Charvel Guthrie Govan MJ - Demo & Review

[@DanLeggatt]

Correction - At 5:06 I say bridge but mean neck, finger had the right idea, mouth did not! Thanks for watching!

[@clovis2012]

This guitar seems like a literal 10/10 to me. Perfect for home players who record and way more durable for gigging than other brands at the same price point.

[@hostrow]

I have one. It’s a great alternative to a Strat. It sounds different in a good way to a Strat so it’s adding to one’s palette. I’d prefer a slight deeper C shape neck. The tremelo system took a little get used to as it’s a non looking nut Floyd Rose.

[@Ray-um3if]

Hi Dan, so good to see you back on KZbin, I’ve been checking your Instagram regularly but not seen anything since the MichaelstaringBen pics. Great review of the Charvel, very thorough as always. Looks and sounds great, but like you say it’s been designed with a great player who is on the road all the time. I might go silent for a while, moving house again!!!!!! Stay safe, really pleased you are working regularly.🎸

[@DanLeggatt]

Hi Ray! Great to hear from you mate. Life and work has been very hectic over the last few months and I’ve let KZbin and most social media be a necessary casualty. All falling back into place now though and I’m enjoying making videos again which is the main thing! Good luck with the move, hope it all goes to plan! All the best

[@Nig6tWalker]

im not a fan of HSH but that guitar sound pretty good

[@QuincyJamesMusic]

Super cool to see someone own one of these, it's a beautiful instrument, I really liked it when Guthrie Demo'd it months ago.

[@DanLeggatt]

A mere mortal playing it compared to GG’s other worldly playing 🤣

[@allrelative3065]

@@DanLeggatt You are closer to him than most mortals, thanks for the well throughout breakdown. subbed. I want one so bad im sold.

[@SirPotato72]

I realize I am super late to the party but regarding the little blocks that hold the strings in, you're correct that the floyd rose versions don't fit (they are square instead of rounded), but I found that the entire saddles on the floyd rose non-fine tuning bridge can be swapped with the ones on the charvel GG bridge. So that's at least one option if you ever lose/need to replace part of a saddle.

[@Clapstain]

Really cool guitar. Charvels are my go to brand. Off topic but I'd love to see you do a best paid guitar plugins video like the best free ones you made a couple years ago.

[@DanLeggatt]

Good thought for a video. However, I don’t use a whole lot of paid plugins. I’m a bit of a cheapskate 🤣

[@MrBlaster791]

Im swap out,my bridge to a floyd rose,hardin steel saddles knife edge made in germany,the OEM bridge sharvel is made of pot metal it will hold up to extreme use,my Govon is now being out fitt it before it leaves the guitar shop,brand new,removing the the stock tremolo do to tuning issues,

[@formerlysaul4103]

Great review ... Thanks for the info and some fine playing.

[@impartialobservers7060]

I was thinking how in-depth and interesting this demo is and realised you’re the guy who did the Lockdown Jam along I enjoyed the most. You’re an amazing guitarist too! I was waiting for these MJs to come in stock to try one but ended up with a good deal on a used USA GG Sig in caramelised ash I couldn’t put down.

[@DanLeggatt]

Thank you 🙏 Shame these MJ ones are taking so long to come in. I still haven’t played a USA one but it’s on the list!

[@impartialobservers7060]

@@DanLeggatt Thank you for putting out such entertaining videos, all the best.

[@vuralarslandemir3163]

Great guitar and awesome review. I am really interested in those baby floyd kind tremolo and thought there are seamless but i guess nothing is :D:D Rabea massaad signature guitars using those tremolo as well but they use schaller i guess. Anyway great video. Thanks

[@bryanpatton9839]

This was a very satisfying review. I to have been teetering back and forth on this guitar…

[@stealthy7]

Would love to know the weight of these guitars - are they under 8lbs ?

[@jimboi9517]

Cool review what amp are you running it through?

[@swiftyasaninja]

I just think it looks so damn good. Although the American one looks even better imo.

[@CJ-nm8sw]

Great playing and review. I shouldn't be watching these videos though. GG models are tempting and expensive! Ha.

[@DanLeggatt]

🤣

[@rockyfolksy8639]

great review Dan. this is very helpful. how about the weight of the guitar? is it heavy compared to your suhr or FGN?

