Charvel Predator

Body is super strat style with reverse headstock, Bride is Floy Rose licensed tremolo by Schaller (great), Tuners is Jackons, Neck is thin, realy thin, 22 jumbo frets, Rosewood.., I bought it without case, Made in Japan in 1990, Only volum knob 5-way selector, pickup configuration is HS (but this single is made like humbacker with 2 stripes. Jackson Humbucker J90, pasive electronics..
Sorry for bad english..
Uggh

I bought this guitar in April 1990 - new in Frankfurt Germany. In 90-ties I had Marshall JCM 800 lead, and this guitar pluged straight into JCM head, really rocks!!! In the bridge position is Jaskson J90 humbucker. Tone is just awesome.., full of sustain and realy screamin. In the neck position is jackson single (with two stripes..like humbacker), and sound is much more filled with middle.., like Hendrix or SRV style (little wing..). Neck position is great for fast rush down skales and articulated notes. Predator have great drive, and clean isn't so bright and filled with treable.., much more in jazzy style with great bass and middle.. Personaly I' like this kind of clean.. Right now I have a rig with Carvin 100 all tube power amp, Rocktron Piranha preamp, Rocktron Intelifex - fx, and Roland GP-16 fx.., and my sound is much more versatile because of midi programibile patches, so Predator is just pehnomenal with this equipment. Before few days I tried Charvel San dimas Custom shop armed with EMG-s 81 in neck position and 85 in bride, and this sound isn't any close to my old Charvel... Yesterday I plug in my rack Fender Stratocaster USA.., not even close.. So I deceided to stay with Predator as my main axe...
Floyd is made by Schaller, and it's durable for all these years. Guitar is perfectly locked. Only one fine tuner (on high e-string) is little damgaged.., but 16 years of rocks is behind this Charvel.

Factory set-up is great. Action is low, and made for realy fast scales and arpeggios. Before Charvel I have Gibson Les Paul.., and I have real trouble to play fast licks. When I bought Charvel I can't beleived what I can do with this ultra thin neck...
Quality is on high level.. I have this guitar for 16 years, and It' sound's like new. All parts are original.

Like I said.. I played in local bands for 16 years, and Predator is survive all of that. Exellent!!!

I have waranty till 1991., but everything is OK, so I haven't dealt with company

I think i said everythin. Great guitar for metal and Hard rock. For solo is phenomenal, and for rhythm predator is perfect in bride position (for rock or metal). Rhythm drive in neck positon is too middle.., so I didn't use this swich, exept for clean sound and solo's..
This is not guitar for players which love Andy Summers style or somethin like that (telecaster).., but for metal players kicks some ass.., especially on right equipment (like I sad Marshall JCM 800 lead.., Rockron Piranha).. If it were stolen I buy antoher one for sure (If I can find, because is very rare in Europe.., I don't know how is in USA).

Bolt on maple neck rosewood f/b 2 basswood (i guess) body, jackson tuners, single coil (N) and humbucker (B) pick ups. licesnd floyd rose by jackson rversed headstock charvel guitar logo with underneath Charvell Jackson logo all hard ware is blck and comes in electric blue mid-late 80's poss early 90s 1 vol no tone pots but hey like evh sed volume is tone!!! 5 way selct, jumbo frets thin neck

sounds awsome has 5 way select so guess is B(H)/ B(H-coil tap)/ B(H) & N (S)/ B (H-coiltap) & N (S)/ N (S)

ultra thin neck!!!!!!!!! super fast great jumbo frets low action

old n reliable!!!!!!! its a USA made wonder!!!

no dealings

AMAZING!! pure 80's shred!!!!! like gilbert n van halen meet sambora and vanderberg

Made in the late 80's, early '90's"toothpaste logo". Made In Japan, 22 frets....pearlescent white(one of the main reasons I bought it!) jackson hum with a slanted jackson single. 5 way selector switch. single volume. Not sure of the body woods, it is light, but not as light as my firecrackle model 3DR. It has a jackson floyd double locking. I don't care for the bridge....not much by way of fine tuning. Other than that it's ok. Eventually, it'll have a real floyd installed. It came with the original hardshell chainsaw case.

The neck(maple with rosewood board) apparently had that "Sticky" clear which someone before me sanded off. It is plenty quick for shredding...but needs a little tlc(grind and polish maybe) it chokes out and the action isn't that low.

It has a wide variety of sounds from full singing harmonics to calm mellow cleans.

