Welcome to UpFront Guitars and Music
Welcome to UpFront Guitars! It's April, and up here in the Northeast it looks as though the worst of winter is now behind us. While the dreaded spring cleanup is now looming, it will be nice to get outside more and enjoy the daylight savings time. Soon it will also be warm enough for some outdoor gigs and parties. So get your gear tuned up!
If you have not been to our site before, we specialize in a few selected brands of guitars, amplifiers and accessories that are almost all made in North America, and offer exceptional value for the gigging performer, serious hobbyist, or player looking to take their gear up a notch. We also play, test, and photograph every piece of gear you see on our site, and can tell you more than just what color it is and the price. Every word is written by us, and we don't cut and paste ad copy from our supplier's websites. It's a time consuming process, but it's our mission to make shopping for gear engaging and satisfying. The internet is here to stay, and many players are comfortable making a significant purchase on line....if they can get knowledgeable information about the product. We're not in the widget business, and buying a guitar is not like buying a microwave. We make each sale one at time, making sure that every customer gets the information they need to make an informed decision.
We sell guitars made by craftsmen, not accountants.
So What's New At UpFront Guitars?
Knagg's Guitars now at UpFront Guitars - We are happy to be Knagg's Guitar's newest dealer, and have a their Choptank and Kenai models in stock. If you are wondering about the odd names, all Knagg's guitars are Native American names for rivers in the Chesapeake Bay area. Knagg's produces exquisitely designed and finished guitars that reflect classic designs without looking derivative, retro, or dated. These are top shelf instruments that will offer a premium playing experience.
Simon & Patrick Acoustic Guitars by Godin - We've finally gotten into testing these guitars and getting to know them better, and we're impressed. We knew that Godin always packs in a lot of value for the money, and the Simon & Patrick guitars do not disappoint. Featuring exclusively solid Cedar or Spruce tops, a wide selection of body woods, and thin responsive finishes, the Simon and Patrick line offers great playability and exceptional value. Made in Canada, these guitars feature many of the construction features of the Godin Seagull line, but with more traditional styling cues. If you're like me, you're primarily an electric player but like to have a good quality acoustic for song writing, casual jamming, coffee house gigs, or to take on vacation. The Simon Patrick line is just that guitar, and provides the quality and sound you demand at a price you can easily justify. All models we carry include a very nice gig bag and on-board electronics.
Rivera - Rivera is going to be consolidating dealers, and unfortunately UpFront Guitars is not going to be one of the select few. For the best selection our advice is to check Sweetwater. But in the meantime we do have one remaining Clubster Royale with matching 1x12 cabinet. Give us a call and we'll talk.
G&L - Some interesting new models for 2013, and here's some of the new stuff we have on order:
G&L ASAT Solamente - "Solamente" means "only" in Spanish, and this guitar for lack of a better description is an ASAT Esquire with a single ASAT bridge pickup assembly. We've previously asked G&L to produce this particular model, so we'd like to take credit for the Solamente, but probably can't. Why get a single pickup guitar? Just ask Brad Paisley or go play a Les Paul Junior. Without the magnetic pull of the neck pickup, guitars like this have a unique ring and vibe that make them awesome rock guitars. We ordered ours with the MFD bridge pickup, but for traditionalists the ALNICO bridge pickup is also available as a no-cost option. We've got a butterscotch blonde model on order.
G&L Bluesboy P-90 - The good news is that G&L found a new place to use their wonderfully balanced and clear P-90. The bad news is that they have discontinued the ASAT Classic Custom, which we were rather fond of. The combination of their new P-90 and powerful ASAT Classic MFD bridge pickup promises to be a super combination for rock, country or blues. We've got a clear orange model in stock now, and a sonic blue version on order.
G&L Fallout - The Fallout combines the SC-2 body, sculpted pickguard, P-90 neck pickup and Seymour Duncan JB bridge pickup. While the Fallout is positioned as a punk/new wave sort of instrument, I can see it being perfectly suitable for lots of musical styles. Somewhat reminiscent of a Gibson Nighthawk, the Fallout combines two great sounds in a comfortable, lightweight body. Sunburst model is currently on order.
G&L ASAT Classic S ALNICO - G&L has branched out the ALNICO line to include the 3-pickup Classic S, and they've also made 100 Limited Edition pine models. We've got one that just arrived with a nice burst finish and tinted maple neck. Pine really makes a great tone wood, with a little more compression than alder, and smooth and warm dynamics. If you like the sound of traditional pickups but could use a touch less high end brittleness, check out a pine ASAT.
And don't forget the G&L Black Ice Collection - G&L had such a good response to their Special Collection "Nearly Naked" guitars, that they launched a black finished version that they call Black Ice. These models are slightly different than the "naked" guitars, and offer different pickup combinations and features. These are USA made G&L guitars that don't cut any corners, and go for about eleven hundred bucks. Legacy Special and ASAT Deluxe II now in stock, call for more info
And there are always more guitars in stock than we have photographed. If you do see what you are looking for, just call or check our "On Order/Coming Soon" page.
