Let me tell you something about the chinese factorys, i know someone that works in one of these factorys since 15-16 years back, he is one of very few that have been working there that long, most of the time people works for a year or two and some comes from another factory and work for 6 months and then go back to the factory he/she came from, the one you are ordering the guitar from at Aliexpress is just a random person that makes the order him self at the factory and makes quite alot of money out of it, my friend told me that if i was in china and walked in the factory and made the order my self it would be alot cheaper, maybe not 50% but 25-30% at least. And yes they do have alot of screwups on guitars, my friend took a picture or a room full of guitars that had screwups, maybe 100-200 guitars that was about to be sold as project guitars and/or rebuilt by the factory and eventually sold, because they almost never put a guitar in the trash. Most of the time the one you made your order from wants the guitar very quick, the workers have to work very fast, some factorys have CNC machines but most dont and thats the ones that have most screwups. And one more thing, even if you order your guitar on Aliexpress from the same seller, it does not mean that the guitar is made in the same factory because the seller is just a random guy that have put up a store on Aliexpress. Thanks for a great video and you have some really good points there.. :D
💯 dead on. I found that Ebay is a much better source. They hate the bad feedback and are bound by Ebays return policy. The quality (most times) is much better, and I usually have better communication with the sellers. However you are 💯 correct IYV is killing it! Excellent video brother!
Actually Alie-Exptess Holds the money 💰 for 30 days after you order the product THE SELLER DOESN'T GET PAID UNTIL AFTER YOU RECEIVED THE ORDER.. Additionally if there is a problem you can dispute it and the seller will not receive payment till you are made whole/ satisfied. They are a big promoter of good customer service and satisfaction.
Good to know, i'm waiting on a Chibson SG, bought on E Bay on January 20th lol, BUT the guys communication has been ace, very quick to answer questions, (even with broken English) so no complaints, tracking shows it's now on it's way to me in Scotland so hope to get it in the next week or so.
I ordered from Aliexpress maybe 6 months ago a James Hetfield elk skull ESP copy, actually watch your videos on how to order one, changed the pickups to seymour duncan black winter, changed the tuners which were junk to hipshot locking and change the nut as well, now it's a great guitar the elk graphic is damn cool and the construction is great the only thing I noticed were some sharp frets, I think I might be ordering another one the eet fuk cream explorer and change all of the above as well, but it's a great option for guitars you saw as a kid and always wanted, no complains so far with my Chi ESP
@@seesred327 that's great man they are actually very well built and with all the changes for me personally It's a good option, I highly recommend the black winter pickups I can confirm they are the best pickups I have ever tried (have on other guitars a dimebucker, a Sh5, a dactivator, emg's, het set, and the BW are the best of them all)
@@seesred327 if you wanna go the active way I would recommend the het set I have them on my snakebyte and they are like a mixture of a passive with an active pickup very cool, but the 81 is a classic as well can't go wrong with either of them
I am anticipating the photos to be sent to me today for my IYV custom guitar. I will share with you when they come. I hope they blow me away with the quality and it arrives in one piece.
I love IYV guitars. I bought their Mustang clone with the jazzmaster style trem and it’s an absolute beast! I didn’t know they would do custom guitars at IYV. I would definitely try out a custom guitar through IYV. Thanks for the informative videos! I appreciate your honesty and candid comments in your videos. Keep up the great work!
Man I have a Firefly LPDC style guitar & it blows my mind how nice it is every time I play it, still! I traded it straight up for an Orange Micro Terror I paid a 105 dollars for! & it's not a wrap around style bridge either, Tune O Matic to boot!
I bought quite a few years back and the success rate was probably 50/50. I have some really good ones and some that are not playable no matter what I do. Overall I think the Fender copies were more consistent than any of the Gibson copies. Much like yourself, the first one I received was excellent. The second I order from the same guy and wanted P90s installed. They couldn't grasp that so I ordered it with controls only with no pickup routes (so I could do it myself). The third I ordered from the same guy again. I wanted a JP red LP. The finish was great. Unfortunately its not playable because they planed the high side of the fretboard down to fit the body for some reason (so the fretboard is lobsided compared to the fret inlay blocks). I can't even add a new neck as it wouldn't fit the body (because of the lower horn cut). I also had a Tony Iommi SG made with P90s. There's no neck angle and its quite high off the body. They also made it in a 25.5" scale LOL. The P90 routes look like they were done by 5yo. Its a wall hanger. In the end, I've just bought guitars from reputable makers now for project guitars. A few things I learned along the way: - Just because you use the same seller, doesn't guarantee all guitars will be good - While its possible to customise a guitar from a listing, in my experience it doesn't always turn out how you think. You're better off finding exactly what you want and buy that - It doesn't work out that much cheaper not having parts installed. Just buy the guitar as is with the crappy parts and upgrade when you receive it. At least you know parts can be changed and have some sort of alignment to them - Minor changes are generally okay like having logos covered, custom serial number etc. - Be prepared to do a lot of work on them to have them playable. You're going to have to level fretboards, crown and finish frets, change out pickups, fix or replace nuts etc. If you don't have some luthier skills....forget it. - You may or may not get your money back from places like Aliexpress if theres issues.
Glad to see your using Warmoth necks in your guitar builds, Bald Shredder! I have quite a few custom builds using Warmoth necks and their quality control is top notch! 👍
thx to guys like you no-one can buy a guitar online anymore from an individual due to the fact the market is completely flooded with fakes.. thanks guys. I now only buy full retail from the major brands direct because even the shops are fing peeps.. good job!!
No better quality control than DIY as long as you have the skill set. But if there's a company that can get the specs right and a have fair price, then thats cool too. 🎸
I just purchased a Chibson Lzzy Hale explorer in white. It turned out very nice. Had to do the usual setup to get it playable and now it plays nice, sounds great and looks the part. Machine heads are the worst I've ever seen and won't hold a tune for more than a few minutes. I'm really happy with it for the price which was around $240 US. He didn't want to sell me the Lzzy Hale as he didn't have all the gold parts to make it but managed to get them for me. Not sure if I'll use Aliexpress again. I only use them to buy signature models that I have no chance of owning as originals. There's no other signature model I'm interested in owning now. Great vid and I can see where you're coming from.
I've got a Chingwie with a scalloped neck on the way. Not custom. $165 plus tax. I'm hoping for the usual - a couple high frets and bad tuners. Totally worth it for that neck alone.
ive got a chender strat with a humbucker in the bridge , it has a slight scoop between the 3rd and 9th , so the top e is right on the edge of the fret , i feel your pain lol i liked the green colour tho
They really screwed up with my house! I ordered the door at the front but they missed it out so I had the house turned round so we use the back door instead, but for $150 no big deal.
Hey Shredder, I had the same experience. After watching your program I ordered one. Corresponded with the seller, gave him photos of what I wanted. 3 months go by then the fourth. I received an email that guitar was broken and I got a refund. I tried again with different seller, this time no changes just no logo on headstock. Same thing happened but he said he could start again but more money. Amazon, returns are easy and you get 30 days to try it out.
I got a guitar from them a few years ago just to see what everyone was talking about. When it arrived I could tell the quality was just not there, I adjusted the neck and intonation and it still was not right. Until it fell off a guitar stand and did a face plant. plays like a dream now, there is a dent in the neck Hunbucker and whatever happened the guitar plays so good i have been using it for shows and not one person has noticed its not real.
