G&L ASAT Deluxe II, Black Ice
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This G&L ASAT Deluxe II Black Ice guitar features:
- Two piece swamp ash body, 7.8 pounds
- G&L #1 satin finish maple neck, 12" radius
- Dunlop 6100 frets
- Abalone fret dots
- Schaller drilled and split tuners
- Seymour Duncan '59 neck pickup
- Seymour Duncan JB bridge pickup
- TonePros T3BT bridge
- Volume and Tone Control, 3-way switch
- Pull-tone control for coil split
- Plek® Laser Guided fret finishing
- G&L deluxe tolex hardshell case
- Made in USA
- List price: $1800
There is a lot of chatter about the sonic effects of finish, and while the finish is critical for acoustic instruments, how much does it matter with solid body guitars? My own personal opinion is that many factors in the construction of an electric guitar have a greater effect on overall tone -- pickups, body wood, neck construction -- but finish does matter. Some people swear by thin nitro cellulose finishes as being warm and natural sounding, while claiming that thicker "poly" finishes with heavy epoxy fillers sound more sterile and brighter. My own experience says there is something to that, and suffice to say the finish on the Black Ice series is very thin, and reveals a lot of wood texture. G&L claims that these finishes are also very tough as well as thin.
Sonically, the Deluxe II is satisfyingly resonant and clean sounding guitar. Swamp ash is a good wood for humbucking guitars, and has the characteristics of a slightly scooped midrange and a sweet top end. This helps clean up the middle frequencies of humbucking pickups, making them less wooly and congested sounding. The Duncan '59 neck pickup sounds great: Punchy but clear with a great blend of thickness and openness that is very hard to achieve with a humbucking pickup. Pulling up the tone control puts the pickup (both pickups actually) in single coil mode, and while it won't sound like Legacy, this mode produces a lean, clean sound that is good for lively rhythm work.
The Duncan JB is a go-to bridge pickup for a lot of players, blending a nice combination of output, bite, and harmonics. In the Black Ice you get what you'd expect with this pickup, but with a leaner midrange and a little more sparkle in the upper end. It does not sound like a "hot" pickup but still has plenty of power, and matches the neck pickup well. Great for classic rock and roots music, the JB is also very responsive to volume and tone control adjustments, and there is wide range of tonal shades available. As mentioned earlier, pulling the tone knob up also taps this pickup. However I find that this pickup is clean enough on it's own - especially with the volume rolled off a smidge -- that it's not necessary to tap the coils to get clean jangly bridge tones.
The ASAT Deluxe II also features a Gibson-style TonePros bridge instead of the usual G&L saddle lock bridge. This has a definite influence on the sound, and whereas the saddle lock is defined by tight bottom end and long sustain, the TonePros bridge/tailpiece combination has more chime and ring. if not quite the sustain. To my ear it helps brighten up the overall tone, and gives the guitar a more lively vibe.
To say that the Deluxe II Black Ice is a good deal is an understatement. While the monochromatic finish may not be for everyone, G&L has put together a high-end sounding guitar at a very agreeable price. With first rate hardware, electronics and tone woods, the ASAT Deluxe II Black Ice puts out remarkably full and dimensional tones that bridge the gap between single coil clarity and humbucker thump.
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