[@DanLeggatt]

Cheers! Suhr is the heaviest I’d say. FGN and this are similar weight.

[@gtrklem]

Really dug this review. I had and unexpected surplus of cash and wanted to get this exact model, but couldn't find it in stock. I opted for the American version with the swamp ash body. So far as I know it has the same hardware, the tuners might be different. I love the guitar, but have the same concerns as you regarding the bridge and replacement parts etc. I don't actually tour, but I do gig fairly regularly so I'm hoping it holds up. I've never had issues with actual floyds in the past so I'm not real worried. Anywho, thanks for the vid, subscribed!

[@DanLeggatt]

Appreciate the sub 👍 Cheers!

[@perrymahoney7772]

Great review. Where’s the mods video tho’ bro’? It’s been two months already…..😉

[@DanLeggatt]

🤣 The guitar has spent most of its life on the road since I got it and not had a chance to give it a big overhaul. So far I’ve disconnected the bridge split tone from the toggle so it’s only neck and changed the treble bleed values. Hoping to do more over Christmas 👍

[@gddfhjiufcv]

Hi mate, only just seen this video now and I have one of these guitars, first time I restrung it one of the little string grippers from the bridge fell out and went through a gap in my floorboards. I contacted the retailer who put me in touch with the uk charvel distributer and they sent me two of the little buggers for free but it did take about a week to get them, obviously the guitar was out of action during that time. Good service but really they are so easy to loose they should chuck a few in the case with the guitar imo.

[@DanLeggatt]

Good to know! Agreed that a few extras would be ideal. Thanks for watching 👍

[@scott.johnson]

Thanks for the great review! Looking forward to you modding the "single-coil" switch. How is the fretwork?

[@DanLeggatt]

Really great! Very smooth along the edges. As mentioned, they are big, tall frets, so you know they are there when you run your hand down the neck but very smooth.

[@DimKAt21]

Great review friend tnx! She's got nice features and she's reasonably priced, compared to the American one

[@DanLeggatt]

Agreed

[@paoloschiano9900]

I think the non fine tuner floyd could be a direct replacement in case you need. Probably the Schaller vintage tremolo could also fit that routing.

[@DanLeggatt]

Good point, however I recall reading or watching something where the radius of the bridge had been tweaked for this guitar specifically. So I’m sure they would fit but perhaps it wouldn’t be quite the same 🤔 I’m far from an expert on this kind of thing to be honest.

[@R.Stridstrom]

Loved that guitar, both sound and looks - and just by coincidence, i have had modding on my mind a few days, and *just that very idea* with glow markers on guitar and knobs !!! How strange. I might use little vials (for watch-makers) with radioactive shit in them, there is different colors but they are hard to come by - only 2 manufacturers globally so far, i believe, but i am wondering... it might be better with epoxy+GITD powder. We dont want a christmas tree, do we? First of all i wanted vials on the side of the fretboard. Drilling out the dots and replacing. Since ordering new pickups, been wondering - could you make 4 P/P pots and control the volume of each half of the buckers with one knob, then engage/disengage single/bucker with 2 of knobs/pulls, and then get 2 modes left on 2 pots to pull, maybe like 2 alternative caps or something for each par of buckers ? Damn... My brain just melted... Edit: hmmm answering myself a bit. Then the 4 pots would need to be 250 each... Hmmm... Still thinkin

[@DanLeggatt]

Very interesting concept but much like you, it’s making my brain melt a bit thinking about the logistics 🤣 Let me know how it goes if you tackle it 👍

[@R.Stridstrom]

@@DanLeggatt yeah, fun nerding around. But i came to a conclusion, i had already examined these thoughts. Found "blend" pots, way back. Like specialiced balance-pots but with bound lanes so they would work in i the Imagined coupling. I'll be bakk

[@claudefridrici]

Thanks for the video man ! Well, for the bridge replacement part, I got an email from fender saying that they do not sel replacement part… I think it’s a shame… just a small question, I feel my pickups are quite dark compared to all my others guitar, do you feel the same on your guitar ? Something else, I had to send my guitar to my guitar tech as it simply didn’t hold tuning very well… the bridge wasn’t on position « zero » and the nut needed a bit of work (my gauge is 10-46…)

[@DanLeggatt]

I would actually say this is a pretty bright guitar in general. I guess it depends what you’re used to. Setup wise, mine was pretty great out of the box. However, this was a used guitar so it could have been set up before it reached me. I’m 10-46 strings 👍

