A Flawed Gem : Yamaha Revstar RSS02T Review
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- Опубліковано 13 чер 2024
- Sorry, in the video I said "RSS20" instead of "RSS02T" - it happens.
This is the kind of review I want when I'm interested in a new instrument.
I skipped things like scale length, weight, satin neck, etc, because those have been talked about to death. Instead I show some things other reviews don't, explain how the circuit works, and let you hear the guitar without delay, pedals, added reverb, etc.
Timeline:
00:00 Intro
00:41 Initial Impressions
01:19 The Tuners
01:32 The Pickups and Adjusting Them
02:05 The Tailpiece
02:22 The Knobs and Pots
02:47 Inside the Control Cavity
03:29 The Output Jack
03:52 The Pickguard and What’s Beneath
04:19 The Switch Positions
06:23 The Boost Circuit
07:06 The Playing Demo Begins
09:06 The Boost Demo
10:20 The Treble Bleed Circuit
11:03 Overall Thoughts
12:30 Why a Clean Deluxe Reverb?
“I don’t really do guitar reviews”… proceeds to do one of the best guitar reviews I’ve ever seen.
Probably the best guitar review I’ve ever seen on UA-cam
@@DareBear2099second this! amazing review
❤, great recording and voice.❤
It's a methodical amp tech's take on a guitar. Not a guitarist blathering away like a hyperactive dog.
Totally truthful I had one, the cheaper one.
Independent reviews like this one are harder and harder to be found among all the sponsored stuff. Thanks a lot!!!
So true
.my favorite is when they say "the company sent me this guitar" and then go on to say "I'm not getting paid to do this review"..as if the 700 guitar wasn't enough payment to sway his review(a "review" I just saw)..what?..people really believe this?
If this guy lived close to me. I would go broke. I would have him check,repair,modify everything I own and buy. He’s extremely knowledgeable and does things the right way not the fast/cheap way. Thanks for being on UA-cam !!
For real. I wish I could find a reliable amp guy like this. The guys around here suck
Get your skills up, plenty of info out there. Lyle is the best, learn from him and pass it on!
Nah, you can’t get to him. I’ve been trying for a year or more.
@@jeffmansfield914 Make sense. I guess he only works with people he already knows
Especially since he dislikes pretty much everything. He’d convince you that the sound you liked when you bought it was wrong.
The majority of the guitar gear channels I've seen are just straight-up carnival barkers and I understand their primary objective of helping to move product on behalf of their patrons. But, I've been intrigued by the Revstar and your thorough review was a breath of fresh air for me. Keep it up.
Hands down the most succinct, yet comprehensive, and honest review I've seen of this guitar. Thanks.
I think that the idea of passive boost using transformer is great, and Yamaha's take on sunburst is just brilliant, makes you wonder why anybody has not thought that before.
Godin use something similar as this passive boost, they call it HDR. For at least 20 years in many of their models
I really like the sound of the boost. I would probably prefer it if it left the EQ the same but I think the way it sounds now is still amazing. Spezific but amazing
@@marianocolombatti4942 the fretboard radius is too flat on these- at least for some people
What an unbelievably well-done review
Production quality on your channel has gotten so good. These videos tell a story now, its not pure technical, even tho thats the first reason we come here.
Ahhh wow, so nice to have someone who 1) knows what they are talking about, 2) talks honestly 3) gives you a clear upfront description of their opinion 4) doesn’t waste time with useless specs.
I personally think a video like this is more likely to make me buy a guitar knowing what I am really getting into. The pros he lists are things I know I can count on.
First video of yours I've watched. I really appreciate the no-nonsense opinions and descriptions.
Very thorough review! The in-between positions may not be very pleasant to the ear as the other ones, but IMO in many contexts - e.g a crowded mix, like a big band - those tones can allow the player to cut through better
This guitar is one of my absolute favorites. Was blown away by the sound and the quality for the price. The upper fret access is amazing, and it can go from playing heavy to keeping up with my local jam session. It's my go-to guitar for playing with other people, and probably my most used guitar this year.
have you got the P90 version?