I guess I'm done with them and didn't even get started. I ordered a guitar and canceled it because of some errors in my info. Tried to reorder this time they didn't like my card. I thought OK I'll get a prepaid card. That didn't work either even after trying to challenge their denial. So I took my money and got a different guitar from my local small time (great people) dealer.
I think some pricing is needed for what you're talking about. Warmoth arcade necks are like $700 Canadian and I bought a guitar with a body I liked for $430 shipped. Sure I have to level and dress frets. Swap pickups and bridge then fix the frietwork, but that's the fun part isn't it. For $700 for a neck I could basically get a to used x series Jackson with full usable hardware so I think we need more context
Btw love you channel, you helped me with the confidence to roll the dice on a guitar. Looks great but NEEDS a dressing and a ton of adjusting. Between that guitar and a kit guitar I built I'll be ready for a full scratch build. Btw bought that cheap ass pickup set you made a video for and put them in that kit guitar. - I'm going stock up in case they go out of business so thanks bud
I'm so distrustful, I only order guitars from Sweetwater, Guitar Center, Muscians friend and Amazon. A friend of mine just ordered a custom shop Les Paul off of (rhymes with seabird) only to find out it was a scam. He got his money back, but it was a pain.
You should be finding some "Austin" guitars... the early 2000's Austin's are pretty darn good. I had a black LP that was pretty sweet. That was my last of my cheapies and I bought it second hand. Normally all my guitars are expensive (most of them $3000+) I couldn't imagine buying something from Ali. All my guitars I played before purchasing except for the 2007 Fender US VG Strat which I traded a crazy reverse iceman style guitar to Scott Grove for.
Seen a couple of videos now of people who want a custom shop style guitar but get the parts from places like Warmouth. Sure, it might be more expensive than high tunaround shop in China, but it will save you literally thousands of dollars on a name branded custom shop instrument. Plus you have all the freedom when it comes to specifications and paint jobs. I've also started doing my own, thing, buying cheaper guitars and modding and couple of assemblies. I'm crap with wood and paint but the rest I've getting the hang of.
I think practically everyone who has some YTube guitar review channel is about done with chibson and Ali. It's funny how not many, aside from a few YTubers who really need promotion and support from anyone, still talk about the non-existent benefits of these cheap knockoff guitars any more. Some people will do anything for content...lol
I don't mind mail ordering guitars- providing returns are easy. even on amazon, no free returns means no sale. I can buy junk at the local pawn shop. I don't need to get unreturnable junk through the mail
I like your idea of doing a lot of the work yourself. Saves you money, hassle and possibly regrets. I barely trust Thomann to not screw up the HB's, and for good reason (yeah they screw up, literally no quality control).
I like my HB (Victory Flying V)....it's a pretty nice guitar and plays well and looks cool. BUT, boy did it have some QC issues. It's only as nice as it is now because I spent more money than what the guitar costs of fixes and upgrades to get it that way. I really like it now, but I won't be buying another HB.
@@klauswigsmith Imo the HB's are pretty good for modding. Change tuners, nut, pickups and bridge, then do a full setup. You will get under half the price of an Ibanez with same parts.
@@olebrumme6356 yeah, I did lots of upgrades to mine, new pots, pick-ups, 3 way switch, Plek and set up. Tuners and nut were fine, so they stayed. After all that, it's better, but still not as good quality/playing/sounding as my two Epiphones ('93 SG 310 and '19 Les Paul Studio)
I kinda understand your logic here. Makes a lot of sense. Maybe you need to get to China to understand what the deal is with these sellers and long as you don’t fully disclose their exact identities. I bet you can find a guide who is familiar and can take you to some of these facilities where you can learn more about the workers, facilities, etc. It could be the Dateline of Chibsons episode - call it Baldline, Chibson Edition! Go crack the case like the Baldlock you are (half kidding, half serious - but it could be your best UA-cam vid ever)! 🎸🕵️♂️ 😂😂😂
I quit after my first and last chibson a cherry burst LP,that I got off aliexpress too, just too easy to get anything you want, but with a bad feeling about it,the wait was way too long, and you just don't know what your going to get, I was already a big IYV fan with 5 of their guitars,glad you found the brand,Vietnamese craftsmanship seems to be a little better,and you can't beat the service, damaged guitars are starting to happen more often during shipping, I will still buy guitar parts off of aliexpress,their knockoff pickups are impressive, but like you I've seen enough.
I'm waiting on my first Chibson, a 61 Les Paul Custom (so it's an early SG), gorgeous cream with gold hardware, three pickups and a maestro vibrola, ordered it on 20th January lol, but tracking shows it's on it's way now, got it off E Bay though, never used AliExpress, expect to have to change the tuners and the pickups but i love messing with guitars, cant wait to get my hands on it.
That's the real Gibson I have. Except it's the reissue from 1986.I bought it in 1989 for $550 and it's been my main guitar ever since. She aged well and looks gorgeous too. More of a yellow color now than the cream. You can see the cream color from when a Kluson broke and replaced with gold Grovers. Good luck with yours and hope you get a good one.
@@ericbitzer5247 Cheers, that sounds great. it did arrive eventually but sadly it had a cracked neck just below the headstock, got in touch with the seller who agreed on a part refund (£100), the crack turned out to be hairline and i just glued it with epoxy glue, spent the £100 on a set of Wilkinson pickups and new strings, it plays superb and stays in tune, nice low action, gorgeous looking thing. No more Chinese guitars though, not worth the risk of arriving damaged.
@@Markycarandbikestuff Wow, that sucks about the crack. I was actually thinking about getting a Chibson. Glad to hear yours plays and sounds great though. A lot of famous Gibsons had repairs. If I do get a Chibson, I hope that they pack it well. A lot of people have been saying the quality of Chinese has gone up dramatically. Still always taking a chance.
@@ericbitzer5247 It arrived in one of those massive polystyrene cases with the yellow tape round it, trouble is the top of the headstock was touching the case and i recon the case fell backwards at some point during shipping, the guitar bounced in the case and that cracked the neck, the quality is great though, the frets are superb and the guitar feels amazing, just a shame about the risk in shipping. The seller was helpful though and quick to respond (Guitarfriend1 who now seems to have disappeared)
IYV are awesome I love my les Paul and 5 string multiscale and only bad thing is there strings suck but once put set of my Dr strings on them they rip, I'm upgrading my Dean 7 string then my next project is a build your own 8 string kit
Wow thats one huge Charvel logo on that copy. I have made many outstanding Charvel star type guitars out of KnE bodies and necks from other well known manufactures. been doing that since 2005 or so. I get an idea of a guitar I want then source the parts. I don't skimp on the quality and buy the best parts I can find. I have the paintwork done at a very well known custom builder because I don't have the skill and equipment to do it. Yes I can paint decently but lack the space to do it. I have done hydro dipping for other people and once for myself but is a pain in the butt to do. I say stop sending money to companies that don't care about their products or customers. I have worked on some AliE guitars for people and there are a lot of fitment issues and bridge location errors. The hardware quality is sub par like the tuners and FR lock nuts. Most issues are fixable and if you replace the hardware they are just OK guitars. Me personally would never buy one from them.
i was wondering if you ever have had an issue with US customs? i recently bought a chickenbacker and have heard any horror stories about guitars getting seized.
I've just seen about 7 or 8 different lefty IYV's on Amazon in Canada marked "temporarily out of stock." There is a Ricky copy- the IRK-300 I will order . Less than $300 CAD delivered? I think YES!
