Musician MC500 or MC550 with 9-pc nec...

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Author Message   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Thursday, April 06, 2006 - 11:13 am:    My searches on this board have revealed nothing, but I'm sure most of you will be aware of this reference on JD's site: http://www.noahjames.com/vintagepage/musician.html (see the refs at the bottom of that page which should convince the most sceptical that they really exist). Can anyone shed any light? Are they worth more than the 7-pc versions and how does the guitar play / sound in comparison?   Bobzilla Username: Bobzilla Registered: 02-2005 Posted on Thursday, April 06, 2006 - 12:42 pm:    I don't understand what's "in question." 7-pc. necks? Is that in question? I think my '78 mc500 has a 7-pc. neck. Pretty sure.   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Thursday, April 06, 2006 - 1:25 pm:    Bob We've all seen plenty of 7-pc neck-thru's, but there is an almost mythical beast that has a 9-pc neck thru'. That is, not counting the extra 2 bits of laminate at the headstock. I'm about to close a deal on one in a very exotic location and not, dare I say it, on eBay. But I'd like to hear any opinions on the rarer form before I take the plunge.   Yogi Username: Yogi Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Thursday, April 06, 2006 - 1:53 pm:    There is nothing mythical about that model, it's the 2nd version of the MC500 which was available in 1979 and 1980. Here's a scan of my 1980 German catalog: I guess you've probably seen this pic several times before while searching the board... BTW: The MC550 featured the 7-piece construction again, officially that is. Maybe there are some transitional guitars around... Juergen   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Thursday, April 06, 2006 - 4:20 pm:    Nice to see that. Thanks Juergen. So, anyone know of any difference in weight, feel, sound, neck thickness, stiffness, etc? The one I'm trying to get is described as an MC550 and has an F80 serial number, i.e. June 1980. It has a DS finish. There is no heel where the body becomes the neck. It's in Buenos Aires, Argentina, but not for much longer. Myth or no myth, there can't have been many made. Anyone know numbers?   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 5:39 am:    Anyone out there? Heeeeeeelp! How do the extra 2 pieces in the lamination work? There is maple in the middle, rather than walnut. The f'board is ebony. Does this configuration make the instrument heavier, lighter, slower, faster, more or less prone to neck twisting? Does it shift the relief point forward or back? Anyone actually have / had one of these?   Yogi Username: Yogi Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 10:08 am:    I own a 2nd edition MC500 made in February 1980 and compared with an Artist Custom 2700, which is the predecessor to the Musician Series and very similar to the 1st version of the MC500, and I'd say that there are no significant differences in sound and weight. Those guitars are heavy, about 4,80 Kg (approx. 10,6 lbs)! I prefer that 2nd version though, since it has the additional Master Tone control, the smoother neck heel and the Output Jack on the side of the body. Juergen   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 1:01 pm:    Danke sehr, Juergen! I have just acquired an Artist Custom 2700 that once used to belong to our very own Dave G, so I am happy to say that I know what you're talking about. It's lovely to play. I also have in my stable an MC550 DS from 1980, which I acquired from a seller in Catalunya in Spain. I guess most of us have seen the scan from the 1980 English-language catalogue (with the bit of sellotape across part of the page) which shows an MC550 WN with a 7 piece neck thru' body. My 550 has what I like to think of as a concave or carved out heel. It's an awesome player, but needs to have the nut grooves filed down as, even after truss rod adjustment, it offers too much resistance for my feel. So I think I know what to expect. Fingers crossed, these pictures will upload OK. It seems (and the shop tells me) that the 9-piece is in good condition. Any comments gratefully received.   Yogi Username: Yogi Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 6:00 pm:    Phatphred, that axe seems to be in really nice shape! But having said that: A MC550 from Spain? I remember an Ebay listing of a MC500, made in December 1980, which was advertised as a MC550. That guitar had a 7-ply neck but all other features of a MC500 like the Velve-Tuners with Pearl buttons and the DS finish on ash top/bottom. It could be a pretty rare transitional model but is still a MC500. In case you bought that guitar, you could save some good money 'cause you already own a MC500! Juergen   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 02-2003 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 6:09 pm:    Phatphred, I believe that the guitar in those picts is a MC500.. MCx50s (350 and 550) were equipped with standard Super58s as pickups, not Super88... btw, what about those pots, should I send them??   Yogi Username: Yogi Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 6:15 pm:    Fox, the guitar in the pics is the 2nd version MC500 that Phatphred is thinking about to buy. The '81 MC550 had Super88 pickups, only the '82 MC550 had the Super58. Juergen   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Saturday, April 08, 2006 - 7:27 pm:    Guys, I'm totally confused about when a guitar described as an MC550 is really an MC500. We will probably never know in most cases what it was actually called at the time it was first sold, since the model number was never written onto the guitar e.g. on the back cavity cover plate, by those "proud people" and there are plenty of transitional 500's out there which are being described as 550's and, to a large extent, possibly are. I think the point is that the Musician series, at least as far as guitars was concerned, went through a constant and relatively