Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

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Axeman52
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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by Axeman52 » Mon Aug 10, 2015 11:59 am

Well, today I managed to get my hands on a tobacco sunburst 1979 Yamaha SG1000 - Awesome guitar. Needs a little bit of TLC, but I can already tell this is a superb guitar. It really sings - especially with the neck pickup with the tone backed off a little - one of the sweetest "woman tones" i've ever been able to get out of any guitar.
"Say what you wish in abuse of me, for my silence towards the idiot is indeed an answer. I am not at a loss for a response but rather, it does not befit the lion to answer the dogs." - Imam al-Shafi'i

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by cestlamort » Mon Aug 10, 2015 2:06 pm

A former bandmate had one (SG1500) and I begged her to give me first dibs before she sold it and... she sold it (albeit 5+ years later). Great guitars, everything I'd want from a Les Paul, but cooler somehow. They seem to be getting more expensive by the minute (thank you, internet!)

Flat radius (if I remember right) and heavy. (No, really: HEAVY. Probably heavy enough that I'm glad I didn't get it. Or my old back is glad at least).

Were they much more common in the UK than the US? I can't think of any notable US people playing them back in the day. (Well, Santana, I suppose. And Jon Fine from Bitch Magnet, as I just read in his "Your Band Sucks" memoir).

Decoding the models:
SG = Solid guitar (?)
SBG = Solid body guitar (?). Used after Gibson gave them some legal trouble over the SG trademark
SA = Semi-acoustic (?)

Basically, the higher the model number, the fancier the guitar. The SG-2000 model has the sustainer.

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by eggwheat » Mon Aug 10, 2015 2:39 pm

I was selling my 'spare' '78 SG1000... Now im not..it's too good!

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by Axeman52 » Mon Aug 10, 2015 3:08 pm

cestlamort wrote:Flat radius (if I remember right) and heavy. (No, really: HEAVY. Probably heavy enough that I'm glad I didn't get it. Or my old back is glad at least).

Were they much more common in the UK than the US? I can't think of any notable US people playing them back in the day.
Yeah, my SG1000 has a very flat radius. And is heavy. I'm not sure if it's as heavy as my Hagstrom Super Swede from the same year, though...

It certainly seems like japanese guitars that were derivative of the american designs were more prominent in the UK than the US in the late '70s, and I think it has something to do with them just generally being more affordable and readily available than american guitars in the UK at the time. Plus they usually had extra switching options which a typical Les Paul or Stratocaster didn't have ;)
"Say what you wish in abuse of me, for my silence towards the idiot is indeed an answer. I am not at a loss for a response but rather, it does not befit the lion to answer the dogs." - Imam al-Shafi'i

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by stevejamsecono » Mon Aug 10, 2015 8:12 pm

They have been popping up a bit in price lately, but good deals still to be had. I've noticed a few on Reverb and Rinkya that I've had trouble keeping my eyes off of. One of the days... :fp:
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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by Axeman52 » Tue Aug 18, 2015 4:10 am

Obligatory eye candy:

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One thing I particularly like about Yamaha SGs is that the tonal difference between the two pickups is somewhat exaggerated compared to a les paul somehow - the neck pickup is thicker and creamier, the bridge pickup is brighter and chunkier... And the combination of the two is an absolutely huge sound.
"Say what you wish in abuse of me, for my silence towards the idiot is indeed an answer. I am not at a loss for a response but rather, it does not befit the lion to answer the dogs." - Imam al-Shafi'i

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by starflower » Wed Aug 19, 2015 1:55 am

I agree with the part about pickups sounding different enough from what you'd expect from theoretically a 10lb LP ;D though on the 2009 SG1000 I had specifically bought for the year of touring I did with veteran Korean pop artist Lee Seung Hwan in 2011, I most of all liked the fat(!) tones I was getting when the neck pickup was split. A simply durable, excellent sustaining guitar, it had a dozen usable tones and is in retrospect probably the guitar I most regret selling.