[@claudefridrici]

@@DanLeggatt me too, 10-46. But my guitar sounds really dark, I always have to push the « presence » at nearly max on my amp

[@K3isari]

I am not 100% sure but pretty sure that floyd rose makes that bridge and its just labeled charvel and Floyd rose sell that exact model at their website as the non fine tuner model. Also i think but not 100% sure that you can use most string blocking bits in there. I am in the process of getting one of these for myself and then i will be 100% sure =)

[@DanLeggatt]

There’s a good chance Floyd does produce them to be honest. I did hear or read somewhere the bridge definitely isn’t off the shelf because the radius of the bridge is custom to this guitar. I now can’t find the source so I may have imagined it 🤣 The blocking bits that lock the strings are definitely custom. These ones are round and every other replacement block I’ve seen is square / rectangular. I Do let me know if you find them for sale though, I’d love to have some spares.

[@K3isari]

@@DanLeggatt As long as you dont overtighten the bits they last a long time though. Most common thing i see with them is that people overtighten them and they just crack from the middle. They also make those bits from different materials like titanium and those things would last forever i assume.

[@Henry-fv3bc]

How hard is the tremolo to tune? Floyd roses are very hard to tune up because the strings are all coupled via the bridge - so when one string is sharpened, the other strings are flattened, and vice versa. The spring tension also needs to be correctly adjusted so that the bridge is level which makes it even harder. If you change the tuning or string type, then you might have to redo a full setup. How does this trem compare? Can it handle Drop D without ruining the other string tunings? Do the other strings detune noticeably when you're bending one string? What is the range on the trem like? How does it generally compare in terms of maintenance to a Floyd? For me, locking nut was the least of my concerns with a Floyd. Thanks :-)

[@DanLeggatt]

Unfortunately what you’re describing is a symptom of any floating trem. Floyds, 2 point, 6 screw. If there is any play in the springs so the trem floats this will happen. This guitar is no different.

[@Henry-fv3bc]

@@DanLeggatt I suspected so but I heard Guthrie Govan talk about how it was easy to tune to Drop D, so I was hoping it was somehow magical. But he failed to mention that he had to lock the bridge to hardtail via a custom mod before doing that.

[@stefproton1418]

Ordered the guitar yesterday... I'm waiting for the package : )

[@DanLeggatt]

How do you like it?

[@stefproton1418]

@@DanLeggatt I love it!! really great instrument. Need to discover the pickups a bit more but I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy them.

[@SHREDTILLDEAD]

I wanted one of these so bad for the longest time , got 2 kiesels instead.

[@DanLeggatt]

How do you like the Kiesels? Which models did you go for?

[@franki68]

Just got one ,it’s lovely but can’t get rid of some fret buzz . Sounds fantastic and plays lovely ,likes the bendy stuff .

[@DanLeggatt]

Real shame. Perhaps take it to a pro to get setup? I’ve not had any buzz.

[@hostrow]

I raised the bridge after changing to a 9.5 - 44.5 gauge set. Easy peezy

[@Cherry_Sunburst]

EXCELLENT.

[@riffs66]

I dig what you do, sir 👍🏼

[@DanLeggatt]

Thank you 👍

[@morganpeline9822]

You can always swap it out for FR Vintage or Schaller Tremolo...

[@calebfodor6258]

Congrats on the new axe! I’m torn between this and the Ibanez AZ2402. I have a DK24 but I was looking for something with a slightly beefier neck as the DK is sometimes very comfortable, while other days I consider selling it. Did you consider any of the prestige AZ models before snagging this? Anyways, I look forward to see what mods you do on the Govan!

[@DanLeggatt]

To be totally honest, I had an Ibanez AZ premium model. There is actually a video on the channel all about it. It’s obviously a lower end model than the one you’re considering. I really liked the guitar but just didn’t bond with it. The neck for me was actually a bit too chunky for the sort of ‘modern’ guitar it was trying to be. I wasn’t in love with the pickups either. I’ve never played any of the Prestige ones sadly and of course your taste will be very different to mine.

[@franki68]

I found the az neck too chunky and it’s very heavy .

[@dicktwitchy]

Love this!! Had my eye on one of these for the exact reasons you've stated, it's a very well thought out instrument for a gigging musician!