SB500 Videos
Phred Instruments SB500 Demo and Review by Davvy
Phred Instruments SB500 Demo - Althea Intro
SB500
$749.00
The PHRED instruments SB500 guitar is a set neck, double cut-away guitar that gets its inspiration from Jerry Garcia’s Travis Bean TB500 guitar. The body features three P90 pickups by Artec Sound with Alnico magnets, discrete on/off switches, On Board Effects Loop, and our built-in pre-amp/buffer. Â A P90 pickup upgrade option will become available soon and can be added prior to shipping.
Our SB500 guitar is professionally setup with low action and D’Addario 10-46 strings, and the frets are leveled and milled here at our shop in California for a nice smooth and clean feel all around.
Order fulfillment is currently estimated at 12 months because we are working on fulfilling a backlog of pre-orders.
-
Body
The body features a triple P90 pickup setup, with discrete on-off toggles for each pickup. There is one master volume and 2 tone knobs, allowing you to dial in tone that goes from dark and muddy to crisp and bright. There is one 1/4″ output jack and one OBEL I/O jack. On the back of the guitar, there is a large and accessible electronics cavity and a 9V battery box that powers the internal pre-amp.
Neck
The 5-ply neck is comprise of maple and walnut. The neck will have a natural finish on the back (not painted silver). The back of the neck contour is a C-shape that feels somewhere in between a strat and an LP neck, not too thin, and not too chunky either. The 22 fret ebony fingerboard has medium jumbo frets which are leveled and milled here at our shop in California for a nice smooth feel along the edge of the fretboard. The fretboard features a 12 inch radius which is a nice balance for playing chords up and down the fretboard. Topping off the fretboard are traditional dot inlay. At the top of the neck, you’ll find a bone nut for good sustain. Under the fretboard is the adjustable double-expanding truss rod, keeping the neck stable in any climate.
Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.
13-point Setup
Our 13-point setup and inspection ensures that every PHRED Instruments guitar we ship is professionally setup and ready to play when it’s delivered to you. Setup will include string-height adjustment, intonation, electronics inspection, and the frets are leveled, crowned, and polished, as outlined below.
Fretwork and Fingerboard
1. Debur Fret Edges
This process involves filing the edges of each fret such that the edge of the fretboard feels smooth as you play up and down the neck.
2. Level Frets
Leveling all the frets ensures that you can play at low string action and with clear and articulated notes on each fret.
3. Crown Frets
After leveling the frets, they are crowned. Crowning frets is a process by which the frets are rounded slightly at the top. This makes the frets feel nice and smooth all around, ensures smooth bends, and also makes it easy to slide up and down the fretboard.
4. Polish Frets
After crowning the frets, polishing makes them shine brightly. Polishing them also makes them even more smooth to the touch.
5. Condition the fingerboard
The fretboard wood is cleaned and conditioned using fretboard oil.
Setup
6. Adjust Truss Rod
The truss rod should be adjusted such that the neck is slightly concave.
7. Adjust Nut
The nut height is adjusted to the fingerboard, and the string slots are filed to a perfect height and width for the strings we install
8. Adjust the Bridge Height
As a part of setting the string action, the bridge height is adjusted to our standard measurement of 1.75mm above the 12th fret on the low E string, and 1.5mm above the 12th fret on the high E string. We leave a little bit of room if you want to adjust the bridge a bit lower than that.
9. Adjust the Bridge Saddles
Intonation is set by adjusting the bridge saddles. We tune up and stretch a fresh set of strings, and then adjust the bridge saddle position until the harmonic at the 12th fret compared to the note at the 12th fret.
Pickups
10. Adjust pickup height
The height of the pickup is adjusted such that the perceived volume is consistent between each of the pickups installed on the guitar.
Electronics
11. Inspect and test electronics
Whether you upgrade to our USA wiring option or go with the stock wiring and electronics, we are going to make sure all the electronics work properly prior to shipping. For guitars that have an OBEL jack, we wire it Tip=Send, Ring=Return.
Strings
12. Install D’Addario 10-46 gauge strings
We install D’Addario EXL 10-46 gauge strings on all guitars. If you prefer a different brand or string gauge, contact us and we can accommodate other brands and string gauges, and adjust the setup accordingly to the strings that you prefer to use.
Guitar Body & Hardware
13. Clean and polish the guitar body and hardware
Just before we package up a guitar for shipping, we clean and polish your guitar using StewMac Guitar Polish to make it shine.
Contact Us
Body
| Body Style | Solid Body |
| Body Wood | Mahogany |
Neck
| Scale Length | 24 3/4" |
| Frets | 22 Medium Jumbo |
| Neck Wood | 5-ply, Maple & Walnut |
| Fretboard Wood | Rosewood |
| Fretboard Inlays | White Dot |
| Fretboard Radius | 12 inch |
| Neck Stabilization | Double-Expanding Truss Rod |
| Nut Width | 1 11/16" (43mm) |
| Nut Material | Bone |
Headstock
| Tuning Machines | Unbranded Stock Tuners |
Pickups
| Neck Pickup | P90 |
| Neck Pickup Color | Cream |
| Middle Pickup | P90 |
| Middle Pickup Color | Cream |
| Bridge Pickup | P90 |
| Bridge Pickup Color | Cream |
Hardware
| Bridge Style | Hardtail Bridge |
Control Knobs and Toggles
| Volume Knob(s) | 1 Main Volume Knob |
| Volume Knob(s) Notes | Main volume knob is wired post-OBEL |
| Tone Knob(s) | 2 Tone Knobs (Middle Pickup : Bridge Pickup) |
| Pickup Toggle | Discrete On/Off Toggles |
Electronics and Wiring
| Pre-amp / Buffer | Yes (Requires 9V battery) |
| On Board Effects Loop (OBEL) | Yes |
| Battery Box | Yes (9V Battery Included) |
| Electronics and Wiring Notes | OBEL is wired to use external effects before the guitar volume knob (requires split stereo Y-cable or OBEL junction box with stereo cable) |
Output
| Output Jack(s) | 1 Standard Mono Guitar Output Jack and 1 OBEL I/O Jack |
| Output Jack(s) Notes | Plugging a guitar cable into the mono guitar output jack powers on the pre-amp. |
Other Specs
| Guitar Strings | D'Addario EXL 110 Nickel Wound 10-46 |
| Guitar Dimensions | TBD |
| Guitar Weight | TBD |
Related products
-
$690.00
-
$729.00 -
$2,995.00
-
$689.00
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.