Very quiet operation, though the five way switch has seen better days. Probably needs to be replaced at some point.

Fairly bright sound overall. I like the guitar but might try a JB in the back for some more kick.

Again, this is an older piece, so no idea how the original set up was. I'm sure it was good.

I added new strings and did an intonation. It definitely needs a gring and polish as it chokes in several places while the floyd is not nearly as low as I'd like the action. If it needs re-fretting, it's getting done(using 6100 wire).

The finish is as close to perfect as you can get. Beautiful pearl color!

I think like all charvels and jacksons, this thing was meant to play! And play hard. I take good care of my equipment...but wouldn't hesitate to use it live without a backup in a heart beat.

Strap buttons are in tight. I'd depend on it for sure.

Never dealt with them...No warranty.

It has a pair of 3DR stablemates, two u.s.a. charvels and a jackson soloist.

If it we're stolen or lost, I'd try to replace it with the same thing it is. I wish the neck/frets we're better from the get-go, but we'll address that!.

I love the pearl color...it really looks nice in certain light. Kind of silvery.

I wish it had a real floyd.

88 OR AT LEAST IMC SAID SO WHEN I BOUGHT IT. FIRE CRACKEL FINISH I SINGLE COIL AND A HUMBUCKER HUMBUCKER IS AFTER MARKET WISH I HAD PICTURE, I'M TRYING TO FIND ORIG PICKUP. 5 WAY SWITCH, 1 VOLUME, BOLT ON NECK NOT SURE OF WOOD HAS A SHALLER JACKON TREMELO I THINK ,I'M AT A DIFFERENT LOCATION THAN GUITAR

IT HAS A REPLACEMENT PICKUP IN IT FOR THE BRIDGE BUT I HAD A CHARVEL BEFORE W JACKSON PICKUPS IN IT AND IT WAS GREAT THATS WHY NO OPINION

I THINK ALOT OF THE CHARVELS INCLUDING THIS ONE THE STRINGS SEEM A LITTLE TIGHT COMPARED TO OTHER GUITARS I'VE HAD TWO DIFFERENT CHARVELS AND THEY BOTH FELT SAME FINISH FIRECRACKEL. I HAD KNOWLEDGEABLE PERSON SET THE ACTION ON IT WHILE I WAS THERE ITS OK

GOOD OVER ALL FOR DURABILITY GOOD FINISH IT CAN TAKE THE ROAD, I ALWAYS CARY A BACKUP

FENDER NOW OWNES THEM AND NOT ALOT OF INFO IS AVAILABLE I HOPE SOMEONE COULD HELP ME IN THAT RESPECT I'M TRYING TO FIND AND ORIG BRIDGE HUMBUCKER FOR I ALSO NEED THE MOUNTING RING I HAVE TALKED TO FENDER AND THEY HAVE BEEN HELPFUL AS THEY CAN

THE TENSION FOR STRNGS COULD BE SOFTER BUT THATS OK, I LOVE LES PAULS BUT DON'T LIKE PLAYING THEM i HAVE A COUPLE IBANEZES AN OLD KRAMER(STRIKER) AND A YAMAHA ALL STRAT STYLE
ANY HELP IN ID OF PICKUP OR PICTURES COULD BE SENT TO 1828 N. OAKLAND AVE DECATUR IL 62526

This is a 1990 Model. I used to be a Charvel dealer at the time, and it was one of the models offered by the Charvel line around the time that they changed the logo from the small logo depicting a guitar to the big cursive logo. The lowest prices guitars from them at the time were called "Charvette" and they were very low-quality. This, however, is a great guitar.

It has a lightweight, yet very dense poplar body. This guitar is truly lightweight. One volume knob, no tone, Schaller Floyd Rose system. The Schaller is superior to the original Rose system because of the knife-edge plate and the fact that it is heat-treated. It is much more accurate and tight. Perfect for "fluttering."

The pickups are Jackson high output. They are passable for certain tones...they can get that heavy sound. There is some loss of clarity, however, if you have a finely tuned ear.

The neck is wonderful. The perfect wide flat combination with a compound radius fretboard. Jumbo frets make it a pleasure to play. It is truly a "shredders" guitar. It's not the best for a lot of 1st position chords as the giant frets can throw your intonation off here and there. Oh, and the fact that the Schaller Floyd Rose is set so precisely ready for double-pivot, sometimes if you hit a 1st position chord hard enough, you can hear the bridge start to flutter on it's own.

