NAMM 2018: LSL Instruments NAMM Preview - Mick Mars, XT4DX, Custom Guitar Heaven!

Winter NAMM 2018 Coverage: The Music Zoo is proud to be an authorized LSL Instruments dealer - and we're happy to share their NAMM 2018 Preview! Take a moment to see what's in store from one of our favorite custom builders! And check out the LSL Instruments blog too for even more juicy content!

LSL Instruments NAMM 2018 Preview:

Man has this year gone fast! I can’t believe that it’s been a whole year since my first day on the job here at LSL Instruments. I began here on 01/25/17 on the first day of NAMM 2017 and hit the ground running! Before getting into the post, I’d like to thank Lance and Lisa for trusting me with the companies future and direction starting earlier this year. After 18 years in the business, and a total of 8 years with a few heavy hitting competing builders, I can honestly say that 2017 as Director of Sales and Marketing with LSL Instruments has been the most challenging and rewarding of my entire career.

We’ve done some insane builds! We’ve added a handful of top notch dealers and distributors that will no doubt represent LSL with integrity and commitment to serving our customers here in the USA. We’ve added a quality roster of worldwide distributors that are more than capable to service our international customers in light of new CITES regulations.

We’ve added some of the finest up and coming artists to our roster this year that have done a fantastic job in representing the brand! Many of them will be performing as well!

Friday Performances: Carl Verheyen and Steve Travato!

Saturday Performances:
11AM - Edgard and Matthew of Mr. Giant!
12PM - Sus Vasquez and Edmer Omi! Solo Artists!
1PM - Seth Rosenbloom!
1:30PM - Chris Green Of Tyketto!
2PM - Solo Artist Edmer Omi!
3PM - Art Menezes and Sus Vasquez!!
3:30PM - Kerry 2 Smooth Marshall!
4:00PM - Alex Nolan

What to expect at NAMM 2018?

We have a nice little lineup of custom guitars headed to the show that will easily impress our most die hard fans and traditional players this year! You’ll see the following models at the show for sure!

• Saticoy
• Tbone
• Tbone DX
• Bad Bone 1
• Bad Bone 2
• Big Bone
• XT3
• XT3DX
• Something special that you’ll have to continue reading to know about!

We will have multiple versions of these custom builds available to order right there from the booth, as long as there’s a dealer ready to facilitate the deal on the spot!

We will also have a section of builds that belong to artists and dealers that will be off limits to play but will be available to view and purchase on site. These will be showstoppers and will be displayed separately from demo builds.

These builds will also feature custom options available only on NAMM customs!

What’s New at NAMM?

We are proud to announce that after countless requests for the new model, we will be unveiling our new 24 fret XT4DX at NAMM 2018!! This will no doubt become a gold standard for any aggressive or progressive player with an eye for boutique custom shop quality! Early on in 2017 we began offering our XT series with exotic tops and ultimately brought the “SuperSat” standard up to new levels! The question kept coming up though….. “Can I get this in a 24 fret?” So we decided that we could only say no so many times before it just made sense to offer the new model!

The Music Zoo will be getting one of the first XT4DX guitars - follow this link for more info! Or check out the teaser video below!

 

Mick Mars Tribute Builds

We took our time with this build from start to finish. Hand selecting the right lightweight Alder body was the first step. This thing had to not only look incredible, it had to have tone for days…Nay WEEKS!! We often use some fancy woods for our guitars, however on this one we decided to keep it simple, just like the original. So quartersawn Maple was the only way to go. While we’re here we’d like to tell you about the special details that had to be met in order to get things right:

Lightweight Alder For Superior Tone And Resonance.
Quartersawn Maple For Stability And Vintage Look.
Dark Rosewood Fingerboard. Mick’s Almost Looked Like Ebony In Most Pics!
Dark Tortoise Shell Pickguard To Match The Original.
Mismatched hardware IE: Black Floyd bridge With Chrome Floyd Nut, Chrome Jack Plate, Chrome Pickguard Screws, Black Strap Buttons, Chrome Tuners, Zebra Humbucker, Black Single Coil, Black Humbucker, Parchment Knobs And Switch Tip!
Relic Job To Match The Original, Yet Leave Just Enough Off To Allow The Customer To Rough It Up A Bit Over The Next Few Years Themselves.

These things are marks of dedication to any given build. They show that we aren’t here just to put out something that “looks” cool, but we’re here to build you an incredible tone machine that lines up with its vintage predecessor! That’s what we do!

 

Looking for your next Custom Guitar?

Head to the LSL blog to read more about their process, and you'll be treated to a wealth of neck and body tonewood knowledge! And you can always contact yours truly at The Music Zoo if you're ready for your dream build, and we'll help you make it a reality!

Here's their lowdown on body woods!

Swamp Ash – Love the scooped mids and punchy lows. Not too much top end but nice and clear.

Alder – So classic. Well rounded. Mids that’ll tell on you. Can’t go wrong.
Mahogany – So full and rich. Like Ron Burgundy’s book collection. Great for anything from Jazz to metal when paired with the right neck and pickup combinations.
Korina – Sounds like Mahogany but a completely different look. Screams class!
Black Limba – By far my favorite to look at and is an easy yes if you like the sound of Mahogany.
Walnut – My favorite tone wood of all time!!! Punchy like Rocky Balboa and almost no mids at all. Even more scooped than Swamp Ash. Bright highs too. Gets a little heavy so I would usually pair it with a Figured Walnut top with a weight relieved body.
Koa – Oh Glorious Koa! So expensive but worth every penny! If you were able to splice a walnut tree and mahogany tree together, that’s the closest I could describe Koa in a nutshell. It is so lovely to look at and I haven’t seen a slab I didn’t like!
Pine – So spanky!!! Bluegrass tones anyone?

 

Contact us at 516-626-9292 // sales@themusiczoo.com