guitareurope-blog

[guitareurope-blog]

Ronin Mirari

I have been playing guitar for over 20 years new (a 10-year hiatus not counted). There were a few bands, a few projects, but none were really quite successful.A few years ago I realised I didn’t want to be part of a band no more, it’s just not my thing.I’m having enough trouble already interacting with people in daily life, so being in a band is actually just making things worse.

At some point, ditching all the non-music related clutter proved exactly what I needed to rediscover the sheer joy of playing music, discovering and learning every day.

So there you are, I am what is referred to these days as a “bedroom player” I think (I don’t have a YouTube channel though) and quite frankly, it was the best choice I made in years.

I made this blog because I am guitar-obsessed. I confess. I need guitars, I crave guitars.

Below is a list of all the ones I’ve ever owned, on a 30-year basis. Not bad I’d say (but surely there are many severe cases).

  Session Super Strat

Fender pink Paisley MIJ Telecaster

Ibanez Frank Gambale S series

Hamer Chapparal with Sustainiac

Gretsch 1969 Country Gentleman

Ibanez Joe Satriani

Squire Telecaster

Ibanez Artist

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Hohner Explorer

No brand Strat

Peavey Super Strat

Nik Huber Dolphin

Collings LC-35

TLL Daphne

Hayride Telecaster

VC Telecaster

Maybach Lester

Gibson ES335 CS

Warmoth Strat

Epiphone Les Paul Custom Inspired by ‘55

Valley Arts Custom Pro

Gibson ‘57 JR Custom Shop VOS

  And now, a Ronin Mirari.

  This, my dear friends, was a life-changing experience.

It had such an impact, I felt I just had to write about it. Mainly because I’m just head-over-heels with it, but also because I thought it would be good to have a real-world review out there from a non-pro user, as honest and un-biased as possible.

  I remember looking at the Ronin website a few years back, thinking I’d never come across one I’d be able to buy, they’re quite exclusive and are almost never to be found used.

But then it suddenly happened. A 2018 Mirari in Castilian Red was listed on Reverb. Mint condition. I sold my Gibson JR as quick as I could to free soms funds and took the leap.

  I’ve never looked back since.

  From the first day on I couldn’t put her down.

This is the most inspiring instrument I have ever played. And more importantly, it lasts. Every time when I put the Mirari on my lap, the magic is there. Over and over again.

  I heard people put them off as “hipster guitars”, “overpriced boutique stuff that’s just well marketed” and so on …

I can tell you that every that word on the Ronin website is so accurately true, it is almost frightening. My Ronin lives up to every single-one of their claims. Period.

  And don’t just only take the word of an unknown bedroom player all the way from Belgium, but also from well-seasoned musicians as David Torn, Keith Urban, Jo Mahieu, Eric Melaerts, Dan Phelps, Eddie Martinez, Walter Becker … to name a few. I’m definitely in good company here!

  So, here’s my in-depth review.

  The first thing you notice when picking up a Mirari, is the weight, or better,  the lack of it.

It is ridiculously light.

Perfectly balanced and curved, it is a joy to play during long sessions, either standing or sitting.

Acoustically, there is a lot going on here, even before plugging in, playing this guitar reveals spectacular sonic qualities. Notes and chords ring and chime, there is plenty of definition and a wide range of dynamics at your fingertips.

I sometimes refer to complex wines as “3D”, in this case this description is equally appropriate.

It truly is a beautiful marriage, the redwood body and the mahogany neck, resonance is almost felt before heard.

  Plugging in, all of the above gets amplified and multiplied.

Ronin makes their own pickups, mine has two Foilbuckers, standard wind.

You immediately notice how incredibly dynamic these are. They respond to every nuance in your touch. Hence Dan Phelps’ observation about them:

  “Ronin guitars sound big, resonant, and nuanced. Between the old redwood and the foilbuckers, the sheer amount of sonic information coming out of my Mirari can be overwhelming. What I love about that is how much expressive possibility is available to me, literally at my finger tips. ” Dan Phelps

  Compared to a Warmoth Strat I own, outfitted with an Amber Spirit of ‘59, (a relatively low output, vintage style HB) at the bridge, these pickups are even less hot. And ultimately this makes sense. Here’s what Marc Cuthbertson has to say about this, I couldn’t put it any better, so I just quote:

  "Ronin have some very detailed pickups, even in their higher gain models. But I've never played a guitar where I thought, "this pickup isn't LOUD enough." I truly do not understand that concern. Guitars are for tone. Pedals and amps are for gain (and tone, of course). Most people do it backwards and that's partly why most people sound like most people.

