NGD: NS S-100 Polara Deluxe

[GGJaguar]

I have a very nice Westerly-made S-100, but took up Sweetwater on their S-100 Deluxe. I’ve been impressed with the NS S-100 ever since I read GAD’s excellent review plus @matsickma was excited about his and that excitement is contagious. GAD's sound bites and my short-lived ownership of the GSR X-150D reinforced my opinion that the Korean-made reissue HB-1 pickups sound very good for the music I like to play. But having both a US-made and Korean-made S-100 didn’t make sense… until now. I justified the Deluxe version because it has a Bigsby. Yes, that qualifies it as being different enough.

I ordered the sunburst version because I like sunburst finishes very much. It’s a classic finish. Call me old fashioned, call me an ol’ fuddy duddy, but I like what I like. A well-done sunburst is beautiful.




I compared the specs of the standard NS S-100 to the Deluxe variant. Here are the results with differences highlighted in yellow:



Also as Ralf noted, the rear cavity cover on the Deluxe model only has 4 screws while the standard model has 6-screws, so that’s another difference.

Here is photo comparison of the different pickguards and bridges between the two models. I can’t comment on the quality difference between the bridges on the two guitars because I don’t have a Korean-made S-100 on hand to compare. I’ll go out on a limb and say it’s a less expensive unit which could translate to lower quality.




This is my first encounter with an Indonesian-made Newark Street model. When it arrived, I was pleasantly surprised by the fit and finish. It’s pretty much flawless. Still, the guitar needed some tweaking as the intonation was way out of whack, the action is little higher than I like and it looks like the nut slots were not cut deep enough. They did a good job making and finishing the body, just not setting it up and wiring (more on this later).

The tuners are Guild-labeled 18:1 Sta-Tite clones that may be made by Marvel. They are not Grover Sta-Tites as stated on the Sweetwater website. Tuning stability is very good, but the tuners have a bit of play in them. The guitar is easy to tune and stays in tune, but the tuners don’t feel precise. For the record, Grover Sta-Tites (V97-18) are not a drop-in fit. I tried.

 

[GGJaguar]

The controls of many low budget guitars are either on or off with almost no taper. This is not the case with the S-100 Deluxe. The pots are Korean-made and probably the same as used on the Korean NS models. There is decent taper with the volume and tone controls. The volume pots are mini push-pull units that allow each pickup to be coil-split. The tone pots are full size. The 3-way toggle is crap and will need to be replaced sooner than later.

The neck profile is a very comfortable shallow C-shape and the ebony fingerboard is a nice feature. It feels a little slimmer than my other Newark Street guitars and, as matsickma noted, it’s not the “Soft U” as listed in the specs. Here are the neck measurements I took of my NS S-200 T-Bird, NS Starfire IV and the NS S-100 Deluxe. You can see that it’s similar to the other Newark Street guitars, but in hand it feels more like the S-200 than the Starfire.



Then there’s the Bigsby. It has extra-long pins which makes changing strings a bit easier since the ball ends aren’t as prone to popping off the pin. The vibrato arm does not have a stop which allows the arm to move 360 degrees. GAD noted this in his Starfire I SC review. It’s weird.



The Bigsby action is stiff and about the same as on the NS Starfire V that I had. I think it’s a combination of the tune-a-matic bridge, sharp break angle over the bridge and the import Bigsby design (no roller bearings). Here you can see the break angle as well as the plastic stand-offs under the Bigsby that matsickma photographed in his review.



I have a roller bridge hiding somewhere and when (if) I find it I may give it a try on this guitar in hopes of improving the Bigsbying capability. That’s assuming it fits the bridge posts, of course. One more reminder – unlike U.S.-made Bigsbys, the import version has an area where the Bigsby attaches to the hinge that is razor sharp, so be careful! I already nailed myself once on this guitar.

The guitar is resonant and has good acoustic volume. Plugged in, the guitar sounded… odd. The neck pickup was clear and strong, but the bridge pickup sounded dark and a bit muddy. I popped the cavity cover to see what it looked like and found the hot lead from the bridge pickup was pinned under the push-pull volume pot and was against the shielding paint. The signal was getting partially grounded.



I removed the pot and re-situated the hot lead. The guitar sounded much better and was in line with GAD’s sound bites for the Korean NS S-100. The pickups are articulate and the sound is a little two dimensional compared to vintage HB-1 humbuckers, but the note separation is good and the overall sound is bright. I’m a single coil guy so I like bright guitars. The single coil sound is weak in terms of volume and is about half as loud as when the normal humbucker sound. I’m not impressed, but I got this guitar in hopes of clear, bright humbucker tone and that’s what it has and that’s what I’ll use it for.

