NAMM 2023: Last year, Guild unveiled its all-new Surfliner electric guitar – an irresistible $449 HSS offset that was joined by a dual humbucker-equipped version earlier this year.
Now, the brand has elevated its Surfliner to luxurious new heights, unveiling quite easily the best-looking version of the So-Cal-inspired solidbody to date – the Surfliner Deluxe.
Deluxe by name and nature, the newest Surfliner really takes things up a notch, reverting back to the flagship’s HSS configuration but upgrading just about every aspect of the blueprint at the same time.
Notable upgrades can be found in both the build and hardware departments, with Guild swapping the string-through-body design in favor of a newly designed, none-more-offset Guild Floating Vibrato Tailpiece, which pays homage to golden-era offset bridge systems.
Featuring an embossed “G’ and an easily accessible tension screw for “ultimate control of bar tension”, the tailpiece promises to open the Surfliner platform “to new playing styles, capable of a broad range of vibrato effects, from subtle flutters to deep swell” with the help of locking tuners.
Another key difference between the Deluxe version and its siblings is the fretboard. While the first two models offered maple ‘boards with black dot inlays, this incarnation opts for a roasted maple neck and bound rosewood fingerboard, which is topped with block inlays. Notably, it’s the first Guild guitar to ever feature a roasted maple neck.
As an added bonus, the Surfliner Deluxe – which is available in Rose Quartz Metallic, Black Metallic and Evergreen Metallic – flaunts a matching headstock finish.
The aesthetic and functional tweaks have also been accompanied by some streamlining efforts in the control circuit. While the previous models boasted eight pickup combinations, the Deluxe models take a simpler sonic approach, pairing the DeArmond Aerosonic single-coils and Guild HB-2 humbucker with a standard five-way switch, and volume and tone controls.
Other notable features include a lightweight poplar body, a C-shape neck profile, a 25.5” scale length and 10” fingerboard radius.
Unsurprisingly, the revamped spec sheet means the Surfliner Deluxe is the priciest Surfliner of the lot, though it might not be as expensive as you think: it will be available for $699.
For more info, visit Guild.
