Guild Starfire IV ST-12 vs Gretsch FSR 5422G-12

[GGJaguar]

Similar yet different. That cliché pretty much describes this comparison between my Starfire IV ST-12 (aka Starfire XII) and Gretsch FSR G5422G-12. They were both made in 2018 in the same Korean factory - Sound Professional Guitar Co, Ltd. BTW, this Gretsch was a short-lived factory special run, and differed from the regular G5422G-12 in cosmetics only. Other than the fingerboard inlays, natural finish and gold hardware, it’s the same as the regular model.

Special Note – I just learned that, as of 2022, the Gretsch G5422G-12 is being made in China! I have no idea if the Chinese-made Gretsch is of the same quality, uses the same parts (tuners are different for sure) or has the same sound and playability as my Korean version. So, keep in mind that my comparison is only for the Korean version.



The Gretsch has a fully hollow , double cutaway laminated maple body with a small sound post under the bridge (see pic below). It is mated to a maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. The tuners are same Hanchang diecast units found on the Guild and the 6-saddle bridge is also the same as on the Guild. The bridge, however, sits on a pinned rosewood base and the strings are anchored by a Gretsch “G” tailpiece. Scale length is 24 ¾” (same as the Guild). The black top FilterTron humbuckers have ceramic magnets and are fed through a 3-way selector with Master Volume, Master Tone, and Volume controls for each pickup.



The Guild has a double cutaway laminated sapele body with a mahogany neck and unstained ebony fingerboard. As you may recall from my NGD post for the Starfire XII, it does not have a full center block body. It is more like a hollow body guitar with big parallel braces connecting the top and back with a block under the bridge as shown below. The Guild has a more traditional control layout with 3-way selector and tone and volume controls for each LB-1 humbucker.



The necks are built differently, too. The maple neck on the Gretsch is made up of 3-pieces for the heel, main section and headstock using scarf joints. These are very easy to see in the photo. The Guild uses a traditional 3-piece mahogany-maple-mahogany laminate neck.

 

[GGJaguar]

Clearly the construction of the two guitars is quite different, but if you look at the neck specs, you can see that they are similar. In addition, the Gretsch frets are 0.106” (2.69mm) while the Guild frets are narrower at 0.092” (2.33mm). The Gretsch is also a little smaller and a bit lighter in weight. That alone would sway me to the Gretsch side, but both guitars are neck heavy (the Gretsch more so) so we’ll call it a tie.



You can see the difference in body thickness in this photo. The overall length of the two guitars is the same at 42 ½” (108cm).



All these small differences add up and make the Gretsch a bit easier to play (for me). I play more accurately on the Gretsch than on the Guild. I can’t pinpoint one particular thing that makes it easier to play so we’ll just go with “sum of the parts”. Sorry Guild, Gretsch got you on this one.

Thanks to its hollow construction, the Gretsch is easily twice as loud acoustically as the Guild. The Guild is dormouse quiet by comparison. No surprise there. I’m happy to report that both guitars sustain equally well. We’ll give this one to the Gretsch because I find it satisfying to play acoustically.

Plugged in is a different story. Both guitars were strung with Pyramid Gold flatwounds and played through a 1966 Deluxe Reverb and 2005 Magic Brit Mk I (Vox AC-15 clone). I mainly play on the bridge pickup with electric 12-strings and both the Guild and the Gretsch have excellent tone in that regard. The Gretsch is a little stronger in the midrange while the Guild has more top end. The Guild has more clarity on the neck pickup while the Gretsch neck pickup tone is quite warm. The Gretsch performed at its best through the Brit while the Guild really liked the Deluxe Reverb. So, the amplified sound is a bit of a wash, but having to make a choice I’d give electric tone to the Guild mainly because it has a superior sounding neck pickup.

One other nit-picky thing to mention is the pickguard (scratch plate) situation. The guards are both made of acrylic and have a cool retro vibe, but the guard on the Guild sits very high and my pick (plectrum) would occasionally strike the guard. The guard on the Gretsch sits very low and is out of the way. Most people would give a point to Gretsch, but I’m so used to hitting the pickguards with my pick on some of my other Guilds that I don’t really think about too much, except when I do.





It’s difficult to say which guitar is better, but the bottom line is that if you are looking for an electric 12, either of these guitars are good choices and you cannot go wrong with either. And if you want the Korean Gretsch, they were made from 2015 to 2021 so there should be ton of them on the used market. Otherwise just get the Guild and be happy.