.strandberg* Fusion NX Review

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Well, I did it again. I bought another .strandberg*. This time around I went with the Boden Fusion model, and I am extremely impressed by it. On paper there are so many things to like: versatile pick-up combinations, noise-cancelling operation, solid trem hardware, treble bleed on the volume pot, Luminlays for dark stages, light, chambered body, carbon fiber reinforced neck, and the list could go on and on. But the perfect guitar on paper may not represent the instrument in real life...
#strandbergguitars #mathewdale #goheadless
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GUITARS
PRS DGT sweetwater.sjv...
PRS McCarty 594 sweetwater.sjv...
Strandberg Fusion NX sweetwater.sjv...
Strandberg Original NX sweetwater.sjv...
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GUITAR GEAR
Line6 HX Stomp sweetwater.sjv...
Shure GLXD Guitar Wireless sweetwater.sjv...
Mono Electric Guitar Gig Bag sweetwater.sjv...
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Acoustic Strings sweetwater.sjv...
Music Nomad Set up Kit sweetwater.sjv...
Fred Kelly Bumblebee Jazz Picks amzn.to/41sE5Eq
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STUDIO GEAR
Studiolive 32C sweetwater.sjv...
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QSC K10.2 sweetwater.sjv...
QSC K12.2 sweetwater.sjv...
Behringer P1 Personal Monitor Amp sweetwater.sjv...
Presonus HP4 Headphone Amp sweetwater.sjv...
Studio One+ sweetwater.sjv...

[@denikarabenc]

I am thinking about buying this guitar and came here to just listen to some sounds, but I stayed for the phenomenal playing and touch. You are amazing

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks a bunch!

[@shelliecurry6052]

I have the exact same guitar. Love it! I am old and play in my recliner. No chord crush issues or big body to get in the way of the chair arms. And agree with the tuning. Very stable. Great review by the way and awesome playing! Keep up the good work!

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks for watching!

[@sharp9music98]

Thanks for the demos. Great playing man! Ordered this guitar model yesterday. The clean tones in particular threw me over the edge. Exciting!🍺🍺🕺🎸

[@mathew_dale]

Nice!! I love the Fusion!

[@saint.vitus.7775]

Wow - such a beautiful guitar! And a very nice rendition of Little Wing. Cheers.

[@mathew_dale]

Many thanks!

[@davidschertler]

I bought it a month ago from Strandberg as B-ware. I already had the bonfire before. But I was totally surprised that this one sounds a bit fuller and feels also more comfortable than the bonfire despite the fact both have the same PU. I simply love it😍

[@rocesboyanthony5343]

I played a strandberg one time in like 2018 at namm and I freaking LOVED the way the guitar felt in my hands. Never had the chance to play another one since.

[@John-yl4tj]

The neck pick-up, is the sound for me. Love the clarity and warmth. I put Fishman pick-ups in three of my guitars to get rid of hum, but the tone could be better. The shape of that guitar brings the 1980's to mind. I'm not sure I can get past the look. I'm going to have to play one before I would buy one. this is the first I've heard of you. I just subscribed to your channel. Thanks for turning me on to Strandberg's. '

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks for watching!

[@MagnumOpus007]

Great review! I currently have a Boden OS6 and the Fusion just very well might be my next purchase!

[@mathew_dale]

It’s been awesome!

[@AudioAtmos]

Congrats, sweet acquisition! That is the exact model and color that I was deciding between when I purchased my Boden Prog NX6 in Earth Green Quilt. The reasons for going with one over the other were not really anything too important. I have a PRS 513 so I have the HSH with trem covered. One of the differences was I have all flame maple and no quilts so that was probably the biggest while really least important factors. One thing that I really wasn’t sure about was the Richlite fretboard, but that turned out to be a really cool feature I never experienced. Super stable. Basically the Standberg’s are just excellent guitars. I have my eye on other different models, but I can’t really justify another guitar at this point. I will say that I’m not an active pickup guy, but I keep hearing demos with the Fishman Fluence pups and have been really liking how certain models sound. The whole fret sprout thing was either a problem when they were transitioning away from Roasted Maple and may have used some wood that wasn’t fully ready. Also, I think there may always be some issues with Indonesian built guitars and differences in humidity (or lack of) during certain times of the year when coming overseas to the USA. I had no problems with the frets. They were perfect. Like you said, it’s either $5000 or $2500. I had brought this up before, but it seems like Strandberg acquired a certain amount of unfounded haters like I have come up against with PRS. It’s a strange world. Oh cool idea with the Trem. I had purchased a set of gradient trem wedge blocks from a company called Skyscraper Guitars. They make a bunch of quality Floyd and Trem setup products among other guitar setup tools. Sorry for the long comment. Congrats again, that is a great guitar.