@@Glensullyyes. The P90 version is incredible. It covers everything from chime like cleaned to heavy rock with big mids. One of my best guitar purchases and I didn’t feel like it needed the changes in this video. The only change I made was upgrading the tuners to locking tuners.
I agree with you 100 percent. I hope you have time to review the guitar with new pickups that are on the way. I'm very grateful that you're working on my guitar. Thanks for another great video.
I appreciate your honest opinion on this Yamaha. It was 1 of the 2 choices I had narrowed down to purchase and exactly that model as well. Looking forward to see what your mod will be to it.
Really appreciate the honest & technical review. It’s nice to see a review that appreciates strengths & weaknesses & not just sitting on the fence. Thanks this really helped me 🙏😀👍
Finally, a real review… instead of many other videos which are basically sponsored ‘shopping channels’.
Thanks very much and keep up the great work!
This is one of the best most thorough channels I’ve seen!
Excellent review with the actual sound of the guitar. I appreciate that! Looking forward to a "deeper dive," 'cause a Revstar is high on my next guitar list.
Thank You!
I wish I could like this video twice. Bravo! Superb review!
Best guitar review I’ve seen in years.
Thanks especially for the technical explanation on how this electronics work. You were the only one able to figure it out.
I think that transformer-boost thing is a very good idea. Yamaha probably had in mind a full spectrum boost. They just didn’t think about that transformers do not keep the same frequency spectrum.
The re-wiring sounds great, along with the pickups. Having played a P90 Revstar it was the thing I didn't connect with, so seeing this is golden. Love the channel BTW, always learn something when I watch one of your videos.
this review is such high quality my guy. thanks!
I love this post. I have heard many good things about this guitar and this is the first post that really showed how the switch positions worked. I really don't care for the boost aspect at all, and the neck pickup sounds very full and creamy. I am looking forward to your video on the modifications to see how that bridge pickup can be improved and make it better for normal use. Great post, sir.
I received my Revstar RSS20 last week at an amazing price. The timing of this video is beneficial in terms of the knowledge I gained. Additionally I am looking forward to the mods performed to this unit giving me practical options for the future.
I have that same guitar too. I do like the 4 position. I also use the boost specially when using the bridge pickup. What I love the most about this guitar is the finishing on the neck, that just feels comfortable to me. I took it to a guitar tech 2 days after I bought it, and told him exactly what you said about the pickups and the foam. Excellent video!
Superb revue really useful...its a hell of a guitar and I think this one will be a classic in years to come ...just got that vibe about it.
I tend to agree with most of the guys before me: best guitar review I've ever seen. Thanks for this mate, please never change.
I had this guitar for a while and got it for the #4 position.
It's my favorite setting too, though I didn't expect anything from it. It gives it a more gritty sound that reminds me of a Tele bridge pickup. Great for a cranked amp. I think it's great that they tried something different. But obviously, this means that to some people that don't like different, change or anything that is not what they are used to will dismiss it as "marketing gimmicky" 🙄
I’ve had this exact guitar for about 6 months, and everything that you’ve said rings true to me. I love the guitar, but not the gimmicky stuff. Looking forward to the next video!
I have the exact same guitar. I agree with every single one of your assessments. With the exception of myself liking the pick guard. Good content.
Boy, what a knowledgeable review. I am stunned!
Great review!!
Thorough, very well informed, and fair.
I've owned this same model guitar for about 6 months now.
While I agree with much of your commentary, I do find that tweaking your amp makes a huge difference in creating usable sounds.
The 4th position ESPECIALLY gains usability and character if you pull some of the "mud" away.
You can get a nicely "quacky" sound, once you get your amp dialed in.
Either way, really enjoy your channel, and I'm looking forward to your next video on the Revstar!
Thanks loads!
absolutely my dream guitar!! and your review was amazing!!
Outstanding insight and that playing…..perfect!
Incredible review! What a great-sounding guitar.
You should do guitar reviews, this is the way they all should be done!
