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£399

Adam Black Libra UK

ritain, Britain, Britain…

land of high production

costs, overpaid workers

and punitive tax rates.

As such, it’s no surprise that

relatively few axes are made in

this green and pleasant land, and

a big one that Adam Black has

built the Libra from its Essex HQ

for £399. But should TG bestow

our royal appointment on it?

Forget the British build: it’s

bulletproof, but not noticeably

better than a modern Far Eastern

one. Of more interest is the

Libra’s mix-and-match spec. It

looks like a Les Paul-inspired

bruiser, but features a Fender-

style ash body and maple bolt-

neck. You pick it up expecting to

play meaty mid-tempo rock riffs,

but are thrown a loop by the

two-octave neck and 25½-inch

scale. Inevitably, given the wood,

the humbuckers don’t deliver

the dark ‘boom’ you’d get if they

were sat in a brick of mahogany,

but that’s kinda refreshing – it’s

bright, jangly and rich, a good

halfway house. Similarly, the filth

is a bit more wholesome than

Slash fans might demand, but

it’s anything but boring.

Conclusion: Only a plank

would buy a guitar for its British

birthplace. Fortunately, the Libra’s

qualities run deeper than a stiff

upper lip. In a price bracket

where imagination is thin on the

ground, this is a memorable axe

that plays fast and loose with

spec sheet conventions, and to

generally good effect, as long as

you’re not expecting the bottom-

heavy swagger of a textbook

singlecut. It hasn’t won. That’s

not because of any tangible

failing; we just like others more.

For: Quirky, build, memorable

Against: Lack of mahogany warmth

✮✮✮✮✮

SUMMARY

TG says: Britannia rules!

Hagstrom Ultra Swede

Less haste, more Swede

ehind the façade of

pigtails and flat-packed

furniture, the Swedes

are a nation of rock

pigs, exporting the planet’s

fastest shredders and its most

underrated guitar brand. Ruined

by the Far Eastern copy boom

in 1983, and resurrected in

2006, it’s been a bumpy ride

but Hagstrom reckons this

“little monster” will “grab the

competition by the neck”.

Hagstrom prides itself on

physical flair, and with some

justification, because despite

familiar full-frontal contours

the Swede is slimmer than a

LP and plays faster, with the

H-Expander trussrod resulting

in a flat, thin, fast profile whose

low action requires a mere tickle

to sound notes. It’s not a ‘shred’

axe; to describe it thus would do

a disservice to the clean tone,

which is fat and proud, and the

frayed, bottom-heavy old-school

Zep swagger that is delivered at

more ‘classic’ overdrive levels.

Shredders may struggle to get

a razorblade lead tone without

splitting the coils (a mere gripe).

Conclusion: We love the Swede:

it’s a cool model by a cult hero

that will get your bandmates

crowding round in rehearsals

and knock them out when you

start playing. No £399 guitar is

perfect: this could use more bite

at the bridge and its slim body

costs you sustain. But we think

you’ll hold onto the Swede as a

spare or live axe as you progress.

Not bad for a week’s wages.

For: Versatile tone, feel, vintage looks

Against: Bit more bridge bite needed

✮✮✮✮✮

SUMMARY

TG says: It’s no vegetable

■฀Body

Yeah, it’s a classic singlecut

shape, but that’s where the

similarities end

■฀Strap pins

Slight gripe – the pins are

rubbish, and you’ll need a

strap lock to avert disaster

■฀Pickups

They work best as ’buckers,

but you’ll appreciate the

versatility of the coil tap

■฀Neck

It’s not a shred axe,

but the Swede plays

like hell on wheels

when you need it to

At a glance

BODY: Solid ash

NECK: Maple, bolt-on

FINGERBOARD: Rosewood

FRETS: 24

SCALE: 25½-inches

PICKUPS: 2x high output

humbuckers

CONTROLS: 1x volume, 1x

tone, 3-way pickup selector

HARDWARE: Nickel

FINISH: Natural [pictured],

Scar Red

LEFT-HANDED: No

C O N TA C T: Rosetti 01376

550033

WEB: www.adamblack

guitarcompany.co.uk

At a glance

Hagstrom Ultra Swede

BODY: Basswood, maple

cap

NECK: Maple, set

FINGERBOARD: Resinator

FRETS: 22

SCALE: 24¾-inch

PICKUPS: 2x humbuckers

CONTROLS: Volume, tone,

coil tap, 3-way switch

HARDWARE: Die-cast

FINISH: Burgundy Burst

[pictured], Cosmic

Blackburst, Black Gloss

LEFT-HANDED: Black only

C O N TA C T: Hagstrom UK&I

08701 657456

WEB: www.hagstrom-

guitars.co.uk

■ Neck

With two octaves and a

25½-inch scale, you’ll play

this axe with attitude

■฀Body

The shape is familiar,

but the body is

slimmer, adding to

the go-faster vibe

Adam Black Libra UK

Best of British?

TGR201.gear_test 128 24/3/10 2:04:29 pm