Steinberger Synapse TranScale

24 medium jumbo fret rosewood fretboard, gigbag (ugh) Emg active pickups + piezo pickup. One volume one tone. Sliding capo baritone scale. Headless, as all Steinbergers. No tremelo, that hurts too.

Great sound, interesting possibilities. Very versatile..I really like the sounds but...

The neck...is too fat with the slots for the capo. This would be a great guitar without the transscale. You can feel the slots, and I did not care for that. Action was not as close as it should be for this price range either. Sure stays in tune though. Too bad.

Matte finish seems durable, bridge is strong and sturdy...but that neck; I don't know how it'd hold up. Electronics were really interesting and solid.

I sent it back to MF, that's the great thing about them...and I've sent more than a couple of axes back that did not cut it.

A 10 for the bridge and the sound and the electronics, a 2 for the transcale and the neck. Value is a problem too, for almost $1100 you can get some really nice guitars that'll come with a hardshell case and that are U.S. made. I've played almost everything for over 30 years. Still gigging when somebody will pay decent!

I'm not covering the standard details - everybody else already did. But the label on the back on mine says it was made in Korea. I guess I would also have liked a whammy, but you can't have it all can you...

Style? What style? I have no style. But my initial impressions suggest that I wouldn't have a hard time fitting this guitar into it anyway. I've only had it for a day so far and plugged in for less than two hours... The piezo in my guitar is working perfectly and the sound it gives is _fat_. I am already in love with it. I wonder if I'll ever have any use for the magnetics.

It was slightly out of tune when it arrived, but then again, it had already been handled by other people and re-mailed. Everything else seems to be just fine.

Too early to say much, but I have a hard time imagining anything in it would break.

Musician's Friend through a middleman to get it to Europe... Hard to say as I didn't personally deal with MF. I wish there had been a way to purchase this guitar in Europe without having to resort to middlemen in the US, though.

New like $1100. Made everywere. The EMG pickups and custom active chip board made in U.S.A I think the bridge is made in Gereny and the body in China but put together in U.S.A.. not totally shure.

24 frets, can be a baratone with heavy strings but I use the .10-46 Steinberger strings. but you do not have to use there strings like most Steinbergers you can lock a regular string at the nut with an alen wrench.

Maple neck graphite fret board and the body is Graphite I think also.

A Vey fast playing neck with great action. It just will not go out of tune. It is amazing. The EMG's are great as they always are but with the added active tone controls with its custom cip board. It is a EMG lovers dream. plus it has a piezio in the bridge with a mix contol. Rocks solid bridge with tuners that are real smooth.

The rolling capo lets me use staight -D and -E in one second to slide.

I replaced the EMG 85 in the neck with an 81 so I have two 81's in the guitar. If you think the EMG 81 is modern sounding well with the active controls it is even more sonic. Very modern sounding. but with a quick twist of the knobs you can get as clean as glass or smooth as Santana. Just unreal

Mine came with perfect action, and finish is great. Mine is white. It came with 10-48 strings tuned to D just like I planed on useing it. slide the rolling capo to the second fret and I am in standatd -E.

I cant see any problems. It is always in tune. And I do not keep it in a case. Built fantastic. It is clear and easy to play it has opened Doors for me.

I called the company and they were very kool. I think the guitar is a revolution. I have to say it is about the most modern guitar out there. No wammy bridge. I guess you can put a Trans bridge on it but they are $800. alone. plus it stays in tune so well that I would not touch it.

Like I said this is about the most modern guitar out there. These other guys that say this is a misfit or turkey,, well not to me. It put my ESP's to shame.

I don't own a Synapse guitar. I used to have a Steinberger GM4T and played if for 15 or so years. (sold it for whatever reason). So I know what quality and what a perfect guitar would be.

I do have Spirit GT-Pro and deal with the fact that the volume knob is directly under the bridge pickup and I'm constantly hitting (changing the volume) while I play. I can't beleive that Ned put it directly under the bridge pickup on the Synapse! If you look at the old guitars they're set back. All the Music Yo guitars are like that to. The higher end ones that music Yo sells for 8 or 9 hundred dollars have it back less than an inch or so but still in the way.

I planned on not getting one of the new ones until it gets moved back. Then I think it would be a perfect guitar if it was the same quality as my GM4T.

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"Blem" guitar with Transcale rolling capo provides baritone capability: following up to an earlier review, you do lose the 23rd and 24th frets for the baritone.

Twist knob to infinitely dial between piezos and active EMG's (81 & 85)is good.

Two tone knobs (one for low and one for highs) is another nice touch.

Volume knob well placed and easy to change with your pinky.

Storage place for hex wrenches under the bridge is way cool.

You can't split the coils.

And the strap hook thing cost a point. It's ugly and unnecessarily complex and wiggled: why change what worked so well?

I like Steinbergers a lot - always have - Ned is a genius.

Admittedly, this one is a blem so perhaps my gripes wouldn't apply to a new guitar.

The piezos didn't work: no sound whatsoever.

Additionally, the active EMGs produced only about 60% of the signal strength that my passive DiMarzios (Parker NiteFly M) produce so it was impossible to get a good comparison on the sound. I don't know if active EMGs are supposed to produce such a low signal level so I can't really say if they were working right.

I can only presume it was a wiring problem affecting all pickups.

And yes, I did install a brand new alkaline battery.

Worst action I've seen on an expensive guitar. My son's Spirit GT-Pro is much better: at least the low E string can be played without horrible fret buzz.

Finish was very nice where it was done properly - beautiful blue color. In the input jack cavity it looked like they'd painted over small wood chips or something: not a pretty sight.

The groove where the capo rolls was rough looking - not the quality you expect for an $1100 + guitar.

