NGD - Meadowhawk 2026-10 “Petaltail”
- Thread starter Hodgo
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Hodgo
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They’re about 4 hours away, so if anything it’s like 20 hours late (kidding)
teleme01
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I wondered how you got it that fast
Hodgo
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Alright so this guitar rocks. I am 99% sure @aarontunes designed this explicitly for covering Van Halen because it sounds like 5150 right out of the case.
Hodgo
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Thanks for paging me!
I’ve been playing this guitar all last night and this morning and I am forming the opinion that the Crawler pickups are similar to a Duncan JB/Jazz. Bridge pickup loves harmonics and sounds great on both ends of the Fender Twins mid tone control.
The neck on the other hand is more like a slightly overwound PAF… warm, round, and cleans up quick when you roll the volume down.
Speaking of, I don’t know what pots are under the hood yet but man they turn like butter. That’s a nice touch.
Pictures won’t do it justice, the goldtop gold looks less yellow in person and the quilt top has unreal depth.
Spud
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I was worried you might miss it and am glad you got one. IMO it is the coolest one to boot!
Scab Pickens
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The specs on the website say the pots are PRS. The pickup rings could possibly be PRS, as well. Not 100% sure on that one, though.
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Yep, PRS pots. Best pots in the biz, IMO. Smooth turning, and perfect sweep if you like to ride the volume like I do.
The pickup rings are from a company called Anomaly, and I believe they have gone out of biz. It's a shame because their rings are awesome. You can still find remaining stock for sale at a few places, but nothing new.
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Compared to a JB, I find the Crawler less bright. The JB has that upper mid thing going on, whereas the mids on the Crawler are centered a little lower, in a range I find more pleasant. Output is similar.
Perfect description of the neck pickup. And as it cleans up it almost becomes more bright. It's perfect for big soaring leads, then you dial it back and it cleans up and gets brighter for a nice rhythm tone. In my Journey tribute I play Lights all the way through on the neck pickup, just riding the volume. It's perfect for that.
Hodgo
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I agree - and it’s been many years since I was a JB fan, but I remember the JB being almost too shrill. Of course my amp setup has changed drastically over the years, and I didn’t fiddle too much with the amp this weekend - ‘65 Twin with treble on 8-9, bass on 2-3, mids usually down around 3-4, and a Maxon OD-9 in front. I cranked the mids just to see what was what and the Crawler did well both with the mids cut and pushed. Very versatile setup.
Hodgo
Experienced Member
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Given the option I would’ve asked for a 59 roundback for sure.
I’m still giving it a 10/10 would buy again
Spud
Master Member
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I tried this std thin just to see but not even close for me. Love Warmoth, but (my fault obviously) I put a finish on it to later discover the 14th fret was too low from factory for some reason and I couldn't return it. Only problem in many many necks I have ever experienced.
Max Headroom
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@Hodgo May I ask a question? Is the body at the quilt maple standard thickness? I am thinking of ordering a regular unfinished Meadowhawk and then routing away the maple top down to the core body wood to create the same effect. What is the thickness of the golden "wings"?
Thank-you and congratulations!
Thank-you and congratulations!
Hodgo
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It appears so - without busting out the calipers, it looks like that’s exactly what’s going on:
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Yes, that's correct. The center is standard thickness, and the "wings" are thinner. That reduction is taken from the top only, as the back is flat all the way across.
An interesting idea, but you will probably be stymied by the depth of the control cavity on the standard Meadowhawk. The limited run has a shallower cavity to accommodate the thinner wings. If you try to rout the top down on a standard there is a good chance you'll hit the control cavity from the top and have a hole that goes all the way through the guitar.
I haven't tested or taken exact dimensions to confirm this, but I would bet money on it. Even if you don't rout through, you are still going to end up with a dangerously thin top over the control cavity area.
The top lam is 1/4" thick, so the thickness of the wings would be roughly 1/4" less than standard, aka approximately 1-1/2".
This limited run of Meadowhawks really is a special thing. We did a lot of stuff on them that is unique and fairly difficult to manufacture. The two-step top in particular is something you won't be seeing again; very expensive, very tricky to paint, etc.
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