All in all, the guitar is extraordinarily comfortable.

At the time I bought this, I was into Metallica, etc, etc. It is perfect if you are in that style. I was playing the clubs professionally back then and it was perfect for my needs. Great feedback control as well.

I ran it through a GK for my clean sound and a Marshall JCM 800 for my dirty sound. No effects at the time. No noise to speak of.

I'm sorry to say, but no variety either. It gets one tone...hard rock/metal. Contrary to what people are saying, it's not a good guitar for clean tones. A good clean tone comes from a Gibson with the volume backed off, or a Strat. This guitar has a very midrangey clean tone and you can absolutely hear the fact that it is supposed to be washed in distortion. For shredders who don't care about clean tone other than short passages, this is a great axe.

When I mean clean tone, I don't mean as in the intro to Metallica songs. I am talking about pure clean tone ala Pretenders, Clapton, Police, REM, etc. This guitar is NOT meant for those styles.

Eventually, I replaced the bridge pickup with an EMG 81. The difference was substantial. Much more cutting and clear and better control of feedback. Granted, my clean tone was still horrible, but back then, I wasn't interested in clean. Together with the EMG, this guitar has the ultimate hard/heavy tone. It will overdrive any amp.

Factory setup is great. The action is low and very playable. I've been playing for 20 years now, but have never developed strong hands. I need a guitar to be very easy to play and this really is.

No flaws from the factory. It came straight out of the box ready to be played. Great case if you can find the original...with the twist locks. Very sturdy.

I was lucky enough to avoid those awful crackle finishes. Mine was just black. No flaws in the finish.

I have played countless gigs with this guitar. Countless. I have used it in the studio several times as well.

A favorite story is this: I bought it at the same time as a Les Paul Black Beauty, which was a dream guitar for me. I played both in the studio and when I heard the tracks, the Les Paul just had so much more character than the Charvel. The Charvel just sounded soooo 80's METAL through the same amp setup. So I had to stick with the Les Paul just to make the tracks sound less dated.

However, we played a headlining concert where we were going to be on stage for 2 hours. I had both guitars with me. I opened with the Charvel and then changed to the Gibson about 5 songs into the set. About two songs later, I couldn't stand the Gibson anymore. The weight was killing me and the microphonic feedback was atrocious. I ended up changing back to the Charvel and finishing the show with it.

The bottom line is that though the Gibson was higher value and had better overall tone, the Charvel was just more reasonable as a live guitar. It was great for high-volume feedback control, it was light, had great sustain, was extremely playable, and after that night, became my main guitar.

In order to make it more versatile, it has now been heavily modified. The neck has been replaced with an NOS Charvel strat-style neck (like Eddie's first Charvel neck, or the one Jake E. Lee used to use). The guitar was re-routed for two EMG 81-85 humbuckers. The face was stripped off 1/8" and replaced with bookmatched maple and then refinished. It's a completely different guitar, but here and there you can still hear the original Charvel tone in there. I use it for rock playing and never consider it for clean playing.

Being a dealer, I worked with the company a TON back then. They were reliable and prompt to pay warranty claims. I have no idea what they are like now since they have undergone so many changes.

I would replace this guitar, yes. It's so light and great for a working musician. I often scan Ebay so that I can have another one, or perhaps a second version.

Best feature... plug it into a Mesa or Marshall and let it rip. It is GREAT for soloing. The best I have had for soloing.

Since I was a salesman, I have owned dozens of guitars. I also do a lot of buying and selling on Ebay. Two vintage Strats, vintage Tele, Les Paul, SG, Carvin, Brian Moore, Flamencos made in Spain, etc, etc, etc. The list is too long.

I have played the best of the best and bought and sold fine guitars. I also have done extensive repair on guitars. This is a good guitar...it's as solid and usable as any high priced Ibanez or Jackson. It's not as fancy with the inlays, etc. But it's solid, basic and playable. Get it if you want that 80's sound. Do NOT get it if you want an extremely versatile tone.

1989 model made in Japan. 22 oversized jumbo frets on rosewood fretboard with 12" radius, reverse headstock bolt on neck. Only a volume knob with a 5 way selector switch for a Jackson J-90 humbucker in the bridge and a slanted dual rails in the neck position both passive. Typical Jackson style basswood body with midnight blue finish. Jackson floyd trem and Jackson tuners.

Tone controls would have been nice so I had to add a Bartolini TBT circuit with seperate treble and bass 12dB cut and boost(very nice).