What do you expect? You are paying buidget prices: you are getting budget builders. It's why I waited for the right used Gibson V that fitted my requirements and came at the right used price. Aliexpress is too hit and miss for me. That said, I am not a guitar snob: my gigging guitar is a 2002 Epiphone SG400 Pro and it is all-ends-up amazing! I am not against people buying cheap knock-offs but you have to lower your expectations. Be thankful that you did get some good ones I suppose. On a personal level: it is unethical to buy from these places but that is a deep subject and would take ages to discuss fully: just my opinion! Victor...
I bought a guitar from them it was okay had to change out the fake Floyd Rose on it, it wasn't bad for a hundred and fifty dollars I changed the fake Floyd Rose to a Wilkinson locking trem pick ups weren't that great I don't know I might order from them again because I like experimenting with customizing guitars.
Cool home built guitar, really nice work. I’m starting to do the same thing. Have you ever ordered from Cathy Zhong?.. I just ordered 2 frankenstrat guitars, one with Fender style headstock, and 1 with the Kramer headstock.
Too many hoops for me to jump through. I almost bit on trying one of the chibsons during the pandemic. but decided to buy a use Fender Mustang to play with because I have never owned one. Got it well under a grand and I'm perfectly happy with it. At 66 years old I bought my first short scale. I just want of have fun. Not constantly work on them, ship back and forth, etc. I don't have time for that in my life.
The curiosity grabbed me a few years ago and bought two tele style guitars they were monstrosities. One didn't have a functioning truss rod with a huge bow in the neck. The second I stripped and wasn't convinced it was made of wood sanding it it smelt like some sort of burnt hugh density porous plastic. Oh and the pickups were wired by an ape so all pickups were on all of the time. Lesson learnt. They didn't look like the pictures on there 😂 obviously. Moved on. As you say it's easier to just buy quality parts and usually infinitely better results.
I've often heard that the people who make the fake Chibson guitars on AliExpress, are the people who work in the Epiphone factory over in Indonesia. Idk if they are building the fakes at the factory that they work at, but a lot of the fake Gibsons often have Epiphone parts on them
The paint on that explorer copy on the wall in its upper left hand corner shows it appearing not as flat as it should be, and I have to wonder if its from some kind of light optical illusion or the sanding quality in a factory racing to produce income with high volume sales to compensate for hits to quality construction. A guitar is a guitar if it plays well and has a decent pickup winding and proper magnets to bring on the tone. Machine heads are nothing to swap out, yet even the cheapest ones by today should have sorted out how to get the casting and cnc lathe work like it matters to want to. China should produce tripped out guitars with things in them that are not to be expected from other places, as if to break ground for innovations to suddenly onset as a direct result or either failing miserably with one design, yet hitting it out of the park by the 3rd edition of it. MPE capable malmsteen fretboard, same goes for the pickguard and back and upper area of the neck to trigger automation in effects responding to not only midi, but also from audibly evaluating the incoming signal and producing desired effects landscapes in real time. I think I could make an app for AR glasses that can replace the fretlight guitar. I think china should do it, and keep the arts and sciences as affordable as possible rather than kept behind a wall street paywall. Eventually, it wont be china that makes things, but instead automation on location, boldly going where no affordable spaceship has gone before..
I got mine on DHGATE, got a Les Paul with mother of pearl inlays, ebony fretboard and gold hardware..Its my n1 go to guitar, was great straight out of the box and because it was a 270 quid guitar, i dont feel bad if i scratch it or leave some marks on it...If this was a real gibson, that would of cost me x10 as much if not more and i would probably blow the dust of it...
*I'm guilty of owning dozens of knock-offs made in Korea and China. You know what you're in for when you buy them, but I've been exceptionally lucky.* Of course, this requires significant overhauls. *Assuming the strings are even over the fret wire and the maple in the neck looks good, it's a winner. I still almost always end up sanding the neck significantly thinner and sealing it with thick glaze. Stock pickups are strangely very high quality over the last 15 years, so I rarely swap them but being an electrical/electronics engineer, I install an active circuit I created so virtually any pickup I use performs amazingly and tremendously better than the legendary EMG 81/85 set.* I have owned a couple sets and was incredibly disgusted by how mediocre they in fact are. This led to engineering my own superior circuit. Finally, if it doesn't have a 2-point tremolo, I route a pocket and install one. *I own about a dozen good quality name brand instruments or custom made by a skilled luthier so I get it all too well.* Regardless, even a guitar costing a grand has significant issues I need to resolve so I opted to buy them unbranded for $65 to $200 lol! *Now when it comes to amplifiers and DSP, you really have to pay for the quality no matter whose name is on it.*
Personally, I prefer the DLX Plus line of guitars from Indio, which is sold by Monoprice. They're the place that sells the 5w & 15w tube combos that everybody likes. The Stage Right 15w that's a licensed Laney Cub 12r. I have that 15w amp as well as 5 Indio guitars from Monoprice. They're all PHENOMENAL guitars. That's why I have 5 lol. I started with 1, a gold top LP-style, and it was such a great guitar, I kept buying more. Bought a 2nd LP-style with a burst finish. Bought an ash bodied Tele. Bought a 2nd gold top with P90s. And just got a 335-style last week. Each one plays incredibly well right out of the box. That's because they have the guitars set up at their place in California before theyre shipped to the customer, whether that be me or some store that ordered 50 of them. All 5 were set up perfect. I did nothing to them except play. Monoprice might not have the selection of guitars that IYV or Firefly has but they blow away those Firefly and IYV guitars big time as far as quality is concerned, IMO. They never have any of the issues any other import guitars have. The finish is always spectacular. The frets are level. Ends are finished. Etc... They're INCREDIBLE guitars. At $499, they'd be a steal, IMO. Funny part is they're only $249! The company that mfgs them for Monoprice also makes guitars for Sterling by Music Man, Washburn, Ibanez, Epiphone/Gibson, Fender/Squier, Dean, Aria, Harley Benton at Thomann, and they build the house brand guitars for The Music Store, also in Germany. Those are called J&D Guitars. That's why they're able to offer such good guitars at such affordable prices. That and they dont have a dealer network or anything, which keeps prices down.
I considered one of those AliExpress guitars for a while but ended up going with Monoprice. I was more worried about it either being confiscated by customs or getting broken in transit and bring stuck with a broken guitar that they wouldn't replace. I read multiple reviews where people received guitars with broken necks and the company would want them to pay $150 to ship it back and there's no guarantee you'll get a replacement. People were getting stuck with busted guitars because they weren't willing to pay another $150 on top of the $300 they ready paid with no guarantee.
great film brother! IYV is a great company in my book...korean company with factory in vietnam so this means that i have 5 "kibsons"...IYV ILS-300(4 green LP) and a really sweet "greeny" clone... i did a couple mods like swapping the wires on the neck pup to get the PG outta phase tone plus actually flipped over the neck pup itself for the look...on emerald green number 2 as well...pretty convincing! and it didnt cost no 50grand wooooo!!
Monoprice Is another place that has awesome guitars and some incredibly affordable tube amps that sound great, too. I have 5 of their Indio guitars. They have their guitars built by the place that builds Sterling by Music Man, Ibanez, Washburn, Dean, Aria, Epiphone/Gibson, Squier/Fender, and others I'm forgetting. As well as making guitars for Thomann's Harley Benton line and The Music Store's house brand of guitars, J&D Guitars. Coincidentally, The Music Store is in Germany with Thomann. So they chose a place that makes quality guitars. And they sell direct to consumer so it helps keep the cost down.
Great video! I think you are right and you should get your guitars elsewhere. There are a lot of options now, and it will widen your horizons. Shred forward my friend!