I have one of these Revstars and I couldn't agree more regarding the weird mid boost. It's a muddy mess. I'm DEFINITELY looking forward to the upcoming video on how to simplify the convoluted electronic setup. Keep up the exceptionally great work boss! Love it!!! Also interested in what your choice of pots and caps and all that jazz will be.
My understanding is that it's a step up transformer added in series between the pulled out tone knob and the output jack.
The original run had a resistor wired up in parallel that cut the bass from the pickup, so that may be a suitable alternative (or could be a good way to make the passive boost more suited to your taste)
Just bought this exact guitar. Overall I’m very happy with it. Had the same issues with the pickups heights, and it did need some truss and bridge setup. I’ve actually found the #4 position to be kind of a sweet spot imho w 1, 3, & 5 being pretty much what you expect. I’m a total amateur (only 30 yrs or so of playing under my belt) and I’m still learning my way through it, it’s a bit of a beast in my hands. More to come.
how low is the action able to go?
@@arc11honist I’ve never used Jumbo frets before getting the Revstar. I’ve found it a challenge to tweak the precision needed to get the perfect balance of bridge height and neck bow to get the action super tight. It’s not high by most people’s standards, but it’s not paper thin either. If I decide I need it tighter I’ll have to take it for pro-setup. Jumbos are a new learning experience for me; you have fret with precision and use a lighter touch or the intonation goes awry.
@@jklep523 at least once you get used to ligher playing you can lower the action even more without expecting buzz
So, for me, thanks for this enlightening review... it took a year of waiting to get mine(!!!). Fit and finish was as you said. I somewhat bought Into the "tone diversity" but pull the trigger on this because of the p90's and amenities... I thought it was undervalued! Looking forward to the full review... thanks!
Thank you Lyle for this video! I have recently acquired a Revstar RS220 (humbucker model) standard and can definitely agree with those tones on 2 & 4, along with the top warm tones whilst the boost is on. I haven't really tested the boost with loud/distorted volumes yet and will be trying that before making any changes, but I'm curious as to what your change was and will be anticipating your next video!
Great review, very informative, and very nice playing. Thank you.
I have this same guitar. This is the best review I've seen on it! I'm not a fan of the boost either. Never use it. I was hoping that positions 2 and 4 would sound closer to a strat. It doesn't, but that's okay...1, 3, and 5 sound great. Gigged with it straight out of the box. Keeps tune great, plays great, and the frets are perfect. Excellent review, Lyle!
Great reviews, regardless if I disagree with your point about the sound of the 2-4 positions, which sounded great. I mean, the entire thing sounded spectacular. It is a great guitar.
thank you for a honest, and informative guitar review. i like!
I agree WRT all the reviews coming out on the same day the embargo’s are lifted. Same as tech reviews (Apple, Samsung) etc.
i like it when other channels like Ola Englund, Glenn Fricker etc wait for all the hype to die down and do proper reviews.
I’ve learned a lot about amp issues from your channel and love the details on the components, why they’re good or poor quality etc.
Cheers from NZ 😎🎸🤘
I appreciate the clean sound, it's really hard to find videos which don't add at least some drive.
Great review...all positions sounds great to me...and so does the boost. Nice playing too
If you're considering purchasing one of these guitars and can't decide if the professional version is worth the money. I've owned the Japanese (professional) version of the Revstar for about a year now and it's an incredible guitar. However the difference between it and the standard version isn't too big in my opinion. But take in to consideration that the quality between various standard Revstars can differ quite a bit. If you're able to play it first hand and really enjoy the feel, buy it. If you wanna be sure you're getting a great guitar (and have the means to afford it) get the Japanese professional version.
I guess it also depends on how much you actually play whether or not it's worth it. It is called professional for a reason haha.
