A Guitar And Gear Support Forum

BatUtilityBelt wrote: ↑Sat Jun 03, 2023 11:30 am
Crazy or not, I just bought another brand new SX Liquid with the exact configuration as one I already have. It's an alder body Candy Apple Red 3 P90 stop tail. I already have that guitar and I like it a lot. In fact, I have another exactly like it, except in Lake Placid Blue, and I like it almost as much (the red just pops a bit more). I paid $200 each for those, and they were steals at that price. But why get another?

I also have a 3rd Liquid, but it's dual humbucker, so a completely different beast. It doesn't count in this conversation. But the blue and red P90 Liquids have had this argument in my head for a while. Which one gets modded, and which stays original? If I closed my eyes, I could not tell them apart by feel or sound. They play exactly the same to my senses. I know that should boil down to "just pick one", but I couldn't. I like the red more only because it's red, I know, silly.

I was minding my own business scrolling Reverb and saw Kurt had dropped the price to $165. "That's just insane" I thought. "Maybe I just overestimate their worth". So I spent a couple hours playing the CAR Liquid I already have, and just loved it. And it brought back the "which one to mod" conundrum, which added a new one - should I consider yet another Liquid to resolve the mod question?

So I gave it some thought. Every time I see a used Liquid, the seller is asking far more than that guitar ever went for new. That doesn't mean they're getting $300 for one, but that might happen at times. I even see GC doing that, despite competing with new listings from Rondo. In the last month, I saw GC list several Liquids for $300, and they're now gone. So I realized if the model ever disappeared from the market, the appreciation for it would only rise. And maybe grabbing another brand new one for $165 is just taking advantage of a steal.

Then I went to the SX site (yes, they have one). They don't even list the Liquid there, so maybe Liquid is a Rondo exclusive. If Kurt stops selling them, they might all dry up. I know I can't find a lefty SJM anywhere, and when I have seen them, the price was very high and they were beaten up badly.

So I thought "If I did mod one right away, what would its mods be?". I think a mint green pick guard would look great on that candy apple red. I prefer two P90s instead of 3, or better yet, 2 tappable P100s, which I already have in a box waiting for a mod. I'd go with a Gibby style 3-way switch instead of the blade. I'd give each pickup its own volume. And finally, I'd put a Duesenberg Les Trem II on it.

Well, that picture in my head made me go press "Buy now".

BatUtilityBelt wrote: ↑Sat Jun 10, 2023 9:10 am Here it is.
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Just after 8:00 pm, UPS emailed a notice the guitar was delivered, left at the front door. Nope, it was not. I started an investigation online, and the site said I had to wait 15 days for the next step. Nope, not doing that.

I got in my car to go around the neighborhood looking for SX guitar shaped boxes on porches, and I saw it just up the block. Those neighbors were just getting home, and they know me, saw the package, and yup, that was it. So this time had a quick happy ending and we had a good talk about UPS and guitars. I brought it home and opened it up to find a pretty decent looking CAR Liquid. On to checking it out.

My other Candy Apple Red Liquid plays and sounds exactly like my Lake Placid Blue Liquid to me, so I expected the same from this one. Nope, not the same. The neck is very noticeably beefier than my other 2 recent Liquids. It's more like my older cream colored dual humbucker Liquid's neck. Interesting, and not bad. I actually prefer a slightly thicker neck, so that's good. Next, I hear the pickups are a bit punchier and hotter, but otherwise sound similar. I check their heights, and that's not it. Maybe they got a few more winds? Slightly stronger magnets? No clue, but they have a bit more body and I like them. If I shield the cavity around these better, I might just love them exactly as they are.

The only issue I could find is a couple of the fret ends were rough - not cut and bleed rough, just pokey. I expect at least this kind of thing at this price point, if not much more. So I took a file to all the fret ends just so they all match, and it's great. I played it for a few hours just enjoying the NGD despite already knowing the model well.

So this is an early assessment and there's time to change my mind, but based on a quick overview, it seems my older CAR Liquid will get the upgrades and this one will remain stock. I have a hard time understanding how it's this good for $165, but it's not worth trying to figure out the conspiracy behind it.

BatUtilityBelt wrote: ↑Tue Jun 13, 2023 4:26 pm Huh. Today Ryan (60 Cycle Hum) is doing a day-1 demo of a Liquid. Hope Kurt is ready for a small Liquid appreciation wave if it goes the way I think...