View other reviews for this product:
tjon901 « Deans Flying V »
Published on 07/07/11 at 09:12Dean guitars was started in the mid 70s buy a guy named Dean Zelinsky. They are known for their radical shapes. Dean had the idea that the more spread out the wood on your guitar is the better it would sound. They are also known for their V profile necks. The V profile necks fit the radical motif of having radical shapes on their guitars. The V is up there with the ML for most common Dean model. The 79 V model is based off of the specs of what the V would have been in 1979. The guitar has a mahogany body and a flamed maple top. It has a mahogany neck with set neck construction. The neck is the Gibson scale lenght. It has a 22 fret rosewood fretboard with jumbo frets. This model was a stop tail and it had a tune-o-matic bridge and a string through stop tail piece similar to that of a 58 or 59 model flying v. It comes with two Dean pickups and each one has its own volume knob along with a master tone knob. There is a 3 way toggle switch to switch between the pickups with. On top of the radical headstock there are grover tuners.
UTILIZATION
The V design provides great upper fret access naturally. The set neck design means there is a bit of a heel at the neck joint but on this model it is not bad. The V shape might be hard for some people to play sitting down. You may have to play in a classical position with the guitar in your lap if you are playing while sitting down. Some models have a strip of rubber to add more traction to the bottom of the guitar, making it easier to play while sitting down. Standing up the shape gives the guitar perfect balance. The input jack is kind of in a bad place if you are use to wrapping it through your guitar strap.
SOUNDS
The maple top adds some crispness to the chunk of the mahogany body. The stock pickups are pretty hot but they are not that great. The neck pickup you can kinda get the smooth neck pickup lead tone but it gets really muddy really fast. With the bridge position you get nice grit going but it can also get muddy. This is a problem with cheap high output pickups they tend to muddy up the sound quickly. If you want to really open this guitar up you can throw in some Dimarzios or Seymour Duncans like an sh1 sh4 set or something.
OVERALL OPINION
Not many people play Deans anymore. They have radical looks and people who like them tend to really like Deans. They are good guitars overall. The quality on these made in Korea models is pretty good. They say Korea is the new Japan and I guess that is true. If you are looking for a flying V thats something different and a bit cheaper than a Gibson this Dean is a good option.
UTILIZATION
The V design provides great upper fret access naturally. The set neck design means there is a bit of a heel at the neck joint but on this model it is not bad. The V shape might be hard for some people to play sitting down. You may have to play in a classical position with the guitar in your lap if you are playing while sitting down. Some models have a strip of rubber to add more traction to the bottom of the guitar, making it easier to play while sitting down. Standing up the shape gives the guitar perfect balance. The input jack is kind of in a bad place if you are use to wrapping it through your guitar strap.
SOUNDS
The maple top adds some crispness to the chunk of the mahogany body. The stock pickups are pretty hot but they are not that great. The neck pickup you can kinda get the smooth neck pickup lead tone but it gets really muddy really fast. With the bridge position you get nice grit going but it can also get muddy. This is a problem with cheap high output pickups they tend to muddy up the sound quickly. If you want to really open this guitar up you can throw in some Dimarzios or Seymour Duncans like an sh1 sh4 set or something.
OVERALL OPINION
Not many people play Deans anymore. They have radical looks and people who like them tend to really like Deans. They are good guitars overall. The quality on these made in Korea models is pretty good. They say Korea is the new Japan and I guess that is true. If you are looking for a flying V thats something different and a bit cheaper than a Gibson this Dean is a good option.