furious process of development, that started out with the Artist Custom 2700 / 2710 in 1977 and came to an end in 1982. Changes were made right through model years and different variants were sent off to different markets. There are black ones, flame red ones, 9-pc neck ones and many others. The basses carried on until 1986, I believe, and were always far more popular than the guitars here in England. I'm not sure anyone can ever be definitive on when a 500 became a 550, and I suppose Ibanez simply reserved to themselves the right to call a guitar whatever they pleased. Maybe I'm wrong, but I just like to play the things and the guitar's personality speaks to me under those conditions, not its designation. I think what might have happened is that they thinned out some of the superfluous numberings into 1980 and ended up with just the 150, 350 and 550. In 1978, they had the 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500. The 1980 catalogue I've seen does not show a 500, only a 550, maybe other catalogues indicate otherwise. Anyway, my real question was: Anyone know how the 9-pc plays compared to the 7-pc? Hey, if I find out first, I'll tell you! Fox, you're very kind. Dave's helping me on the MC400 restoration project, but please send them if you can spare them as I still need them to replace noisy ones on a 500. I've cleaned them, but they're still noisy from just being worn out and they keep cutting out and back in even after I've double checked all the solder joints.   Jdd Username: Jdd Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Sunday, April 09, 2006 - 12:29 pm:    Have you talked with the seller at all? I've seen those exact pictures on Ebay before - previously from Mexico. There is a chance a buyer previously bought it from Mexico, but my suspicion is always 'roused when I see duplicate pictures. Just make sure to contact the seller and get a feel for his intentions before sending over any bread. Hope it works out! Justin   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Sunday, April 09, 2006 - 2:34 pm:    Good advice, Justin. Thanks. I've engaged the seller in an e-mail conversation over some time and I'm satisfied the business is on the level. This is a well-established shop in Buenos Aires that has been in the Libertella family for generations and has been closely connected with the Tango tradition. Their bandoneon section is fascinating. Among their guitars, they have Parker Fly's, a Chapman Stick and some nice Epihpones. The rest of their photos are in the same style. Interesting shop, though they don't have other Ibanezes. Take a look around. http://www.casalibertella.com.ar/html/guitarras.html With a shop like this, it's hard to tell who is selling for whom, but it seems to be physically in the shop. It was up for sale on an eBay clone auction site called www.deremate.com.ar, which only accepts Argetinian and Chilean nationals as members. There are other sites for different South American countries and it might also have been on some of those. I tracked the guitar down via a Google search for MC550 initially and then searched for the shop's own website as, fortuitously their user name was their actual business name. I learned a bit of Spanish too on the way! They don't ship abroad, so, I'm having to arrange for Fedex to pick it up and get it to me. Talk about the quest for the Holy Grail! This is why I was hoping someone could tell me what these things play like. I'm very intrigued by the 9-pc neck-thru' and, all other things being equal, if you have a good MC500 as your playing axe where else is there to go but one that has this intriguing construction?   Johns Username: Johns Registered: 02-2001 Posted on Thursday, June 15, 2006 - 12:19 am:    Here's a nice looking MC500. Wear on the bridge, but the price is only at $650.00 US. http://www.qksrv.net/click-1802666-10381315?loc=http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI .dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D7421748719   Phatphred Username: Phatphred Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Friday, June 16, 2006 - 6:08 am:    That looks like a lovely MC500NT from circa 1978, when the "heel", where the through neck joins the body wings, is still quite pronounced and without the passive tone control. A mystery why the serial number's been removed, unless there is the obvious answer - need I elaborate? This is, of course, not a nine piece neck through body. Check out the pictures further up. I have now been playing my nine piece for some time and have really grown to love it. The central laminate being maple, the neck has higher overall stiffness (or so it seems to me), which allows it to be thinner and flatter than the seven piece, making it much more comfortable and fast for my hand. The range of tones is still a source of constant amazement and some confusion! I suspect the bridge wear on this NT looks more alarming in the picture than it is in real life. Where the gold plating simply dissolves away due to contact with sweat, there is a more "graduated" effect. Here, the plating seems to have peeled and curled away in places and the kindest thing may be to remove the flakes altogether, that is unless a NOS replacement can be found (there seem to be a few coming up from time to time on eBay) and keep the original in the case for authenticity. I'm much more worried about that obliterated serial number than the bridge. Incidentally, I wonder if this may hold out some hope to frustrated eq'ers out there. My local Armstrong hi-fi radio repair man can fix dead printed circuit boards! He actually has the IC's in stock and has revived two of these boards for me at a reasonable price. Not a guitar tech at all, but plenty sympathetic to musos nevertheless.   Bobzilla Username: Bobzilla Registered: 02-2005 Posted on Friday, June 16, 2006 - 8:13 am:    There';s only one reason to obliterate a serial number. also, it looks freshly done. Anyone missing their mc500nt? (buy mine, not this one!)

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