Monthly Archives: April 2021

Just a quick little video to compare the tonal differences between the Artist STHL which has ceramic pickups (a humbucker in the bridge) vs my 1997 Korean made Fender Squier which has Alnico Pickups (single coil in the bridge).

Volume and tone pots on both guitars are all the way up. Same tuning and 8 gauge strings on both guitars. Exact same clean and slightly dirty settings on my Boss Katana for both guitars, absolutely no post editing.

There are a lot of variables in this video (different pickup heights, different guitars) but yes the vague point of the video was for me to figure out which sounds I liked better (on review I like the Squier neck pickup for clean and a bit of dirty and Artist bridge humbucker for a lot of dirty) so my next potential move might be to look for a single coil humbucker like a Seymour Duncan hot rail, Little ’59 or JB Jr. for the bridge of my Squier and an alnico pickup for the neck of my Artist STHL.

Before and after.

I had to drill new holes to get it to fit but it’s come out looking so great!

As the sun rises.

Got up and had the urge to remove the Artist logo off the STH headstock. On the last Artist guitar the sticker was under the clear coat but on the STH there is no clear coat so I went at it with sandpaper and it’s come out tops! Also took off one string tree and replaced the other with a spare Graph Tech string tree I had lying around. I cleaned up the plastic nut a little too (I noticed the little e string grabbing on big bends), got some graphite on it, rolled the fretboard edges and put on a set of 8 gauge strings.

Also took delivery of a black pickguard in the mail today but sadly it doesn’t fit. Not only are the screw holes in the wrong places but the position of the humbucker cutout is completely off. All good, was a cheap purchase in any case. I thought about painting the existing white pickguard black but considering it’s going to get scratched a lot I figure that’s just not a smart move. I then thought about covering it with black vinyl, but yeah nah. I think I’ll just leave it as is for now.

No gaps.

I’m tempted to take one string tree off, and replace the other with a spare Graph Tech string tree I have lying around.

Brand name pickups on a $159 guitar, amazing!

Skinny Minnie.

The trem block on this guitar is super thin in comparison to the block in my Korean made Squier (the guitar body is thinner too which explains why the guitar is so light!). You get what you pay for though, right?!

We are family.

Video review.

That American made Fender Stratocaster continues to allude me! I bought myself another “cheap” guitar to add to my ever growing sub $500 guitar collection!

Was a bit too dark last night to take photos of my new STHL which arrived yesterday so I just took some photos today.
I bought this guitar on eBay from Artist Guitars as a customer returned guitar for $159.

Earlier today I checked the neck with a straight edge and I’m happy to say it’s straight! The action feels right but I checked it anyways and it’s set nice and low on all strings but the top 2 heavy strings which are a tiny bit higher than the rest (easy adjustment). I checked the intonation too and it was off on 2 strings but again, easy adjustment.

All in all it’s just so much guitar for the money. Really most happy with the neck. It feels great, fret ends are smooth, it’s really thin and I love the smooth satin finish on the back. The guitar is super light too which I appreciate as I play standing up.

I’m just going to play it as is for now, standard tuning (my MIK Squire is tuned a whole step down and my MIJ Squier is in Eb) but I’ve ordered a black lefty scratch plate and when that gets in I’ll change over to 8 gauge strings.

For more information on the STH visit Artist Guitars: https://www.artistguitars.com.au/