100% agree with you, i have the Japanese RSP02T in Gold and I absolutely love it, tried a couple of standards in the store but the professional just felt and sounded better to me. I haven’t touch my Gibson ES 335 and my Hotroded Strat since I got the Revstar, is just so perfect! I play Psychedelic/ Rock/ Cumbia style of music. And I need a lot of diversity on my tones, my music goes from clean reverb delay notes to crunchy and velvety power chords, every single sound that comes from my Revstar makes me happy and I love the look
I play for enjoyment so don't need "pro" guitars but have quite a few anyway because I enjoy them. I have had the RSS02T for about 6 months and it is so good I decided NOT to buy the MIJ for almost 3x the price. While it may be 'worth it' in terms of QC and Fit/Finish, what I want is a guitar that feels, plays and sounds great and don't care about the price really. The Revstar Standard is that good.
OTOH, I started on Gretsch with a Indonesian Jet Jr. It was good enough to make me upgrade to the MIJ Players Edition Jet with Dynasonics and the difference there is VERY substantial and was worth the upgrade. Mid-grade Gretsch (Electromatics, etc) is made by the CCP and I won't buy them. The MIJ is a keeper.
I own the wine red P90 version. Love this guitar. I love all the sounds 2 x P90s can give you on this guitar. The frets were perfect out of the box. I had ZERO issues. I did change the pickup covers to chrome and im having a custom Rosewood guard made to replace the cream guard thats currently on there. But i was blown away by this guitar. Good stuff. :-)
When I was a percussionist I always used Yamaha Drum kits. Well made instruments. I love the P-90 sound. They are my favorite pickups.
What a great review! Thank you!
Thanks for the video! I have the Element Revstar. It’s just a 3 position switch with I think what they call a high pass filter on the push pull. I like it as it gives a little extra trebly bite at times. I prefer that switching to the standard ‘s from what I’ve seen. Looking forward to seeing your mods.
I've played a handful of Revstars. They've all been really good. I would compare them to the PRS SE guitars in quality. The little oddities like the boost circuit and treble bleed are just another flavor. Some people seem to like it.
Very informative review. Thanks.
Thanks for the straight forward review. Though all "tone" analysis is subjective, I appreciate the clarity about what works and what doesn't.
Great rundown!
Great review! Instant subscribe, thank you very much!
Excellent review, thanks.
I've got one of these. Very happy with it.
Great review. Looking forward to hearing what your mods will do. I did quite like position 4 - had a little tele character to my ears. I also liked some of the boosted positions, but that’s because I also play a lot of jazz and could imagine this working for a jazz lead tone - perhaps not for chords.
I really love the top to bottom burst pattern and with no pick guard it looks great
Thank you for an honest legit review. No gaslighting…🤘👍☺️
Great review, Thank you!
nice review!
Nice work ❤. I really enjoyed your video. Beautiful
Thanks for showing this guitar - I was really excited to try a Revstar after I lucked upon an old Yamaha "Super Axe" (!) SA 1100, which I found a great value. Based on your colleague's demo, to my ears that boost makes the tone quite muffled nasally. I thought with the boost off it sounded quite nice, and that was my impression from when I finally had a chance to play one at Big Guitar Store last month. So hats off to Yamaha! If I were looking for another guitar it's in contention!
Only recently did I even imagine myself in this world where we buy gear and then either by ourselves or with the help of expert craftspeople set about improving the gear to better serve our needs. For most of my life that seemed like something only mythic rock legends did. Even the thought of painting a guitar gives me pause, let alone opening one up and swapping out its guts!
You’re a good man Lyle.
Glad to know you (over UA-cam) :)
Aloha and Mahalo Lyle. Yamaha has always been underrated for a lot of their fine instructions. I remember Carlos Santana playing that SG Yamaha still make but out of limelight. Yamaha also makes great motorcycles.
Look forward to trying one
Nice Lyle! I think you hit it on the head. And for the money, seems like a great way to get into a P-90 guitar.