I bought an IYV guitar on Amazon for $134 and the bridge did not match the radius of the neck. The thing was useless. I can't even sell it. I might as well have taken my money and thrown it out the window.
If that's a fixed bridge like a Gibson tone pros you're totally fucked. But if it was a Fender style bridge, where you can raise the saddles, at least you can make it work 😊
Thanks for the update! I got lucky and bought 1 descent guitar from Ali. Seriously hearing you received the wrong color and a maple neck instead of rosewood on a custom order? Well considering they got those wrong and bridge and pick up placements very clearly states they don't have a clue. Just curious was there any value considering the frustration with Ali?
The guitars are good. But I had to do varying amounts of work on each one to make them that way. But now they all sound and play good. I just think IYV is a much better option now.
I just received a copy of the original Slash Gibson custom shop model - You know - The one with the snake inlay all down the neck with the red transparent finish(?) The frets are just HORRIBLE. First of all, they’re scratchy as all hell, secondly, they’re way too small, but most annoyingly of all, they’re gonna need levelled by a luthier to even make the damn thing playable.
Everything is worth its price and its risk. It's obvious that if I go and get an original Gretsch for €3000, I expect it to be absolutely flawless. But I paid €3000 for it. But if you go to a cheap shop, and ask them to make you a Ferrari, you can't expect them to always succeed in the job. Surely there will be customs that do them well, and they aim to sell that stuff there. But if one person starts turning things upside down, demanding that those people start thinking in a very professional way, maintaining prices like that, you shouldn't then complain that things are going badly. AliExpress's motto is that they'll show you cool stuff for cheap, which you'll definitely have to work on with violin making.
Yeah Sir, i can't imagine they make their priority to be ONE OFF custom builds......... i mean brands like Voyoga is it?.....amazon...offer lovely guitars at like $135 etc
They do have a website, but there isn't anything on it about custom orders. To get more info, send an email to Mr. Do inyenvina@gmail.com and tell him the Bald Shredder sent you.
Have you ever bought a guitar and they never shipped it and just kept your money. Because they promise you they will make your guitar and it will take longer than your refund period and your just waiting there and they don't message back. What can you do?
so what was the cost of a custom order compared to just any other guitar you could get from Ali Express? I bought an Eddie relic copy and it was Shit... Was going to return the same day, ended up they gave my $ back and I got to keep the guitar
I ha e dime copy, that's is amazing I got from dh gate, I hate to do so much work on other ones I got though some are horrible haha they play great now
Don't blame you one bit. I'll give several chances, but once I'm done... I'm completely done. I will be looking to custom order, but not until 11/2024. I know I will have gained even more wisdom from you by then. 😁
I feel the biggest lesson I learned here is that you are truly a kindred spirit who loves guitars as much as me and like a Jedi you realize making your own “Axe/Saber” will always yield an “Axe” you are most in “tune” with (pun not intended but unfortunately it’s my near Dad Joke super power… not as cringey as the way people viewed pre-Mamoa era Aqua-Man but sort of close - you guessed it I’ve been Team “Atlantean” inspired super hero since birth… you know the weird kid in class who gets “triggered” on days no homework is assigned and might even be the kid who “reminds” the teacher she/he forgot to assign homework…lol but I too spent $500 on my first custom guitar build but unlike you “Sensei” Bald Shredder I could have “shaved” $120 off by doing the work myself and the guitar sounds like it cost an easy $1500.00 and it’s sublime and it makes no sense the way it feels or sounds except the “old World” Craftsman dedicated to his craft factor is to me true “Magic” you Sir in your obvious love of “all things” guitar are a “treasure” i pray the world never loses (I started as a Keyboardist/electronic musician and excelled and innovated but as someone who lives for all things music listening and creating I ended up doing improv Jazz/Metal/any genre because 40+ years of doing music when you love it shows in expanding skill sets…Kudos (I’m here very humbly to learn due to respect for a true artist… who’s dedication to his craft/learning is evident & clearly sincere and not for money/monetary gain alone or even primarily…!!!
If you hang out in the Wild West, you better be ready to cowboy, Baldino.
Oh I'm ready, or was ready I should say. After dealing with it for several years, I'm ready for retirement.
Ha! Now, ain't that the troof?
The Good Guitar The Bad Guitar and The Ugly Guitar
The Les Paul, the Les Paul & the Les Paul.
Wait, I'm sorry. In this case I suppose it may be called, the Lee Paul!
Let me tell you something about the chinese factorys, i know someone that works in one of these factorys since 15-16 years back, he is one of very few that have been working there that long, most of the time people works for a year or two and some comes from another factory and work for 6 months and then go back to the factory he/she came from, the one you are ordering the guitar from at Aliexpress is just a random person that makes the order him self at the factory and makes quite alot of money out of it, my friend told me that if i was in china and walked in the factory and made the order my self it would be alot cheaper, maybe not 50% but 25-30% at least. And yes they do have alot of screwups on guitars, my friend took a picture or a room full of guitars that had screwups, maybe 100-200 guitars that was about to be sold as project guitars and/or rebuilt by the factory and eventually sold, because they almost never put a guitar in the trash. Most of the time the one you made your order from wants the guitar very quick, the workers have to work very fast, some factorys have CNC machines but most dont and thats the ones that have most screwups. And one more thing, even if you order your guitar on Aliexpress from the same seller, it does not mean that the guitar is made in the same factory because the seller is just a random guy that have put up a store on Aliexpress. Thanks for a great video and you have some really good points there.. :D
Good to know. Thanks!
insightful.. thanks.
Wow so glad u told me this I'll try some where else Thanks
Suspected that's how it worked, thanks for confirming.
I’d never buy a custom chibson, I always ask what’s in stock now and ready to post, ask for photos. And they’ve been absolutely fantastic.
Bro just discovered legitimate guitar brands lol.
💯 dead on. I found that Ebay is a much better source. They hate the bad feedback and are bound by Ebays return policy. The quality (most times) is much better, and I usually have better communication with the sellers.
However you are 💯 correct IYV is killing it! Excellent video brother!
Actually Alie-Exptess Holds the money 💰 for 30 days after you order the product THE SELLER DOESN'T GET PAID UNTIL AFTER YOU RECEIVED THE ORDER.. Additionally if there is a problem you can dispute it and the seller will not receive payment till you are made whole/ satisfied. They are a big promoter of good customer service and satisfaction.
Any sellers u recommend. Really want a bc rich stealth
Good to know, i'm waiting on a Chibson SG, bought on E Bay on January 20th lol, BUT the guys communication has been ace, very quick to answer questions, (even with broken English) so no complaints, tracking shows it's now on it's way to me in Scotland so hope to get it in the next week or so.
I ordered from Aliexpress maybe 6 months ago a James Hetfield elk skull ESP copy, actually watch your videos on how to order one, changed the pickups to seymour duncan black winter, changed the tuners which were junk to hipshot locking and change the nut as well, now it's a great guitar the elk graphic is damn cool and the construction is great the only thing I noticed were some sharp frets, I think I might be ordering another one the eet fuk cream explorer and change all of the above as well, but it's a great option for guitars you saw as a kid and always wanted, no complains so far with my Chi ESP
I just bought the eetfuk explorer. It is actually quite decent, just needs all your changes stated and I'm sure it'll be a great home axe.
