Known simply as the Signature Series, this line of Yamaha produced electric guitars has become one of the most well known in the recording industry. Each and every single one is designed in coordination with an artist and introduced to the world.
One such version was developed in Hollywood, California with the help of Sammy Hagar. It features a solid body and two humbucker pickups. There is a standard Yamaha neck and the bridge pickup is a Seymore Duncan JB. There are separate volume controls as well as a rosewood fretboard with a Cabo Wabo on the 12th fret.
Wes Borland from Limp Bizkit has also helped to develop a Signature Series Yamaha guitar. While in his earlier years in the recording industry he had an official endorsement with Ibanez, they soon asked him to modify one of his guitars so they could market it which ended the relationship. Through his collaboration with Yamaha he was able to design his own guitar from the ground up which became a Signature Series.
There are also several lines of Signature Series basses such as one poduced with the help of Billy Sheehan. Sheehan is known for his work with such names as David Lee Roth, Mr. Big and Steve Vai. This particular design features a body composed of alder and a neck made of maple. It has 21 frets and Hip Shot detuners. It also comes complete with 2 DiMarzio pickups. Each one of them has their very own output. Since Sheehan prefers bolt-on necks, this particular line does not make use of a through-neck design.
Michael Anthony from Van Halen also has his own Signature Series bass. It uses the neck-through design which is commonplace on the BB series only it has been streamlined. The body too has been smoothed out and features deeper cutaways then the standard models. For pickups, this bass uses an Alinco Split single coil, an Alinco V Soapbar and HipShot detuners.
Even Nathan East who is known for his work with names like Eric Clapton, Phil Collins as well as Stevie Wonder has his own Yamaha Signature Series which is a five-sting design with a double cutaway body made of both maple and alder. It comes with a 24 fret neck composed of maple and mahogny as well as two stacked Alinco humbucker pickups. There is also a bridge pickup that has individual saddles to allow for a better inotation. Featuring several control knobs as well as an equalizer, this Signature Series has a lot of versitality.
The Signature Series are aptly names as such. Each one stars out it life as a dream instrument from a big name in the recording industry. Through the effort and collaboration of the recording artists and Yamaha, this dream becomes a reality. Not only does the musician get their dream instrument, but anyone can too. They are a perfect match of style and functionality making them a highly sought-after instrument by many.
It would not be until 1928 that the very first Epiphone guitar line would be produced. They continued on throughout the next few decades as a leader in the guitar industry until Epi Stathopoulos’s death back in 1943. With his brother in control of the company, it would soon begin to falter due to their lack of managerial skills. Eventually World War II would sink in a final blow and the company would be bought out by their rival, Gibson Guitars.
By the mid-1960’s the Ibanez designs began to follow suit with those of the American’s like Fender and Gibson as a means of staying competative. This was the same era that the first Japanese motorcycles and other japanes made products would become widely available in the the Western World. Because of this the company faced a number of lawsuits for copying the designs of the big name manufacturers and so they chose to begin making their own designs. Ever since the 1960’s every single Ibanez guitar has been designed without any influence from their competitors.
The pick-guard was of a unique design that was developed to allow all of the electronics other then that of the jack plate to be surface mounted for easy access. While the design has gone through a number of changes over the years as a means of improving sound and usability, but many guitarists still prefer the feel of the older designs.
Their most popular electric is the Les Paul which was made popular by Charlie Christian during the earlier years of the 1950s. While producing a popular line, they were not able to stay afloat and by the end of the 1960s Gibson had been consumed by the Norlin Corporation. It was not until 1986 that the name would become well-known once again after the original owners rescued the company and its guitars from certain doom. As a side not, while being named after Les Paul, the guitarist had very little input into its development but rather he was paid to endorse it.
There are many authorized and unauthorized copies of the Gibson guitars available throughout the world. Many guitarists choose to collect the older Gibsons due to their rarity. As with any older guitar, the values of a well-used Gibson electric guitar is greater then that of a new one. Some fanatics will go all the way to completely restore an old Gibson if they happen to come across one somewhere. The company holds a number of firsts in the industry which has allowed them to continue to be a very popular choice for many musicians today.
