Many got into arguments with mic stands, and required repair. It plays like butter with a perfect balance, the pickups roar to life, and if you have anything bad to say about the killer flamed-maple top, we’ll have to step outside! About the only weak point is the headstock. There’s not much to say about this guitar that isn’t praise. These guitars are easily dated: the stamped serial number includes the date in the first two digits. This example is finished up in one of Zelinsky’s favorite finishes, a robust cherry sunburst. The strings load through the body to increase the sustain. Electronics (and hardware) were modeled on the Gibson Les Paul, with a three-way and two volumes and two tones. As with other early Deans, this Z sports a pair of early DiMarzio Super Distortion humbuckers, one of the earliest uses of DiMarzios on production guitars. Fingerboards were bound ebony with abalone dots. The mahogany neck was glued-in with a unique, large winged V headstock. It has a solid mahogany body with bound, highly flamed maple cap. This 1978 Dean Z is typical of early Deans. In late 1976 he set up a small factory in his hometown of Evanston, Illinois, and at the beginning of ’77 began producing the Dean Z (based on the Explorer), which was followed shortly thereafter by the V (Flying V) and ML (a hybrid of the two designs), all pretty similar except for the shape. Zelinsky had always preferred Gibson’s exotic designs and decided to wed those with high-end appointments.
These included Dean Zelinsky, namesake of Dean guitars, whose 1978 Dean Z is shown here. Several Chicago-area guitar enthusiasts had become enamored of vintage American guitars and conceived of creating upscale guitars inspired by these classics, with top-grade timbers and excellent workmanship. The American guitar establishment – at least Gibson and Fender – was owned by big corporations that tended to run them as profit centers.Īt the least, quality control was less than perfect, leading Japanese manufactures to capitalize with excellent “copies.” But imports weren’t the only to take advantage of poor quality – real or perceived. The mid 1970s were a turbulent time in guitar history.
0 kommentar(er)