I have the green one. It’s one of my favourite guitars. Amazing build quality
Man you have one of the best channels on YT for amp and guitar period! So tired of the endless reviews of anything guitar related that are obviously manufactured promotional BS … damn generic at best . The wiring you did on this in the follow up vid is really next level and the PDF is so thoughtful man! I’m doing a 3 pup tele build right now and you got me wondering how you would incorporate these type of wiring changes to basically the same 1vol 1 tone 5way switch setup? Thanks man for your time and outstanding content Lyle 😎👍
Thank so much! For your Tele I’d either do it like a Strat with one tone for neck and middle and the other tone for bridge or do the Strat switching, master volume, master tone, and the other “tone” knob blends in the neck so you don’t lose bridge+neck.
You could use a Super Switch instead and get other combinations, like middle on the switch is bridge+neck instead of middle pickup, but that gets complicated to wire yourself.
Excellent review. Intelligent.
❤ great vid. One question, what pickup heights did you settle on??? Got this around 3 days ago, so that was a lovely video to watch, I agree play it through clean to get a real idea of the sound the guitar produces, look forward to the follow up!
I have the 1st Gen 620, humbuckers with a simple 3 way switch. The pull knob just dumps some lows (high pass) which does come in handy and is used often. Love the guitar.
Very good review ! Honest about everything in depth !
Appreciate the candid review! It's very difficult to convey how a guitar really sounds, and what is considered pleasant or unpleasant. A close-mic'd recorded guitar+amp pretty much always sound different than what the amp sounds like to our ears in the room. And of course, your viewers are listening through who-knows-what kind of audio system, phone, etc. Would have been nice to hear a Strat or something as a reference into that Deluxe Reverb, with the mic in the same position, so we could more accurately determine how nasally the Yamaha really sounds like, because on my audio system, those 2- and 4-positions weren't that bad.
I have a revstar since a few months. Exact same model but in black. I just love the way she plays and feels and the looks are amazing too! I bought it specifically to play warm, clean-ish tones with nice reverbs and delay and a little bit of break up. The neck and middle position are absolutely perfect for that. It keeps the clarity but it sounds well rounded and still has character.
On the "special" sounds: Neck position + focus/boost gives me a very woody, old school jazz sound which is very usable and nice. The bridge/middle in-between + focus is fun for gainy lead sounds. Comes very close to Brian May on something like Bohemian Rhapsody. It gives you that kind of edge, where everything sounds like there are tons of overtones coming through. But both are very niche sounds though that I rarely use. But they are also not in the way. I mean there are no negatives to having options as long as it doesn't compromise the "main three" sounds!
I enjoyed your honest review, a flawed gem. Yesterday I bought the element model for $300 less. I got what I could afford. It's being shipped from Sweetwater so I'll tell you what I think in a couple of days, thanks my friend.
Great guitar player! Great playing!
You'd be the best guitar reviewer in the world if you continued with these
The body contours fits nicely as well .
All the sounds are useable on my humbucker version - maybe the issue is that how they “translate” to the P90 version was a bit of an afterthought. Grateful that you gave your professional view on the build and hardware, good and not so good!
Position 2 and 4 with highish gain, boost switch in and volume rolled off can do some cool Brian May stuff, plus when live it’s really handy if things are getting squealy with the p90s
Great review
Great video and review Lyle! I finally found one of these locally a couple months back (Swift Blue) and have a Suhr Classic S and Ultra Tele to compare with. I’ve never been a huge fan of the LP and so this fills that category for a P90 guitar with a shorter scale length, etc.
It’s a pretty incredible value for what you get. I wish Fender would offer stainless steel frets in their lower-priced models. To get such a well-made guitar with only a few small flaws is great.
I rarely use the boost either. The only time I do … I remember how much I dislike it and turn it back off immediately. Agree too that positions 2 and 4 aren’t really my thing. I wouldn’t mind changing out the 5-way switch to a more solid 3-way switch. I find that the stock 5-way switch is fairly scratchy & noisy anyway.
From a comfort/playability standpoint, I think it would be a little better if the fretboard edges were slightly rounded. But all in all, a surprisingly great guitar.
Looking forward to your next video!
From the demos I have seen the additional options are a bit more useful on the humbucker equipped models, and simply seems to be a bit of a, lets just leave them in place for the P90 versions.
