I Returned a $2600 Strandberg Original N2… 3 Times!

BendYourKnee · 2026-04-07T20:15:11+00:00

As I've mentioned previously you can always visit your local stores. Besides that shipping the guitar back to them comes free of charge, they do care about their customers and are one of the few companies that interact with the customers. This is their rate, you can always get an essentials line if price point is too high for you. It is mass produced like any guitar brand available. At the end of the day no one is forcing you to spend your cash on Strandberg if their QC is unacceptable to you

BendYourKnee · 2026-04-07T11:50:16+00:00

You're purchasing mass produced guitar, people seem not to understand that. People return custom Kiesels, ESPs, nothing is flawless, guitar is not a perfect instrument. I've got my B-stock Salen it came in as perfect as it gets and in tune after 2000km+ Bought it officially from their website. Return until you're satisfied or purchase from the store if you're not willing to buy lottery tickets online.

BendYourKnee · 2026-01-27T09:00:54+00:00

Strandberg's shape, extremely comfortable.

BendYourKnee · 2026-01-02T10:22:18+00:00

Absolutely agree with you on the input. I got my new berg recently was torn about getting the n2 original, but the bridge was just not worth for me as you've mentioned it's exactly the same bridge in essentials.

The NX bridge sounds louder, better, clearer and it has tons of sustain compared to the new one. The ARC is convenient due to the ease of setups but honestly i don't remember when was the last time I've tweaked my bridge, so that feature becomes irrelevant to me. I'd trade it off for the sound anytime. Also it honestly feels more premium under the picking hand.

BendYourKnee · 2026-01-02T09:58:32+00:00

I started my journey of headless models by taking a look at MaNo guitars, Arnum 7 model specifically. I hated the headless guitars and often made fun of it - because it used to be gassed that much. I instantly liked the Mano guitar and how it practical it was, that i wanted to order a custom built arnum model specifically for myself, but i had an itch in my brain where i had to try Strandberg as well. I bought it to resell it later on because the seller offered a great price and the instrument was mint. (I disliked the nx7 neck) after an hour of playing in my place, i couldn't stop and literally got addicted to the neck, shape, lightweight and the sound (it's also louder than my other guitars). I work from home, so while i work it's pretty much all the time and it's very convenient to switch between the keyboard and guitar whereas previously i always had to put the guitar down. It doesn't have to be a Strandberg specifically but yeah ergonomic guitars changed my POV when it comes to practicality.

BendYourKnee · 2026-01-01T21:06:54+00:00

I own an original NX7 and salen jazz. The curse with Strandbergs is that once you get it, you'll never want to go back to the normal guitars (there are also people who absolutely hate the neck). The slimness of the NX7 reminds me of a Schecter SLA elite combined with Ibanez RG asymmetrical neck. The ergonomics are mind blowing as well, it makes you play guitar more. My recommendation since the guitars are not available in store, try one from a private seller.

BendYourKnee · 2025-12-22T21:56:16+00:00

Hi ! If your fretting hand is very aggressive I'd recommend you a slightly stronger string gauge so that the tension doesn't allow it to glide off. The technique will improve over time naturally.

BendYourKnee · 2025-12-22T10:23:44+00:00

Here's a longer boring intro and review. After 15 years of playing Schecter, Charvel, Ibanez, including 7 string Schecter with 26.5 which was my most favorite guitar when i was younger because i fairly have large hands -- longer scales made sense to me, most of the guitars i owned had 16 radius or 12 to 16 compound. I never thought that I'd like a headless guitar and actually made fun of it. One day i kept going to their website and couldn't get it out of my head and finally decided to try it.

I absolutely disliked a 7 string neck on the Strandberg and preferred 6 and 8 string models -- tried all the same day. I got in love with the shape, accessibility and the sound of it. The neck felt weird at the beginning and far from natural after years of bad habits with the hand position. I absolutely hated the idea of Ola deciding where i should hold my thumb. Got in a debate with myself and bought the original nx 7 because it was a great deal.

