Yep, we came, we saw, we conquered. NAMM was a monster success for Super-Vee this year - from the introduction of the Mag-Lok, to overwhelming interest in our Blade technology tremolos. We met new friends and future partners and gave everyone that stopped by a peek into the future of tremolos.
Among the many noteables that stopped by were the editors of Guitar Player Magazine Art Thompson and Matt Blackett, blues phenom Eric Gales, Sheryl Crow’s front man and music director Peter Stroud and the hardest working guitar player in the business, Bruce Rickard from Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas.
Be sure to check out the demo video Eric Gales did with the BladeRunner and Mag-Lok at NAMM. It's on our YouTube Channel:
Yep, it's here...finally. What is the Mag-Lok you ask? It's only the single most innovative advancement in tremolo technology...well...since the Super-Vee, BladeRunner or Super Glide.
The patented Mag-Lok is an anti-deflection device that will stabilize your tremolo for tuning stability, especially during double-stop bends. Yeah, there have been other products that pop up from time-to-time claiming a similar solution, but you had to have an engineering degree to install it, it looked like a Rube Goldberg device, and failed to deliver.
The Mag-Lok uses focused Rare Earth magnets to hold your trem stable when you perform fret board bends and keeps those unbent strings in perfect tune for crystal clear double-stop tones and harmonies (eliminates string sag). And just so you know, the focus of the magnets is 90 degrees to your pickups so it won't interfere with their performance in the least.
When you push or pull the whammy bar, the Mag-Lok is transparent. It releases effortlessly and silently, you'll never know it's even there. Anyone can install it in about 5 minutes (except maybe for my mother) and once you use it, you'll never want to live without it.
You will never be afraid to float your trem again!
As long time traditional trem players, you know we’ve tried just about everything on the planet to keep strings from hanging up when returning from a good dive bomb. We’ve scratched our heads for a long time on this. A few products sort of work, but they varnish, dry out or just make a mess. Problems like this are what get our juices flowing, so we took a look at what industrial manufacturing systems use on their machines that run 24 hours a day and generate millions of repetitions in a row - our formula is a culmination of this research.
Super Glide is the longest lasting, most efficient friction release product available for your trem nut. It’s a little sticky, so it stays where you put it, but under string pressure, it’s slicker than a pool ball on glass. The dual base elements in our proprietary “Glide” matrix will Evolve your nut surface topology, creating highly frictionless string action - the more you use it, the better it gets. It's non-toxic, can be safely used on bone, plastic, brass, or any type of nut material and will not harm your guitar finish.
For 12 years, Peter Stroud has defined the electric guitar style of Sheryl Crow’s band and has recently become Sheryl’s musical director. Combine that with a heavy dose of touring with Sarah McLachlan, Don Henley, and the Dixie Chicks and you get a VERY seasoned professional with a dynamic ear for tone, precision, and quality. His studio work is undisputed and he's renowned as an "ace-in-the-hole" who can get up to speed quickly and hold his own in any musical setting. Here’s a recent post from his FaceBook page:
“…just installed a BladeRunner on my Strat. Absolutely killer. Great tone, feels real and stays in tune. I'm a fan.”
That’s from a guy with a golden ear and industry defining clout,…we’re blushing!
If you haven't heard of Eric Gales, well...you will. He's that ultra dynamic blues kid out of Memphis that has been sitting in on the Experience Hendrix Tour for a few years and breathing the fire of life through raw tone, gutsy licks and soul driven riffs (Hendrix incarnate, some say). He's grabbed ahold of the BladeRunner and won't let go..in fact, he won't use any other bridge. With no less than nine albums under his belt, he's touring the world and playing with the likes of Eric Johnson and other respected veterans. Nevermind that he's a lefty playing that sweet right-handed St. Blues Strat upside down and strung backwards...he's a monster, ya'll.
Well, what can we say...perseverance is finally paying off. We pressed hard to hold the quality of the new Super-Vee double-locking systems to our standards, never letting go of the site that you, the dyed-in-the-wool whammy artists, deserve a quality piece of hardware...not another iteration of stamped out junk that has flooded the market.
Here's a look at the new stuff: The coveted drop-in design nut has been re-engineered to be lighter with enhanced neck/head contact, greater clamp margins for easier set up, and optimized for better string isolation.
The 3rd generation bridge design has been constructed from sonically selected materials and the saddles have been redesigned for better string management and improved contact for sustain and tone. There are also a couple of hidden changes we've made to create a much more harmonious design.
As always, follow us on Facebook. We've develeoped a very loyal Facebook following and the great folks there have been very helpful to new users as well as giving us insight and ideas to make our products better than any other trem systems out there. Take that, Floyd Rose!!!
