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Anyone with a USA Dean hardtail can you give me a review on the guitar...likes, disslikes etc. i'm considering buying one but have never played one before. also what's the neck shape like and what duncans does it come stock with? they are all listed as having duncans but no mention of which ones. thanks

-Mike

I think it's Jeff H thats our resident hardtail lover... you could PM him if he doesn't show up in this thread

Mike-

Here are my thoughts FWIW.

I own a USA Dean Hardtail in Faded Vintage Cherry Burst. I've had it for about 18 months. I'll break down individule parts below, but suffice it to say that it's a great, great guitar. It weighs in around the weight of a lighter Les Paul...mine weighs around 8 1/2 lbs. I used to think I could get all of the tones out of it a Les Paul could get....then I got a Les Paul. The Hardtail is close, but not just like. It does some things better, some things are not as good.

**Neck - probably the single best aspect of the guitar. 24 3/4 scale. Ebony board, jumbo frets. Mine came polished and leveled to perfection. It's an absolute pleasure to play, both chords and solo. The standard nut is a Graphtech Graphite nut....very nice. Profile wise it's a C shape over all. It's around the same size as a Gibson with a 60's neck....but slightly flatter on the back than the Gibson...Gibson is more rounded. Maybe that makes it more of a D....I'm no expert on that. All I know is it is thick enough to be comfortable, and thin enough to be acceptable to someone who is used to wider, flatter radius necks. Speaking of that.....12quot; radius 1 11/16quot; nut width. However, to me it feels wider than the LP's of the same radius and nut width because there is no binding....the strings are spaced slightly farther apart. I still have somewhat sloppy finger placement....and it's not nearly as much of an issue on the Hardtail as compared to the LP. Also, the neck joint is the nicest that I have played on any guitar except a neck thru. It is a set neck, but is done so well, and the heel is so small, that it might as well be a neck thru from a feel standpoint....fantastic. Dean calls it the quot;moulded heelquot;. What ever it is, it rocks.

**Body - One piece mahogany body, 2 piece flamed maple top. The tops are as nice as I have seen on any other guitars. IMO, every one that I've seen would be rated a quot;10quot; top or quot;Artist Gradequot; by PRS....yes, they are that nice. The dish carve on the top is much more agressive than a Les Paul, and somewhat more than a PRS...but very, very nice. The cap is nice and thick...5/8quot; to 3/4quot;...can't remember the exact spec. Natural binding on all models. The back is contoured in the tummy section like a strat or PRS, so it sets very comfortably agains't your body...the whole thing has a natural feel to it. Great access to the upper frets because of the moulded heel. The upper horn turns some off. It's bigger than the bottom horn, not as balanced looking as a PRS...which to me looks more like a DC Les Paul shape wise. I really don't notice it personally, and the guitar is so well balanced that to me it's a moot point. I will say that even though the body shape in general is very much like a Les Paul, the Hardtail WILL NOT fit into a LP case because of the upper horn. Also, because of the contour and shape, the body is not as thick as a Les Paul.

**Electronics and Hardware - Comes stock with a SD JB at the bridge and either a Pearly Gates or a 59' at the neck...although the majority of them are PG's. The 59' was used earlier in production. Some models did come equipped with Dimarzio's...but I'd guess that 80-90% are Duncan equipped. The pots are good quality, mine happen to be CTS...not sure if all of them are. The bridge is an ABR-1 type...but is a Tone Pros locking version...nice. The stoptail is a Dean design, and I happen to like it. The tuners are stock Grover 18:1 rotomatics. Here's my advice, and ask CHCJunior if he agrees. I changed mine to locking tuners right away. Why, if it's a hardtail? Because of the design of the bridge, srting tension holds the strings in the slots of the bridge...so until there is sufficent tension, the strings can slip out of the bridge slots...look at one and you'll see what I mean. The advantage of this type of stoptail is it is set flush to the body...helping with sustain...it cannot be raised. $60 for a set of locking tuners is a must IMO.

