#1934058 - 04/29/08 07:34 AM
Hag Swede
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Bluesape
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I checked out a gold top the other day: nicely finished, good detail, quick neck. But, it weighed a damn TON!  I don't remember a LP this heavy, or any other guitar for that matter. I know of one solid maple Yamaha bass that may outweigh it, but I doubt by much. The specs say it's all mahogany, but the review I read didn't mention it being heavy, so maybe the one I tried is particularly dense. I've noodled around on Hags before, and never encountered this kind of mass in other examples.  This thing feels like 12 or 13 pounds!
It had nice tonal flexibility, and seemed very well put together, but I'm huge, and I wouldn't wanna play that axe all night - I'd be shorter at the end of the gig!  This can't be typical, or most Hag fans would play them sitting down! Miro - we await your input! 
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#1934061 - 04/29/08 07:40 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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Bill@Welcome Home Studios
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I haven't seen one in ages, but I remember liking them, way back when ('77, '79?)
Bill
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#1934076 - 04/29/08 07:56 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bill@Welcome Home Studios]
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miroslav
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Reif...it's a per-guitar thing.
Of the three new Swedes I have...two are of very comfortable weight...and the third is just a pinch beefier...but not *heavy*. I hate real heavy guitars, 'cuz the make the strap press down too hard on my left shoulder/neck muscles...and that hurts after awhile (ever since I cracked my left shoulder several years ago).
The one Agile 3800 prestige that I had was REAL heavy (one of the main reasons I didn't play it all that much when I had it).
It’s probably just the cut of wood it came from. I bet the wood is a lot denser and maybe even still a bit “wet” on the one you tried.
The other Hags I have…D2F, DH2, Ultra Swede….those are smaller/thinner bodies than the Swede/Super Swede…so they are VERY light!
Heck…the Ultra is like a paper weight…you can literally hold it between two fingers with a firm grip.
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#1934083 - 04/29/08 08:05 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: miroslav]
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Bluesape
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OK - cuz I bet if you picked this off the rack(the weight makes you instinctively use both hands), you'd put it right back. The weight surprised me is all, everything else seems first rate!
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#1934088 - 04/29/08 08:16 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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guitarzan6000
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I have a Super Swede, and yes it IS heavy, but when I play it, I find it to be very well-balanced, and it doesn't really bother me. I have a wide strap too, so that helps. The body contour also helps a lot too....I will say this much, the sustain is awesome!!! And for sound and tone, I'll put it against ANY LP ANY DAY!!! The only thing I don't like is the short scale neck, makes it hard to get into the upper scales on lead runs. But you can't beat it for the money.
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#1934117 - 04/29/08 09:03 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: guitarzan6000]
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Bluesape
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I agree that it blows any Epi or any other LP wannabe for the price. The PRS SE's aren't really wannabe's, and they seem about as well crafted, but cost a bit more.
Now, it can be said, again, that Hags aren't specifically Gibson alternatives, but their current designs seem greatly inspired by LP's, 335's, 175's, etc., which is no bad thing, and they deliver a ridiculously good approximation for peanuts, with more flexible electronics!
I think I said a few weeks back that a Hag would only beat out a 2nd LP for me on price, but I'll retract that now. I'd buy one on its own virtues, and if it sonically duplicated something I already have, then I can't think of a better home for a set of P90's!
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#1934127 - 04/29/08 09:19 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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miroslav
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OK - cuz I bet if you picked this off the rack(the weight makes you instinctively use both hands), you'd put it right back. The weight surprised me is all, everything else seems first rate!
I can handle all of mine with one hand...no problem (inlcuding the Super Swede)...
...so maybe that one is a fluke and an unusually heavy cut?
I have a Super Swede...
....The only thing I don't like is the short scale neck.
Mmmm....the Super is a long-scale (25.5")...
...though what they did was move the whole body up (or neck down)...so you end up with a couple of frets less that are out, in front of the body...than what is on the regular Swedes.
The Super is nice....but I like the regular Swedes more...just my taste.
Also...the Super has a smaller body than the standard Swedes...by a good 1/4" or more in width and also in length.
So side by side...the regular Swedes appear bigger all around...both in width and they are also longer tip-to-tail by about a 1/2" or so.
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#1934138 - 04/29/08 09:32 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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miroslav
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Now, it can be said, again, that Hags aren't specifically Gibson alternatives, but their current designs seem greatly inspired by LP's, 335's, 175's, etc....
Well...I think the current designs are inspired by the original Hagstrom designs. 
Even Guitar World acknowledges that Hagstrom/Sweden offered some of the most original and enduring designs coming out of Europe.
(I'm sure if Gibson felt they were copycats...they would have sued Hagstrom a long time ago like they've done or tired to do to so many other guitar companies!  )
Here's a nice little article in Guitar World where they feature the Viking model because it got the Gold Award for overall value…but they also talk about Hagstrom guitars in general:
http://www.hagstromguitars.com/pdfs/GW_VIKING_MAR08-HL.pdf
I know my views are a bit biased since I have 8 Hagstrom guitars... 
…...but IMO they are more than just an alternative to the many Epi/Gibson knockoffs. They have their own vibe, feel and sound… and an ever-growing following. 