This is great for metal, hard rock, and progressive metal. It has a very nice clean tone though too especially in the neck position. I run it through an ADA MP-1 and an Alesis Quadraverb into a MosValve power amp into a Marshall 1960A cab. It is very quiet and has high gain. I installed a Duncan Screamin Deamon for even more output and a lot more growl. Has very good flexability with the 5 way switch giving both pickups a coil tap for a strat type sound which I do not use too much.

I can't remember how it was set up when I got it but I know it was good enough for me to buy it. It was flawless. The finish on the body was like glass and the back of the neck was like satin.

It does a good job live. I have used this as my primary guitar since I bought it. The floyd has a short block on it and It doesn't stay in tune as good as the Ibanez "Edge" trems. The black finish is chipped on one of the saddles. The finish hasn't worn off and is still shiny but the light basswood body gets dinged easily. The strap buttons are huge but I put straplocks on it. Very dependable but I never gig without a backup.

I called them about 5 years ago to replace the posts for the floyd and they sent me a pair free.

I have been playing since 1985, I have another Charvel that I built from parts off of ebay and threw EMG-81's in it. It isn't the greatest guitar in the world but If it ended up missing I would definately get another on because It is a great heavy metal look and tone and it is very comfortable and light weight. A USA made Jackson would be the only guitar that I think is better for metal but I can't afford one.

All my comments are just my opinion. I am an experienced guitarist and this is just one of my guitars that I use and metal is just one type of music that I play.

It's a -91 Made in japan.
All stock with 1 bridge hum. Jackson J-90C and a singlesize humbucker(kinda twinblade style) Jackson J-200 in neck pos.
1 vol. jackson tuners, bridge is a Charvel Floyd made by Schaller Germany. 5 way switch 1.full neck 2.neck+bridge parallell 3. neck+bridge series 4.neck+bridge parallell w. filter circuit. 5.bridge. Cream white, alder body, maple neck + rosewood.
Reverse headstock.
Pics and info on : http://jokama.freewebspace.com/jonas/guitars.htm
The only down thing is that the pickup switch is too close to the trembar.

Sound is more crunchy than an Ibanez.
With the 5way switch there's alot of sounds to choose from.
All sounding very good in my opinion.
Full bridge is a little bit too midrange based.

I bought it used but you can adjust the action REALLY low, and it's smooth player overall.

Smooth neck, low action, looks good, sounds good, what more would you want from a guitar.

The year is unknown, but it was made in Japan. The guitar has a cracle finish, orange and black. It came with a Schaller Floyd that will never ever go out of tune (though I admit I wish it had an original Floyd), dinky or soloist body with somewhat shorter horns, slanted single coil in neck position, humbucker in bridge. The body is alder. The heel joint is contoured allowing better acces to the upper positions. The neck is beautiful: it's made in maple and has a reverse headstock with Charvel tuners, locking nut that is 1 11/16 wide with no bar string retainer, 16 inch fretboard radius in rosewood with the tallest frets (22 of them) you will ever see, great for shredding. As far as pickups go, the thing came with a Gibson 500-T that was as HOT AS HELL, and a Seymour Duncan single (actually a stacked humbucker) that was horrible.It has one single volume knob and a three way blade selector. I later Chaged the electronics to DiMarzio HS-3 in the neck, and a DiMarzio PAF PRO in the bridge. I also drilled a hole in the guitar to accomodate a three position mini toggle switch that made the PAF PRO run in series or normal mode, paralel, and single coil mode shutting off the coil closest to the bridge. Let me tell you that there isn't a guitar out there that sounds as good or plays better than this ugly looking thing. In my uneducated opinion, of course.

The guitar suits me very well. I'm usually playin latin rock, like Mana and the likes, and 80's Heavy Metal and hard rock. With the new electronics I can get pretty much any sound I want. The PAF PRO is not the hottest pickup, but it is hot enough to let me play 80's metal quite well plus it gives me the best clean sound in the single coil mode. The HS-3 is only good if you are playing with distortion, but it gives you a good Malmsteen like tone. The instrument is pretty quiet. What really makes this guitar so versatile is the new electronics. I recommend the 3 position toggle on humbuckers highly instead of having a "more positions than needed" pickup selector. You can leve the pickup selector on the bridge position and play around with the toggle. One look at it and you automatically know what pickup is on instead of having to guess.