@@seesred327 that's great man they are actually very well built and with all the changes for me personally It's a good option, I highly recommend the black winter pickups I can confirm they are the best pickups I have ever tried (have on other guitars a dimebucker, a Sh5, a dactivator, emg's, het set, and the BW are the best of them all)
@@pirerc You wouldnt go an EMG 81/60 combo? That's what I'm thinking of installing.
@@seesred327 if you wanna go the active way I would recommend the het set I have them on my snakebyte and they are like a mixture of a passive with an active pickup very cool, but the 81 is a classic as well can't go wrong with either of them
@@pirerc Thanks for the replies!
I am anticipating the photos to be sent to me today for my IYV custom guitar. I will share with you when they come. I hope they blow me away with the quality and it arrives in one piece.
I highly recommend Musikraft necks over Warmoth, especially if you want like a classic charvel or EVH neck.
I love IYV guitars. I bought their Mustang clone with the jazzmaster style trem and it’s an absolute beast! I didn’t know they would do custom guitars at IYV. I would definitely try out a custom guitar through IYV. Thanks for the informative videos! I appreciate your honesty and candid comments in your videos. Keep up the great work!
Man I have a Firefly LPDC style guitar & it blows my mind how nice it is every time I play it, still! I traded it straight up for an Orange Micro Terror I paid a 105 dollars for! & it's not a wrap around style bridge either, Tune O Matic to boot!
I bought quite a few years back and the success rate was probably 50/50. I have some really good ones and some that are not playable no matter what I do. Overall I think the Fender copies were more consistent than any of the Gibson copies.
Much like yourself, the first one I received was excellent. The second I order from the same guy and wanted P90s installed. They couldn't grasp that so I ordered it with controls only with no pickup routes (so I could do it myself). The third I ordered from the same guy again. I wanted a JP red LP. The finish was great. Unfortunately its not playable because they planed the high side of the fretboard down to fit the body for some reason (so the fretboard is lobsided compared to the fret inlay blocks). I can't even add a new neck as it wouldn't fit the body (because of the lower horn cut).
I also had a Tony Iommi SG made with P90s. There's no neck angle and its quite high off the body. They also made it in a 25.5" scale LOL. The P90 routes look like they were done by 5yo. Its a wall hanger. In the end, I've just bought guitars from reputable makers now for project guitars.
A few things I learned along the way:
- Just because you use the same seller, doesn't guarantee all guitars will be good
- While its possible to customise a guitar from a listing, in my experience it doesn't always turn out how you think. You're better off finding exactly what you want and buy that
- It doesn't work out that much cheaper not having parts installed. Just buy the guitar as is with the crappy parts and upgrade when you receive it. At least you know parts can be changed and have some sort of alignment to them
- Minor changes are generally okay like having logos covered, custom serial number etc.
- Be prepared to do a lot of work on them to have them playable. You're going to have to level fretboards, crown and finish frets, change out pickups, fix or replace nuts etc. If you don't have some luthier skills....forget it.
- You may or may not get your money back from places like Aliexpress if theres issues.
I've had some VERY good looking guitars that didn't play well or sound good
@@chickeee The qualities can be very hit and miss
Glad to see your using Warmoth necks in your guitar builds, Bald Shredder! I have quite a few custom builds using Warmoth necks and their quality control is top notch! 👍
thx to guys like you no-one can buy a guitar online anymore from an individual due to the fact the market is completely flooded with fakes.. thanks guys. I now only buy full retail from the major brands direct because even the shops are fing peeps.. good job!!
🤣🤣🤣
No better quality control than DIY as long as you have the skill set. But if there's a company that can get the specs right and a have fair price, then thats cool too. 🎸
*BTW, you can turn that gloss to matte using some scotch brite type scuffing pad and a wood oil.*
I just purchased a Chibson Lzzy Hale explorer in white. It turned out very nice. Had to do the usual setup to get it playable and now it plays nice, sounds great and looks the part. Machine heads are the worst I've ever seen and won't hold a tune for more than a few minutes. I'm really happy with it for the price which was around $240 US. He didn't want to sell me the Lzzy Hale as he didn't have all the gold parts to make it but managed to get them for me. Not sure if I'll use Aliexpress again. I only use them to buy signature models that I have no chance of owning as originals. There's no other signature model I'm interested in owning now. Great vid and I can see where you're coming from.
Yeah there really aren't any more signature or famous model guitars that I want, so really I'm better off just making my own.
I've got a Chingwie with a scalloped neck on the way. Not custom. $165 plus tax. I'm hoping for the usual - a couple high frets and bad tuners. Totally worth it for that neck alone.
Good deductive reasoning, Richard. I have an IYV custom Klein style order in. Will. let you know how it turns out.
Do a video on one of your custom guitar. Ordering the parts and the build. Start to finish. Thanks for all the videos. Really enjoy them.
Dont worry guitar solos dont exist anymore
ive got a chender strat with a humbucker in the bridge , it has a slight scoop between the 3rd and 9th , so the top e is right on the edge of the fret , i feel your pain lol i liked the green colour tho
They really screwed up with my house! I ordered the door at the front but they missed it out so I had the house turned round so we use the back door instead, but for $150 no big deal.
Hey Shredder, I had the same experience. After watching your program I ordered one. Corresponded with the seller, gave him photos of what I wanted. 3 months go by then the fourth. I received an email that guitar was broken and I got a refund. I tried again with different seller, this time no changes just no logo on headstock. Same thing happened but he said he could start again but more money. Amazon, returns are easy and you get 30 days to try it out.
I got a guitar from them a few years ago just to see what everyone was talking about. When it arrived I could tell the quality was just not there, I adjusted the neck and intonation and it still was not right. Until it fell off a guitar stand and did a face plant. plays like a dream now, there is a dent in the neck Hunbucker and whatever happened the guitar plays so good i have been using it for shows and not one person has noticed its not real.
I guess I'm done with them and didn't even get started. I ordered a guitar and canceled it because of some errors in my info. Tried to reorder this time they didn't like my card. I thought OK I'll get a prepaid card. That didn't work either even after trying to challenge their denial. So I took my money and got a different guitar from my local small time (great people) dealer.
I think some pricing is needed for what you're talking about. Warmoth arcade necks are like $700 Canadian and I bought a guitar with a body I liked for $430 shipped. Sure I have to level and dress frets. Swap pickups and bridge then fix the frietwork, but that's the fun part isn't it.
For $700 for a neck I could basically get a to used x series Jackson with full usable hardware so I think we need more context
The price is going to depend on the neck and the features. The neck on the orange guitar shown was around $225 from Warmoth.
Btw love you channel, you helped me with the confidence to roll the dice on a guitar. Looks great but NEEDS a dressing and a ton of adjusting. Between that guitar and a kit guitar I built I'll be ready for a full scratch build. Btw bought that cheap ass pickup set you made a video for and put them in that kit guitar. - I'm going stock up in case they go out of business so thanks bud
I'm so distrustful, I only order guitars from Sweetwater, Guitar Center, Muscians friend and Amazon. A friend of mine just ordered a custom shop Les Paul off of (rhymes with seabird) only to find out it was a scam. He got his money back, but it was a pain.
Warmouth is another good option for a top quality custom build for a fair price. They can paint as well so all that is really needed is assembly.
Yeah, but for those prices, Warmouth should assemble it for you.
Once you add paint to a Warmoth body, the price starts to shoot way up. I order unpainted bodies from KnE. Top quality and not expensive.
I only buy LP’s off Aliexpress. It seems there are too many quality control problems on anything else for some reason.
All sound points regarding why NOT TO do business with Ali Express! Best of luck with your other deallings Richard!
Thanks!
