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Tyler Guitars

 
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
Posts: 2783
Location: Chino, CA

PostPosted: Fri Sep 17, 2004 9:44 pm    Post subject: Tyler Guitars Reply with quote

Any of you guys try the Tyler guitars? I just got in a Psychedelic Vomit finish Studio Elite. It's got a Duncan JB Jr. in the bridge and two Duncan Classic Stacks. Man, as much as I love the Suhrs, these Tylers have a thing all their own. It's amazing how another bolt-on guitar could sound and feel so different! I'll post a pic of it later, but it's a typical Tyler: ballsy, warm, FAT, huge-sounding, and feels like an old vintage Strat that's been broken in just right over 40 years but without the wear and the tear.

Don't know what the magical formula Jim Tyler has, but his guitars are just as amazing as the Suhrs in a totally different way. Comparing a Suhr to a Tyler would be like comparing Scott Henderson to Robben Ford. Really can't say what's better. As far as I'm concerned, I'd need both as they are very complementary. The Tyler will make you want to play something totally different than what you'd normally play with, say, a Suhr.

Guthrie, have you tried some Tyler guitars? I'm sure you're aware of 'em and probably got to try a few. I hope to have a bunch in stock by the time of your next visit. Maybe you'll snatch my dream Tyler from me next time. Wink And a Thorn! Laughing
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 21, 2004 6:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Here are some pics of the Tyler guitars that have gone through the shop. The Psychedelic Vomit just arrived and is waiting to find a home. Others are long gone. Really cool guitars...

http://community.webshots.com/album/190303860cORMkJ
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frankus



Joined: 13 Sep 2004
Posts: 1100
Location: Chelmsford/Arachnipus

PostPosted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 11:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not mad keen on that, it looks like a strat with an ugly headstock. Apart from the headstock and the non-standard scratchplate, superstrat jack position, ho much more different is it?

Do you think they used layered paint, t-cut and a drill driven sheep skin buffer? I did the same once looong ago to a duff guitar.
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Donnie B.



Joined: 13 Sep 2004
Posts: 101
Location: Chula Vista, CA

PostPosted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 4:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

frankus wrote:
Not mad keen on that, it looks like a strat with an ugly headstock


I have to agree with you. Someone should talk to Tyler about this considering a lot of players do "judge the books by their covers".

I actually think it's not so much the shape as it is the ugly logo. Maybe if it was just TYLER without the "echos" top and bottom that seem to almost draw too much attention to the headstock. Should be more subtle IMO.
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alexkhan



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PostPosted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 8:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

And I can never keep one in stock no matter how many I order. Tyler has backorders that would take over a year to fill and people who have 'em swear by 'em like no other brand owners I've ever seen. They have an extremely successful formula that works and they can't keep up with the demand despite their guitars being approximately 40% or more expensive than other high-end brands like Suhr and Anderson. They couldn't care less about people who judge the book by the cover.

Like I said, I used to think they were ugly for the longest time as well. Then someone brought one in for me to try for a while. The minute I picked it up and played it, I knew I had to get Tyler guitars in at the shop. And they sell faster than anything else I have. I'd love to just keep 2 or 3 around for a while, but they get snatched up within a matter of days or a couple of weeks at the longest. And I know why: they sound, play and feel like no other guitar out there. Not necessarily better because they're not, but they have their own unique thing that other bolt-ons just can't match. You either love how they sound, play, and feel or you don't. If you do love the "content of the book", the "ugly" cover has a way of growing on you and you'll love it almost as much. I'm telling you, it's the truth.
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Donnie B.



Joined: 13 Sep 2004
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Location: Chula Vista, CA

PostPosted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 11:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

alexkhan wrote:
If you do love the "content of the book", the "ugly" cover has a way of growing on you and you'll love it almost as much. I'm telling you, it's the truth.


Ed, I 100% understand what you're saying and I believe that if I was to try one and it was everything you say, then the headstock wouldn't matter. I'm just commenting based on the first couple of times I saw one in a magazine ad. Face it, a huge amount of people will not have a Tyler close by to check out first hand so the cover will be what they first judge it on. It's only my opinion that Tyler may want to reconsider this fact - but then again, it doesn't sound like they need to pay it any creedance at all from the sounds of things Very Happy
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Donnie B.



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PostPosted: Thu Oct 14, 2004 11:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ed, you know guitars as well as anybody. What do you feel is the "secret formula" with the Tylers? Wood types? Electronics? Chambering? etc. I mean a strat style bolt on has only so many variables once you get into the higher end price points. What gives them the unique "vibe" you talk about that makes them stand apart?