** Tone. Similar to a Les Paul. Much more resonant and beefy than any strat or strat style guitar that I have played. It has more top end than a Les Paul, now that I can compare side by side, and just slightly less bass. The ebony board provides some clarity to the sound IMO...maybe some brightness. I don't want you to think the guitar excessively bright....it's not. Just compared to a LP it's brighter...but in a good way. To me, this meant that I did not get along with the JB and PG...but especially the PG...I found it not clear enough, and a little too brittle. An APH worked great in the neck...I have one in the bridge as well, although in retrospect the JB wasn't all that bad...just too hot for me. I actually think a C5, CC, or 59' in the bridge would sound great. I liked both the Seth and the APH in the neck...but found the 59' to be a tad too boomy...YMMV on this.

Overall....fantastic buy for the $$. Great tone...good thickness to the sound with just the right amount of mids and highs. Not a Les Paul tone exactly, but I think it's closer than the PRS McCarty. I'd take it over a PRS any day, but that's just me. The playability is fantastic, for all styles of music and all taste's in equipment.

Don't pay anymore than $1300-$1400, unless you find one with an incredible top that you just have to have. I paid $1275 shipping for mine. That's on the low side....$1400 seems to be about the top end where you really see them move. Any more than that, and I've seen the same guitar listed time and time again on eBay...unless it has a killer top.

Again, IMO and YMMV.

Damn...you know you're long winded when you take two posts to finish.

I bought a Dean Hardtail USA after Jeff_H raved about them. It's easily my number one guitar...though my Gamp;L Asat is gaining ground.

It came with a JB in the bridge and a PG in the neck (I believe some come with the '59 in the neck also). I did end up replacing the JB with a CC. The fretboard is ebony, and the heel has GREAT access to the upper frets. The neck is nice and chunky but still extremely playable...I'm unsure as to the neck radius but to my hand it has a quot;Cquot; shape.

Honestly there is nothing I dislike about this guitar. Great tone that is extremely versatile; handles cleans as well as it does pumping gain thru the Soldano. Nice clarity with alot beefiness is the best way I can describe it. Workmanship is flawless (unlike the Heritage H150 I got). I can't see anyone going wrong with owning one. I consider it a superior replacement for an LP.

Damn....my review sucks compared to Jeff's!

a stock JB...i'm even closer to being sold now...thanks so much for the amazing review! Jeff...i'll send you a PM in a few about the one i'm looking at.

-Mike

At one point I owned three Hardtail's. They're great guitars, but lacked something I was looking for. The one Chcjunior has is one of the ones I sold. The only remaining Hardtail in my collection, is the second prototype Hardtail that Dean built. My prototype has DiMarzio, Super Distortions in it. I've seen one Hardtail that was built with Bartolini pickups in it. I replaced the two Hardtail's I sold with a USA built Dean, Cadillac. The Cadillac works better for me. Sprinter


Originally Posted by Sprinter

The only remaining Hardtail in my collection, is the second prototype Hardtail that Dean built. My prototype has DiMarzio, Super Distortions in it. Sprinter

You're not thinking about selling that one...are you? What kind of a finish does it have?

I played with Jeffs Hardtail and it made me hard myself from being to sexy and playing with it was awesome.

Jeff...i forgot to ask...got any pics of yours? i'm still trying to decide on the one i sent you the pic of...i'm at about 85% sure i want it...

-Mike


Originally Posted by Jeff_HYou're not thinking about selling that one...are you? What kind of a finish does it have?

The thought has crossed my mind a time or two, but I can't convince myself to sell it. It's emerald green, with uncovered pickups, and dot fret markers. The neck is thin front to back like a Jackson.

Sprinter


Originally Posted by XSSIVEJeff...i forgot to ask...got any pics of yours? i'm still trying to decide on the one i sent you the pic of...i'm at about 85% sure i want it...

-Mike

ahhh very nice Jeff...almost as sexy as the chick in your avatar hehehe

i'm still trying to decide what to do here...

-Mike


Originally Posted by BonesI played with Jeffs Hardtail and it made me hard myself from being to sexy and playing with it was awesome.

That statement makes me really uncomfortable. Walks to den with a cloth to disenfect Hardtail thoroughly.