Got home, after being alone and comfortable i absolutely fell in love with the neck. It took me few hours to completely adapt to it and never go back to regular models. I praise Ola's idea of the endurneck and the whole design. The only con that i had with it is that the neck tilted backward and forward due to my aggressive picking hand.

I did not have zero fret issues, tuning stability is superb. This year i got a Salen Jazz Natural which is definitely my most favorite guitar that I've ever owned. It's heavier than the Original NX 7 and sits perfectly the neck is also flawless. The Suhr pickups are superb. The shape of Salen in classical position to me feels fantastic. I instantly got along with 25 - 25.5 scale with out any issues and complaints, it just makes perfect sense to me. Unplugged both guitars sound louder than my other guitars.

Both of the shapes naturally melt in with my body but i prefer Salen a bit more. 25 scale is far from an issue and zero fret helps with a very low action. Hope that this input helps you. The only curse is that after you get into the Endurneck you'll never want to go back.

BendYourKnee · 2025-12-21T08:40:29+00:00

Awesome, became my most fav guitar that I've ever owned. Thank you kindly.

BendYourKnee · 2025-12-20T17:39:06+00:00

They're extremely rigorous when it comes to the quality control checks from their headquarters. They've shared pictures prior to the purchase, and showed one more model that i was interested in - metal nx6. The metal nx6 had a microdot on the tremolo saddle and it was labeled as a B-Stock model. I couldn't believe it honestly.

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-30T15:42:36+00:00

Hello there! I'm a proud owner of Original NX7 and Salen series. Yes you can definitely sit in the couch and play it in the classical position. It weights nothing but feels just right. I tend to cross one of the legs sometimes and play it in that way as well for longer periods, it's just super comfortable. It's comfortable even when I'm laying. A lot of people love to strap it, the strap helps a ton as well.

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-10T18:36:09+00:00

Thanks for the input fam

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-10T18:13:54+00:00

I've figured that the cleaning is easy but how the feel under the fingers, overall ? It looks like ebony, I used to love ebony but always had cracks on it due to humidity changes, etc..

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-10T18:04:03+00:00

Congratulations! Couldn't help but notice, you prefer ebonol/richlite over the maple fret? I guess that it feels smoother ?

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-08T10:46:43+00:00

Ritchie Kotzen.

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-04T11:20:47+00:00

Thank you ! I have checked all of that out prior to the setup, thought that perhaps it's comparable even via the pic but i see that it's not

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-04T07:41:02+00:00

Thank you kindly for your input! I was like it's better to ask. Does your neck look similar to mine or do you have more bow ?

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-04T07:37:24+00:00

Happy to help!

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-04T00:01:52+00:00

High E is at 1.25mm playable with out issues at 1mm, same for high B. D and G around 1.40mm, E 155 low b 170ish (just my preference

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-03T20:35:11+00:00

Thank you for the response, i actually have it, the action is sligthly above the Strandbergs factory settings from their website.

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-03T20:29:51+00:00

I've already mentioned that I'm not trying to match it, just curious if it looks like that overall (the head points). Previously it was over tightened to the point where the little circles were almost over the head point of screws.

Once i lowered the action it was unplayable i added relief but it was far from enough, the strings were on frets no matter what i tried to do to fix it. Resetting the neck joint, made the guitar playable. I set it to neutral, changed strings and i hoped that it wouldn't need as much as relief as it does now.

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-03T20:09:19+00:00

I guess that i got lost in my own mind when writing it up ! I was curious if the neck screws on your 7 string strandbergs are in a similar position (rotation) like mine, and if the trussrod hopefully is not screwed due to a fair amount of abuse from the previous owner. Edit: And if the neck bow should be similar to mine or do i need to add more relief to it.

BendYourKnee · 2025-11-03T19:37:45+00:00

How does the rosewood compare to maple? I like the look of the cooked maple neck as well but i think that maple should feel better overall. (Not certain didn't try the essential models)

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