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks for watching and commenting. Yes, there will always be the haters. If I did a positive Gibson review, people would chime in Fender, Fender review- PRS, PRS review- "they are overpriced try this" and so on. I'd like to try the richlite- I've heard good and surprising feed back from players. All in all, I think we live in a great time where so many companies are making incredible guitar all over the world for a variety of prices. Great hearing from you! Cheers!

[@mathew_dale]

Also, how do you like the 513 with the two blade switches? I've always been intrigued by them.

[@AudioAtmos]

@@mathew_dale Well at this point the 509 seems to be more sensible for most people. I can get use to things pretty easy so the two blades are easy to use. One is a 3 way which determines whether your in what they call “clear humbucking”, heavy humbucking” or single coil. I always forget, but I think the “heavy humbucking” taps more windings and does provide a thicker, hotter sound and works great with high gain tones. The “clear” works best with more clean and combined SC tones. The 5 way then cycles through the bridge, bridge & middle, middle, middle & neck and neck pups. The combo single coils are noise canceling. Knowing what I know about the Suhr’s as just two HB with splits and the way Standberg wires them, I would say your Fusion is as good or better in the different tone department than the 513. I have to admit that while I love having the middle SC, it is right where I pick and sometimes it can get in the way. Again it’s mostly something that needs getting use to. If I haven’t played the 513 for awhile it will bother me for a bit, but I quickly adjust. The 509 is pretty cool and then there’s the 408, but the Modern Eagle V would be my next PRS if I had a load of cash to drop. From the demos and what people say it can nail everything and do it well. “Oh so many guitars so little time (and money)”.😉 I totally agree with you, this is a heck of a time to be alive and playing electric guitar and music in general and the instruments coming out of Indonesia and other areas are really top notch. I credit PRS for much of it. They started the trend of working very closely with the foreign manufacturers and having them be partners and not hired labor. Same with Strandberg…The instruments are costing a bit more, but I believe the workers are being paid better, with better conditions and take pride in their work. Anyway, hope I helped. As you can see I can easily digress into other things and write essays.🥴

[@PaulPoGoaIndia]

Planning to pick one in few years ...as price is crazy

[@ivrz]

So musical. Really enjoyed that

[@grabmarc]

Awesome thanks for the information 🎸🎸🎸

[@hanovergreen4091]

Tasty jam at start! Subscribed. Best Regards and Best Wishes!

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks so much!

[@stefproton1418]

Very interesting, thanx for your honest review... now I'm thinking to purchase one 😅😅

[@apis9053]

Very beautiful guitar

[@jirikrajnak9047]

it's a stunner

[@1998targa]

Nice arrangement!

[@mathew_dale]

Thank you!

[@aadityakiran_s]

Very tasty playing man. Great ❤

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks a lot!

[@rescd4]

Congratulations on the Strandy !! May I ask what strap brand are you using? The strap seems short enough and def more colorful than the Strandberg strap. I'm a proud owner of the Machacek Strandberg

[@mathew_dale]

Nice! I'm using a Jaycko strap... www.jaykco.com

[@franknguitars7671]

Nice review - thanks! Sounds great and nice playing! Planning to pick this up soon. Came to say that I was impressed by your right hand technique. Thumb pick and fingers seems really versatile - kind of best of both worlds. Any tips if I want to try this out? I typically switch between pick and fingers a fair bit.

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks for watching! I definitely was to make more video on the topic so stay tuned, but there's an old saying when it comes to finger style- Step 1: Learn all the patterns. Step 2: Forget all the patterns. Kinda silly, I know, but the message is there. Learn dedicated finger style patters to develop solid technique, then branch out and experiment with what feels natural.

