AlanRatcliffe
Finally we have someone selling pickups online locally: www.tonerider.co.za
We've spoken about the Tonerider pickups before, and the agency is now being handled by André Meyer (some of the CT members will know him already from the band Late Final), who also plans to move into other parts, hardware and spares (up to and including necks and bodies) over the next year.
inflames
Great stuff, glad to see the SA boys are seeing the market potential!
FatBoy
Awesome, good to see some local option!
Heath
that is awesome news , specially on the body and neck side ..... and those p90 rebels are looking so good and so is the classic blues ....
DonovanB
Bad news for my wallet, Great news for GAS
clinton
Got these in both my strat and my gibson.
They replaced the 2 MIM and 1 Tex Mex in my strat. Totally blew the tex mex away. Used the Tonerider Pure Vintage.
And they replaced the PAF Pickups in 1994 Gibson Les Paul. Got the Tonerider P90 rEBEL in neck position with coil split on the tone control. Got the Alnico IV in the bridge position.
I like em.
nick
clinton wrote:
Got these in both my strat and my gibson.
They replaced the 2 MIM and 1 Tex Mex in my strat. Totally blew the tex mex away. Used the Tonerider Pure Vintage.
This is what I like to hear, would love to play a strat with the toneriders back to back with my stock MiM PuP's
MikeM
I support this movement! Prices are good!
Manfred-Klose
awesome.
good prices, would like to try em sometime.
deanBailey
Nice, I'm interested to hear how they sound though.
Gearhead
deanBailey wrote:
Nice, I'm interested to hear how they sound though.
clips on www.rebelrelic.com
deanBailey
Aah thanks I check it out, but it wasn't enough :/.
I would need a hands on test or at least a High Gain sample from someone with a heavy right hand.
johnst
I normally just visit and read this very informative guitar forum and apply the tips and tricks discussed here without actually logging in . After reading about Tonerider I visited their website and was very surprised at the quality of the design and the great pictures and specifications but I was even more surprised when I discovered that the store was owned by Andre Meyer, in my view one of the best local guitarists ever. As a result of my experience in dealing with Tonerider I felt compelled to log in this morning and say something.
So I took a chance on Saturday afternoon and purchased a set of black Alnico 4's that are marked down as an introductory offer.
I had a another surprise this morning when my doorbell rang and a courier guy with a yellow overall presented me with my pickups. Well done to Tonerider, great service, excellent packaging and delivered to my door faster than I expected, even more so for this time of year. It’s about time that someone took the initiative and introduce this kind of service to South Africa. I own my own company and I know what the implications are in setting up a business like this, the risks involved and the amounts of money required so all I will say again is well done Tonerider.
I can’t wait to install them into my Ibanez JS100 later on today.
NorioDS
Great post, John, and welcome to the forum.
Mmmm JS100 - me likey ? Please post a clip once they're in - will be cool to hear. Especially if you have a "before" clip.
AlanRatcliffe
You may not post often John (over a year since your last post!), but that's a good one - thanks! Always good to hear positive reports - especially from a local site.
andrewjbryson
+1
JS-100 with Alnico 4's could be very interesting. I will be really keen to hear that as well.
johnst
I don’t normally publish my opinions but since I’ve expressed an initial opinion here I think it’s only fair to finish off with an overview. I have to say that I wouldn’t know how to post a “clip” thus you will have to be satisfied with my lengthy overview below.
I’ve replaced the existing pickups in my JS100. This was a fairly uncomplicated job given that I’m handy with a screw driver, soldering iron, schematics etc. The excellent humbucker wiring schematic downloaded from the Tonerider website was also handy in ensuring that I do the job right.
My initial comparison between the stock Ibanez pickups, the bridge AH2 and the neck AH1, and the Toneriders is very interesting. To my ears the JS100’s original neck pickup overpowered the guitar and the ceramic magnet probably had a lot to do with the fact that it sounded too big, too bassy and full for a companion to the AH2 in the bridge position, which sounded dull, had too much lower mids and had little character. Take note that this is my personal, and therefore non-expert, opinion and must be taken at face value by the experts here.
What I can say about the Tonerider Alnico IV set is that I’m really impressed by the quality look, feel and design of their pickups, and just like the excellent information and pictures on their website, the actual product is as good, if not better.
The Alnico IV set is perfectly balanced and when toggling between neck and bridge there is just the right amount of tonal difference and response for a vintage-style pickup. I like to hear a full range of tone when I play directly into a clean guitar amp and the Toneriders have that. The bridge unit is clear, sparkling, even-sounding and full of lively character without being overbearing and in your face. The neck pickup is perfectly balanced in volume to the bridge, and the difference is tonal rather than that of volume. It has a rich, warm and creamy sound and not overpowering at all when compared to the stock Ibanez neck pickup. When the two are played together the sound is rich sounding and ideal for rhythm, as in The Doobie Brothers.
So, as everyone who ever bought an untested product online will tell you, there is an element of risk involved in not really knowing whether the item that you’re buying blindly will live up the expectation or not. In this case, however, the ease of the transaction procedure, the excellent packaging, the speed of the delivery, the product quality and superb performance translates into an extremely competitive product at a fantastic price.
I want to be careful not to blow the Tonerider trumpet too loud just yet but I can truly say that this set is excellent value for money and has taken my Ibanez JS100 to a new, higher level. I love its new sound, it’s inspiring and full of character.
I hope my opinion will be of value to someone.
Expect no more until 2011.
NorioDS
Thanks John, truly appreciate your review and the trouble you went through posting it ? Catch you again in 2011 ?
chris77
Received mine yesterday and the service was great. Also wanted to go for the Alnico IV's, but Andre suggested the Rocksongs (Alnico III) - so I got them instead. They're for a semi-hollow so I wont be installing them myself. Will post clips asap!
