Guild Newark St. X-175 Manhattan – Straight From The Left Field

Body And Neck:
Electronics:
Hardware:
Sound:
Value:

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One of the most interesting surprises in the past few years came from the brand we least expected it to. Guild used to be an independent manufacturer until Fender stepped in and took over. Many loyal fans gave up, which is exactly what happened when Gretsch suffered the same fate. Guild stayed silent for a while, and then they came out of nowhere with a great lineup of semi-hollow guitars. One that is particularly worth mentioning is the Guild Newark St. X-175 Manhattan. At the moment, it is among the best semi-hollows, on the market, and here's why.

Body And Neck

This is one of the rare semi-hollows, especially in this price range, which features the full sized body. That detail alone sets the vibe for a great guitar. The tonewood of choice came down to a combination of laminated maple and laminated spruce for the top. Finish is a classic sunburst design, awhile the neck features a three-ply mahogany/maple/mahogany build. With a standard rosewood fretboard, this thing is pretty much period correct compared to similar guitars from the '50s.

Hardware

Here's where Guild really stepped up the game and reinforced the whole concept. Instead of taking the usual route with affordable Tune-o-Matic bridges, they've actually decided to go for a classic rosewood bridge with a custom tailpiece. On the other end, you will see a genuine bone nut combined with a set of rather decent tuning machines. With this type of hardware, not only do you get great performance in terms of intonation and tuning retention, but you also get more flavor and great sustain.

Electronics

Semi-hollow guitars rely heavily on the selection of pickups. Sure, their construction alone is half of the work, but without a good set of pickups, its complex build is pretty much dead in the water. Guild went with their own frequency tested single coils which go by the name of DE-1F. Now, these pups are pretty niche when it comes to the tone they offer, but in the context of vintage semi-hollows, they are on the money. Controls available include individual tone and volume knobs, as well as a pickup select switch. In other words, the usual.

Sound

One genre of music where semi-hollows are in high demand is jazz. They say that you can't get that genuine jazz tone without using one of these guitars. So, how does a relatively affordable model such as the X-175 Manhattan deal with jazz? Pretty well! Sure, it lacks some finesse those expensive Gretsch guitars do, but dollar for dollar, this guild is in the lead. You get a very clear, refined and overall sensitive tone that allows you to get those subtle details to the forefront.

Conclusion

When put against its immediate competition, this Guild is in the lead from the start. It's their attention to detail and determination to arm you with a good enough tone, that has made X-175 so popular these days. If you're looking to get into semi-hollows at a reasonable price, this is the way in.

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