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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by Axeman52 » Wed Aug 19, 2015 4:11 am

starflower wrote:I most of all liked the fat(!) tones I was getting when the neck pickup was split.
Oh yeah, the split neck pickup sound always surprises me - it seems to retain much more of the inherent 'fatness' in the sound than people tend to expect from a split humbucker. This led me to believe my push/push tone pot wiring had been modded for series/parallel switching at first.
"Say what you wish in abuse of me, for my silence towards the idiot is indeed an answer. I am not at a loss for a response but rather, it does not befit the lion to answer the dogs." - Imam al-Shafi'i

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by stevejamsecono » Wed Aug 19, 2015 7:17 am

starflower wrote:I agree with the part about pickups sounding different enough from what you'd expect from theoretically a 10lb LP though on the 2009 SG1000 I had specifically bought for the year of touring I did with veteran Korean pop artist Lee Seung Hwan in 2011, I most of all liked the fat(!) tones I was getting when the neck pickup was split. A simply durable, excellent sustaining guitar, it had a dozen usable tones and is in retrospect probably the guitar I most regret selling.


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That's pretty cool that you got to do that! And oof, 10 pounds! I think my Studio Lord is like... 9 and change?

I just got the go-ahead from my girlfriend to get one with my tax return early next year, so look out for a NGD thread in about 6 months ::)
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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by empyrean » Wed Aug 19, 2015 7:54 am

My boy John has been playing his SG2000 almost exclusively as of late according to some interviews I read. I think it's his love of Marr that sparked it. Still, he and Marr are going to make these prices sky rocket.

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by eggwheat » Wed Aug 19, 2015 2:55 pm

Nope, John McGeoch is the reason they're both playing them... And both of them tried to buy John McGeochs SG1000 from me that I own.(I mentioned it 2nd post in)

I agree though price rises are inevitable as the 'vintage' ones are way underpriced..the 70's ones piss on the newer ones, they really do...nothing like the originals in quality..from everything to the woods to the electronics parts.

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by empyrean » Wed Aug 19, 2015 3:26 pm

Yeah, you're totally right, just read over that interview again, it was all John McGeoch. Neat story of yours, must have missed it on the quick read-through before.

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by stevejamsecono » Thu Aug 20, 2015 3:36 am

eggwheat wrote:Nope, John McGeoch is the reason they're both playing them... And both of them tried to buy John McGeochs SG1000 from me that I own.(I mentioned it 2nd post in)

I agree though price rises are inevitable as the 'vintage' ones are way underpriced..the 70's ones piss on the newer ones, they really do...nothing like the originals in quality..from everything to the woods to the electronics parts.
Ahhhh John. :-* May he rest in peace.

Just got permission from the missus to track one of these down after I pay off my CC debt in March. That's around the time the tax return comes in, so should give me more than adequate funding for it. I'm so excited!

I'm kind of surprised that i keep hearing that the SG1000s are so heavy. My SL isn't really that bad, and with the added cutaway and lack of brass sustain block of the 2000s, I feel like they shouldn't be? Am I missing something?
And you find out life isn't like that
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Why the world is your oyster but your future's a clam

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by shadowplay » Thu Aug 20, 2015 3:53 am

eggwheat wrote:Nope, John McGeoch is the reason they're both playing them... And both of them tried to buy John McGeochs SG1000 from me that I own.(I mentioned it 2nd post in)

I agree though price rises are inevitable as the 'vintage' ones are way underpriced..the 70's ones piss on the newer ones, they really do...nothing like the originals in quality..from everything to the woods to the electronics parts.
That was a toe curling episode.

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Re: Yamaha SG(2000,1000,etc.) Appreciation Thread

Post by Axeman52 » Thu Aug 20, 2015 7:20 am

stevejamsecono wrote:I'm kind of surprised that i keep hearing that the SG1000s are so heavy. My SL isn't really that bad, and with the added cutaway and lack of brass sustain block of the 2000s, I feel like they shouldn't be? Am I missing something?
I don't really know for sure, but the cutaways don't actually reduce the amount of wood that much compared to a les paul style guitar due to the way they are shaped.

Additionally, I get the feeling that Yamaha were intentionally selecting the heaviest pieces of wood they could find for the SG1000 and 2000 guitars, due to the popular belief back then that more weight = more sustain.
"Say what you wish in abuse of me, for my silence towards the idiot is indeed an answer. I am not at a loss for a response but rather, it does not befit the lion to answer the dogs." - Imam al-Shafi'i

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