Four years in the development and much anticipated by cognoscenti, Guild is set to unveil a genuine USA-made F-512 acoustic 12-string model along with Starfire electric 12-strings and an acoustic bass at Summer NAMM in Nashville later this month.
Used by guitar heroes like Tom Petty, David Gilmour and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Guild’s iconic 12-strings set the standard for the instrument back in the 1960s and ’70s and their reincarnation as part of the revived Guild operation have been much anticipated. The Oxnard CA-built F-512’s jumbo body features a solid AAA Sitka spruce top and solid Indian rosewood back and sides produce, It also features scalloped Adirondack spruce braces, making this model lighter and more refined than ever, Guild says.
The F-512 comes decorated with Guild’s classic MOP V-block inlays, railroad track fingerboard purfling, and fully bound traditional headstock. It is finished with nitrocellulose, is available in Natural or Antique Burst with the option of an LR Baggs pickup and comes in a premium hardshell case.
US prices: starting at $4,630 MSRP • $3,699 MAP USD
Acoustic players aren’t the only ones in for a treat from Guild as the company has new electric models too. Based on Guild’s popular Starfire IV ST, the new Starfire IV ST-12 is a thinbody semi-hollow electric. Features include an all-mahogany body, solid spruce centre block and rosewood fingerboard. For this re-issue, Guild made a few key adjustments to its former 12-string electric, the Starfire XII made from ’66-’74. This modern version has a Tune-O-Matic bridge with a stopbar tailpiece for increased sustain and stability, imperative for keeping those extra strings in tune. The Starfire IV ST-12 includes dual LB-1 “Little Bucker” pickups, replicas of Guild’s original smaller size humbucking pickups. It is available in Aspen Green & Cherry Red, and includes hardshell case.
US prices: Starfire IV ST-12: $1,800 MSRP • $1,299 MAP USD
Finally, Guild is returning to the acoustic bass it pioneered in the 1970s with the B-50, a boomy jumbo with arched mahogany back and 30 3/4” scale length. Decades later, Guild is reintroducing these vintage features with the new Westerly Collection B-240E and B-240EF (fretless), offering bassists: ‘…a workhorse acoustic instrument with big tone that plays with ease’.
Built with a solid Sitka spruce top over an arched mahogany back and mahogany sides, the B-240E and B-240EF boast an impressively loud tone that will hold its own during acoustic jams, Guild says. The B-240E features an ebony fingerboard and bridge, slim C shape neck profile, 1 5/8” bone nut and bone saddle, tortoiseshell pickguard, and a mother-of-pearl rosette. The B-240EF comes fretless with maple fret lines. Both acoustic basses may also be amplified through onboard Fishman Sonitone Bass pickups and come with a deluxe padded gig bag.
US prices: B-240E- $695 MSRP • $499.99 MAP USD and B-240E Fretless – $695 MSRP • $499.99 Street MAP USD
Info: http://guildguitars.com/