OK, here we go. I`ve been wanting another S100 for a while now, but as Fearless mentioned earlier, I wasn't keen on buying a vintage one sight unseen and having to worry about any structural or nitro problems. So I decided to give the 2015 model a go now that they`ve fixed the pickup issues and they come in black. After being stuffed around by FedEx it finally arrived last Friday, one week late. Anyway, I`ve been bonding with it all weekend and I am very impressed. I replaced that ridiculous yellow switch tip with a chrome one and replaced the truss rod cover with an older style Guild one that was a perfect fit.
The neck is a bit wider (1 11/16″ (43 mm) than my 70`s Guilds but still comfortable. I asked the seller to loosen the strings before packing and when I tuned it up the action/set up was great out of the box. Medium to low action with no fret buzz. The machine heads work great and it stays in tune. No sharp fret edges and the nut is cut nice and smooth.
Like the early 70's S100's the neck angle is parallel to the body and the tailpiece is positioned further back.
Now onto the full size HB1 repros. They`ve done a great job with these, the sound is almost identical to the 70`s HB1`s but I think these repros have a little more mids and bass with a bit less high end sparkle, but not much. There is still that super clarity that you expect from HB1`s.
This thing sounds so good that I didn`t even miss the phase switch. I prefer a full tone anyway.
This is the first new guitar that I`ve owned and any reservations that I had about owning a Korean made guitar have been put to rest. The build and finish are exceptional, but most importantly, the sound and playability is up there with my other U.S made Guilds.
