I had two milestones in my gear journey. 1991 was when I picked up learning the guitar. 2020 was when I started doing my mini guitar business thanks to covid. I thank God for seeing me through this journey so far.
Today, I am at best an okay guitarist doodling with basses at my home workstations. I prefer raw, authentic and uncompressed voices through clean or breakup tones with natural wobble.
I own my dream guitar in a 1996 Gibson Custom Shop Historic Collection ’56 Les Paul Goldtop Reissue R6 “Regent” (who possesses my favourite pickups P90) and my home guitar in a 2017 Fender Haruna Telecaster “Lady” (whose Scandal roots is deeper than I had expected). Both guitars will serve as legacies I will leave behind for my daughters. I am on a hunt for a third piece of legacy who will come from the boutique world and will be my workhorse.
I also own my trustworthy partners in a 1988 Fender Eric Clapton Stratocaster “Red” (who has the best playability in my collection with her lovely lace sensor pickups) and a 2023 Fender Haruna Telecaster® Boost “Spring” (who came at the same time I attended my first Scandal concert).
My bass sessions are covered by a 2023 Müb Miezo 18″/5 “Enza” (the Maurizio factor and the ease of playing a bass). As of the time of writing, a customised Stradi bass might be on the way. I started my playing as an acoustic guitarist so I have to have one acoustic guitar. After owning and selling many acoustic guitars, I think I might have settled for a TYMA HB-400 “May”, small and resonant.
A 2025 Fender® (Squier) x Hello Kitty® White Stratocaster® “Niko” and a 2025 AKAI MPK Mini IV “Mindy” complete my keeps. They are my fun-to-play with partners.
By the end of the journey, I expect all instruments to go except the three legacy pieces, one bass and one acoustic.
I have two workstations:
Workstation 1(in my master bedroom):
- Fender Pro Junior IV (simple and honest)
- Bugera PS1 Power Soak
Workstation 2(in my living room balcony):
- Phil Jones Bass X4C Nanobass (combo and versatile)
- Mosky Beta Ultra
My curated active signal chain (of pedals) is housed neatly in a used Joyo case with a trolley handle and wheels. The signal path consists of:
- JHS Legends of Fuzz Bender
- ThorpyFX Team Medic
- Danelectro Cool Cat Tremolo
- H.B.E. Mimic Mock I
- Black Country Customs Secret Path
- TC Electronic Infinite Sample Sustainer
I still keep a collection of gears I see as welcomed guests:
- Positive Grid Spark GO
- Orange PPC108
- Orange Crush Mini
- BOSS RC-10R
- Electro‑Harmonix Big Muff Pi
- VOX Straight 6 Overdrive
- VOX Cooltron Bulldog
- Third Man Hardware Triple Threat Donner Effects Pedal (Standard Edition)
- Valeton GP-5
- Electro-Harmonix Crayon
My listening taste has evolved much since I was listening to Modern Talking as a kid. These days, I pretty much listen to Kpop mostly. Some immediate music bias includes aespa, Scandal, Davichi, ITZY, NMIXX, Babymonster, Yerin Baek, Younha.
The rest are secondary: ICHILLIN’, Lightsum, H1-Key, Hearts2Hearts, LE SSERAFIM, Memi, Yoasobi, Brown-Eyed Girls, Jack White, The White Stripes, Beck, King Arthur OST (Daniel Pemberton), Radiohead, Stereophonics, Two Steps From Hell, E.S. Posthumus, Melissa Auf der Maur, Massive Attack, Jay Chou, Faye Wong, Cheer Chen, Deserts Chang, Summer Lei, José González, Shelby Starner
I do not usually play on the guitar music I listen to; they are two different worlds.