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#1934169 - 04/29/08 10:11 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: miroslav]
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Bluesape
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I think your admitted bias has you defending them, Miro, and they don't need defending. The original Hag company certainly borrowed an idea or 2 from Gibson, as did Guild, Ibanez, Yamaha, Hamer, ESP, and even Fender. When I was a teen, Swedes were touted by dealers as carbon copies of LP's with a different headstock, at half the price. They are certainly more than just that, and they have manipulated the LP formula somewhat, and evolved their own recipe, which is distinctive, but more so to the loyal Hag fan than the general guitarist community. I don't think they started with a blank page and came up with the Swede, but I'll go so far as to say that they've actually IMPROVED on the original somewhat. I actually like the resinator fretboard, and full mahogany body configuration.
I'm not trumpeting the superiority of LP's. In fact, I think they are the most over-rated guitars on earth. They're great for what they do, and I love owning one, but they don't eclipse everything else out there. I personally don't feel a gigger's arsenal is complete without one, nor without a Strat, Tele, 335, etc.
The Swede is a fine axe, and I'll grab one when the time, deal, and weight, are properly aligned in the cosmos.
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#1934187 - 04/29/08 10:37 AM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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RobRose
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I'm with you, Reif. I love a Swede, but I tried out one and it was heavier than my heaviest Paul, which I got rid of for my current one which is chambered and much lighter. I am sure there are variations by model and year, so if I get the bug to look at Swedes again, I'll try out a few (thanks to the posters who pointed that variability out).
As for Les Pauls -- I'm on the other side of that discussion. There are lots of guitars that are like a Les Paul and some of them are excellent guitars, but FOR ME, there is NOTHING like a great player's Les Paul for that sound and feel. Admittedly, I am primarily a Paul player and it was the guitar I have always associated with the music I like to play, so I know it is my personal fetish here... :-)
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#1934247 - 04/29/08 12:08 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: RobRose]
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miroslav
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Funny...all the LPs I ever picked up seemed much heavier than any of mine... *shrug*
I guess it's a per/guitar thing....
And I'm not defending the Hags, Reif...but it's just that they really are NOT trying to be LPs...which is the way a lot of folks like to paint them.
I just wanted to put up some history since the Hags go back 50 years.
Oh...a Hag dealer told me that for the upcoming 50th Anniversary...they are coming out with one of the earliest Hags (the one that has a speaker-like feature on the body...not even sure which model that was).
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#1934278 - 04/29/08 01:18 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: miroslav]
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Bluesape
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I seem to have painted myself in a corner! I don't think Hags are trying to be LP's, but the similarity can't be accidental. And yes, they are largely perceived to be copies.
I also agree that LP's have earned their place in history, and are totally desirable, and that nothing else really replaces one, but they're not the right tool for every job. Strats have outsold everything else since their inception, and I can't picture not having both ever again. If ya don 't have a Strat AND a LP, then there's a hole in your stable that needs to be filled, IMHO.
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#1934325 - 04/29/08 02:33 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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miroslav
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Well…if we were to get into the whole chicken/egg thing...then I guess most all electric guitars that were designed even one day AFTER the LP came out...can be called an LP copy.
Personally....I don't see that Gibson has a patent on the two-curve, single-cutaway solid-body design.
Heck...if they did they would have sued and eliminated pretty much every other guitar manufacturer!
And I wasn’t trying to push you into a corner…it’s not you that I was talking about…just that in general, Hags are often viewed by many as just another LP “copy”…but IMO, they are not, and they do stand on their own.
AFA which is more popular…hey, no contest there…LPs will ALWAYS be more popular along with Fender Strats, as they have become R&R icons…and rightly so.
However, I do strongly believe that if Hagstrom/Sweden had NOT closed it’s doors back in 1983…they would have been right up there with the other big guitar names like…Guild, Gretsch, Rickenbacker, PRS…etc…because they started back in the 50’s…just like Gibson and Fender…and they had quite of few original designs.
As it is…they now have to also fight the stigma of “Made in China”…but I think people are starting to get over that more and more these days…just like the whole “Made in Japan” thing back in the 60’s and 70’s….and then Sony took over the electronic world by storm!
Now Sony is considered high-shelf gear.
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#1934357 - 04/29/08 03:57 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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guitarzan6000
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Yeah go ahead....LOL!!!! I'm just glad to see "Hags" getting the respect they are due. To me, probably the most "under-rated" guitar there is...Mine freaking KICKS ASS!!!
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#1934496 - 04/29/08 11:31 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: miroslav]
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Bluesape
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I just love great guitars, that's all.
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#1934931 - 04/30/08 01:48 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: Bluesape]
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soggybomb
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i recently discovered a hag dealer in town, so i'll try to play one soon. i'll go there and buy some strings or something, so i don't feel like i am just playing their guitars.
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#1934937 - 04/30/08 01:55 PM
Re: Hag Swede
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Greg B.
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I just love great guitars, that's all.
+1000
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#1934943 - 04/30/08 02:00 PM
Re: Hag Swede
[Re: soggybomb]
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Greg B.
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i recently discovered a hag dealer in town, so i'll try to play one soon. i'll go there and buy some strings or something, so i don't feel like i am just playing their guitars.
I recently dicovered a dealer here, too. I was looking for something (that they ended up not having), and stopped in a place I haven't been to in years. They had several Hags. I didn't have a lot of time, but I picked a couple of them up and liked what I played. When I get some time, I'm going to check them out better, my initial reaction tells me that I will like them more when I get a chance to play them more. And besides, I have always had a soft spot for designs that were unique.
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