A Guitar And Gear Support Forum

BatUtilityBelt wrote: ↑Tue Mar 01, 2022 11:59 pm Replaced? Nope. But complemented, sure. There's no such thing as too many guitars, though it's hard to keep them all in the rotation.

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 12:05 am Hehehe

I felt that way as I collected 70+ guitars...

But in the end there's basically only 1 I wouldn't want to live without.

For me, the guitar either does everything you need it to do, or it doesn't.

The rest are just art. Even the 76 Destroyer is really only a prototype for my 82 Kramer set up.

BatUtilityBelt wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 1:59 am

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 12:05 am Hehehe

I felt that way as I collected 70+ guitars...

But in the end there's basically only 1 I wouldn't want to live without.

For me, the guitar either does everything you need it to do, or it doesn't.

The rest are just art. Even the 76 Destroyer is really only a prototype for my 82 Kramer set up.

It really depends on what you're after. There's nothing wrong with having one ideal, but to me, there are many ideals. A Dobro for this, a 000 for that, a Jazzmaster for the other thing, a 12 string for yet another, a sitar for that oddball texture, etc. I love having a wide range, and each guitar just has its sweet spots.

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 3:01 am
Why?

It's chasing superficial goods instead of relevant feelings.

Traditional men are happy eating beans and rice and feeling fed. The youth, on the other hand, need taco bell and McDonald's to be sated. One is wholesome, the other will ruin you.

dabbler wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 6:23 am

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 3:01 am
Why?

It's chasing superficial goods instead of relevant feelings.

Traditional men are happy eating beans and rice and feeling fed. The youth, on the other hand, need taco bell and McDonald's to be sated. One is wholesome, the other will ruin you.

If your musical tastes are wide and varied, you will need more than one guitar. No single guitar does everything well. Diversity is a good thing, in my book.

Different strokes for different folks.

Partscaster wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 7:34 am My Agile AL's (4) are gone, my two Agile AS 2000's I keep.

What I got for LP's are SX Callisto's, and 2018 Gibson Tributes.
The Tributes have no weight relief and both are about 8.5 lbs. They sound good with pup swaps, play well, I might sell them.
The Callisto' STD+ models are all about 8 lbs except the last one which I bought that weighs just over 9lbs.
They have "mahogany" body and neck with full 1/2 inch "maple" cap. Although, they weren't listed with mahog necks or maple caps at the time I bought the most. Kurt or SX has since changed the descriptions to be mostly accurate.
I found that the light STD+ models sound the best to my ears with my vintage style humbucker preferences, and play great. Lively, rich, not too honky. They just happen to be the least expensive of any LP style I've bought.

The last Callisto STD+ I bought weighed just over 9lbs, has a magnificent top. Thats why i bought it. But, it may not sound as lively as the earlier lighter ones from more than a year earlier. Jury is still out on that last one. Eventually I'll whittle down that Callisto herd.

I like light, non weight relieved LP's that arent too mid dominant. Might be that I'm a strat guy long before an LP guy.

toomanycats wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 8:46 am I'm reading the OP's question as something like, "Since the Agile brand by Rondo is no longer the best and/or only option for an inexpensive Les Paul replacement, what has become your new go to in that category?"

A few years ago that would have been Harley Benton. I've also picked up some used Epiphones, as well as other brands that generally fit the Les Paul category, amongst them Dean, Urban, Maestro, Memphis, Epoch, and others.

But the truth is, I don't believe that right now there is a true replacement for the value of an Agile AL circa mid 2010s. Everything has changed.

For the record, my Agiles never replaced anything, and by the same token they were never replaced by anything. I owned real Gibson Les Pauls before I ever owned an Agile, and I own even more Gibsons now. I've never sold any of my Agiles, but that's just me, as I hang on to everything.

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 9:37 am

toomanycats wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 8:46 am I'm reading the OP's question as something like, "Since the Agile brand by Rondo is no longer the best and/or only option for an inexpensive Les Paul replacement, what has become your new go to in that category?"

A few years ago that would have been Harley Benton. I've also picked up some used Epiphones, as well as other brands that generally fit the Les Paul category, amongst them Dean, Urban, Maestro, Memphis, Epoch, and others.

