Recommendations on a Hollowbody?

BillyCrash

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I'm thinking of adding a hollowbody to my Guild collection (so far I have only two, F412, D55). If you were to pick a single hollowbody for your inventory/collection, what would it be and why? In my brief search I see some nice X-170's out there. I don't know all the different models yet, or whether the Guild tremolo's are good or if it's better to go with a model that doesn't have the tremolo.

I'm open to different finishes, but lean strongly towards the blonde look with flame top.

Any thoughts/ideas/recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks!

BC

My current inventory:

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krysh

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there is such a wide variety in the hollowbody models that 1st you should think about what sound you're after. but a good starting point are the SF I-III and the X-170/175(T).
and there are the T-100 the CE-100, the X-150/160/180/300/350/400/500/550/700, the AA, the DE 400/500, T-400/500, the M-75,...;)
 

GAD

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X-700. No wait - Artist Award! Ooh - X-500 Paladin :) (Those are all really expensive).

What kind of music do you see playing on it? That will determine if you want the Guildsby or not. Do you like narrow or wide fretboards? Thin or thicker bodies? Humbuckers or P90s?

Starfire III is probably more suited to rock or rockabilly and is pure hollow-body. Usually comes with humbuckers, but is also (rarely) seen with P90s. Older models come with mini-hums.

Starfire II is the same as the III but with a harp tailpiece. I've never seen one with P90s, but that doesn't mean they're not out there.

X-170 is sort of a crossover rock/rockabilly/jazz sort of guitar and is hollow with a supporting post. They come with or without a Guildsby. Humbuckers.

X-175 is a sort of fancier X-170.

X-400 is another option, that comes with P90s (Franz, usually) or humbuckers.

Most of them have versions from different decades that are pretty different, too. I greatly prefer the necks from the mid-late '90s. Many prefer the smaller necks from the '60s and '70s. The pickups were better in the '60s and '70s.

Then there's the semi-hollow body Starfire 4,5 and 6. Check this link out for a start on Starfires: http://www.gad.net/Blog/2010/06/24/guild-electric-guitars/

Go buy Hans' book: http://www.amazon.com/Guild-Guitar-Book-Hans-Moust/dp/0634009664
 
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BillyCrash

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X-700. No wait - Artist Award! Ooh - X-500 Paladin :) (Those are all really expensive).

What kind of music do you see playing on it? That will determine if you want the Guildsby or not. Do you like narrow or wide fretboards? Thin or thicker bodies? Humbuckers or P90s?

Starfire III is probably more suited to rock or rockabilly and is pure hollow-body. Usually comes with humbuckers, but is also (rarely) seen with P90s. Older models come with mini-hums.

Starfire II is the same as the III but without a harp tailpiece. I've never seen one with P90s, but that doesn't mean they're not out there.

X-170 is sort of a crossover rock/rockabilly/jazz sort of guitar and is hollow with a supporting post. They come with or without a Guildsby. Humbuckers.

X-175 is a sort of fancier X-170.

X-400 is another option, that comes with P90s (Franz, usually) or humbuckers.

Most of them have versions from different decades that are pretty different, too. I greatly prefer the necks from the mid-late '90s. Many prefer the smaller necks from the '60s and '70s. The pickups were better in the '60s and '70s.

Then there's the semi-hollow body Starfire 4,5 and 6. Check this link out for a start on Starfires: http://www.gad.net/Blog/2010/06/24/guild-electric-guitars/

Go buy Hans' book: http://www.amazon.com/Guild-Guitar-Book-Hans-Moust/dp/0634009664

Thanks, lots of good info there for me to think about. I do like the idea of a crossover, I see playing this for a variety of music anywhere from jazz to rockabilly to Ted Nugent rock.
 

guildman63

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Two minor corrections to the great post by GAD:

The X-175 is the same as the X-500, but with chrome hardware and with less bling.

The SF-II is the same as the SF-III, but with a plain harp rather than a Bigsby.

Otherwise, good info.
 

parker_knoll

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don't forget that the mini-hums beat the big humbuckers any day of the week

Or you can get one of the cheap new Korean ones - the X175B looks cool, though personally i find thinlines a lot more comfortable.

Basically, there'll too many opinions out there depending on taste. What's cheap in your area? Get out there and play a few!
 

BillyCrash

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don't forget that the mini-hums beat the big humbuckers any day of the week

Or you can get one of the cheap new Korean ones - the X175B looks cool, though personally i find thinlines a lot more comfortable.

Basically, there'll too many opinions out there depending on taste. What's cheap in your area? Get out there and play a few!

Interesting, which one is the mini-hum, is that the plastic looking one vs the metal looking one? I saw this one on Reverb which caught my eye, is this the one with the not-so-good humbuckers? https://reverb.com/item/760415-guild-x-170-1994-natural-blonde
 

guildman63

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Very nice, and that has the full HB-1's. Mini hums are pre 1970 and metal. Plastic looking pups weren't used on the X-170.

Also consider the aristocrat. No F holes, but fully hollow and very versatile.
 

BillyCrash

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AcornHouse

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guildman63

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Those are the Franz replicas; single coil, P90-ish (not quite, they are their own voice).
The mini-humbuckers look like the regular humbuckers, just thinner.

All 3 are wonderful pickups with their own sound.


+1...purely preference. I love the Franz pups, but traded an X-500 with HB-1's to AcornHouse that has a fantastic tone as well.
 

txbumper57

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There is also a X160 Rockabilly model that has Dearmond 2000 single coils as opposed to the Franz, Minihums, or Humbuckers. I own one and love it.
 

GAD

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Thanks, lots of good info there for me to think about. I do like the idea of a crossover, I see playing this for a variety of music anywhere from jazz to rockabilly to Ted Nugent rock.

First question you should answer: Do you want a Guildsby?

Second: Do you require or want full-hollow, or is a semi-hollow also in the running? Semis are heavier, sustain a bit differently, and feedback far less than hollowbodies if you're using them on a loud stage. Full-hollow bodies are livelier IMO, have a more "open" sound, and are much lighter, but they can really howl on stage if you're not used to dealing with that.

For versatility, it's hard to beat a Starfire 4. If you need the Guildsby, you can always get a Starfire V.

I agree, though - a late 90s Starfire of any flavor will be a fantastic instrument. One of my "never sell" guitars is a Starfire 4.
 

parker_knoll

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Interesting, which one is the mini-hum, is that the plastic looking one vs the metal looking one? I saw this one on Reverb which caught my eye, is this the one with the not-so-good humbuckers? https://reverb.com/item/760415-guild-x-170-1994-natural-blonde

that is purely my opinion and i was being a bit tongue in cheek. honestly, everyone is going to have a different opinion. Is a Les Paul humbucker bad and a Strat single coil good? Well, actually, yes, so that's a bad example. BUT lots of people like Les Paul humbuckers so really you need to try some stuff and use your ears.

Remember if you order online you're allowed to return the guitar within a specified period of time, though it will cost you the return postage. you could regard that as a hire fee.
 

BillyCrash

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I've been doing some additional research on hollowbodies out there, and not to be a blasphemer, but how would you guys say the Guilds measure up to Gretsch or to say something like a Gibson Byrdland? I know Guild is top-notch quality, I've seen this first-hand in my purchases and in my friend's Guild's, but are they all about the same in that regard? What about something like pickups, are they all similar, do the Byrdlands have humbuckers that are more for distortion/rock and the Guild/Gretsch are more for jazz/rockabilly?

Did some searching on the forum here, but haven't found a lot yet in terms of comparisons.
 
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