Hello,
I just joined the forum after purchasing a new Guild Starfire IV in candy apple red two days ago.
Although I was generally familiar with Guilds (especially the acoustics), I'd never considered buying a Guild electric before I stumbled on this guitar at Steve's Music in Montreal. I was gassing for either a Gibson or Gretsch, and had already tried a bunch of Epiphones, Ibanez Artcores, etc... but never really bonded with them (an ES-335 is way beyond my budget).
Well, when I picked up the Starfire it was instant magic as far as I'm concerned. Ten minutes of play in the store and I bought it right on the spot. Took it to my gig that night and loved every minute of it (although the next day I upped the string guage to 11-52s as I like a little more "fight" when I play blues). The Guild has exactly the feel and sound I was looking for (I'm a gigging blues and rock guitarist, I already own a Tele, a Strat, and an SG, and was looking for a semi-hollowbody to complete the pallet).
Price was right $1129 Canadian, which included a TKL hardshell case -- great value as far as I'm concerned.
So, I have a couple of questions about my new guitar that I'm hoping the folks here can answer:
1) Would this be a pre- or post-Fender model? The guitar is Korean made. Serial # is KSG1301475. Can the guitar be dated from that info?
2) I read in some reviews that the floating rosewood-base bridge can slip out of alignment. Would there be any advantage to securing the bridge more permanently? Would simple carpet tape accomplish this, or should I not worry about it (so far the guitar stays in tune/ intonation fine).
3) The DC resistance on the neck pickup measures above 7 kOhm, versus about 5.1 for the bridge pickup. This makes the neck pickup quite a bit louder, slightly muddy (compared to, say the neck pickup on my SG). Is there a solution for this without going so far as changing pickups?
4) I'm a little concerned about the exposed gear Grover tuners on the headstock. They look a bit vulnerable uncovered like that. Do these tuners tend to remain stable over time, or would it be worth installing, say, regular Grovers or Gibson-style Klusons (I anticipate heavy gig use for this guitar!).
Thanks for any help if you can address these queries.
I just joined the forum after purchasing a new Guild Starfire IV in candy apple red two days ago.
Although I was generally familiar with Guilds (especially the acoustics), I'd never considered buying a Guild electric before I stumbled on this guitar at Steve's Music in Montreal. I was gassing for either a Gibson or Gretsch, and had already tried a bunch of Epiphones, Ibanez Artcores, etc... but never really bonded with them (an ES-335 is way beyond my budget).
Well, when I picked up the Starfire it was instant magic as far as I'm concerned. Ten minutes of play in the store and I bought it right on the spot. Took it to my gig that night and loved every minute of it (although the next day I upped the string guage to 11-52s as I like a little more "fight" when I play blues). The Guild has exactly the feel and sound I was looking for (I'm a gigging blues and rock guitarist, I already own a Tele, a Strat, and an SG, and was looking for a semi-hollowbody to complete the pallet).
Price was right $1129 Canadian, which included a TKL hardshell case -- great value as far as I'm concerned.
So, I have a couple of questions about my new guitar that I'm hoping the folks here can answer:
1) Would this be a pre- or post-Fender model? The guitar is Korean made. Serial # is KSG1301475. Can the guitar be dated from that info?
2) I read in some reviews that the floating rosewood-base bridge can slip out of alignment. Would there be any advantage to securing the bridge more permanently? Would simple carpet tape accomplish this, or should I not worry about it (so far the guitar stays in tune/ intonation fine).
3) The DC resistance on the neck pickup measures above 7 kOhm, versus about 5.1 for the bridge pickup. This makes the neck pickup quite a bit louder, slightly muddy (compared to, say the neck pickup on my SG). Is there a solution for this without going so far as changing pickups?
4) I'm a little concerned about the exposed gear Grover tuners on the headstock. They look a bit vulnerable uncovered like that. Do these tuners tend to remain stable over time, or would it be worth installing, say, regular Grovers or Gibson-style Klusons (I anticipate heavy gig use for this guitar!).
Thanks for any help if you can address these queries.