You should be finding some "Austin" guitars... the early 2000's Austin's are pretty darn good. I had a black LP that was pretty sweet.
That was my last of my cheapies and I bought it second hand. Normally all my guitars are expensive (most of them $3000+) I couldn't imagine buying something from Ali. All my guitars I played before purchasing except for the 2007 Fender US VG Strat which I traded a crazy reverse iceman style guitar to Scott Grove for.
Seen a couple of videos now of people who want a custom shop style guitar but get the parts from places like Warmouth. Sure, it might be more expensive than high tunaround shop in China, but it will save you literally thousands of dollars on a name branded custom shop instrument. Plus you have all the freedom when it comes to specifications and paint jobs.
I've also started doing my own, thing, buying cheaper guitars and modding and couple of assemblies. I'm crap with wood and paint but the rest I've getting the hang of.
I'm not even close to being professional, especially painting, but I love building and working on guitars.
I think practically everyone who has some YTube guitar review channel is about done with chibson and Ali. It's funny how not many, aside from a few YTubers who really need promotion and support from anyone, still talk about the non-existent benefits of these cheap knockoff guitars any more. Some people will do anything for content...lol
Not true, I have yet to order from AliExpress yet
@@BandXshow yet, yet --lol. You should order some writing courses instead
I don't mind mail ordering guitars- providing returns are easy. even on amazon, no free returns means no sale. I can buy junk at the local pawn shop. I don't need to get unreturnable junk through the mail
I like your idea of doing a lot of the work yourself. Saves you money, hassle and possibly regrets. I barely trust Thomann to not screw up the HB's, and for good reason (yeah they screw up, literally no quality control).
Yeah I'm no fan of Thomann.
I like my HB (Victory Flying V)....it's a pretty nice guitar and plays well and looks cool. BUT, boy did it have some QC issues. It's only as nice as it is now because I spent more money than what the guitar costs of fixes and upgrades to get it that way. I really like it now, but I won't be buying another HB.
@@klauswigsmith Imo the HB's are pretty good for modding. Change tuners, nut, pickups and bridge, then do a full setup. You will get under half the price of an Ibanez with same parts.
@@olebrumme6356 yeah, I did lots of upgrades to mine, new pots, pick-ups, 3 way switch, Plek and set up. Tuners and nut were fine, so they stayed.
After all that, it's better, but still not as good quality/playing/sounding as my two Epiphones ('93 SG 310 and '19 Les Paul Studio)
@@klauswigsmith How much did those guitars cost compared to the HB tho?
DUDE! That orange guitar is awesome!!!!! I want it!!!
I kinda understand your logic here. Makes a lot of sense. Maybe you need to get to China to understand what the deal is with these sellers and long as you don’t fully disclose their exact identities. I bet you can find a guide who is familiar and can take you to some of these facilities where you can learn more about the workers, facilities, etc. It could be the Dateline of Chibsons episode - call it Baldline, Chibson Edition! Go crack the case like the Baldlock you are (half kidding, half serious - but it could be your best UA-cam vid ever)! 🎸🕵️♂️ 😂😂😂
Great idea, and I would absolutely love to do that. However that would be pretty expensive. But I hope to visit China one day.
I quit after my first and last chibson a cherry burst LP,that I got off aliexpress too, just too easy to get anything you want, but with a bad feeling about it,the wait was way too long, and you just don't know what your going to get, I was already a big IYV fan with 5 of their guitars,glad you found the brand,Vietnamese craftsmanship seems to be a little better,and you can't beat the service, damaged guitars are starting to happen more often during shipping, I will still buy guitar parts off of aliexpress,their knockoff pickups are impressive, but like you I've seen enough.
Yep. I'll still get pickups and parts.
I'm waiting on my first Chibson, a 61 Les Paul Custom (so it's an early SG), gorgeous cream with gold hardware, three pickups and a maestro vibrola, ordered it on 20th January lol, but tracking shows it's on it's way now, got it off E Bay though, never used AliExpress, expect to have to change the tuners and the pickups but i love messing with guitars, cant wait to get my hands on it.
That's the real Gibson I have. Except it's the reissue from 1986.I bought it in 1989 for $550 and it's been my main guitar ever since. She aged well and looks gorgeous too. More of a yellow color now than the cream. You can see the cream color from when a Kluson broke and replaced with gold Grovers. Good luck with yours and hope you get a good one.
@@ericbitzer5247 Cheers, that sounds great. it did arrive eventually but sadly it had a cracked neck just below the headstock, got in touch with the seller who agreed on a part refund (£100), the crack turned out to be hairline and i just glued it with epoxy glue, spent the £100 on a set of Wilkinson pickups and new strings, it plays superb and stays in tune, nice low action, gorgeous looking thing. No more Chinese guitars though, not worth the risk of arriving damaged.
@@Markycarandbikestuff Wow, that sucks about the crack. I was actually thinking about getting a Chibson. Glad to hear yours plays and sounds great though. A lot of famous Gibsons had repairs. If I do get a Chibson, I hope that they pack it well. A lot of people have been saying the quality of Chinese has gone up dramatically. Still always taking a chance.
@@ericbitzer5247 It arrived in one of those massive polystyrene cases with the yellow tape round it, trouble is the top of the headstock was touching the case and i recon the case fell backwards at some point during shipping, the guitar bounced in the case and that cracked the neck, the quality is great though, the frets are superb and the guitar feels amazing, just a shame about the risk in shipping. The seller was helpful though and quick to respond (Guitarfriend1 who now seems to have disappeared)
Cheaper usually means rolling the dice on QC.
I dig the charvel and strat copy. Killer Custom sig too!!!!!!
IYV are awesome I love my les Paul and 5 string multiscale and only bad thing is there strings suck but once put set of my Dr strings on them they rip, I'm upgrading my Dean 7 string then my next project is a build your own 8 string kit
The strings are always crap on the budget import guitars.
Wow thats one huge Charvel logo on that copy.
I have made many outstanding Charvel star type guitars out of KnE bodies and necks from other well known manufactures.
been doing that since 2005 or so.
I get an idea of a guitar I want then source the parts. I don't skimp on the quality and buy the best parts I can find.
I have the paintwork done at a very well known custom builder because I don't have the skill and equipment to do it.
Yes I can paint decently but lack the space to do it. I have done hydro dipping for other people and once for myself but is a pain in the butt to do.
I say stop sending money to companies that don't care about their products or customers.
I have worked on some AliE guitars for people and there are a lot of fitment issues and bridge location errors.
The hardware quality is sub par like the tuners and FR lock nuts.
Most issues are fixable and if you replace the hardware they are just OK guitars. Me personally would never buy one from them.
yeah I'll change it at some point
@@thebaldshredder A black USA Jackson logo would look good as well.
i was wondering if you ever have had an issue with US customs? i recently bought a chickenbacker and have heard any horror stories about guitars getting seized.
Nope, never had an issue.
@@thebaldshredder yeah my anxiety has being going up lately lol. especially after seing reports of chibsons being seized.
I've just seen about 7 or 8 different lefty IYV's on Amazon in Canada marked "temporarily out of stock." There is a Ricky copy- the IRK-300 I will order . Less than $300 CAD delivered? I think YES!
I could chat with u for hours about AliExpress guitars, issues, dos and don'ts etc... I perfectly know how ur feeling...
