NGD: S-200 T-Bird Black

[Eric Vinc3nt]

Hey folks, Sweetwater posted my review of the S-200 Thunderbird reissue this morning:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/S200BK/reviews

-Eric

 

[Jeff Haddad]

Good review, how would you describe the neck shape/thickness?

 

[Eric Vinc3nt]

Good review, how would you describe the neck shape/thickness?

In a word: Slinky. The neck feels like it was dimensioned to comfortably accommodate a normal human hand. The bound rosewood fingerboard, with its shallow radius, has a piano-like breadth that I can dig into with nuance. Being a lifelong Strat devotee, that breadth took a little getting used to at first, but once I did, I was grateful for the challenge. Bear in mind, my main Strat's neck could be used as a baseball bat, or a police baton. The S-200's neck is more like a Carnegie Hall celloist's in comparison.

 

[matsickma]

Anyone know how I go about getting warranty work on a new Guild Thunderbird? Mine has a messed up Hagstrom vibrato. The piece of tubing the vibrato arm goes into is loose. It is very annoying and messes up the vibrato action. I was going to replace it with a vintage one when it dawned on me I bought this guitar new off of ebay at the standard street price, It has been so long since I bought a brand new guitar that I forgot I can have warranty service.

M

 

[AcornHouse]

Anyone know how I go about getting warranty work on a new Guild Thunderbird? Mine has a messed up Hagstrom vibrato. The piece of tubing the vibrato arm goes into is loose. It is very annoying and messes up the vibrato action. I was going to replace it with a vintage one when it dawned on me I bought this guitar new off of ebay at the standard street price, It has been so long since I bought a brand new guitar that I forgot I can have warranty service.

M

The screw fits into a little divot at the end of the trem arm. Once you hit in that, it will stay in position.

 

[Quantum Strummer]

The screw fits into a little divot at the end of the trem arm. Once you hit in that, it will stay in position.

Yep, this is my experience too. (I've removed my T-bird's vibrato arm and the tube…not my thing on this particular guitar.)

-Dave-

 

[Eric Vinc3nt]

Yep, this is my experience too. (I've removed my T-bird's vibrato arm and the tube…not my thing on this particular guitar.)

-Dave-

Me too, ditched the tremolo arm, not needed. The axe is too lovely as is.

Got a Strat nearby if I need the wobbly and wavy stuff, but isn't that so very late eighties hairspray band? Weedly-weedly-WEEE! Not my thing these days (if ever).

For me, the S-200 was a setting off and sailing away from that mentality.

Besides, hitting the Hagstrom just throws the thing so way out of tune. So you gotta sub-out locking tuners, and a locking tremolo, and next thing you know, you're in PRS-Land, AKA Muzak Hell... or you can just ditch the trem-arm, which is what me and Dave did, and go rock on.

YMMV

 

[AcornHouse]

My arm stays in the case as well; just not a whammy guy. I'm a bender, not a diver.

 

[Quantum Strummer]

I love some vibratos but only on certain guitars. A Jazzmaster's wiggler is part of its charm, and I use it for gentle dips in pitch now & again. Same with the Bigsby on my Gretsch. But most Bigsbys end up like the one in the photo below.

-Dave-

 

[DrumBob]

Well, I have my black S-200 reissue in hand, and I also had issues with the whammy bar. The screw was rubbing against the bottom plate and it wouldn't stay in tune, so I took it to my tech for a setup and he couldn't tame it either, so I had him screw the top plate down. The arm is now in the gig bag pocket for good, I suppose, but that's OK. Not a big deal.

Otherwise, I'm very happy with the guitar. It reminds me so much of the two original T-Birds I owned back in the 70's. It took a while to get used to the switching options, but now, it's easy. I just removed the informative plastic film off the pickguard, but waited until I was sure I knew what was what. When I had the two old T-Birds way back when, I never got the hang of the controls.

Let me say that Cordoba sent this guitar to me for my upcoming review in Vintage Guitar magazine. I hope you'll all look for it when it hits the stands. I believe it will appear in the January issue. I should also thank the kind folks at Cordoba for all their cooperation in making this happen and for allowing me to procure the guitar when I completed the review. I'm glad to be writing for VG again after a long dry spell.

 

[Quantum Strummer]

Let me say that Cordoba sent this guitar to me for my upcoming review in Vintage Guitar magazine.

Hey, that's cool! Been a regular VG reader for about as long as it's been around. Have acquired various guitars via its ads too, mostly pre-Web.

I haven't completely disabled my T-bird's Tremar…I can still push down on it with my palm (not that I do this much). With the .011 gauge strings I'm using the guitar is impressively stable.

I already had my Jaguar when I first played an original T-bird, so as soon as I fiddled with its controls a little I realized it was essentially a longer-scale Jag with humbuckers.

-Dave-

 

[Eric Vinc3nt]

It reminds me so much of the two original T-Birds I owned back in the 70's.

I'd never owned or even played a vintage original S-200, so it's really awesome to hear that from someone who did.

One of the things that fueled my purchase of the reissue, was how a lot of the "chatter" claimed it was a rather faithful replica.

As far as the Tremar, I'm reconsidering; thinking maybe I'll tighten the action, and use it for subtle rhythm tremolos, rather than dive-bombing with it.

Regardless, after owning my S-200 reissue for almost a month, I still think it's one of the coolest guitars I've ever played.

 

[DrumBob]

It is a cool guitar and I'm playing it more and more every night, but I don't think it'll ever replace my Les Pauls or the SF-IV. Still, it's a good addition to the collection, and I'm sure it will turn heads on gigs.