Tokai EX-55

Black explorer style with white pick-guard and gold hardware. Bought used but was in A1 condition (scratch or dent-wise) still had plastic covers on the pickups and pick-guard. Unfortunately it did need a bit of setting up but nothing too drastic (action was a bit high, intonation was out). Made in good ol? Korea, solid Korina in the body with a nice wide mahogany set neck for a thick resonant sound. Neck join is pretty good, however the balance between the neck and body is a little off on the strap and it tends to sway a little towards the neck. It has a rosewood fingerboard with standard dot inlays and 22 jumbo frets. 3 way toggle switch, 2 Volume, 1 Tone black speed knobs, Tune-o-matic bridge with stop-bar tailpiece, its standard fair here. Nice abalone ?Tokai? inlayed logo on the headstock, which is the traditional Gibson explorer shape with metal tulip shaped tuners. The stock pickups are Tokai PAF MK4 pickups (if that means anything to you) with metal casing.

Very chuffed with the guitar as I was after an explorer shape but, lets face it, the majority out there either look too stupid (Jackson Kelly, BC Rich) or are made to a crappy standard (Epiphone). From what I read Tokai are starting to build a good name for themselves and their mid-priced guitars looks pretty darn good.

I?ll split this into two as I have swapped the stock pickups for a pair of Seymour Duncan?s (JB and Jazz). For both pickups the solid Korina body and mahogany neck give a full resonant sound and is certainly what I?m used to with my Les Paul. I?ve never had a Korina body before but in weight its similar to Mahogany (though lighter than my Les Paul).

With Stock: The stock pickups were a bit of a surprise as these bad boys aint half bad. The bridge was perhaps a little too bright or trebly but on a crunch channel it really does sing (it?ll cut through most anything on lead). The neck pickup too aint that shoddy, slightly muddy but nothing too serious and is definitely usable for rhythm work (I hardly ever stray from the bridge though). They?ll do hard rock/metal easily and they also sound good clean, though I doubt you?d buy this type of guitar for indie rock. Of course the complete tone depends on what kind of amp your using, in my case a Marshall TSL 60 half stack. I?d say it?s not essential to change the pickups but an upgrade never does any harm. For the stock pickups I?ll give it an 8.

Seymour?s: The Seymour Duncan JB pickups really change this guitar from mid to top-range. It?s medium output and is more trebly than a lot of the other Duncan humbucker pickups, this means there is a lot more clarity when you turn up the distortion, which was what I was after. It does cleans nice but really shines when you pile on the distortion, lead work is fun as f*** and rhythm sounds nice and chunky. The Jazz pickup in the neck should be renamed cause this mutha likes to Rock. If Louis Armstrong were to string up his trumpet and plug it into a half stack then rock out to some Maiden then I guess it would be Jazz. Although it is extra-specially nice on cleans but I didn?t want it for that.
Two great pickups on a great guitar.

As I said above it did need a bit of a set-up but that was due to the previous dude hardly using it since bought from new. However, the selector switch was a little loose and on a quick search you can see some cosmetic faults. Bits of paint straying where they shouldn?t be and what not. Certainly not the worst guitar I?ve seen but equally not the best. The plus points are the nice thick coat of black paint on the body, the great tuners and the gold hardware. It feels sturdy, good weight to it and it?s even on a strap. It looks the business and cries out for some serious metal to be played on her. I urge you to get some strap locks though as that large fin is the first thing it?ll drop on if you shake it around too much.

Seems very reliable and durable and it will be so long as you take good care of it. If your planning on throwing it over large distances then obviously it won?t last and equally you shouldn?t really be owning guitars if that?s what you like doing. The explorer shape has that design appeal but when it comes to storage it can be a real nightmare. I suggest you either buy a wall hanger or you get a guitar stand with a tilt-able bottom support (as I do) to allow the shape to be held in place. As for a case, well you either get one of Tokai?s own brand which are pretty good (about ?30, or if lucky you might get one free in a sale as I did) comes with shoulder straps, but they are soft cases. Or you might want to hunt night and day for a hard case that will fit. Shouldn?t be that difficult as many hard cases for unusual designs can be customised. As I said earlier you?ll need strap locks and I?d suggest a nice thick strap to balance the weight over your shoulder. As the fin on the explorer sticks out a bit you don?t want to be running around the house with it nor do you want to turn too quickly in a small space (the curse of a cool looking guitar shape).

Check out - www.tokaiforum.com. They?ve got some pretty knowledgeable Tokai buffs on there to help you out. If you have any problems I?d start there otherwise you can check out www.tokai-guitars.co.uk, the U.K distributor for some help. They?re pretty helpful if a little slow replying to emails, however there is a phone number there.