Frets smaller than I prefer but that's subjective.

Perhaps I'm just spoiled by my NiteFly neck.... thank you, Ken Parker.

Based on an earlier review and my experience I think you'd be gambling big time if you depended on the piezos working.

No experience with Steinberger.

Musician's Friend gets continued high marks: they took this defective guitar back without hesitation or hassle.

Seriously playing for 3 years and beginning to get a clue. Absolutely love my Parker NiteFly M - the neck is perfect. And my Carvin Vintage 16 amp is wonderful. If you want inexpensive but luscious tube sound try one.

Again, I love Steinbergers and what Ned has done overall but this guitar is a disappointment.

IMNSHO: in order to have a "new" product, the engineers decided to add "new" features and didn't focus adequately on quality.

The rolling capo is cool but I'd rather have the piezos work.

The "new" strap hook design is a significant step back from a very functional previous design.

Overall, unfulfilled potential. I may try one of the MusicYo USA versions to see if the problems are related only to the MF version.

Or, like someone said, maybe just spend $300 and change on the Spirit model and put in some better pickups.

Keep after it, Ned: you can do better than this. You've proven it for many years.

I was so disappointed that I paid so much for this guitar, and the piezo didn't work. (Actually, I got it working for about 5 minutes, then it died). I was also disppointed that it couldn't be fixed by a world-class luthier that happens to live nearby. So if the piezo were to go out again in the future, I would have to ship the instrument out to Musician's Friend, and probably be without it for a few weeks.

A couple of points you may want to consider based on my experience with this guitar:

(1.) Keep in mind that with the Transcale model, you can't use regular double-ball end strings. Because of the extra length of the guitar, you must either use regular guitar strings, or double ball strings that are made specifically for the Transcale model (this is not the case for the non-Transcale Synapse).

(2.) Don't hold me to this, but I'm under the impression that with the Transcale you sacrifice two high frets for the extra low notes that you may not need that often.

(3.) With the capo on the second fret (making it like a normal scale guitar) the markers on the fretboard will be off by two frets. You will need to use the dots on the side of the neck as a postioning reference. This drove me totally batty at the gig. During all of my solos that night, I was constantly misjudging by two frets. The band got a very timid version of my usual self. I'm sure I could get used to this in time, but would this make for another bad transition period when I pick up a "conventional" guitar?

(4.) Please don't buy this instrument if you absolutely have to have a Strat sound. The same applies to people that expect the piezo to sound like a convincing acoustic. According to press releases by the company, that was ever the intended use for the piezo.

Don't get me wrong; I consider myself to be a die-hard Steinberger user, and I really believe in Ned's vision. In my opinion however, the Transcale is a turkey. I am going to try the non-Transcale version Synapse, and hope that will be more to my liking.

No, I am not a rival guitar manufacturer trying to trash something for my own gain. I'm just a regular working musician type.

Although the piezo pickup did not work, I did get a lot of compliments from my bandmates on the tone of this guitar using its regular EMG pickups. We play a diverse mix of styles, and this guitar can pull it off easily.

I got the transparent amber finish. Absolutely gorgeous. The feel and playability were exceptional.

I am returning this guitar to Musician's Friend in exchange for the less expensive version. Customer support was very friendly and helpful.

Brand new 2005 Steinberger Synapse TranScale guitar. 24 fret Baritone neck with built-in rolling capo. All Maple body with matched flame maple top and Phenolic fretboard. 1 volume, 1 Mag./Piezo blend, 2 tone knobs, 3-way minitoggle pickup selector. The pickups are EMG 81 at the bridge, EMG 85 and the neck, Steinberer Piezo system in the saddle. Active EQ system with seperate treble and bass controls. Green transparent burst finish on flame maple. Steinberger GL, or boat oar shape. Gig bag, tools, cord and manual included.

This guitar will do it all! With the EMG pickups and the Piezo pickup system you can blend the 2 combinations to get about any tone you are looking for. I've been playing this through a Line 6 POD Pro and have been able to acheive several really nice tones from crystal clean to Zak Wylde EMG 81 tones to vintage PAF tones. It is as quite as if it wasn't even on, due to the active pickups.
The only thing I would change would be to add a splittable EMG 89 pickup or a single coil pickup in the neck position and that is purely personal taste on my part. I've been playing single coil neck pickup for years and I prefer that sound.

Great factory setup, I haven't had to change anything. The pickup height was right on, the action is nice and low. The frets are even with no sharp edges, and it was in tune when it arrived. I see no flaws, the book matched front looks great and the finish is really well done.

This guitar feels great! It's balanced really well. It's light and could be worn all day without fatigue. The hardware is solid and mounted well. This is the only guitar you would need live. It can play in many keys, because of the rolling capo and can drop down to D by rolling the capo off of the neck. With the Piezo and EMG's it will cover clean and any vintage or distortion tones I need, and with the double ball strings, I could change a string in seconds, if I were to break one. Next gig I may just take this guitar only!

I just got it so I haven't had to talk to them yet.

I've been playing guitar for over 23 years now and gigging live for about 20 years. I've played live in serious working cover bands playing as many as 45 weekends a year. I have mainly played in Rock, Alternative, and classic rock bands. I've owned about every guitar made through the years and currently own a Steinberg GL4TA, PRS Hollowbody Spruce w/Piezo, PRS Swamp Ash Special, PRS McCarty with IRW neck, and a few acoustics. This guitar will stand up against any of them! I know I sound like I'm selling these guitars but I'm really excited about the greatness of them guitar and it's features! If you want to learn more about the Synapse guitar try Steinbergerworld.com or Steinberger.com These guitars are really without limits!