NAMM 2013: Newark St. Collection Starfire Bass

SFIV1967

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Chazmo said:
A ghost label!!! How cool is that?!?!
Those were the little things where I had the feeling Mike Lewis had true fun doing this project! It's refreshing to see such little references to the Guild history in the 2013 line.
Ralf
 

Happy Face

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Jeeeez, it sure sounds like they did this right. Seriously!
 

chefothefuture1

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It is beautiful!
There is one thing I see that is "sort" of wrong and that's the tuners.
I can only figure that it had to do with cost, but Gotoh (I think) made correct
Kluson repros for Rickenbacker's 4001C64.
In fact, you can still get sets from Rickenbacker. (Yes I don't expect Guild to go to Rick for parts...)
It seems that if Gotoh has the dies to do it, they could easily make sets for the Guild. The only difference
is that the Rick tuners have slotted drilled posts, and the Guild used drilled posts.

Anyway, not such a big deal, but.... you know....
 

mgod

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I understand why its being done but its really kind of bullshit to perpetuate the Bi-Sonic name, which was always marketing bullshit from Hagstrom, even before Guild started using them.
 

dlenaghan

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mgod said:
I understand why its being done but its really kind of bullshit to perpetuate the Bi-Sonic name, which was always marketing bullshit from Hagstrom, even before Guild started using them.

What was the initial marketing issue with Hagstrom?

I definitely want one of these.. Bi-sonics seem a bit mellower than Darkstars. I'm curious where these new ones fall in the spectrum.

Funny to hear them say nitro isn't possible in Korea..
 

chefothefuture1

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Well, perpetuating the Bi-Sonic name is a bit of kitsch that many might find heartwarming.
It's at least a trade name from the original, unlike the Rickenbacker pups which are now named by
their nicknames. (Toaster and Horseshoe....though they don't have the lil ®...)
 

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Great review, lovely pics. Thanks for sharing! I'm thrilled to bits about this. No doubt the Newark St. series will help promote the Guild brand globally. Well deserved. A very exciting move and in my eyes the perfect way to celebrate the 60th anniversary. The details and level of workmanship show that people with heart and soul for everything Guild have been pulling (plucking?) the right strings.
 

fronobulax

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Re: Newark St. Collection Starfire Bass

bluesypicky said:
SFIV1967 said:
deleted, was supposed a PM...
To whom? And what was it saying?

:lol:

Great report and pics btw....

I think it was to a Moderator asking for a change in the name of the thread title so it would be easy to search for all of Ralf's NAMM reports. Smart character, that Ralf. Outstanding reports with many of the questions we would ask already answered! And thinking ahead to the day when someone will search for this.
 

mavuser

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Trigger pulled. My preferred local retailer told me if we want one for the collection we could have one, simple as that. 1099+tax. 20 percent deposit. August-Sept as it is backordered
 

fronobulax

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Congrats.

mavuser said:
August-Sept as it is backordered

Boy, do I want to take that as a good sign and an indication that alternative finishes are not far behind. :wink:
 

chazmo

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definitely, guys. that's awesome.

I will caution folks... Part of the problem getting the Guild ball rolling again once it was passed to New Hartford was *not* lack of demand. I have not heard anything regarding the Korean factories' abilities to build these Newark St. products, but I am crossing my fingers they can hit the ground running and meet demand. I'm pretty concerned given the breadth of products here.
 

fronobulax

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Chazmo said:
definitely, guys. that's awesome.

I will caution folks... Part of the problem getting the Guild ball rolling again once it was passed to New Hartford was *not* lack of demand. I have not heard anything regarding the Korean factories' abilities to build these Newark St. products, but I am crossing my fingers they can hit the ground running and meet demand. I'm pretty concerned given the breadth of products here.

Ralf has quoted Mike Lewis (do I recall the correct name?) in several threads as saying that the initial production run will be very limited in order make sure the factory can ramp up to the demand. Mike's other comments also suggest that the initial demand will determine "normal" production levels and if, or when, other finishes are introduced.

My dealer, who hadn't placed an order yet, was thinking March delivery. Ralf said April is more likely. There are several possibilities for the September date and "backordered". We know that only 40 or so dealers will get these initially, so maybe mavuser's dealer is not one of the 40. We know initial production is limited, so perhaps it has already sold out. On the negative side, perhaps, the delay is because things are (already) not going as smoothly as they could. But the way to get me to order one without hearing the pickup is to offer it in the right shade of blue so I'm trying to be optimistic. (I figure waiting for a blue one is easier than swapping a '67 cherry for a '67 burst or green or....)
 

mavuser

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I was told "due to high demand for the bass, August is realistic."
I'm thinkin it could show up sooner but who knows.

"Back ordered" is my words not my retailers...sorry for the confusion.
 

fronobulax

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mavuser said:
I was told "due to high demand for the bass, August is realistic."
I'm thinkin it could show up sooner but who knows.

"Back ordered" is my words not my retailers...sorry for the confusion.

Darn. So many good thing hung on that particular phrase.
 

mavuser

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They basically said its not a "limited edition" bass but they won't be flooding the market with them. And since NAMM there has been a ton of interest. He said if u want to order it today August is realistic. That was the bulk of the dialogue right there. Prior to all that he was on the phone for about 10 minutes getting the info from the supplier, I guess. He also said Guild is still a small company so inherently any Guild guitar is not necassarily available in any huge quantities. They are available/attainable (obviously) but just a smaller company so there is less of them. He said since NAMM people want the bass.

This was an easy call. I have all the confidence in Korea, if they can reverse engineer an Audi that they can reverse engineer a guitar pickup. It will not sound identical to a 60s one but that can be attributed to differences in the wood, the age of the wood, and other subtle differences including the "new stock" pickup. But it will still sound super nice. If they made it this far with Guild claiming it to be what it is, that is enough for me. The vintage SF basses sound fantastic now, but Jack's sounded pretty fantastic when it was new back in the 60's too!

It is also half the price or less of a vintage SF1 w/Bisonic. AND the only reissue/new version/dearmond that has the Bisonic and not the Humbucker. And none of those were made in any huge quantities either. Of course many of them have dark stars now but they didn't come that way.

To be honest this is the last thing I need right now. A gun wasn't at my head but my feeling was if I wait a month or 2 and ask, they could tell me "with luck by Christmas" so for the moment i can use the approx 6 months to stow some cash aside and pay for the remaining 80 percent of it upon arrival. The guys at the store know me and were happy to get me the first one passing thru their hands. Sounds like they are definitely available right now if u go ask for one. My guess is u won't see too many just sitting in the guitar store waiting to be played or purchased. At least not very soon.
 
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Just checked the videos on the new Guild electrics. They look great, and the Starfire bass sounds wonderful. I'm primarily a guitar player, but I've been known to double on bass occasionally, and when I do, I prefer a short scale, and I use a pick (no finger chops!). That Bi-Sonic in the bridge position seems to have punch and definition that most short-scale basses lack, without sounding clanky. I may have to get one of these when they come out.
Being from San Francisco, I saw Jefferson Airplane several times back in the day, and I always liked the sound that Jack Casady got out of his Guild. (Although, the first time I saw them, in December of '66, he was still playing his Fender Jazz Bass.) In '71, I was playing lead guitar in a band called the Sagebrush Brothers that opened for Hot Tuna at a club outside of Los Gatos, CA, called the Chateau Liberte', and I honestly can't remember what Casady used that night. He seems to get a great sound regardless of what he's playing.
 
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