If they had the 3 positions and a series/parallel option.
Would like to see it with mini-humbuckers though.
Have the RSS02T in black and have found the versatility of this guitar is in the volume control.
With all of the pup configurations and boost, the volume is key to getting great tones
Volume and tone knobs wide open is NOT the way to go with this guitar 😉
The foam beneath the pups definitely needs more.
A precision instrument that stays put once you set it up to your liking.
This is my favorite guitar without vibrato system.
Thanks for this review.
😎✌👍❤🖖
I have the same guitar. I glued a shim of wood in the bridge pickup cavity to raise it up. Thicker foam isn't enough because the screws provided aren't long enough and there isn't enough thread for the screws to be stable otherwise. You'll have a wobbly pickup.
My pickups are both 3/64" from the strings to the poles. That seems high,. but that's actually Gibson's spec for P90 pickup height. They sound good there.
Hi, I have the same P90 Revstar Standard guitar (except mine is blue), and I adore the boost on, especially with treble pickup. Quite humbucker sound, great !
I changed the original pickups for boutique ones (was not necessary, but....) and I added springs that were missing.
I checked the black painting conductivity and on mine, there is NO condictivity at all. So I removed the useless connections between pickups cavities and the volume potentiometer ground. 60 cycles hum remains exactly the same.
I changed the tuners for locking Grovers.
I essentially play blues, on a tube amp. And I love this guitar as much as my US Gibsons (LP Classic and SG Standard). Very easy to play, great sounds, great boost function for crunchy "humbuckerish" tones.
great review!!! I got a Revstar Pro (The Japanese) and I have to say its an impressive guitar (this after trying every les paul), rings beautifully and its very well constructed, i'd say a lifelong guitar, I think the pull switch is good for jazzy tones, not really a fan of the 2&4 positions, but my humbuckers sound incredible through a tube Marshall and it records beautifully
thank you. very well done. most enjoyable.
L a mejor review de esta guitarra!!! gracias!!
¡Muchas gracias!
I've only ever tried the RSS20 (humbucker version), which I use for classic to modern rock tones, and I love the boost function! It's like a built-in tube screamer without the distortion. Position 2 and 4 are very meh with the humbuckers as well, but I guess you could change it to a 3-way if you really don't want those positions.
I have one as well and feel the same. I find it easier to find passable Strat sounds on my Revstar than trying to find passable Les Paul tones on my Strats HSS included. Quality and playability are very good.
Hey, great review and love your channel as an amp tweaker and occasional builder. I have one of these in merlot and really like it. Played this $800 MII vs a 2k MIJ one and liked the MII slightly better overall because of the neck...the MIJ was very nice, though. Agree with the boost, for me the 4 and 5 positions are useable and reminds me of a Gibson varitone ES like BB king often played. A buddy has one and he is a big slide player, he uses one of the boosted positions for slide a lot and it works with his band. This one hangs on the wall and is a go to noodling guitar. Was looking for an P-90 guitar and didn't want a Fender or Gibson and this was the ticket for me. 👍
I have the first iteration of this guitar. Thanks for this info, when it gets a bit older, I have a better idea of what to fix. I totally agree with you for my meagre needs. To me the switch in the neck position the sound is lovely and smooth, the bridge has character and the middle has a nice mix of them both and I'm not interested in the push-pull.
Picked up this exact same model a couple months ago when it became back in stock. Sweetwater had the pickups adjusted right so I didn't have that issue on mine.
Been jonesing for one of these for awhile now. Will be interested in how you modify the electronics.
Thanks for this review. My guitar playing friends and myself don't like the tone of stainless steel frets when using distorted or overdriven amp settings...As the luthiers at Ronin Guitars put it, there is an un-equable "zing" in the upper frequencies with stainless steel frets. I prefer the tone of classic and time proven nickel silver frets.
excellent vid cant wait for the mud pot upgrade 😂 I'll definitely be trying it as I hate the pull pot🤟😎🎸