specracer986 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Is the neck profile of the 59 as chunky as the 69? How are the stock mag pickups? Is the bridge pickup the same as what comes on the SSH 69 bridge position? What is the scale length? I'm considering one as a back up to my 69. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidb7170 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 I have both the 59 and the 69S, love them both, but they are different from each other in many ways. The neck on the 59 is a set neck versus the bolt-on's of the 69 & 89, so if you don't like it, you can't change it... I'm a big guy with big hands, so the neck being chunky or whatever doesn't bug me. The 59 neck has been described by others as like a 50's or C shaped Les Paul style neck. My only LP has a slim 60's neck, so I can't comment in a meaningful way on that. I do not believe the HB pups on the 59 are the same as the HB on the 69 HSS. I got my tobacco burst 59 first, and it's a beauty. I have not felt the need to change the pups, they sound very good to me, and I use the mags on the 69S and 59 probably 80 - 90% of the time. My 69S is SSS, and brought back the noise of the single coils, like my Strat - nature of the beast.... The pups sounded very good, but I changed those out to DiMarzio noiseless SC's, and they sound very good and more noiseless than my HB's in my other guitars. The scale length -- you can look that up here on the L6 website, but it's shorter than the strat-like scale of the 69, about the same as an LP. Again, was not much of an adjustment for me. I had my 59 first (2011), then in 2012, they came out with the SSS 69S, I bought the shoreline gold - beautiful. It was going the be the backup, but being a long time Strat guy, I find myself playing it more - just feels like home... I take both to gigs for string break contingencies. Do note, that the output level of the 59 is quite a bit higher than the 69 - well my only reference is the 69S, so not sure how hot the HSS 69 is, but I would think they'd tame the output of the 69 HB to somewhat be in the same ball park as the other 2 SC's on the 69. I use the Helix, and have 2 groups of identical presets in the same set list, one for the 69S and one for the 59. Identical, except I put a volume block at the beginning and cut about 8 dB of signal off the input stage of each preset for the 59, so they are at about the same level of drive to the input of the preset amps, and get me to roughly the same output level. I used Work Bench HD to level the models up with the mags on both guitars, so the levels of the models are also hotter on my 59 compared to my 69S. Hope this helps. Dave 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edstar1960 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Info posted here: http://line6.com/data/6/0a06439c1352b56c66c5bc03de/application/pdf/ The JTV59 scale length is 24 9/16 " and nut width is 1 11/16" - and I think it has different pickups than the 69. The JTV59 neck profile is very similar to a standard LP neck - maybe a tad chunkier - but not much in it. My main guitar is a JTV59 and I have a JTV69 as my backup. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specracer986 Posted July 11, 2017 Author Share Posted July 11, 2017 Thanks for the info. I went to save the comparison chart and found that I already had it saved and forgot about it. Pretty much the chunky neck is keeping me from deciding to go with the 59. I'm actually thinking of sanding the profile down myself. I'm capable, but it might be a little bit of a stressful project knowing if I F'up I've made a $1k piece of trash. I have an 89F, and I'm fond of the slim profile that it has. I want to have a short scale length guitar. My fingers are getting old. I considered a short scale Warmouth neck for a second '69, but except for the neck profile, the '59 checks all the right boxes for me. I'm starting to see a reprofiling project in my future. Should I post a build thread, or would that be too painful for you fans of chunk? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specracer986 Posted July 11, 2017 Author Share Posted July 11, 2017 One more question, please. Does anyone know the weight of their JTV59? I have an LP that is almost 10#'s and I can't take it anymore. I'm not sure if the '59 is chambered in anyway. I'm hoping it's under 9#'s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidb7170 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 If you check out Sweetwater's selection of jtv' s and they have a 59 in stock, they have pictures of the actual guitar, and it includes the weight... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specracer986 Posted July 11, 2017 Author Share Posted July 11, 2017 Thanks, they actually have two in stock. One is 8# and the other 8# 6oz. Those are good numbers for me. If I shave down the neck, I'll probably lose a little more. There's one advertised locally. I'll kick this around for a day or two. One morning I'll wake up and either have the courage to attempt shaving the neck, or I'll decide I must have been a complete idiot for thinking of such a thing, and go for another '69 with a Warmouth short scale neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumol Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 these are the same questions that went through my mind before i bought my 59: weight, and neck shape -- i had tried out a 500, liked the sounds, but wanted a shorter scale length, so when i heard about the 59, i ordered one from gc to try out, knowing i was going to return it -- figuring if i liked it, i'd get a used one, and shave the neck, since coming from a hagstrom swede was a big jump in neck profile(the swede is also 10.5 lbs, another reason i was shopping for a new guitar) -- anyway, the 59 came, 8.5 lbs, a real beauty, plugged it in, and it was all over, never even got to the modelling knob, just used the stock humbuckers -- you guys may have already owned some great guitars, and the 71 swede is not bad, but i never heard anything like it, even not plugged in -- don't know how it gets the sound it does, but i'm afraid to change anything on it, definitely wouldn't be shaving it, could be the neck is the source of its tone -- and as someone else on the forum pointed out, what at first seemed a "baseball bat" is now a comfortable neck, i have trouble now adapting to my hagstrom 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specracer986 Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 I agree, the chunky neck is the main reason for a good acoustic tone and resonance. I know that's how my '69 was before I changed out the neck. But I play with my thumb behind the neck, not over the top, and a thinner neck works best for that. I still have a Warmouth Strat with a '59 chunky neck for comparison. My JP15 is