Thanks for any info on this.: )


....that is correct!!

Curiouser and curiouser????

Certainly does not reflect what we've been told. I trust the Shop logo is on the back of the headstock and you obtained it from a dealer. If so, you might want to question the variation from specs description and what we just learned from consumer relations, unless this circuit is preferential to you and you don't much care.


My Custom Shop Clapton has the Eric signature on the back of the headstock and the Custom Body sticker on the front. That is correct isn't it,
please.


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Posted: Tue Apr 15, 2008 10:24 am
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shaky wrote:
zzdoc wrote:
lespaul666 wrote:
I just bought a new Custom Shop Eric Clapton Blackie, and it *seems* to have the TBX control in the center between the master volume and mid-boost control. Is this proper, or am I mistaken on this? The center tone control has a detent at "5". is this a Delta Tone or a TBX??? Thanks for any info on this.: )


....that is correct!!

Curiouser and curiouser????

Certainly does not reflect what we've been told. I trust the Shop logo is on the back of the headstock and you obtained it from a dealer. If so, you might want to question the variation from specs description and what we just learned from consumer relations, unless this circuit is preferential to you and you don't much care.


My Custom Shop Clapton has the Eric signature on the back of the headstock and the Custom Body sticker on the front. That is correct isn't it,
please.


I don't know how they are verifying this Custom Artist model. Usually the Custom Shop Logo Crest is on the back of the headstock and, with the Clapton, so is the signature. On the production Artist, the signature is on the front of the headstock.

...and, yes, the TBX is the center pot which according to catalog specs, should be a normal tone pot.

Doc


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