The guitar looks dated. The cracle finish has to go. But the action on this puppy is heavenly. What that means for me is that I can get action so low, it is amazing this thing isn't buzzing. The fret work is flawless, the way I always dreamed it would be. For me the lower the better. The guitar is put together very well. I wish it had an original Floyd instead of the Schaller simply because I think the original looks better, it has longer locking screws, but the Schaller serves its purpose quite well, and that's what matters. The factory set-up is unknown since I bought it used. But I twinkled with it until it arrived at its present state, which I feel is percect. Sent from Heaven. I'm giving it an 8 because of the finish.

I can depend on this guitar, and have been depending on it for the last six years. I don't care if the finish wears off, I will most likely have the color changed at some point. But the guitar feels very durable. You should get one.

I have not dealt with Jackson/Charvel that much. But I do remember calling them to get a locking nut that gave me a 16 inch radius over the fretboard. They sold me one for $44.00 and it was a 10 inch radius nut. They probably thought I was not educated enough.

I heve been playing for 15 years and own a few guitars. I absolutely love this guitar and if I somehow lost posesion of it I would die. I hate the finish. People laugh at me when I get on stage, but the guitar plays and sound so well that who cares. I wish it had 24 frets, but once again that is only an aesthetic issue since I never get to use those frets anyhow.

1980's Made in Japan, 22 Frets reverse headstock, solid top, 1 volume, hum/single stock jackson pickups (passive). W/Jackson Floyd Rose. Slim neck, maple w/ rosewood fret board, good solid metalic purple/pink strat body finish. Came w/ fited hard case.

Originally with the Jackson pick ups the sound was slightly on the twangy side with quite a bit of hum.and not much pickup definition between sounds. This I rectified by getting hold of a custom wound Dimarzio super distortion, I replaced the 5 way coil splitting switch with a Fender 3 way switch.(Less is often more!) Now not only has the hum disapeared the soud positively detonates and the definition of the single coil has also increased ten fold. This thing now sounds a lot better than many (to remain nameless) guitars I have played!My musical style is what ever, from blues to metal. I use a peavey 5150 and a jim dunlop wah and a PRS as my main guitar yes I'm fussy.

This is a second hand guitar with very minor (and I mean minor) dings and scratches mostly on the butt end on the back of the guitar. Straight fom the factory this guitar would have been a 10 as it has a nice depth to it. The finish on the neck is absolutely flawless NO problems with it at all, super clean. I thought the guitar had never been played. The action was set up a might too close for my tastes with some string rattle but that was easily changed and action is all about personal prefference anyway!

Very solidly constructed, I bought it for a throw around. The strap buttons seem solid enough and with the self updated electronics inside I know I can depend on it. I wouldn't use any guitar with out a back up as strings do break!

Have not needed it but I hear Jackson are one of the idustries best.

I've been playing since my very early teens and I'm 26 now, so for a few years. There are no questions I wish I had asked as I always do my homework an so should you! In my opinion I got a very good deal when I got this guitar, but I knew what to expect and was prepared to make alterations, that said Even in it's original state it beat the majority of other (still to remain nameless) guitars hands down with the quality of it's construction.

