NS Series Posts?

Hey Everyone,

I have been on the forum for a few days reading everything I can and I noticed (rather quickly) that the majority of posts are geared towards vintage Guild guitars.
There is not much on the current generation of Guild guitars as compared to the generous info on vintage guitars. Why do you think that is?
What I have read here and on other sites, that people seem to love the NS series guitars but posts are lacking.
This is unlike other brands that have USA made and Asian made as the Asian made units are well spoken for in the respective forums.

Why do you think there aren't more posts and reviews of the NS series, is there something I am missing?
I sent a PM to Don asking if a new forum could be made under Guild Gear for the NS series.
It would be easier for people searching the brand to hone in on specifics of the NS series and talk about their gear in a respective forum.
I could be way out of line thinking this way since I am new here and there may already be a consensus that everyone follows so I apologize in advance as these are just questions and thoughts I have.

Mark

Most of us have been Guild fans for years if not decades ('79 for me), so the NS Guilds are the latest .01 of what Guild has offered over the years.

There are plenty of NS posts out there. You might have to dig for them, but they're there.

Also, the forum is not really set up that way you suggest. If it was then there would be; Hoboken, Westerly, Corona, New Hartford, Cordoba, Newark Street (though that's a series and not a location) and so-on. Though we do think of them that way, the users here don't generally go looking for NS info vs. Corona info, but rather look for information based on hollow bodies, solid bodies, acoustics, and so-on. Just as there is no GAD subforum for the import acoustics, I doubt there would be a NS section for the import electrics.

It's not my board, though, so what is likely to happen is not known to me.

[Using the forum search feature, here's what I find for Newark Street. I now discover search results are not persistent - this URL leads off to "nothing found". Type Newark Street into the search box to get the results.]

One of the joys in belonging to this community is serendipity (aka "veers") where discussions on one Guildian topic leads off into parts unknown. I think it is arranged just fine for that.

I think more specific forums would be really cool and I agree that the NS are the newbies but they are the current production and should enjoy their own forum. Although you can look at it that the vintage guitar would have their own forum without the mess of NS posts mucking it up:shocked: .As you said, posts are there but you have to dig, that was the main reason for my suggestion. But like you, I am not an owner of the forum, rather a user with suggestions that most other forums are using (my suggestions are born out of using them).
Maybe I will make a bigger donation in hopes of my suggestion to coming to fruition :highly_amused:

Once I get my NS and all is well (keeping fingers crossed) I will liven up the Review area!

There is a lot of NS discussion on LTG, but it tends to be separated by instrument type - electric solid, electric hollow and bass. I'm kind of all right with that because the vast majority of posts eventually get into a comparison between the vintage instruments that inspired the Newark Street line and the re-imagined Newark Street line. (I'm phrasing things like that because Guild was explicit in saying the Newark Street line was NOT a collection of reissues). Given the level of activity in Bass, for example, it is probably better if the NS posts ended up there than in a separate NS area. I also suspect that most people who post about hands on experience with the NS line also have hands on experience with vintage Guilds.

Given the tendency of the veer and the toleration thereof I think any attempt to place boundaries on thread content and enforce those by some kind of editing is doomed to failure and frustration. It is certainly not going to happen at the current staffing levels.

That said, there is an S100 sticky and most people tend to honor then intent and veer elsewhere. If there are NS models that are sufficiently popular I'm sure we could tolerate some sticky threads devoted to those models. If the stickies got a lot of activity then breaking them out into a newly created NS section might make sense. If the stickies are ignored then they just get unstuck.

If you so desire you could always take it open yourself to start a specific thread in the "user reviews" category.. Of course we can't guarantee there won't be a veer or two but welcome to the joy.

I do not mind how things are posted here and if a thread moves away from the original intent as that in my mind what forums are all about.
I am going to do a user review thread and welcome any and all input

Sitedrifter said:

I do not mind how things are posted here and if a thread moves away from the original intent as that in my mind what forums are all about.
I am going to do a user review thread and welcome any and all input

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Well, depending on which Moderator got out of bed cranky, posts here are expected to use the format already established and that (and FS/FT) are the most likely areas to get moderated for veers.

So if you want to give the world your opinion, based on personal ownership, of NS models feel free to use the format and post a review. But if you want to start a discussion I highly recommend that you do so in the right place in the Guild Gear section. None of this is written in green, so it is not a pronouncement from a Moderator, but I think the community support would be better if you stayed within the existing structures.

With or without specific sub forums the website is self explanatory and I get it.

There are a number of reviews by forum members of Newark Street Models. Most quite favorable. You can start with GAD's blog reviews of the X-175B, Bluesbird, S-100 and S-200 Thunderbirds here: http://www.gad.net/Blog/gads-guild-guitar-articles/

Walter Broes had an X-175 to which he added a Bigsby. http://letstalkguild.com/ltg/showthread.php?181016-Got-my-NS-X175!! Walter regularly plays a vintage X-175 so he has a great frame of reference.

