Schecter Keith Merrow KM-7 MK-III Artist - Trans Black Burst Review

Keith Merrow RULEZ

This is the 4th KM guitar in my collection (KM7 MK1, KM7 MKIII hybrid, KM6 MKIII hybrid). I seriously can't get enough of these and am eagerly awaiting the newest generation. Buy with confidence!

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Love it

I've never had a 7 string guitar before, but have been eager to learn. This guitar is my favorite by far and getting way more play time than any of my six strings. The tone is amazing, the guitar is beautiful, and it's so playable. I was really worried about getting used to a 7 string neck, but this one is one makes it easy. I'd recommend this guitar to anyone.

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KM7

The guitar is beautiful. Period. The pickups are amazing, the entire guitar resonates when you pick a string. The sustain is simply incredible. The set up out of the box was just awful. Pickups were set way to low, the low E string was so much lower than the other strings that it looked counter-sunk among the others. The treble strings were set so low that if you bent a note,… read more you literally couldn't get your finger to the side of the adjacent string...just went under it with the one you're bending. Of course, the fun in getting a new guitar is getting to know it. I adjusted the pickups height, adjusted the string height a bit, adjusted my amp and pedals to accommodate the new guitar and....BOOM! Good God this thing plays and sounds like a dream. Legato runs flow like water across the neck. The pick attack is heard on every stroke of every string. I always loved the sound of a distorted lead being played on the neck pickup of any guitar, but this one requires something new to me. The middle position on the selector gives it that open, hot sound. The neck pickup alone seems to roll off a lot of highs that are present with the bridge. Mixing them together just works wonderfully. If you're looking to buy a 7, I'm going to have to say that this is the one, but expect to have to massage it a bit to get it there. Something you should do to any guitar anyway.

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Well Worth It

I am amazed at the quality of work that went into this. From the feel, to the smooth fret edges, to the neck-thru design and the pickup selection, the compensated nut...I mean, this thing is packed with more features (and made BEAUTIFULLY), more so than guitars twice its price by other brands. I have to say, I was a little skeptical as it is the import version of his USA Schecter… read more guitars...but....it impressed me IMMEDIATELY. The feel of the neck is just outstanding. The tuners are smooth and amazing and the strings stay in tune. The frets are the perfect height for shredding, yet feel wonderful while chording and playing riffs/runs. The compound radius is perfect. I brought to band rehearsal right out of the box, and I will say, you should dial into the pickup tones you like before you do that - the pickup selection is tricky. When I got it home, I couldn't stop playing it. I was up till 2am, thanks to Schecter and I'm dead tired today but heck - it was well worth it. For this price point, this guitar simply cannot be beat. As a matter of fact, I called Cristian at Sweetwater and ordered the 6-string version, as well. I mean it - this can be your #1 fixed bridge guitar. The pickups cleans are jaw dropping - the distorted tones - you'll find them. It just takes some 'knobbing' around. I dialed in a sick metallica tone last night through my katana. Now...I feel like I have a well-oiled, great-playing, super comfy metal machine to help me grow my chops. I couldn't be more impressed - my band mates were, too. I can't wait for the six-string and only hope it lives up to the 7-string! It set the bar awfully high!

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Mark 3: Mark of a Beast

The pickup voicing takes a bit of getting used to. And the tech who 'set up' the guitar actually didn't and I had to ship it back, which was a lot like having a hot girlfriend you can't finger. I paid the extra $200 to have it Pleked, and got the worst 'set up' I've ever seen in my life, literally. All that aside, it's an amazing guitar. The weight, finish and attention to detail… read more is exceptional for an import. I own 22 guitars w/ half of them being high end ESP, Ibanez, Gibson and a few Jackson guitars. This guitar crushes all of them. ALL of them. If my Ibanez RGEW521ZC were a neck-thru build, we'd have a close shoot out given the amazing quality of it's D'Marzio Tone Zone and Air Norton Pickups, which sound much better for lead tones in my opinion. The Fishman pickups are excellent but are voiced for a boosted mid-range djent style chug attack. I don't djent, I play my guitar and the voicing is a bit awkward for lead work. For rhythm and palm muting, they're beastly, but a bit too mid-focused for what I like. But I'm just one dude. Most people will love the Fishman custom pickups, and they deserve praise. The only thing I don't like about the guitar, which is actually a really smart idea, is the output jack location. it's not down on the corner like most strat body styles, it's directly beneath the strap peg. Meaning, if you sit down to play it, you'll need a cable w/ a 90 degree end on it as a standard cable will poke you in your leg. The volume knob has rubber rings around it to give your fingers traction...another killer idea. I bought it for one reason: the volume knob is out of the way. I've always hated volume knob placement and have custom modded all my guitars to get it out of the way. The locking tuners are ridiculously dope. Why guitarists haven't seen this style of innovative tuner before is a Scooby-Doo Mystery; they're effin AWESOME !! This guitar is easily a 5/5 and well worth the money. Buy it, you'll absolutely love it.

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