 

[GGJaguar]

I think the guitar is worth the price of admission, even though it has/had issues that needed attention. Clearly, the QC in the Indonesian facility needs to step up a bit and Guild really ought to spend a few more pennies on better 3-way toggle switches. In summary, the neck is comfortable, it’s very light (6.9 lb/3.1 kg), and I like the bright reissue HB-1s. And, of course, having a Bigsby makes it more fun.

Sweetwater says these are limited to 25 of each color and the first batch of Pacific Blue and Sunburst have already sold out, but more are “on the way”. If it turns out to be popular, I wonder if they will offer a second round with two new colors of 25 each. We shall see.

 

[mushroom]

Great write up.
Thanks.

 

[GAD]

Fabulous insights!

 

[walrus]

Interesting info! Thanks!

walrus

 

[Boneman]

Pretty cool, nice review and details. Sounds like you need the trifecta and should nab a NS S100 for the hell of it

 

[SFIV1967]

Guild-labeled 18:1 Sta-Tite clones that may be made by Marvel.

Never seen those MLK tuners, need to investigate further who makes them.
Ralf

 

[GGJaguar]

Never seen those MLK tuners, need to investigate further who makes them.
Ralf

You're just the guy for the job!

 

[lungimsam]

Awesome review. Thanks!! I have a notice coming when more in stock.
1. Do strings hit back of bridge? I think a roller bridge would help that.
2. Does the Bigsby get in the way of grabbing the controls? Thanks!!

 

[GGJaguar]

Awesome review. Thanks!! I have a notice coming when more in stock.
1. Do strings hit back of bridge? I think a roller bridge would help that.
2. Does the Bigsby get in the way of grabbing the controls? Thanks!!

1. Yes
2. It depends on where the arm is while you're playing. For me, it gets in the way of the pickup selector and the volume control for the neck pickup.

 

[SFIV1967]

You're just the guy for the job!

Tough job... The Squier and Guild Marvel tuners are marked Marvel at least as you know... But MLK?

Ralf

 

[powerwagonjohn]

GG, you could try a Bricks Biggs Fix. They make them for USA and the import Bigsby. It worked wonders on my Gibson Johnny A. The nylon bushings instead of roller bearings doesn't help either. Nice write up.
Thanks John

https://bricksbiggsfix.com/​

 

[GGJaguar]

GG, you could try a Bricks Biggs Fix.

Oh, I didn't know about that! Thanks!

 

[GGJaguar]

Tough job...

Probably not any help, but it looks like this tuner is used on the Westerly series, too.

Westerly Collection 18:1 Open Gear Tuning Machine | Guild Guitars

Westerly Collection Open Gear Tuning Machine Item # 009-2468-000 – Treble Item # 009-2467-000 – Bass If you’re looking for a part to fit a guitar that was made prior to 2014, please click here.

shop.guildguitars.com

 

[lungimsam]

Looks like that bricksbiggsfix will fix it but you would think that Guild would have their Guildsby designed to work optimally on their guitar models.
PS-wonder why they didn’t do roller saddles like the originals had?

 

[GGJaguar]

PS-wonder why they didn’t do roller saddles like the originals had?

Dunno. I managed to dig up the roller bridge I had in my stash of parts. I had bought it to put on my NS Starfire V which has the same issues - steep break angle over the saddles, strings touched back of bridge, very stiff Bigsby action. I got rid of the SF V before I could put the bridge on. Anyway, it works better than the TOM. The roller saddles sit higher so the strings don't touch the bridge.

 

[GGJaguar]

The intonation is better with the roller bridge. The guitar is more resonant and a little louder acoustically, but there is no change in the amplified sound. The Bigsby action is only slightly better. My next step is to install a "soft touch" spring on the Bigsby to see if that helps. But now, the guitar is starting to cost a bit more than maybe its initial price is worth. The bridge is another $20, the spring is $10. The Briggsbigsfix is another $55 (not sure I'll do that). I'm doing my own nut filing and setup, but if someone had to take it to a tech, add another $100, I reckon. If I can't get the Bigsby to behave, it's going the way of the Starfire V. No sense in having a Bigsby I won't use.

 

[lungimsam]

Don't give up yet!
1. Do the rollers on the bridge roll freely? Sometimes you need to pop them out of the bridge and file on the bridge a little around where the drums rotate through so they can roll freely. It's in the second video below at the 12:10 mark.
2. I have seen people string them with the strings over the Bigsby bar for a straighter break angle, so that may work and no need to buy the 55$ bricksbiggsfix.
3. Also, this may be helpful.


For roller bridge filing demo go to 12:10 mark:

 

[GGJaguar]

Yup, checked for all that good stuff thanks. Luckily all the rollers are rolling and everything is aligned. I'm waiting on the soft spring so we'll see how much that improves the stiff action. The B-7 and Schaller roller bridge on my Westerly-made Starfire V have the smoothest action of any Bigsby-equipped guitar I've ever owned. Realistically, this guitar will never reach that level, but any improvement is good.