Aria Pro II LS600D VS

Most folk only realise how great these guitars are after they have traded them in for Gibsons. Sure, the brand doesn't have the universal aspirational appeal of the Gibson, but the actual guitar itself punches well above its weight - back in the 1980s, these were actually obtainable; not a huge volume available, but at a price that could be saved up for. Functionally, this was the model with all the toys - massively powerful pick-ups that blow hot T-Tops into the weeds, 2 albums worth of tones, and that probably unnecessary booster, but always nce to have even more on tap. Silky smooth to play, a decent weight and materials that compare favourably with any high end contemporary Gibson - everyone that traded theirs in eventually regretted it.

This one had undergone a very traumatic attempt to recommission - I think the technician probably came off worse than the guitar - these are complicated beasts. No reliable formal technical guides exist for them, and you either know how these go together or you don't. Luckily we do - it is what we exist for.

With only the bridge pick-up making any noise, and the mini-toggles behaving like kill-switches, a valiant attempt had been made to re-install the original pick-ups. This really was a rip it up and start again full re-wire, and now we have the coil splits and the phase reversal doing their jobs, and that lovely creamy neck pick-up is back. The booster and Varitone are now configured correctly again, all the little details are right. This now feels like its a few years old - beautifully played in; but most importantly has all its functions again.

They really don't make them like this any more. It's hard to believe, and easy to fall for all the super-slick marketing efforts of modern brands, but until you play one like this, you don't have the right benchmark. They were built to outlast us all, maybe provide a nervous breakdown for Gibson worshipping technicians, but look after them and they'll look after you.