Billy D. Light did a video comparing a new and vintage M-75 Aristocrat: Billy also regularly plays vintage guilds.

A member, Synchro, did a review over at Gretschtalk.com. http://www.gretsch-talk.com/threads/road-test-guild-starfire-iii.103544/ I have played this particular guitar as well and was very impressed.

Finally, go to Guild Electric Reviews and scroll through. You will find many of the Newark Street models listed.

That ought to keep you busy for awhile.

dbirchett said:

That ought to keep you busy for awhile.

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You sir are a real gentleman and a shining example of what this place is all about.

GAD said:

It's not my board, though, so what is likely to happen is not known to me.

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Only 3 things in life are certain:
Death, Taxes, and Veers.
:glee:

Sitedrifter said:

Maybe I will make a bigger donation in hopes of my suggestion to coming to fruition :highly_amused:

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Yep you're getting right up to speed.

Sitedrifter said:

There is not much on the current generation of Guild guitars as compared to the generous info on vintage guitars. Why do you think that is?

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Some "background":
This forum was actually founded as a spinoff from the Fender Forum, where the Guild brand had a subforum itself.
"IIRC", 2 of the members there, owner/founder DKL ("Don") and Hans Moust author of The Guild Guitar Book had some conversations about the feasibility of setting up a dedicated independent Guild forum and decided it was a good idea.
Both of those guys loved the vintage Guild archtops, so "read between those lines".
Also, Westerly had recently closed, Corona was experiencing difficulties and the forum was founded in a time of uncertainty about the brand's future.
Be aware that Corona only produced for about 2-1/2 years ('02 -late '04) and Tacoma for about the same, and that uncertainty is well-understood.
A lot of early discussion was about rescuing vintage instruments sighted in the internet and "getting them into the family".
And you can see a lot of that culture is still alive and well, here.
Then, as somebody else mentioned, there's a huge volume of "vintage instruments" out there compared to the quantity of instruments made since close of Westerly, so it seems just by the laws of probability the vast majority of threads would be about them.
And in all honesty the offshore made instruments have been the subject of debate as to their "legitimacy" as "real" Guilds.
I suspect at least a few folks have been put off if they joined up during that period when MIC instruments were seeing some outright rejection around here.
I think most of us have have now realized that they helped the brand survive during some very tough times.
Anyway, there's the "cultural background".
With your sense of humor you ought to fit right in.
:friendly_wink:

adorshki said:

You sir are a real gentleman and a shining example of what this place is all about.

Only 3 things in life are certain:
Death, Taxes, and Veers.
:glee:

Yep you're getting right up to speed.

Some "background":
This forum was actually founded as a spinoff from the Fender Forum, where the Guild brand had a subforum itself.
"IIRC", 2 of the members there, owner/founder DKL ("Don") and Hans Moust author of The Guild Guitar Book had some conversations about the feasibility of setting up a dedicated independent Guild forum and decided it was a good idea.
Both of those guys loved the vintage Guild archtops, so "read between those lines".
Also, Westerly had recently closed, Corona was experiencing difficulties and the forum was founded in a time of uncertainty about the brand's future.
Be aware that Corona only produced for about 2-1/2 years ('02 -late '04) and Tacoma for about the same, and that uncertainty is well-understood.
A lot of early discussion was about rescuing vintage instruments sighted in the internet and "getting them into the family".
And you can see a lot of that culture is still alive and well, here.
Then, as somebody else mentioned, there's a huge volume of "vintage instruments" out there compared to the quantity of instruments made since close of Westerly, so it seems just by the laws of probability the vast majority of threads would be about them.
And in all honesty the offshore made instruments have been the subject of debate as to their "legitimacy" as "real" Guilds.
I suspect at least a few folks have been put off if they joined up during that period when MIC instruments were seeing some outright rejection around here.
I think most of us have have now realized that they helped the brand survive during some very tough times.
Anyway, there's the "cultural background".
With your sense of humor you ought to fit right in.
:friendly_wink:

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Thanks for the history lesson of the forum.

As far as legitimacy goes, I understand the history of brands means alot but also understand things progress and if CMG does not decide to bring back American made electrics, I have no issue with that. I feel the quality and craftsmanship are not country dependent, rather company dependent. Have you seen Yamaha guitars which are mostly all made in China except the real high end acoustics? They are spot on laser accuracy quality all because Yamaha gives a crap. I could tell you stories about QC and Gibson that would make your hair spin. mind you, Gibson made good on the issues and I got a custom built for me limited edition because of the pure crap I was sold.

All in all, if the new guitar works out, I will be around for a long time so please, work with me people :cool-new:

Sitedrifter said:

Thanks for the history lesson of the forum.

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I thought you'd find the parallel amusing: a subforum became its own forum.
But also explains the "vintage-centric" quality.

