BM-75 Trans Red Deluxe Series : A good guitar in its own right

Although this is a Brian May tribute guitar it is also a good guitar in its own right. It is not an exact copy in that it has a 5 way switch rather than 3 separate pickup switches although it does have a phase reverse switch for each pickup. This means that you get the strat-type inbetween sounds but not the series sounds that the BM original offers. I partly solved this by implementing the widely described series strat wiring. This means that by using the middle phase switch as a parallel/series switch I can get bridge and middle and middle and neck in series as per the original and much like humbucking pickups work. It means that the inbetween sounds are much louder. All other functionality is as before as the phase switches for the bridge and neck can be used to provide out of phase tones. I don't have the Neck and Bridge in series but that could be implemented with a pull switch on the tone control.

I wanted to make these mods but they are not essential. As it stands its a fine guitar with a good range of sounds. The neck is full in the hand without being overly chunky and the finish is superb. I wanted one of these not as a BMtribute but as a Burns tribute! I remember seeing magnificent transparent red Burns Vista Sonic and Vista Artist guitars in a shop window when they first came out (yes I am that old!) and I have always wanted one. I finally got to play a Burns Vista Artist and I was disappointed with the neck. No such disappointment with this! The pickups look the same and sound great. Ok the vibrato is different but the guitar as a whole is excellent. Buy one, don't mod it unless you know what you are doing it is too good to mess up. Mine is now close to perfection.