I believe this one was made in about 1990 according to Kevin at Jackson and another couple of sources.. Maybe 89, maybe 91, but the 90 Catelog shows this guitar with the correct features and paint job, etc..
22 jumbo frets, perfect thin neck, but not ESP thin.. Basswood body I'm told, but I have my doubts as it's heavy for a basswood body. I weighed myself and then myself with the guitar and it was about 7 to 7.25 lbs. Now that could be because of other extra's such as a newer trem, or something. It has a replacement german made shaller trem. I bought this used for 325 with ohsc which is molded for the guitar black with cool locks that twist tight shut. The paint is called "Firecracle" which doesn't do much for me, but is pretty cool..and others seem to like it that just look at it and don't play..The body is a strat or dinky style, but it seems bigger than a dinky style to me.. The neck to body finish is as good as some metal finishes I've seen while I was working at a machine shop. You couldn't stick a .003 shim at all inbetween the neck and the body anywhere on any side.. Perfection.. I'm shocked at the value of this guitar.. I sold an ESP neck thru and this thing out of the case was set up perfect and sounds just as good ! I mean this thing rocks.. It has standard charvel tuners.. I think the floyd that came with it was shaller, but not sure.. I hear they were cheap. The guy I bought the guitar from obviously took very good care of it.. I mean it's excellent to the point of "I Can't believe I got this guitar".. I've had gibsons, jacksons, etc.. and this one is the best all around guitar I've had for the money.. One hum and one single.. The single is some type of generic dual looking duncan blade copy I'd guess and the hum was a jackson 90 I think it's called. (I still have it) and the humbucker was very quiet but very low output. I'm an 80's type of guy.. so I bought a Duncan FUll Shred and whoa! This thing sounds like a Chain saw on acid! Maple neck with reverse headstock, rosewood fretboard.. Fit and finish of the rosewood board to the maple neck is perfect.. Has a 5 way switch.. It's a strat scale which is 25.5 " and on this guitar it still feels less than any other guitar with the same scale because of the excellent setup and neck which is tuned down 1/2 step with 10's.. What a guitar.. I also got a set of dunlop strap locks, etc with it.. The guitar had been shielded for noise but still hums in the single coil mode with my marshall vavlestate (I hate that amp)(For sale..email me) and I've not had the pleasure to play it thru my Peavey 30 watt classic, but everytyhing sounds good thru it.. Oh, and the guitar has this scoop on the back that makes it easy to get to the last 22nd fret.. Easy to play all the way back and forth on this guitar.. I'm not a theory based player, but have played in bands and can play both lead and rythem and this guitar shreds.. Fast as hell, yet fat enough on the neck to not tire your hand like the pencil thin Ibanez junk, etc..

Perfect for me.. I love playing with guitars now days .. Midlife crises thing I think.. Like a good women if you get the guitar just right.. Intonation, action, pickups, etc, which = TONE.. I wish I had a better or louder single coil as when I go from Single to full hum there is a huge differenced, but the single coil has some killer tone for clean hendrix like sounds.. I'm going to send it to wolftone and have it rewound for 50 bucks or buy a duncan single coil and stick in it.. The guitar is kind of dark I think.. Even though I stuck the duncan full shred in it, to me I have to really crank the treble and crank down the mids and bass on the amp's dirty channel.. Will have to see what it is like on another amp, but it's the same thru my digital zoom 707 pedal which I use to record with into my PC with Cakewalk.. Still sounds like digital shit to me though because of the zoom.. distortion on that piece of crap sucks..

I don't know how it came from the factory, but it came setup perfect with 9's and I messed with it and stuck 10's on it as the 9's just sound to tinny and weak and I break them with my bends.. The bridge on this thing rocks.. The trem works perfectly.. I blocked it so it would dive only since I'd heard that it gives more sustain, but I can't tell the difference on the digital stuff at least, but could be the amp.. Doesn't hurt though and I don't do much whammy's so I wanted something that would be easy to rest my hand on since I'm from the Gibson / Fender of the 70's school.. and 80's.. Gibson's are the sound that I normally go for !

This guitar is built.. The paint job is hard as a marine in a room full of call girls! This thing is tough.. The neck is thick enough to give good tone and not bend and warp like the Cheap korean over priced Ibanez.. Why buy an Ibanez, ESP made in Japan or Korea when I can get a used Charvel made in Japan for much less with equal or better.. (better for sure) quality.. Kids have so much to learn.. This guitar screams "I don't do clean or rapp or punk nipple peircing shit".. 80's all the way and metal all the way.. but at the same time can get a convincing clean hendrix tone with it.. In the middle position with hum and single sounds like I'm using a wah wah which is really cool.. Can't explain it, but very nice..

I wrote Jackson asking about this guitar and then also spoke with chris at Chris guitars.. Great guy by the way and has great prices on used guitars.. www.chrisguitars.com and he had an old catelog which was the way I found the model, etc.. It's very similiar I guess to the model 88 which also had a reverse headstock.. This one has the big charvel toothpaste logo and not the 80's logo with the charvel in small print.. It has the standard jap "ft worth texas" neck plate and 4 screws.. Jackson is the best.. If you want a quality guitar, buy a Jackson made in Japan or the US.. I'd stick to the high quality Jacksons, but the cheaper charvels made in Japan are as good as any Jap made ESP for a lot cheaper bucks.. I've owned many guitars and I'm telling you this one rocks!

I wish this guitar had a 3 way toggle switch instead of a 5 way or a different single coil as the five way is too much for me.. I can't eq it right or something.. I like simple better.. I've always thought that the fender had too many tones and only half were usuable.. Gibson's have 3 choices and 2 of the three are usually good with stock pickups, but with replacements like duncans your in like flynn..