Sitedrifter said:

As far as legitimacy goes, I understand the history of brands means a lot but also understand things progress and if CMG does not decide to bring back American made electrics, I have no issue with that. I feel the quality and craftsmanship are not country dependent, rather company dependent.

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Good point.
We've seen the comments that skilled builders are the single most important element, but it IS up to the company to ensure that skilled builders are employed and retained and even more important that QC levels are consistent and appropriate to the price point.
Much of the original resistance to the MIC product (the GAD series acoustics, introduced in '04) was based on that perceived "dilution" of the Guild name meaning "American made quality".
(And let's face it, that don't mean what it meant in 1995, anymore, anyway)
I'll be honest, when I first saw 'em in an '04 price list I thought "Oh boy, here we go, Fender's gonna turn Guild into just another badge-engineered import line..."
And in '04, China was NOT well-known for high-quality manufacturing.
They had about the same rep as Japanese toys from the early '60's.
It actually made me go out and buy my D40 "While I could still get an American-made Guild", (I already had 2 so I knew what to expect), and it was purely based on traditionalism.
I know it wasn't any influence from this place, I don't think this forum even existed yet.
Around the time I started lurking around here, new owners of GAD's started popping up.
It took some posts from those owners and members with insight about the business to let us know that they a represented a very good bang for the buck from a country with a long history of woodworking expertise.
What was interesting was that when new GAD owners joined and heard so much about the domestic instruments, many of 'em wound up trying 'em out and realizing there really were both tangible and intangible qualities in the domestic products which justified their higher price when new and for many vintage models as well..turns out those GADs were a pretty dependable gateway drug... :biggrin-new:
So I accepted the imports for what they were and I think most folks here do too, now.
By the time the Newark Streets rolled out I don't recall anybody rejecting 'em just because of the country of origin, which is Korea anyway, the discussions were all about quality.
But I think the electric players have been used to seeing import guitars at widely varying qualities of build for a lot longer than us acoustic guys.
So I apologize for throwing you a curve by mentioning sentiments about MIC product that didn't really seem to apply to the NS line.

Sitedrifter said:

All in all, if the new guitar works out, I will be around for a long time so please, work with me people :cool-new:

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I'm gonna hand ya back to dbirchett then.
:glee:

adorshki said:

By the time the Newark Streets rolled out I don't recall anybody rejecting 'em just because of the country of origin, which is Korea anyway, the discussions were all about quality.

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It took the MIC Guilds a while to be accepted at LTG but their position as a "gateway" to more expensive Guilds has been acknowledged. The Newark Street line did not suffer quite as much resistance since they are the only new Guild electrics available.

Tangentially, the LTG search does not do well with short strings such as "NS". If people want to increase the visibility of posts about the line, using "Newark Street" at least once should help. Google, restricted to one site also helps. The search below will search for "NS" on letstalkguild.com and return almost 1900 hits.

site:letstalkguild.com NS

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Real quick, I tuned it up, played it, used the thingamajig wha wha gizmo too, LOL

Stays in tune, looks stunning and I mean it is a real beauty. The fretboard is some of the darkest rosewood I have seen. The rosewood bridge was light so I oiled it up to darken it and it looks snazzy..

review and pictures to come.

Sitedrifter said:

Real quick, I tuned it up, played it, used the thingamajig wha wha gizmo too, LOL

Stays in tune, looks stunning and I mean it is a real beauty. The fretboard is some of the darkest rosewood I have seen. The rosewood bridge was light so I oiled it up to darken it and it looks snazzy..

review and pictures to come.

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I can smell your enthusiastic GAS from here.... as Al said, you'll fit right in! Cheers awaiting the pics!

bluesypicky said:

I can smell your enthusiastic GAS from here.... as Al said, you'll fit right in! Cheers awaiting the pics!

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You been smelling all sorts of weird stuff lately.
String threads, GAS...
Wonderin' if maybe the smell of burnt rubber from your 'Vette's tires has permanently damaged your nose.
For a French guy, that could be a fate worse than death!

What can I say, I'm very olfactive.... think I remember you mentioning your enjoyment about smelling through holes too? Guess that's your French connection right there?

adorshki said:

well..turns out those GADs were a pretty dependable gateway drug...

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I'll say.

You don't even have to actually buy one. All I did was check out an OM-140 and -- boom-- ended up with an F-30 standard.

bluesypicky said:

What can I say, I'm very olfactive....

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Me too! I actually once smelled some guys smoking a joint in a car a few lengths ahead of me on the freeway at about 40 miles an hour, we both had our windows open.

bluesypicky said:

... think I remember you mentioning your enjoyment about smelling through holes too? Guess that's your French connection right there?

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Oh yes, the notorious "Do You Smell Your Guitars?" thread.
Actually can't remember if I authored that one or just participated, but I wasn't interested in the soundholes, that was somebody else.
I was fascinated by how long the smell of fresh lacquer will last for guitars stored in cases, and the realization that it smells a lot like......salad dressing.....!
Vinaigrette, of course.
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