almost too thin, but the Warmouth Standard Thin, that I put on the '69 is just right. So at this point, all of my buying decisions are based on a thinner neck and I'll dial in the tone and sustain with my Helix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumol Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 yeah, thumb behind the neck for me too, never been able to do chording using my thumb on the 6th string, so the thumb behind gives me better reach, plus i wear my guitars high, which helps even more, i'm definitely going for the best access i can get on the fretboard, don't care how dorky it looks -- i've been using my 59 exclusively since i got it this spring, and the hagstroms are at my other place in the desert, so will be interesting to compare when i get back there in the fall -- they basically made their rep on being "the fastest neck" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseyboy Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Got hold of 2013 vintage JVT-59 (Asian) and I'm very impressed. Build quality seems excellent - very fine axe and holds tuning well. The neck isn't as FAT as I feared either. It's quite comfortable in fact after I knocked the thick gloss finish off with some Scotch Pad abrasive. I can barely imagine how much better USA build might be? Note to self "keep an eye out for one of those...." This specimen suffered from a loose tuner selector switch and was behaving poorly in that department but once I pulled it out and re-tightened the shaft nut it's now working perfectly. Very nice body cavities and good electronic components. Artistically routed wiring, clean, clean clean... Oh, the stock PUPs sound nice! I'm a little late to the JTV-59 party but nice job L6! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psarkissian Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 NIce. "... knocked the thick gloss finish off with some Scotch Pad abrasive"--- let me guess, it's black, and you wanted it to be more like a 59 vintage Les Paul. Used to crew for the band Iron Butterfly, and their guitarist had a black '57 Les Paul like that. Nice! Just be careful not to nick or scratch a piezo in the the process (for anyone else who does that). Had a couple come across my repair bench because of that. So be careful. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseyboy Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 NIce. "... knocked the thick gloss finish off with some Scotch Pad abrasive"--- let me guess, it's black, and you wanted it to be more like a 59 vintage Les Paul. Used to crew for the band Iron Butterfly, and their guitarist had a black '57 Les Paul like that. Nice! Just be careful not to nick or scratch a piezo in the the process (for anyone else who does that). Had a couple come across my repair bench because of that. So be careful. Naw, it is black but 'don't care about looks. I never liked the feel of thick glossy finished necks. Small amount of moisture my hand sticks to glossy finish moving around the neck. Small chunk of Scotch pad is what pool players use to "satin" glossy cue sticks. I've done it to every guitar with a glossy finish neck for as long as I can remember. I did it so much on an old black Dot inlay 335, it was down to bare wood. Oh man, it feels nice! Warm and woody... JTV-59 uses a particularly thick and glossy neck finish but it's a very nice shaped neck for my hands. 'Don't go anywhere near the piezos, just the backside of the neck. Quick rub with the Scotch pad, ready to rock! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psarkissian Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 :) Rock on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smashcraaft Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Can you please post a picture of the type of Scotch pad you used? I am interested in trying the same because my hands get stuck from time to time too, when sweating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseyboy Posted September 15, 2017 Share Posted September 15, 2017 Can you please post a picture of the type of Scotch pad you used? I am interested in trying the same because my hands get stuck from time to time too, when sweating. Oops, I see it's actually called Scotch Brite. I go back/forth between red (coarse) and green (not so coarse) - http://www.homedepot.com/p/Scotch-Brite-Extreme-Scrub-Scour-Pad-2-Pack-77222/205910382 They also sell varieties in the plumbing dept for cleaning/soldering copper pipe. Just a small 2-3" chunk will be all you need. In a pinch coarse steel wool will work too but best keep that away from mag pups. EDIT - no uploading photos just links, right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smashcraaft Posted September 16, 2017 Share Posted September 16, 2017 Thank you :) I have 0000 Steel wool here at home, so I will give it a try on one of my JTV-59 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocco_Crocco Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 Can you please post a picture of the type of Scotch pad you used? I am interested in trying the same because my hands get stuck from time to time too, when sweating. I do this on all of my poly-necked guitars. Just feels so much better to me. This guy outlines how I do it. I would avoid steel wool, just because it gets messy and could get stuck to the pickups because of the magnets. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxGz6IZ9BFI&t= Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseyboy Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Found some Ultra Fine Scotch Brite... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specracer986 Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 Doesn't the gloss come back after you play it a lot? I know my one guitar that has a satin finish neck, is now completely gloss from playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseyboy Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Doesn't the gloss come back after you play it a lot? I know my one guitar that has a satin finish neck, is now completely gloss from playing. Yes it does and that's why we keep a small chunk of Scotch Brite in the case or gig bag. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocco_Crocco Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Doesn't the gloss come back after you play it a lot? I know my one guitar that has a satin finish neck, is now completely gloss from playing. Well... a little I guess. It most definitely begins to look glossier, but doesn't get that sticky feeling. But maybe you can't really go by me. I have 10 guitars or so, and I really like spreading out the playing time among them all, so really each guitar taken on its own doesn't get a lot of playing time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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