Anyone Ever Bought Agile?

mr_angry · 03-11-2004 11:28am #1

I've been on the lookout for a new guitar recently, and feylya pointed out to me a silverburst LP by a brand called "Agile". I did a little fishing around on Harmony Central, and found a lot of good reviews of the 2800 series.

http://www.rondomusic.net/al2800silver.html

The only trouble is that they don't accept credit-card for shipments to Western Europe, and they want a cheque "drawn on US funds". (I assume this means just getting a cheque made out in US dollars.) Still, if I'm going to go to a lot of effort, and spend a fairly considerable amount of cash, I'd like to gauge the quality of the guitar a little more beforehand. Does anyone have any experience with the Agile brand?

Also, if anyone can point out a sub-€500 bargain, feel free. (I sense a link to Chris' Guitars from Doc J on the way...

)

Doctor J · 03-11-2004 11:29am

Chris is the man

Have a look at the thread about Godins recently. There's a blue Carvin on there which is just a stupidly good deal.

mr_angry · 03-11-2004 12:03pm

Its a great deal alright, but I have a thing against strats for some reason. Must be some repressed childhood memory or something.

I'm a very difficult customer to please sometimes.

Doctor J · 03-11-2004 12:12pm

http://www.chrisguitars.com/gibson.html

http://www.chrisguitars.com/newspecials.html

Anything there take your fancy?

mr_angry · 03-11-2004 12:28pm

The aniversary Lynard Skynard goldtop is nice, but just a little over my budget. I dunno, maybe I'm being too picky - I'm finding it hard to settle on a guitar I really like at the moment.

I was looking at a Tokai Firebird in Conor Hughes' recently, but I think it was a bit over-priced at €895. The Fender Jaguars are nice too, but I have yet to actually get my hands on one and play it.

At the moment I have a Gordon Smith SG, but I'm a little tired of its sharp tone, so I'm looking for something a little warmer. I picked up a new amp last week though - the Peavey Bandit II that was on special offer on GAK. That might set my mind at ease a little more.

Doctor J · 03-11-2004 12:36pm

http://www.excite.co.jp/world/english/web/body?wb_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ishibashi.co.jp%2Fwebshop%2Fguitar%2Ffender-j%2Fjgb95sfz.htm&wb_lp=JAEN&wb_dis=2

http://www.excite.co.jp/world/english/web/body?wb_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ishibashi.co.jp%2Fwebshop%2Fguitar%2Ffender-j%2Fjgb95hfz.htm&wb_lp=JAEN&wb_dis=2

You want warmth? Bottom Master! Let there be Rock!

mr_angry · 03-11-2004 12:49pm

I like that! €570 before shipping is still a little harsh on my wallet though. Hmmm...

Edit: Better than the €777 on Thomann though.

Doctor J · 03-11-2004 1:01pm

Damn Ishibashi. I've seen a 62 reissue fretless at about €500 which is making me reach for the chequebook. The Bottom Masters look amazing and you're almost guaranteed to be the only person in the country with one.

The Japanese Fenders (especially these ones which are made for the domestic market) are amazing. I've sent them a mail asking them how much shipping to Ireland is. My fretless problem may just have been solved.

I'll let you know how much shipping is.

mr_angry · 03-11-2004 1:24pm

I have to say, I'm a little taken with the artwork on the BC Rick "40 Lashes".

http://www.netzmarkt.de/thomann/thoiw6_artikel-170002.html

Anyone ever play the Ibanez Jet King either?

eoin5 · 03-11-2004 2:52pm

http://www.musicstorekoeln.de/englisch/shop/produktinfo.asp?info=GIT0005031-003

ill vouch for any yahama guitar, budget of otherwise (cept the trems, they knock the guitars out of tune faster than bush can sign a death warrent). Perfect pitch always have a few to try out, good tone for small price.

feylya · 04-11-2004 5:04pm

mr_angry wrote:

At the moment I have a Gordon Smith SG, but I'm a little tired of its sharp tone

1x EMG 85 is what ya need for that!

And as I said, I don't like the Body Art series. The art is very highly pixelated. I played Karl Hungus' Body Art mockingbird and it was an alright guitar but I've played better and cheaper.

mr_angry · 05-11-2004 1:04pm

Well, after much deliberation, I've gone and done the deed. I bought the Agile Al-2800 Silverburst this morning. Behold her silvery beauty:

I guess what tipped the decision for me was the relative weakness of the Dollar against the Euro. It was a bit of a no-brainer in the end. $310 = €240. I also picked up a case, and with the shipping and everything included, it came to $430, or €334.

Doctor J · 05-11-2004 1:06pm

Nice one. Good luck with it.

feylya · 05-11-2004 2:10pm

That's not bad. Are they the ones that ship with the Graphtech nut? Hope it is cos the bone nut is supposed to be very badly cut.

But Doc J, you'll get my review just after he gets it

Doctor J · 05-11-2004 2:12pm

The Dundalk mafia rides again...

Curse your foul accents!

mr_angry · 05-11-2004 3:45pm

Yeah, this is the one with the new headstock and graphtech nut.

