Anyone ever use Rondo Music?

[Nightfire]

To buy guitars? www.rondomusic.net
Im a college student and cant afford Fenders or Gibsons. Noticed that Rondo had cheap prices and their stuff looks good, their reviews at Harmony Central are very good too. Just wondering if anyone ever tried them?


Mike

[dave.....]

i have bought 3 guitars and one case from rondo ..... first class service .... they take great care of there customers ...... there guitars are a bargan for the prices they are asking ........

[Nightfire]

Thanks for the info. Did you buy Agile or SX guitars, and which ones?

Mike

[dave.....]

i have had great luck w/ the sx brand i have bought 1 sx les paul standard, 1 sx les paul junior w/ p-90's and a sx pj bass.. i replaced the pickups in the standard the stock pickups were a little weak... and i had a hot set of humbuckers just laying around .... what guitar are you thinking of buying ??

[Nightfire]

I was considering the SX les paul junior with the P90s but heard the neck is heavier than the body and likes to take a "dive" and that the guitar itself is way heavier than a les paul. Not sure if thats true or not.
Also considering this hollow body SX
http://www.rondomusic.net/product798.html


Mike

[dave.....]

my sx les paul jr is one of the early ones .... the cutout is closer to the gibson style..the newer ones are a little more pointy on the lower bout..... yeah it is heavy ...not as heavy as my gibson but still heavy... mine does not neck dive at all ... the p-90 are sweet.. the action is great ..... a great guitar .... and at that price .... even better .. what kind of music do you play ?? what amp ?? fx ??

[notCardio]

Originally Posted by dave.....

my sx les paul jr is one of the early ones .... the cutout is closer to the gibson style..the newer ones are a little more pointy on the lower bout..... yeah it is heavy ...not as heavy as my gibson but still heavy... mine does not neck dive at all ... the p-90 are sweet.. the action is great ..... a great guitar .... and at that price .... even better .. what kind of music do you play ?? what amp ?? fx ??

Same here, except I think I need to work on the action a little. Mine's one of the newer pointy-bout ones, though.

I'll warn you, the neck is a little log-like. Like a 50's LP on steroids. Very round. You either like it or you don't.

It's heavier than a Gibson or Epi Jr, but not nearly as heavy as most Gibson regular LPs. Being a Jr, it's a little thinner than a regular LP.

Tuners could be better, as well as the pots and jack.

If you've never played a semi-hollow, like the one you're looking at, do that first. Semi-hollows are a completely different animal, and not for everyone.

Feel good about ordering from Rondo. They're an OK bunch.

[notCardio]

Originally Posted by dave.....

my sx les paul jr is one of the early ones .... the cutout is closer to the gibson style..the newer ones are a little more pointy on the lower bout..... yeah it is heavy ...not as heavy as my gibson but still heavy... mine does not neck dive at all ... the p-90 are sweet.. the action is great ..... a great guitar .... and at that price .... even better .. what kind of music do you play ?? what amp ?? fx ??

Hey, send me a pic sometime. I'd like to see what the earlier ones looked like.

[Tadpui]

I bought an SX bass and yes the headstock and neck are definitely heavier than the body, and its very unevenly weighted. But this is a 5-string bass, and I've always just thought it was the extra mass of the headstock and neck necessary for accomodating an extra string.

The SX bass is pretty good, definitely better than what you could get elsewhere for the same price. Customer service is tops for sure, which I got to find out recently. Very responsive and helpful service.

The main problems I have with mine are that the fret dress is extremely rough (I end up with mirco-cuts all along the inside of my thumb and index finger of my fretting hand after every session). The tuners and bridge are the other weak points.

I think that the stock pickups sound pretty darn good, especially considering the price. All in all, getting a 5-string j-bass knockoff for $150 is almost unheard of. the only other competetion in that price range were basically children's toys and not musical instruments.

[IronFlippy]

I haven't heard anything about the SX les pauls, but the Agile ones are supposedly better than Epiphone, right along the same lines as the Epiphone elitist series (if you get the 2800 or better models). The top of the line Agile LP is less than $600. The Epiphone Elitist custom is $1100. Nearly half the price for the same quality instrument. If I had $600 laying around I'd have one myself.

[dave.....]

I'll warn you, the neck is a little log-like. Like a 50's LP on steroids. Very round. You either like it or you don't.

the neck on mine is nice .... kind of a 60's thin ....