Godin - Godin has not been sitting on their hands either, and unleashed a crazy number of new models. Here is just a slice of some of the new models that we have in stock or will be carrying soon at UpFront Guitars:
Godin Koa - Koa is big this year at Godin, with limited edition Koa-topped A6 Ultra, and ACS Nylon guitars. Same great features and electronics, but even better looking. We are stocking both models on a regular basis.
Godin ACS Nylon Rosewood - Our best selling electro-acoustic nylon guitar, the ACS is also available with a high gloss rosewood top. In stock now.
Godin Montreal Premiere - Godin has discontinued the versatile but hefty Montreal and replaced it with the Montreal Premiere. The Premiere is a more conventional single cutaway model in the mode of a 335, with two humbuckers and graph-tech tuneomatic style bridge and tailpiece. With its cherry construction and sprue core, the new Premiere is lightweight, resonant and great for rock or jazz. We've gotten our hands on a couple of these and they are great! Nice clean, open tone but plenty of crunch when pushed and very feedback resistant.
Session Custom Triple Play - Another interesting permutation of the value-packed Session line, the Triple Play combines a single coil neck pickup, humbucker bridge pickup, HDR Active Revoicer and a Fishman TriplePlay™ wireless guitar controller and hexaphonic pickup. A wireless USB receiver is also included. That's a lot of functionality for a $995 MAP.
Godin Progression - OK, not a new model, but I just have to put in a plug for these guitars. While they are "that" familiar three pickup shape, the warm and fat GS-2 pickups, beautifully finished slim profile neck and active revoicer add up to a totally addictive and rockin' instrument. We've got two SF models in stock now, which makes them especially good values.
Emerson Custom Guitars - We're now stocked up with plenty of these great wiring upgrade kits. Emerson has also simplified their product line to make it less confusing and offer better value. The standard "Vintage" products will now all use a Russian K40 paper-in-oil capacitor. This is a nice smooth sounding filter and a cut above the previous MOD item. We'll also have a limited number of the NOS K42 Russian assemblies which will be exclusive to UpFront Guitars. The K42's are harder to find, so availability will vary. Lastly for those looking for authentic looking upgrades for their Gibson guitars we'll also have the Bumblebee assemblies for Les Paul and Les Paul Junior. Sonically, the K42's are just as good if not better, but if you want the factory look, spring for the Bumblebees.
Rio Grande Pickups - TONS of new stuff including the Dirty Harry line for Tele, Strat, and Humbucker. The Dirty Harry's are P-90 voiced pickups that drop into you favorite guitar with no modifications. In my estimation, the P-90 gets a bad wrap from some players, but a good P-90 has a combination of punch and clarity that makes it a superb pickup for those who want something more powerful than a traditional Fender style single coil, but less wooly and more articulate than a humbucker. We also have the Halfbreed and Muy Grande humbuckers back in stock. These are true splitting pickups with 12 individual ALNICO magnet pole pieces: Really two single coil pickups put together. These are the ultimate pickups for SSH Legacy/Strat players that want a real single coil on tap in the bridge position.
Campbell American - Just two guitars left, a vintage white WEW and the avant-garde Space Buscuit. See the review of the Space Biscuit in Premier Guitar and you'll see what I mean.
Campbell American Space Biscuit - I think a total of 6 or 7 were made before Dean scaled back, and we have one. Disregard the name, but the Space Biscuit is a good reason why custom guitars matter, and why Campbell leaving the "volume" market is a sad day. The retro-Japanese looks are extremely engaging in person, the ergonomics are great, and honestly it's got the best neck ever. Really. The Biscuit is one of the loudest unplugged guitars I have played, and the custom DiMarzio pickups can go from Jazz to Crunch and are remarkably sensitive. It is a fantastic instrument, and the player that can disregard conventional wisdom and conformity will be greatly rewarded.
Angry Angus - Just one guitar left, our pretty Nashville style three pickup Testy. This is it folks, the last one.
Andrews Amplification - Andrews is getting a lot of good press in both Guitar Player and Premier Guitar magazine. We have both his A-22 and Para-Dyne 20 combos in stock and both offer outstanding tone in convenient gigging sizes. The A-22 is a Vox/JTM voiced hybrid that has stunning bell-like cleans and the perfect stringy/bouncy lows that only EL-84 tubes can deliver. Not acres of clean headroom, but put a mic on it for gigs and you're golden. The Para-Dyne 20 provides a firmer low end, more American style cleans and a gain channel that can go from edge of breakup to full tilt JCM. Plenty of gigging volume: Just add guitar, 120V, and nothing else. We've had a customer trade his Dr. Z Remedy with 2x10 for a Para-Dyne 1x12, and make no mistake the Remedy is a great amplifier (I own one). He's raving about his new amp and just uses the two channels, no pedals. Andrews is the real deal my friends.
