review
Tradition S2000
The S2000 series is based on the ever-popular Les Paul body design, with the exception of a pointed cutaway as opposed to the rounded one on the Les Paul. It features a solid three piece Mahogany body with a flamed Maple top and multiply binding. It has a bound Mahogany neck with a Rosewood fingerboard. The frets sit on top of the binding and are not bound. The body is about 1/8" thicker than my Les Paul Custom and the neck is bit fatter, with a rounder shape. While I didn’t have any problems with the neck’s thickness, players with small hands may find it a little chunky.
Hardware includes fully potted Alnico pickups; gold plated tailpiece, tuners, bridge and pickup covers; dual volume and tone knobs, and a three way pickup selector. There are six finishes available and I received the Honey Burst model, which is well done and very attractive. The headstock is similar to Gibson’s but still has its own identity, and includes nice inlays.
There are seven finishes available and I received the Cherry Sunburst model. Let me start by saying that the flamed Maple top on this guitar is stunning. With its Cherry sunburst, gold volume/tone knobs, and cream-colored pickup covers and binding, this is one beautiful guitar. The only visual drawbacks are the somewhat plain headstock and plastic-looking inlays.
Construction/Setup
The guitar arrived in perfect playing condition. The neck was flat with no string buzzing. I made a minor adjustment (raising) to the bridge pickup and was good to go. Construction was solid and everything fit perfectly. Inlays were also perfect with no filler. The headstock attaches to the neck with a scarf joint, which seems to be common in this price range. My only complaint was a few minor flaws in the body binding, which was surprising considering how perfect everything else was.
Tone
Naturally, a big slab of Mahogany, a fixed tailpiece, and humbuckers is going to offer lots of sustain and the S2000 doesn’t disappoint. The pickups are quite hot. In fact, they are hotter than the stock pickups on my Les Paul Custom, although not as bright or detailed. I best way I can describe the pickups is aggressive. If you are looking to overdrive your amp, these puppies will do it. Like many passive tone knobs, the tone knobs on the S2003 don’t offer much, other than rolling off the high end. Tonally, the S2000 is well suited for Metal or Hard Rock music.
In Use
I put the S2000 to the test live on a regular Sunday night gig for my Church youth group (about 250 teens) and found if I engaged the bright switch on my Traynor amp’s clean channel, the S2000 worked well for both clean and distorted sounds. You obviously won’t get Strat-type quack, but with proper EQ settings, you can cover a fair amount of ground.
Final Thoughts
The S2000 features solid construction, aggressive tone, nice sustain, and good looks all wrapped up in an affordable package. If you are in the market for a mid-priced Les Paul style guitar, the Tradition S2000 is definitely worth a look.
Reader Comments
Better Guitar encourages your input. Agree with this review? Think I’m crazy? If you have played a Tradition S2000, email me your comments and I’ll post them below. The more opinions we have available, the better our buying decisions will be.
stats
- • Solid Mahogany body with set neck
- • Genuine Indian Rosewood fingerboard
- • Solid Fine Flamed Maple cap
- • Tradition Gold Medallion pickups
- • Limited Lifetime Warranty
Positives
- Beautiful finish; solid construction; aggressive pickups are good for metal or hard rock.
Negatives
- Neck may be too chunky for some; minor binding flaws.
Estimated Street Price
- $799 (Prices are set and vary by dealer)
Rating
- Performance: 7
- Sound Quality: 9
- Construction: 9
- Overall: 8.3
Ratings Key
- 0 = Worthless
- 10 = Excellent
Company
- Tradition