[Nightfire]

Thanks for the feedback.
I want a very very versatile guitar. I like anything from country to blues, to punk, hard rock, metal.
I need it to have a nice beefy distortion sound and a great clean tone as well, defined and not muddy. I play through a Vox Valvetronix.
I thought maybe a tele would suit those needs but then I saw that hollowbody. The Junior would probably be the least versatile but I've always wanted a junior haha.


Mike

[Zaphod B]

I hate you, Nightfire, for even asking the question. See, I didn't even know about Rondo, and here you have led me to the Mecca of cheap guitars.

I can see about 8 of 'em I'd like to play with.

Thanks for nothing!

[dave.....]

i cant see you playing any holow body w/ a lot of distortion .... i would think it would get massive feedback ?? ........... notcardio sorry i dont have any pics .........

[Zaphod B]

Originally Posted by dave.....

i cant see you playing any holow body w/ a lot of distortion .... i would think it would get massive feedback ?? ........... notcardio sorry i dont have any pics .........

I used to play a Gison ES-335 in a rock band....no problem, unless you are playing at really loud volumes and are close to your amp.

[notCardio]

Originally Posted by Zaphod B

I hate you, Nightfire, for even asking the question. See, I didn't even know about Rondo, and here you have led me to the Mecca of cheap guitars.

I can see about 8 of 'em I'd like to play with.

Thanks for nothing!

Welcome to my world.

I'd be thrilled if I could narrow it down to 8.

Nightfire, IMO, the SX Jr is really nothing at all like a real Jr. Not even close. I really almost sent mine back. I put it away for months, and when I got it out again, I guess I just saw it in a new light. I'd still like to round off that damn point, though. It just bugs me.

Dave, that's very interesting. You're one lucky bastard!
Wanna swap?

[notCardio]

Originally Posted by Zaphod B

I used to play a Gison ES-335 in a rock band....no problem, unless you are playing at really loud volumes and are close to your amp.

The guitar player in a bar band I was in back in the late 70's (think 'classic rock') used a 335 exclusively, with a Twin, and we didn't have any problems. Actually, it was kind of cool to be able to get a little controlled feedback when you wanted it. YMMV, though.

[Zaphod B]

Originally Posted by notCardio

Welcome to my world.

I'd be thrilled if I could narrow it down to 8.

For $3,000 - the price of a Gibson LP Custom - you could have a whole roomful of guitars, especially if you stuck to the less expensive models.

[dave.....]

notcardio ..... sorry not going to swap ya ....... maby the early ones also had thin necks ?? actualy the neck is the same on the sx les paul standard i have ... that one actualy has essex on the head stock ... i got the standard in 1999 or 2000 i think ??

[Zaphod B]

Originally Posted by notCardio

The guitar player in a bar band I was in back in the late 70's (think 'classic rock') used a 335 exclusively, with a Twin, and we didn't have any problems. Actually, it was kind of cool to be able to get a little controlled feedback when you wanted it. YMMV, though.

No, I actually liked it. You can find sweet spots with hollow-bodies where your string feedback and acoustic feedback are very complimentary and it's pretty cool. On the other hand, if you're not careful you can get some pretty un-musical sounding feedback with hollow-bodies.

[notCardio]

Originally Posted by Zaphod B

For $3,000 - the price of a Gibson LP Custom - you could have a whole roomful of guitars, especially if you stuck to the less expensive models.

Now you know my plan!

[Zaphod B]

Originally Posted by notCardio

Now you know my plan!

A good one it is, too!

Now, let's see.....something with P-90s, something with HBs and a Floyd Rose, something like a cheap Tele, hey, how about a thinline, too, something semi-hollow, something hollow, something with S-S-H........

[notCardio]

is that when they have something really cool, they sell out of it, or the desirable colors, pretty fast, and then they may or may not get anymore of that one in, sometimes months, sometimes never, and they don't ever seem to really know what they're going to get or when. And when they do get it it, it's sold out in a day or so. It's very frustrating.

Fortunately, I have no real desire for Floyds, thinlines, or even H-S-S.

[zed32]

oh great, just what i needed....cheap alternatives to guitars that i've always wanted, but never cared enough to spend big money on.......

i see at least 3 on here that i would like to buy, just for shits & giggles.



this one has caught my eye big time...
http://www.rondomusic.net/ky1cus24na.html

[notCardio]

Originally Posted by zed32

oh great, just what i needed....cheap alternatives to guitars that i've always wanted, but never cared enough to spend big money on.......

i see at least 3 on here that i would like to buy, just for shits & giggles.

Yeah, if nothing else, some of them are great wall art.