[@user-up7gq8dz5i]

Thanks so much for this review, and the great clear sounds convinced me to order the same. I'm looking for a light guitar, and the Boden Fusion seems to be the most versatile, I play mostly in finger style (love Pat Metheny). Could you tell me what amplifier and effects do you use? Congrats for your complete and clear demo.

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks for watching!! I love Pat Metheny as well! I'm using the Axe-FX III in this video using several presets that include different amps, compression, delay, and pitch detune.

[@jayc9184]

It would have been better if they added 2 more pickups.

[@mathew_dale]

Every guitar needs at least 7 coils...

[@RobTackettCovers]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up with a Fusion...need a light weight guitar that plays well, hum cancelling in all 5 positions, gets stratty, gets humbucky, gets tele (in a cover band, so...), has a trem that stays in tune, has 24 frets...checks all those boxes...

[@mathew_dale]

The Fusion is amazing!

[@lucasbrandon723]

Awesome licks bro. You convinced me to get this model over the prog. I’m not a metal guy but the playability and tone is so great I have to pull the lever.

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks so much! Glad I could help in the search. Definitely still loving my Fusion.

[@piemmetubo]

Great review, thanks a lot! I'm a happy owner of an Ibanez Q54. Great guitar, but I consider it just my "wanna-be" Strandberg.🤣 And I'm saving money to buy a Prog NX 6 Plini Edition. 🤩

[@steveraygan645]

very interested to see the tremel-no install

[@mathew_dale]

Coming next week!

[@LERGOI]

Great review! beautiful playing on a beautiful instrument, thank you! Do you always use the thumbpick, and what brand is it?

[@mathew_dale]

Thanks for watching! I do. I use Fred Kelly Bumblebee Jazz picks.

[@mariacallas9962]

Hi there, Do you think this one is more versatile than your other one? Take care.

[@mathew_dale]

I'd say depending on your needs I can be a toss up. Big difference is if you want a neck single coil tone- go with the original. But if you want a true pos. 4 sound a la John Mayer- Fusion all the way. Otherwise the humbucker and single coil tones are very similar.

[@Robert-Smith]

So you can not get just the single coil? why put it on there then doesn't make sense to me.

[@mathew_dale]

Really just depends on what you want out of your pickups. Personally, I prefer the sound of middle and neck, middle and bridge, and neck and bridge configurations over just the middle single by itself. The Boden Classic has an HSS configuration with the typical Strat 5-way with the middle by itself though if you are interested.

[@Robert-Smith]

@@mathew_dale I just thought you probably will get the same tones with different inside outside combinations from the humbuckers.

[@Robert-Smith]

@@mathew_dale I do love headless guitars though, I will have one one day.

[@mathew_dale]

@@Robert-Smith It can get close for sure. My original with 2 buckers has the combo of both inside, and both outside. I love the 2 inside coils together, probably my favorite sound on that guitar. In my opinion, though, it's really hard to do a true neck and middle without the middle.

[@johnjuryluis1]

I'm close to purchasing a Fusion, but how does it sound through a high gain amp? I still play metal from time to time so I was considering the Prog NX 6, but I prefer the Fusion's pickup configuration. Thanks

[@mathew_dale]

I think it sounds great. Played it through some juiced 800 models and a Mark IV model both set pretty high and I think it holds together well. Only difference in the prog is the SSH+ in the bridge, so if you end up not digging the SSV+ you can always swap.

[@johnjuryluis1]

@@mathew_dale great, thanks for the reply!

[@BluesB0x]

Oh my god what is that riff you're playing at 1:10? I can't think of the song and now it's driving me crazy

[@mathew_dale]

The intro I'm playing is my own rendition of "Little Wing" by Jimi Hendrix

[@BluesB0x]

Thank you! awesome playing, I loved your take on Isn't She Lovely as well. @@mathew_dale

[@jkoleee7107]

Wondering if the tremol-no still allows you to flutter?