What do you expect? You are paying buidget prices: you are getting budget builders. It's why I waited for the right used Gibson V that fitted my requirements and came at the right used price. Aliexpress is too hit and miss for me. That said, I am not a guitar snob: my gigging guitar is a 2002 Epiphone SG400 Pro and it is all-ends-up amazing! I am not against people buying cheap knock-offs but you have to lower your expectations. Be thankful that you did get some good ones I suppose. On a personal level: it is unethical to buy from these places but that is a deep subject and would take ages to discuss fully: just my opinion! Victor...
I bought a guitar from them it was okay had to change out the fake Floyd Rose on it, it wasn't bad for a hundred and fifty dollars I changed the fake Floyd Rose to a Wilkinson locking trem pick ups weren't that great I don't know I might order from them again because I like experimenting with customizing guitars.
Cool home built guitar, really nice work. I’m starting to do the same thing. Have you ever ordered from Cathy Zhong?.. I just ordered 2 frankenstrat guitars, one with Fender style headstock, and 1 with the Kramer headstock.
Thanks. No I haven't.
@@thebaldshredder FYI for you and your viewers Amazon has EVH Frankenstein humbucker for $115, usually $159. I bought 2.
Too many hoops for me to jump through. I almost bit on trying one of the chibsons during the pandemic. but decided to buy a use Fender Mustang to play with because I have never owned one. Got it well under a grand and I'm perfectly happy with it. At 66 years old I bought my first short scale. I just want of have fun. Not constantly work on them, ship back and forth, etc. I don't have time for that in my life.
I used Polaris4music and was blown away of the quality of the guitar! It cost me $321!
The curiosity grabbed me a few years ago and bought two tele style guitars they were monstrosities. One didn't have a functioning truss rod with a huge bow in the neck. The second I stripped and wasn't convinced it was made of wood sanding it it smelt like some sort of burnt hugh density porous plastic. Oh and the pickups were wired by an ape so all pickups were on all of the time. Lesson learnt. They didn't look like the pictures on there 😂 obviously. Moved on. As you say it's easier to just buy quality parts and usually infinitely better results.
I've often heard that the people who make the fake Chibson guitars on AliExpress, are the people who work in the Epiphone factory over in Indonesia. Idk if they are building the fakes at the factory that they work at, but a lot of the fake Gibsons often have Epiphone parts on them
I decided to only buy new guitars from shops. Too many copies out there now and the prices are too high.
I ordered a Rick copy from Ali in 2019. Seller is no longer around. One pickup stopped working within 6 months.
I was thinking of ordering an Ali Express, but no longer after watching this video.
The paint on that explorer copy on the wall in its upper left hand corner shows it appearing not as flat as it should be, and I have to wonder if its from some kind of light optical illusion or the sanding quality in a factory racing to produce income with high volume sales to compensate for hits to quality construction. A guitar is a guitar if it plays well and has a decent pickup winding and proper magnets to bring on the tone. Machine heads are nothing to swap out, yet even the cheapest ones by today should have sorted out how to get the casting and cnc lathe work like it matters to want to.
China should produce tripped out guitars with things in them that are not to be expected from other places, as if to break ground for innovations to suddenly onset as a direct result or either failing miserably with one design, yet hitting it out of the park by the 3rd edition of it.
MPE capable malmsteen fretboard, same goes for the pickguard and back and upper area of the neck to trigger automation in effects responding to not only midi, but also from audibly evaluating the incoming signal and producing desired effects landscapes in real time.
I think I could make an app for AR glasses that can replace the fretlight guitar.
I think china should do it, and keep the arts and sciences as affordable as possible rather than kept behind a wall street paywall.
Eventually, it wont be china that makes things, but instead automation on location, boldly going where no affordable spaceship has gone before..
I got mine on DHGATE, got a Les Paul with mother of pearl inlays, ebony fretboard and gold hardware..Its my n1 go to guitar, was great straight out of the box and because it was a 270 quid guitar, i dont feel bad if i scratch it or leave some marks on it...If this was a real gibson, that would of cost me x10 as much if not more and i would probably blow the dust of it...
*I'm guilty of owning dozens of knock-offs made in Korea and China. You know what you're in for when you buy them, but I've been exceptionally lucky.* Of course, this requires significant overhauls.
*Assuming the strings are even over the fret wire and the maple in the neck looks good, it's a winner. I still almost always end up sanding the neck significantly thinner and sealing it with thick glaze. Stock pickups are strangely very high quality over the last 15 years, so I rarely swap them but being an electrical/electronics engineer, I install an active circuit I created so virtually any pickup I use performs amazingly and tremendously better than the legendary EMG 81/85 set.* I have owned a couple sets and was incredibly disgusted by how mediocre they in fact are. This led to engineering my own superior circuit.
Finally, if it doesn't have a 2-point tremolo, I route a pocket and install one.
*I own about a dozen good quality name brand instruments or custom made by a skilled luthier so I get it all too well.*
Regardless, even a guitar costing a grand has significant issues I need to resolve so I opted to buy them unbranded for $65 to $200 lol! *Now when it comes to amplifiers and DSP, you really have to pay for the quality no matter whose name is on it.*
I assume you watched the CGS channel? Mike over at China/Chinese Guitar Sceptic?
Of course I know Mike. RIP. I narrated one of his last videos for him.
How do you get in contact IYV for custom lol?
Watch my other video on the IYV custom guitar
Personally, I prefer the DLX Plus line of guitars from Indio, which is sold by Monoprice. They're the place that sells the 5w & 15w tube combos that everybody likes. The Stage Right 15w that's a licensed Laney Cub 12r. I have that 15w amp as well as 5 Indio guitars from Monoprice. They're all PHENOMENAL guitars. That's why I have 5 lol. I started with 1, a gold top LP-style, and it was such a great guitar, I kept buying more. Bought a 2nd LP-style with a burst finish. Bought an ash bodied Tele. Bought a 2nd gold top with P90s. And just got a 335-style last week.
Each one plays incredibly well right out of the box. That's because they have the guitars set up at their place in California before theyre shipped to the customer, whether that be me or some store that ordered 50 of them. All 5 were set up perfect. I did nothing to them except play.
Monoprice might not have the selection of guitars that IYV or Firefly has but they blow away those Firefly and IYV guitars big time as far as quality is concerned, IMO. They never have any of the issues any other import guitars have. The finish is always spectacular. The frets are level. Ends are finished. Etc... They're INCREDIBLE guitars. At $499, they'd be a steal, IMO.
Funny part is they're only $249! The company that mfgs them for Monoprice also makes guitars for Sterling by Music Man, Washburn, Ibanez, Epiphone/Gibson, Fender/Squier, Dean, Aria, Harley Benton at Thomann, and they build the house brand guitars for The Music Store, also in Germany. Those are called J&D Guitars. That's why they're able to offer such good guitars at such affordable prices. That and they dont have a dealer network or anything, which keeps prices down.
Wth. They deleted my reply?
I considered one of those AliExpress guitars for a while but ended up going with Monoprice. I was more worried about it either being confiscated by customs or getting broken in transit and bring stuck with a broken guitar that they wouldn't replace.
I read multiple reviews where people received guitars with broken necks and the company would want them to pay $150 to ship it back and there's no guarantee you'll get a replacement. People were getting stuck with busted guitars because they weren't willing to pay another $150 on top of the $300 they ready paid with no guarantee.
I didn't delete anything.
Haven't got guitar but ordered a bridge that was not correct on string spacing had to send back and get refund
great film brother!
IYV is a great company in my book...korean company with factory in vietnam so this means that i have 5 "kibsons"...IYV ILS-300(4 green LP) and a really sweet "greeny" clone...
i did a couple mods like swapping the wires on the neck pup to get the PG outta phase tone plus actually flipped over the neck pup itself for the look...on emerald green number 2 as well...pretty convincing!
and it didnt cost no 50grand wooooo!!
