Late night musing.

Bucket

I'm really tired and am going to bed in a minute, but I just spent a good few minutes thinking about a guitar I played a few months ago, and it was far from the first time I've thought about this particular instrument.

It was a James Tyler Studio Elite Signature.

https://wildwoodguitars.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/14085_lg4.jpg

I played it in GuitarGuitar in Camden, coming up to a year ago probably - close to the time the shop opened. I don't even really know why I picked it up, I think it's kind of ugly even to this day and it isn't the kind of thing I'd seek out at all. A weird hardtail Strat-shape thing with an ashtray bridge and a Tele bridge pickup, in white blonde with a misshapen tortoiseshell pickguard? Costing around £3k?

Thing is, I did pick it up and I did play it - at which point I didn't want to put it down, ever again if possible. It embodied every quality and characteristic I look for in a guitar, done to perfection. This was when I had my Blackmachine on order, and I remember being so taken with it that I started to wonder if I was doing the right thing by getting the BM. Now I have that guitar, the thought of being without it is painful, but at the time that Tyler just blew my mind and I wished I could have taken it with me - it's a very different proposition to the Blackmachine, but it's one of the few guitars I've ever played that I would put up there with it. I wonder to this day if I could have scraped the money together to buy it, in addition to the Blackmachine. I doubt it, but the thought is still there.

Now I wonder if it was just a particularly good example or if they were all as amazing as that one... I've played other Tylers since that haven't really wowed me, although maybe because I expected them to be as good as that first one. That's when I started to wonder if this guitar was a fluke, a really amazing example the likes of which I may never come across again. Makes me feel a bit sad really.

No idea what I expect anyone to say really. Just one of those "one that got away" stories.

Schnozz

I would want this with a neck humbucker. I really love the Tyler neck profile and I'm probably one of the few that dig the headstock - It's got that 80s session player vibe.

They don't have the machine-made look of a Suhr IMO..

https://tgt11.com/tgt11/tyler-comm.jpg

p90fool

I love Tylers, they make Suhrs and Andersons look safe and apologetic.  
 They're fantastic quality guitars, but with attitude. 

Moe_Zambeek

I like that, it has a strong Robin vibe about it.

Sassafras

Stratele, what's not to like?
My two favourite guitars in one.

mart

Can you identify exactly what you liked in the Tyler? Was it the sounds or feel? Neck profile? Pickup choice? 

If you can figure that out maybe you can reproduce what you liked without having to drop £3k.

Teyeplayer

If a guitar speaks to you and you will be inspired by it, don’t ever question it, pursue it.

Every time I have gone out and bought a guitar because I wanted model X I’ve ended up disappointed. However, when I’ve followed my ears and hands I’ve invariably ended up with the guitar I wasn’t expecting or looking for -it might have similarities to the starting point of my search but is far enough removed to be something else entirely. 

I can’t help you in terms of is it typical of the brand but I can tell you to get your arse down to Camden and try another, if it happens again, get it.

Phil_aka_Pip

Looks like its dad was a Strat and it's mum was a Tele.

Bucket

mart said:

Can you identify exactly what you liked in the Tyler? Was it the sounds or feel? Neck profile? Pickup choice? 

If you can figure that out maybe you can reproduce what you liked without having to drop £3k.

It was something that I suspect would be much harder to reproduce - the resonance and the overall feel of the body and neck. But then also the plugged-in sound. The general setup/playability helped as well.

DrBob

I still regret selling my Tyler, and unfortunately the used market seems to have shot up in the interim so I can’t see myself getting back into the club ever again, best feeling neck I ever held.

mburekenge

I'm sure they are fantastic but i just can't get over the headstock. Fugly.

gordiji

Take the graffiti of the headstock and it looks great. Each to their own !

AlexC

One of the many things I love about this forum is that I learn something from it every single day. I have never, ever heard of a Tyler guitar before, but that looks like a fantastic guitar (colouring aside) and I can imagine that it sounded great and played well. 

Bucket

I played two more Tylers today - Japanese ones. They were fabulous.

Seriously, if you're thinking about buying a Suhr, you should save up a bit more and buy a Tyler. They're head and shoulders better.

DrBob

Bucket said:

I played two more Tylers today - Japanese ones. They were fabulous.

Seriously, if you're thinking about buying a Suhr, you should save up a bit more and buy a Tyler. They're head and shoulders better.

Interesting, so you didn’t perceive any drop in quality or feel on the Japanese models ? 

Bucket

DrBob said:

Bucket said:

I played two more Tylers today - Japanese ones. They were fabulous.

Seriously, if you're thinking about buying a Suhr, you should save up a bit more and buy a Tyler. They're head and shoulders better.

Interesting, so you didn’t perceive any drop in quality or feel on the Japanese models ? 

Barely at all. I suppose at a push, they weren't quite as impressive as the USA ones, but those are exceptional IME.

The Jap ones are easily as good as Suhrs and the like. They're still overseen by the USA guys.

usedtobe

Go on, treat yourself.!