[@mathew_dale]

It does! When set up correctly, you really don’t notice it’s there. I’ve set up my trem for a bit more tension, but if you have a lower spring count the flutters should be more pronounced.

[@jkoleee7107]

@@mathew_dale nice! Thanks for the info!

I ordered a stranberg. I sent it back the next day: dead pickups, low-fi sound, freewheeling potentiometers, with bent axles. Then I ordered the model in your video. The guitar arrived with a neck that bulged towards the back, a terribly desiccated fingerboard, and sharp, poorly finished frets. It's off to my luthier here in France. I need it, because it's hard to play guitar from a wheelchair. It's pathetic: 2 Standberg guitars, 2 pieces of junk, with no quality control. For a third of the price, I ordered and play an Ibanez ICHI10. It's a fabulous guitar, for 900 Euros, easy to play, sounds wonderful. BUT, it doesn't have the ergonomic cut-out for armchair playing. And it seems to come from the same country: Indonesia... And since Indonesians aren't subhuman, they know how to produce excellent guitars. Ibanez is proof of that. I'll come to believe that the problem with Strandberg, 3 times more expensive.... It's Strandberg himself! Do they pay someone to do quality control? Or is the buyer, who is already paying an unjustified price, supposed to pay a local luthier extra to make his Stranberg(s) playable?

[@evrythingis1]

Not to mention they are legitimately the only electric guitars I have EVER heard that all share an inherently poor tone; the lack of headstock must be doing something to it.

[@GrumpyOldGuy777]

No cover on the back-trem? Do you have to pay extra for a proper hardshell case if you travel?

[@mathew_dale]

Really comes down to preference for me. I always kept the back cover off my Strat and even the Eric Johnson signature model doesn't include one. Lots of companies, even high end ones like Suhr, Charvel and some PRS models, are going the way of gig bags instead of hard-shells. I prefer the gig bags around town and have a double TSA road case for touring so all my original hard shell cases stay in storage anyway.

[@JamesWilliams-js4fo]

The guitar sounds really sick. What reason are the frets slanted like that? Does that Trem do divebombs all the way down and stay in tune?

[@mathew_dale]

The frets are “fanned” to accommodate the multi-scale length which is 25.5” on the low E and 25” on the high E. The trem holds tuning especially well and would stay in tune during dive bombs if the set up facilitated that (I put an extra spring in the back of mine so dive bombs are harder). Thanks for watching!

[@JamesWilliams-js4fo]

Thanks for the reply, & I want one!@@mathew_dale

[@xHaRdCoReViPeRx]

hey, i jsut wondered.. if the HSH configuration had modified electronics.. would it fit for anything.. eg Metalcore Cucks to singlecoil sounds? like a Push/Pull Poti that deactivates the singlecoil and put a Humbucker only mode on the 5 way

[@mathew_dale]

Theoretically, yes. Although if I did something like that I'd probably go with a standard 5 way with 2 mini-toggles to split the coils al la PRS. Maybe still wire the 5 way where pos. 3 is neck and bridge still.

[@xHaRdCoReViPeRx]

@@mathew_dale thanks, i'll Look Out for a Project Like this :) MB someday i'll have it

[@NoName-mf1un]

What is the difference between this and the prog nx 6? Is it the extra pickup that can cover more range of sound? For the extra couple hundred I feel like I’d go for for the fusion.

[@mathew_dale]

Middle pickup for sure. And the bridge pickup in the Prog is an SSH+, the Fusion is an SSV+, which is a bit lower on the output. Also rosewood fingerboard as apposed to the richlite on the Prog.

[@NoName-mf1un]

@@mathew_dale thank you

[@six_stringed_g_man307]

🙂Please, what gauge are the Fred Kelly Bumblebee Jazz picks that you are using? ✌️❤️

[@mathew_dale]

I use the extra-heavy.

[@six_stringed_g_man307]

@@mathew_dale Thank you ✌️❤️

[@OZmast3r]

which color is that? the amber?

[@mathew_dale]

Correct. The Amber

[@Chillnote]

I think you are an Eric Johnson fan 🧐

[@mathew_dale]

Lol just a bit!

[@johanjotun1647]

that thing would be halfway cool if it wern't a bolt-on 🧐