Monoprice Is another place that has awesome guitars and some incredibly affordable tube amps that sound great, too. I have 5 of their Indio guitars. They have their guitars built by the place that builds Sterling by Music Man, Ibanez, Washburn, Dean, Aria, Epiphone/Gibson, Squier/Fender, and others I'm forgetting. As well as making guitars for Thomann's Harley Benton line and The Music Store's house brand of guitars, J&D Guitars. Coincidentally, The Music Store is in Germany with Thomann. So they chose a place that makes quality guitars. And they sell direct to consumer so it helps keep the cost down.
Thanks for taking time out of your day to let us know how to spend our money.
Any time! 😁
Great video Richard, that was a great insight 😀🤘🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
I have a few custom shops here, there is always something wrong! 😭😭😭😭
yep
Bought two off of Ali, other than the super weak pickups that have been good for the money
Have you seen the new Badlands hollow flash guitar ? It’s a HxS and they offer it with a hard tail or FR . It looks pretty rad.
Yes I've seen the pics online. Looks great.
I picked up the IYV semi hollow body PRS style and I like it.
Thank you so much for your videos. They have been so useful! Keep them coming!
Really LMAO you must enjoy complaining
With your tobacco burst les Paul did you get it in that finish cause of the one Steve played on the pyromania tour or was it a coincidence lol
Not a coincidence!
@@thebaldshredder okay I had a feeling it wasn’t a coincidence lol thx for clarifying
Great video! I think you are right and you should get your guitars elsewhere. There are a lot of options now, and it will widen your horizons. Shred forward my friend!
I bought an IYV guitar on Amazon for $134 and the bridge did not match the radius of the neck. The thing was useless. I can't even sell it. I might as well have taken my money and thrown it out the window.
If that's a fixed bridge like a Gibson tone pros you're totally fucked.
But if it was a Fender style bridge, where you can raise the saddles, at least you can make it work 😊
What is the website of IYV guitars?
Thanks for the update! I got lucky and bought 1 descent guitar from Ali. Seriously hearing you received the wrong color and a maple neck instead of rosewood on a custom order? Well considering they got those wrong and bridge and pick up placements very clearly states they don't have a clue. Just curious was there any value considering the frustration with Ali?
The guitars are good. But I had to do varying amounts of work on each one to make them that way. But now they all sound and play good. I just think IYV is a much better option now.
When will you check out solar guitars
I already asked them to send me one, but they weren't interested. Hopefully at some point.
How did you figure out the posts on the charvel guitar were not straight? Did the tremolo arm feel weird? Or the tuning was affected?
It's very obvious just looking at it. And tuning is an issue.
I guess from what he said if you were blind you couldn't see it 😂
Ordered a Steinberger GP-S2 copy at the beginning of May..... still waiting.
I just received a copy of the original Slash Gibson custom shop model - You know - The one with the snake inlay all down the neck with the red transparent finish(?) The frets are just HORRIBLE. First of all, they’re scratchy as all hell, secondly, they’re way too small, but most annoyingly of all, they’re gonna need levelled by a luthier to even make the damn thing playable.
Everything is worth its price and its risk. It's obvious that if I go and get an original Gretsch for €3000, I expect it to be absolutely flawless. But I paid €3000 for it. But if you go to a cheap shop, and ask them to make you a Ferrari, you can't expect them to always succeed in the job. Surely there will be customs that do them well, and they aim to sell that stuff there. But if one person starts turning things upside down, demanding that those people start thinking in a very professional way, maintaining prices like that, you shouldn't then complain that things are going badly. AliExpress's motto is that they'll show you cool stuff for cheap, which you'll definitely have to work on with violin making.
I just ordered DONILS pickups set and an orange Stratbody from Aliexpress.... I love Aliexpress... still 🙂
I'll still use it for parts, pickups, etc. Just not complete custom guitars.
what is the website to coustem make an ivy guitar
Send them an email. Tell them I sent you. inyenvina@gmail.com
are you selling your own guitars that you make? id be interested in buying one if you were selling!
Thanks but none for sale at this time.
@@thebaldshredder if they would ever be, id be the first in line! great work!
Yeah Sir, i can't imagine they make their priority to be ONE OFF custom builds.........
i mean brands like Voyoga is it?.....amazon...offer lovely guitars at like $135 etc
Why don’t you go with squire classic vibe or contemporary series?
Cool 😊 I agree! I'm done with Ali,dgates! All of them! 😊Thanks Shredder
WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THE DEALER ON ALIEXPRESS ?
Becoming one of my favorite UA-cam guitar influencers…!!!
Is there a link for IYV custom build guitars?
They do have a website, but there isn't anything on it about custom orders. To get more info, send an email to Mr. Do inyenvina@gmail.com and tell him the Bald Shredder sent you.
I want to buy my first guitar, a Strat.
AliExpress Fender copy or Harley Benton ST-62? What is better?
Hi, do you have any other guitar you don't need again. I need a guitar
Sawtooth is killing it
Have you ever bought a guitar and they never shipped it and just kept your money. Because they promise you they will make your guitar and it will take longer than your refund period and your just waiting there and they don't message back. What can you do?
That never happened to me.
so what was the cost of a custom order compared to just any other guitar you could get from Ali Express? I bought an Eddie relic copy and it was Shit... Was going to return the same day, ended up they gave my $ back and I got to keep the guitar
The cost is basically the same, but if you want nicer things like a better wood it will add a bit to the price.
Glad I heard this. Save a little more and buy a Wolfe
Appreciate your insights. I can't wait to see the two custom DIY guitars you have coming.
I ha e dime copy, that's is amazing I got from dh gate, I hate to do so much work on other ones I got though some are horrible haha they play great now
Don't blame you one bit. I'll give several chances, but once I'm done... I'm completely done. I will be looking to custom order, but not until 11/2024. I know I will have gained even more wisdom from you by then. 😁
I feel the biggest lesson I learned here is that you are truly a kindred spirit who loves guitars as much as me and like a Jedi you realize making your own “Axe/Saber” will always yield an “Axe” you are most in “tune” with (pun not intended but unfortunately it’s my near Dad Joke super power… not as cringey as the way people viewed pre-Mamoa era Aqua-Man but sort of close - you guessed it I’ve been Team “Atlantean” inspired super hero since birth… you know the weird kid in class who gets “triggered” on days no homework is assigned and might even be the kid who “reminds” the teacher she/he forgot to assign homework…lol but I too spent $500 on my first custom guitar build but unlike you “Sensei” Bald Shredder I could have “shaved” $120 off by doing the work myself and the guitar sounds like it cost an easy $1500.00 and it’s sublime and it makes no sense the way it feels or sounds except the “old World” Craftsman dedicated to his craft factor is to me true “Magic” you Sir in your obvious love of “all things” guitar are a “treasure” i pray the world never loses (I started as a Keyboardist/electronic musician and excelled and innovated but as someone who lives for all things music listening and creating I ended up doing improv Jazz/Metal/any genre because 40+ years of doing music when you love it shows in expanding skill sets…Kudos (I’m here very humbly to learn due to respect for a true artist… who’s dedication to his craft/learning is evident & clearly sincere and not for money/monetary gain alone or even primarily…!!!
Assistant to the regional bald shredder.. should we form an alliance?
How fun, your custom build resembles an orange Holstein
🐂