The Tokai EX-55 is a pretty rare beauty. They come up on eBay every once in a while but the white and black models are quite rare. Tokai are one of those brands that continue to unsettle the big dogs, Gibson and Fender, with their quality models. I don?t think they?re quite there yet with their top range models but as for the mid-price bad boys go they?ve got em licked. The EX-55 is defiantly superior to the Epiphone model I played recently and I?ve read it?s close to the Gibson original (though I don?t tend to believe everything I read). As an alternative to a Gibson explorer it?s the only consideration really, unless you?re dead set on an Epiphone, which I think, is a mistake (just check out its reviews).

With stock this guitar is pretty good and really shines but as I had already got some new pickups I thought it was a shame to waste em. With the Seymour?s its an absolute monster and needs to be locked away for crimes to humanity. Yeah I like the new pickups. The tone is ten times better and would urge you (if you have the money) to upgrade this guitar as it makes the world of difference.

The EX55 sits nice against my Les Paul and plays hard through my Marshall. I?m a sucker for looks and whenever buying a guitar its always my first decider. At first I was looking at a flying V but wasn?t so sure, then I watched some Metallica Live sh*t binge and purge and Hetfield swayed me to the explorer shape. Tokai came to the rescue after a long search for a decent explorer and I?m more than happy with it now it?s had a good set-up, a new set of GHS Boomer strings and the Seymour?s installed.

I?d recommend one of these to anyone wanting a Gibson explorer alternative built to a good standard with excellent tone. Keep checking eBay for a good bargain on one (but make sure the sellers legit, buying off the bay can be a risk so take every precaution possible.) You?ll probably hear a lot more about Tokai?s in the coming years as they?re making some pretty exciting guitars at good prices.

Mine was brought new, everything is stock. Made in Korea. The nut is cuttle fish bone, the frets are jumbo, tun-o-matic bridge. The body is Korina, the finish is natural and solid. Everything is amazing except for the neck join. it is poorly cut and fixed aesthetically.

the sound you expect from such a eccentrically designed guitar is an extremely harsh shound. however, the neck pick-up position is very soft, very bluesy and extremely responsive. it is the first guitar i have played (except for a friend's eric clapton signature strat) where there is such a good rhythm. i had always heard from a friend about the amazing sounds from these bargain guitars, and the neck pick-up justifies that.

now...the bridge. i play through a Marshall, and the bridge pick up on clean is the dirtiest darn tone you've ever heard! think of Sweet Home Alabama after 20 years of 60 cigs a day! it is an amazingly punchy and agressive sound. really does cut through everything. i've played alongside a strat player with a bigger amp than mine at a higher volume-and the tone of my bridge pick-up cut through him. i do not play through distortion through the bridge pick up because in all honesty, i couldn't bear to cover-up the beautifully dirty, gravelly and punchy tone i muster when it's 'clean'.

this is the suprising thing about this guitar; it has such a diverse sound. it really is the most versatile guitar i've played other than of course, the strat.

the set-up was rather poor, it took me a week or so to get it absolutely 'right', they put the wrong strings on, the neck joint was poorly finished cosmetically as i have stated. however, having said that, the finish on the rest of the guitar is exemplary. the tuning heads are better than i've ever had or seen, the nut is top quality, the fittings are all gold, the jack socket is seriously heavy-duty and the guitar has a definate 'solidity' to it. i would akin it to a Gibson finish in terms of it's 'feel'. it is heavier than a paulie, so i would advise a thick strap if you're not over 6ft tall.

very reliable, VERY durable. as with every guitar owner, when they get a new guitar, they absolutely worship it. inevitably, you will drop it, it will fall, the strap will fail and your guitar will crash to the ground amidst your cries of utter horror. obviously being such a funny-shaped guitar, this danger is apparent even when moving it through doorways or just strapping up. it has had a few knocks on some very hard things like a concrete floor and a wall. there is one nick on the very top of the 'fin'. very insignificant. as i said before, this guitar is solid. its a big heavy oaf, very well finished with excellent quality woods.

this is a very playable, very durable and the tone you get from it is amazing. i love the sound from it, i love the fact that the neck is fast, and that it always suprises other people when they hear it. my guitar tutor (who plays with a custom LP and deluxe 59' style strat) covets my guitar, my friends covet it and i cant resist but play it all the time.

there are however a lot of problems you encounter when buying such a guitar. because of its shape, no gig bag will ever fit it and a hard-case that will fit it is awful hard to find and expensive. very few stands fit it. it is extremely heavy, probably the heaviest guitar i have ever played and the strap pots are poorly situated meaning that without strap locks, your strap will inevitably find a way of coming off.

however, what really makes it a special guitar is the tone, the playability. that is the most important thing when buying a guitar. the sound is just truly amazing.

my advice is that you get a tokai. there is something of a trade secret mystique about tokais. im going to get a silver star next. they are truly awesome guitars.