Don't worry Doctor J, he's not originally from Dundalk, and I'm from the classy south-side, so I can assure you that we are verbally unexceptionable.

mr_angry · 06-12-2004 4:21pm

Just found out I have to pay €80 bucks customs duty. OUCH! :mad:

Edit: In case anybody is in a similar position, the customs duty only came to €9.15. €61.97 was in the form of VAT that was not stated during purchase (American retailers), and €11.50 comes from "GLS Customer Clearence Fee". Now, forgive me for going on a rant here, but exactly what is this fee supposed to be for? Is it for the service of me having to agree to the above fees? Thats what it sounds like, and you might think thats reasonable, except for that fact that to do so, I have to either ring them at my expense (33 cents a minute), or go on the Internet and use their website. (Technically also at the expense of my Internet connection fee.) So basically I have to pay for the privilage of myself agreeing to the above fees. ****ing fantastic!

On top of that, they've had my guitar since the 26th of November, but have only got around to notifying me now. What a bunch of complete bastards. I have a good mind to refuse to pay, but I know they'll just pack my guitar back to America, and thats not much of a second option.

God, I hate GLS.

markisevil · 07-12-2004 8:26am

Yeah, but still, just over €400 for a very nice looking guitar isn't bad (even if thicko here thought the picture was black & white until the word "silver" clicked into place).

They should have packed it in coffee to throw the sniffer dogs off...

mr_angry · 09-12-2004 12:40am

Well, I thought I'd better throw up a bit of a review after getting it today. It was a bit of a risk when I ordered it, considering it was the first guitar I've ever bought without playing. Thankfully, its also one of the best guitars I've ever had the fortune to play. I know, considering the price ended up being only about €300 inc VAT thats a very bold statement, but I'm pretty happy to stand by it at the moment. Maybe its the adrenaline talking. I played a Gibson LP Standard recently that retailed at €1700 which was superior, but looking back at it, was it €1400 superior? Nah, I'm pretty happy I'm getting the better end of the deal. I also had my eye on a €900 Tokai Firebird for a while. It too was nice, but I actually believe the Agile is better. I realise they're very different guitars, but I'm finding it hard to think of any advantge to the Firebird at the moment.

If I was to really concentrate on possible defects in the Agile 2800, I can come up with 2 so far. Firstly, the volume / tone pots are very light and plasticy. They do the job, but don't inspire a sense of quality. Secondly, I'm considering changing the bone nut for the graphite nut that shipped with it aswell. This is more based on online advice than actual experience, but there may be a slight (and I mean slight) buzzing from the D string. I'm gonna leave it for a few days at least, and then decide.

As feylya pointed out on another thread, the fretwork is excellent, the grovenor (sp?) tuners are top-notch, the pickup selector switch is good and sturdy, and the overall finish is fantastic. The alnico pickups are producing a fantastic tone at the moment that I'm particularly happy with.

Again, for €300 bucks, you have to ask yourself what are they cutting back on. Perhaps the electronics are of lower quality, but I haven't discovered a single problem yet, so I'm finding it hard to fault. Maybe there's something I haven't found yet. Maybe its just the great dollar exchange rate at the moment. Maybe the major companies have just been screwing people over for ages. Maybe somebody's just figured out a hitherto unknown way of producing quality guitars for rock-bottom prices. In any case, its all combined to produce a fabulous guitar. If anyone is thinking of buying an Epiphone or low-end Gibson, don't bother - get an Agile instead. I'm sure if you're spending upwards of €1300 you can find something better, but otherwise keep your money. I know it mocks sense, and I can't really explain it, but its valid in my opinion.

Here's a couple of pics of the guitar in the condition it arrived in:
Agile 2800:http://members.boards.ie/mr_angry/Agile_2800.jpg
Body / Bridge: http://members.boards.ie/mr_angry/Agile_Body.jpg
Headstock: http://members.boards.ie/mr_angry/Agile_Headstock.jpg
Neck: http://members.boards.ie/mr_angry/Agile_Neck.jpg

feylya · 09-12-2004 12:42am

And I'll get my "review" up whenever I can get the guitar away from Mr Angry

Eoin Madsen · 09-12-2004 2:25pm

mr_angry wrote:

Edit: In case anybody is in a similar position, the customs duty only came to €9.15. €61.97 was in the form of VAT that was not stated during purchase (American retailers), and €11.50 comes from "GLS Customer Clearence Fee". Now, forgive me for going on a rant here, but exactly what is this fee supposed to be for? Is it for the service of me having to agree to the above fees? Thats what it sounds like, and you might think thats reasonable, except for that fact that to do so, I have to either ring them at my expense (33 cents a minute), or go on the Internet and use their website. (Technically also at the expense of my Internet connection fee.) So basically I have to pay for the privilage of myself agreeing to the above fees. ****ing fantastic!

On top of that, they've had my guitar since the 26th of November, but have only got around to notifying me now. What a bunch of complete bastards. I have a good mind to refuse to pay, but I know they'll just pack my guitar back to America, and thats not much of a second option.

God, I hate GLS.

GLS are the company that have the contract for collecting customs duties and tax from items incoming through regular mail. They extract an unreasonable collection fee, they also refuse to accept cheque or any kind of payment but cash and yet refuse to give change. And they don't respond to complaints. They're in charge of a national service, and I think they're abusing their position, tbh. I'm going to complain to Revenue about them. You should too.

There's contact details somewhere here http://www.revenue.ie.

Anyone Ever Bought Agile?

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