  Gain is the most abundant resource in the universe. You can have it easily and cheaply anywhere in your signal chain. I do not understand why people insist on getting it from the guitar. The guitar is the place to set your EQ curve. More often than not, when you coax gain out of the guitar, you do so at the cost of DATA...tonal details. Those 1's and 0's that carry the info about exactly how you picked or didn't pick that last note? Those are mostly in the highs, and those are the frequencies that you start sacrificing when you just HAVE to make the whole thing LOUDER by the time it even hits the first cable. There's no way to get that data back; it just wasn't transmitted in the first place. But if you come off the guitar with the data in tact, even if you darken at a pedal or the amp, tons of that data perseveres through that later darkening."  - Mark Cuthbertson

  When playing a Foilbucker for the first time, you most likely will have to adjust some amp/pedal settings. I found this actually very rewarding. Every small tweak translates into a huge difference in tone, due to the sensitivity and responsiveness of these pickups.

My standard go-to hi gain fuzz is a Catalinbread Antichton. Capable of producing huge amounts of sonic mayhem, pinpoint articulation is always there, even with tons of gain and while playing complex voicings.

The foilbuckers react to the slightest of touch, making them especially suited for fingerstyle techniques and players with a soft touch.

  Construction is flawless as you may expect (and should) from instruments in this league. The neck profile, a traditional C on my Mirari, suits me perfectly, you just play and forget about it, which is a very good sign. It is extremely comfortabe but by no means a thin shred-affair.

Frets are Stew-mac 154, a high-ish medium wire. Paired with a 12” radius, this lends to a more contemporaty feel.

There is also a soft-V to C neck option for those wanting a more vintage style feel if desired.

Laquer is nitro and is executed flawlessly. The Castilian Red is deep and warm and has a beautiful solidness to it.

The neck is finished transparant, showing off the georgeous mahogany grain.

  Hardware-wise it doesn’t get any better than this. Hipshot open-geared tuners and a Mannmade tremolo provide ultra-stable tuning, even when dive-bombing in the best of Van Halen manners.

  I won’t go further explaning how this guitar sounds and plays, you’ll just have to discover it for yourself. By now I’ve already told you the most important things. Dynamics, responsiveness and unique tone are what it’s all about.

  Jo Mahieu once said to me, “A Ronin isn’t for everyone”, and I now fully understand what he meant by that. The Mirari is a very confronting instrument, forcing you to play very consciously to reveal all the nuances she has in her. And when you do, she really gives back what you put in.

  Sorry Jo, Ronin suits me just fine, she’ll have to stay :-)

  Ronin Mirari

Specifications:

Body: Master Grade Reclaimed Old Growth Redwood

Neck: Honduran Mahogany

Heel: Mannmade® 4 Bolt Heel Plate

Frets: 22 Stewmac 154

Scale Length: 25.5”

Truss Rod: Single Action

Radius: 9.5”, 10” or “7.25-9”

Back Contour: C or Soft V .89 - .94

Nut Width: Approx 1” 11/16ths

Nut Material: Unbleached Bone

Inlay: Dots

Finish: 100% Un-Catalyzed Nitrocellulose Lacquer

Pickguard: Celluloid Nitrate Multi-ply

Hand Made Bone Nut

Weight: 6.5 - 7.0 lbs

Hardware

Mannmade® 2 Pin Full Size Steel Block Tremolo

Hipshot® Open Gear Tuning Machines

Electronics:

NOS Vintage .047uf 200V Tone Cap

Treble Bleed Cap + Resistor

CTS 250k Pots

Switch Craft® Switches

  Pickups:

2x Ronin Foilbucker Standard Wind Set

2x Ronin Foilbucker HOT Set

Controls:

1x Vol 2x Tone + 3 Way Switch

  Options:

Resonator Switch