But the truth is, I don't believe that right now there is a true replacement for the value of an Agile AL circa mid 2010s. Everything has changed.

For the record, my Agiles never replaced anything, and by the same token they were never replaced by anything. I owned real Gibson Les Pauls before I ever owned an Agile, and I own even more Gibsons now. I've never sold any of my Agiles, but that's just me, as I hang on to everything.

I still pine for a Gibson because it's a GD Gibson.
As I recall you were fashionably late to the Agile party as well. You caught some great stuff but the era right before was also incredible.

At the time I was incredibly jealous of your Benton Explorer (still got that??) But then I was fortunate to catch a real Ibby Destroyer for $1750. When I can swing it, it does need new frets though.

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 9:34 am

Partscaster wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 7:34 am My Agile AL's (4) are gone, my two Agile AS 2000's I keep.

What I got for LP's are SX Callisto's, and 2018 Gibson Tributes.
The Tributes have no weight relief and both are about 8.5 lbs. They sound good with pup swaps, play well, I might sell them.
The Callisto' STD+ models are all about 8 lbs except the last one which I bought that weighs just over 9lbs.
They have "mahogany" body and neck with full 1/2 inch "maple" cap. Although, they weren't listed with mahog necks or maple caps at the time I bought the most. Kurt or SX has since changed the descriptions to be mostly accurate.
I found that the light STD+ models sound the best to my ears with my vintage style humbucker preferences, and play great. Lively, rich, not too honky. They just happen to be the least expensive of any LP style I've bought.

The last Callisto STD+ I bought weighed just over 9lbs, has a magnificent top. Thats why i bought it. But, it may not sound as lively as the earlier lighter ones from more than a year earlier. Jury is still out on that last one. Eventually I'll whittle down that Callisto herd.

I like light, non weight relieved LP's that arent too mid dominant. Might be that I'm a strat guy long before an LP guy.

Very interesting on both the AS models and the SXs. I found the Agile neck carves to be extremely consistent across multiple guitar bodies, it was a very nice medium C in that era. How do the SX necks compare?

Also same here. Mainly a Strat (okay well, Pacer) guy. My ideal Les Paul is 8.2-8.5 lbs non relieved. I think my Epiphone is heavier, but it's also got a very unique maybe D shaped neck, and it belonged to Derek Jones (given to me by his band mate / my producer), so it stays with me.

honyock wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 12:31 pm ...

I am starting to downsize so more will go out than in. Don't have many Agiles left Harley Benton mid-level stuff had become my insert Futurama Fry "Shutup and take my money" meme here in the past year, but I'm over that I think and GAS is very weak and flame it created within me is nearing extinguishement altogether.

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Tue Mar 01, 2022 9:47 pm How has your collection evolved?

What replaced your Agiles and why?

slowhand84 wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 3:57 pm

PsychoCid wrote: ↑Tue Mar 01, 2022 9:47 pm How has your collection evolved?

What replaced your Agiles and why?

I still have a few Agiles (my custom shop AS-1000 is irreplaceable, far and away the best semihollow I've ever owned; and I love my Agile Epics too with the roasted neck and stainless frets).

I've gotten rid of all of my Agile ALs, they were great guitars and I had 3 at one point but ultimately I just decided I don't need that many LPs. I got a pair of 1980 Matsumoku-made Cortez LP Customs on the cheap recently, sold one and kept the other which was the better of the two. That Cortez, minus the inlay material which is a purely cosmetic thing, is every bit a match for some of the nicest Gibson LP Customs I've ever played. I actually think a lot of the higher end MIJ LP copies blow much of the Gibson stuff out of the water.

Here's my AS-1000, this was a custom order (rosewood fretboard instead of the ebony, and MOP traps instead of the usual blank board or blocks):



And here's the 1980 Cortez LP Custom, which is going to be the LP I keep forever:

dabbler wrote: ↑Wed Mar 02, 2022 5:57 pm @slowhand84

Even stock (and even in crappy pics like this), the AS1000 really is something special!

IMGP2571~2.jpg