(Whew!) Thanks to all who have patiently waited. It's been brutal, but we are finally able to offer new BladeRunner products that pass our stringent quality requirements! We are still tweaking the order page look, but don't let that deter you, it's working like a swiss watch. We are certainly proud, and damn glad to finally offer the following new products that YOU, our customers, have requested:
- BladeRunners in GOLD Finish
- Left-Handed BladeRunners
- BladeRunners with Factory Two-Post Mount
- The New and Updated Super-Vee Locking System and Super-Vee Nut
- Super-Vee Locking System with Factory Two-Post Mount
The BladeRunner reviews are rolling in faster than we can keep up (we must really be shaking things up) and as we knew to be the case, folks are impressed! Click HERE to check out what professional critics are saying!
Michael has been working solo as well as countless collaborative musical projects for over 40 years. He's a trem master and we couldn't think of anyone better to challenge the BladeRunner's performance and design (BTW, the BladeRunner knocked his socks off...as it will yours!)...no other OEM style trem comes close in tone, performance, and tuning stability!
Click on the image below to watch the video:
Not only is Michael completely hooked on the BladeRunner, he says he's never going back to stock...ever! Being a dyed-in-the-wool traditionalist and not one to consider changing the esthetics of his guitar, we consider it a major compliment and couldn't be more pleased.
Michael is currently working with Yonrico Scott, drummer from The Derek Trucks Band and is partnered with Kim Stone from The Rippingtons in several ongoing projects.
We've been at this for a few years and even now, after thousands of Super-Vee's have been sold, some folks just don't understand what our patented Blade technology really is.
The patented Blade technology on the Super-Vee and the new BladeRunner is a flat, high quality, industrial grade, stainless steel spring blade mounted between the mount plate and the bridge plate.
This is what flexes when you bend the whammy bar. The durability rating of this spring blade far exceeds what any hard-core, dive bomber can dish out - in fact, it will never weaken or wear out. No more rocking the nose of the bridge against the body or against metal posts, this just creates wear and causes your tuning and intonation to drift...this makes your mojo wilt (unhappy face).
Here's a little home-grown video that illustrates the Blade action. It's playing on a loop, but only a minute or so in length. Get your popcorn and Milk Duds ready:
See? Amazing isn't it?...and so bloody simple! Why nobody else figured this out is beyond us, but we're convinced this will change trem bridge design forever (happy face). And we have the patent!!! (rubbing hands together like an evil genius).
The Blade, along with our tone engineered block is also what gives the Super-Vee and BladeRunner such desirable tone and sustain. The Blade acts like a super-conduit, bonding the bridge and the body together in a unified harmonious confluence (nice big words, eh?)
Eric Johnson outfitted one of his Fender Signature Strats with a Super-Vee for the 2010 Experience Hendrix Tour. Eric is a big proponent of the Super-Vee, and one of our early adopters. When asked why he likes the Super-Vee, Eric said:
"I like the Super-Vee system better than other locking tremolos because there are no
modifications and it seems to lose considerably less bass than other locking tremolos."
Unlike mega-companies that are pounding out poorly made junk designed to separate you from your hard earned cash, only to leave you desperate, angry and confused when their snake oil promises don't come true...
We listen.
We've heard your wishes, your out cries, your desires and we have fulfilled them....at least for some of you (easy, ladies)
The BladeRunner is a non-locking vibrato with built in patented Super-Vee technology. This little brother of the Super-Vee will stomp your factory Strat bridge right into the dirt using zero friction movement, a positionable whammy bar, a tone engineered block, and priced for the working Joe. The cool thing is, it maintains the look and feel of a standard OEM style Fender bridge.
We used the same philosophy to build the BladeRunner as we did with the Super-Vee: "Innovate, test, and refine,..then kick the snot out of the competition!"
It performs and sounds better than any other non-locking tremolo bridge out there...really!
CARL VERHEYEN
“One of the Top 10 Guitar Players in the World”
- Guitar Magazine
In his 40-plus years of playing the instrument, Carl has created a wildly successful, multi-faceted career. He is a critically-acclaimed musician with ten CD’s released worldwide and is commonly regarded as a guitar virtuoso capable of playing any style of music with remarkable mastery and conviction. He has been one of LA’s elite “first call” session players for the past 25 years, playing on hundreds of records, movie soundtracks and television shows. Carl has graced the pages of countless industry publications and been the subject of numerous articles chronicling his rise to the forefront of the modern day guitar scene. Carl has won numerous polls and musical honors in the US, Germany, France, Italy and the UK. Carl uses his Super-Vee in a variety of applications. He recently said this about the Super-Vee:
"The Super- Vee on a stock Fender strat is my go-to "stunt guitar" for anything that requires serious manipulation of the vibrato bar. It's much more musical than traditional locking nut systems and the tone is better, too. A true secret weapon in the studio!"