Thanks.
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 1:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Donnie B. wrote:
Ed, you know guitars as well as anybody. What do you feel is the "secret formula" with the Tylers? Wood types? Electronics? Chambering? etc. I mean a strat style bolt on has only so many variables once you get into the higher end price points. What gives them the unique "vibe" you talk about that makes them stand apart?

Thanks.


I wish I knew. I'm sure a lot of people wish they knew. It's probably a closely guarded "secret" like the formula for Coke and/or the recipe for KFC chicken! Laughing It has to be the wood types and the finishing techniques. Anybody can copy electronics and chambering and things like that. It must be the way he chooses the woods, the shapes of the body/neck/headstock and the finishing techniques applied because the amount of finish (and what types of finish) does affect the acoustic resonance quite a bit.

The best test is to play electrics unplugged initially. Forget electronics and plugging into amps when first trying out electrics. The acoustic sound of an electric is hugely important. Look at it this way: the acoustic sound of an electric is like an ant. Then through the amplification process, that ant of an acoustic sound gets converted to an electronic dinosaur. If the ant is pretty, the dinosaur should be the same assuming you have a nice converter (pickups and amps). If you have an ugly ant you're going to end up with an ugly dinosaur.

I didn't even plug in a Tyler to an amp before I decided I had to bring the line into the shop. It's the acoustic sound of the electric guitar that has to grab you first. Guthrie fell in love with my Suhr before he even plugged in. He knew it the moment he started plunking around on it unplugged. Plugging in to a Cornford Hellcat that he's so familiar with only confirmed what he already knew. The acoustic quality of the electric guitar should be the number one factor in deciding to buy a nice electric guitar. Pickups and electronics are secondary (but important once you're decided on the guitar unplugged).

As for the Tyler, they sound huge and warm unplugged. The Suhrs are snappy and brilliant. Tyler, comparatively, is darker or rounder with a big bloom while a Suhr is balanced, brighter, tighter and more focused. You'll be amazed how even a Tyler and a Suhr with identical specs (same woods, frets, bridges, etc.) sound and feel so different. A Tyler has this old broken-in feel and vibe even though it's spanking new. A Suhr is precise and immaculate and it still has plenty of warmth, but a new Suhr feels like a brand new guitar while a brand new Tyler, somehow, feels like it's been broken in for years. Don't know how Jim Tyler does it...
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Bowks



Joined: 12 Sep 2004
Posts: 19

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2004 11:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd love the opportunity to try out both Tyler and Suhr guitars, but there aren't too many shops on my part of the UK willing to take such expensive items into stock.

Ed, if you ever decide to set up Tone Merchants UK, I'll happily manage the store for you, as long as you let me stock those ugly Nathan Sheppard guitars! Very Happy
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Fink Floyd



Joined: 14 Sep 2004
Posts: 25
Location: A small town in North Wales you've probably never heard of

PostPosted: Thu Jan 06, 2005 9:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I want a Tyler very, very badly. Don't know if I'd have a smear finish (there was a staggeringly beautiful Arctic Mint smear Studio Elite in Guitarist a few months ago, but as each one is different I'd be afraid of getting one I didn't like as much - the Caribbean Splash finish is the one I'd be after. Sensational) but they really do it for me, I must say.

Ed, did you say that there's a year between placing an order and getting your guitar? Dang.

Also, BTW, how are they 40% more expensive than Anderson? The prices for Andersons I've seen are pretty much identical for a similar model (an Anderson Drop Top Classic and a Tyler Studio Elite HD are about £2.5K here, if the prices I've seen are correct).
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Bowks



Joined: 12 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 06, 2005 10:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've really fallen for the Tyler Studio Elite HD in Hazmat Spill Schmear. There's something about the colour that really appeals to me. Might be something to do with my addiction to Paul Smith's signature stripes!

In fact, I wonder if James Tyler has seen the Paul Smith wallets that look very similar to the hazmat finish!
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alexkhan



Joined: 10 Sep 2004
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 07, 2005 6:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Fink Floyd wrote:


Ed, did you say that there's a year between placing an order and getting your guitar? Dang.

Also, BTW, how are they 40% more expensive than Anderson? The prices for Andersons I've seen are pretty much identical for a similar model (an Anderson Drop Top Classic and a Tyler Studio Elite HD are about £2.5K here, if the prices I've seen are correct).



I'd say the lead-time is more like 3~4 months now.

Not sure what prices you are referring to. I'm not an Anderson dealer so I'm not sure about how much they go for here in the States compared to Suhrs, but my understanding is that Andersons are about 5~10% more expensive than Suhrs for similar specs. Here in the States, the street prices (not list prices) of Tylers are about 30~35% more than Suhrs with similar specs.
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