NGD Guild Semi-Hollow

[tonebender]

I love Florida but weather here in the summer can be brutal and crazy. The humidity seems to be over 100%. It's 100F then 30 minutes later it's raining like crazy, thunder, lightning and the temp drops to 75F. 15m minutes later, the the rain stops and it's like a clam steam bake with the return of the heat and the moisture evaporating. Not to mention any gear in a parked car is baking at 150F in no time flat if you make a stop for lunch. Then you get to the gig an it's 72F and dry in the venue. Bottom line I was getting pretty concerned about my Gibson 335 in such temperature swings and conditions so I decided I needed another semi. I have a couple others but neither seem to work with the band. I was reading up on this Guild Starfire and liked everything I was reading. A2 pups with push with push pull pots to get that lower output that I like. Vintage style open gear tuners and the biggest selling point it is made of mahogany instead of the usual maple. When I saw all this on the Sweetwater sight and the fact that they had several demo models to choose, from I pulled the trigger very quickly. Even though I prefer USA made guitars or at least made in the Americas (US, Mexico or Canada) I am happy with it. Long story short, it is an awesome playing and sounding guitar for being MIC.

Here you go.

[tlarson58]

Love it.

Love it. Love it. Love it.

HNGD!

[tonebender]

Thanks Tommy. she is as smooth as silk and such a nice warm tone.

[Buddha Pickups]

Very nice
I have the walnut version assuming that is cherry?
I actually like the pickups

[Tonray's Ghost]

Very cool I was gassing for the lake placid blue one with Vibrato ..but not heard many opinions..hmmm

[toomanycats]

That is a very attractive instrument. Ticks a lot of the boxes for me with those low output A2 humbuckers and vintage aesthetic.

Just curious, why did you go with the Guild Starfire instead of what would seem the obvious choice for a backup for your Gibson, meaning the comparably priced Epiphone ES-335?

[tonebender]

Good question @toomanycats . One would think since I am such a Gibson fan that Epi would be the choice but, Epi neck profiles always feel weird to me. I played one of the new ones and didn't like the feel. I took a chance on the Guild since there were none to try in the stores, Even though I have never returned anything to Sweetwater I think my guy there would have let me send it back. Not sure about the official policy. I love guitars made from mahogany and with all the other specs, tuners, pots, and pups sold me. Not to mention the demo model was $100 less that the Epi 335 Dot. Epiphone has gotten real proud of the guitars the last couple of years. Most imports require upgrades but this one is fantastic just the way it came. I could not be more pleased with it unless it was made in the USA.

[SamIV]

That is one nice looking top. I also prefer the shape over Gibson or Epiphone.

[Tonray's Ghost]

That is one nice looking top. I also prefer the shape over Gibson or Epiphone.

It's got sort of an Ibanez 'ear' thing going on

[Tiga]

Wow I like it - especially the color.

[andrewsrea]

HNGD!

Guild is coming from a Fender factory, which IMHO is a good thing for quality.

[tonebender]

Yes, the quality is as good as it gets, especially for the coin and it does feel less "bulky" for a 335. The Gibson and Epi are "full figured".

[andrewsrea]

Yes, the quality is as good as it gets, especially for the coin and it does feel less "bulky" for a 335. The Gibson and Epi are "full figured".

I used to repair for Johnny DeFrancesco (brother of Joey D, most famous B3 organ player), who was endorsed by Guild Guitars and Fender Amps in the 90's. He lent me one back in the day and it was really nice.

[uwmcscott]

That's a sweet looking ride, may it stay in tune and play well for many years to come. I don't know how you guys live in that heat/humidity...sounds brutal. I am going to guess that there may be some laminate in that price range from guild, which is probably a good thing to hold up to all those crazy environmental changes. I have been collecting Yairi acoustics for a long time now and most of them, even the high end ones, had laminate backs and sides intentionally to be be more stable. It's common to find older ones with repaired top cracks but you rarely see repairs on the backs or sides.

[tonebender]

Pretty sure it is mahogany laminate which should be very stable in these conditions. As far as the weather, I grew up in Virginia and will always miss the distinct four seasons there. But we get 9 months of paradise and 3 months of summer. I have come to think of summer Jun-Aug as the winter here because of limitations in activity similar to winter north of here. Being a motorcyclist I love to ride and the summer afternoon thunder boomers limit that. That said even in the summer the mornings and evenings are fine. After 40 years here I am a Floridian through and through.

[OMB]

Congrats on the Guild. I love the way mine looks and sounds but alas have finally decided the Guild necks (Most of the semis and full hollows are under .80 at the first fret thickness are too skinny for my picky taste.

I need to get motivated and sell mine.