Matsumoku Monaco L78

Price

£1,999 GBP

A thoroughly disassembled black 1978 Aria ST-400 appeared one day in the workshop - I'd agreed to buy it off a chap in Brighton. To my amazement, L780016 featured a parrotbeak headstock - just like the Thor Sound range. I threw it to the forums - it seems there were a few leaving Matsumoku attached to Strat clones in December 1978. Most were old photos of long-dead instruments, so I guess this is a bit of a rarity and therefore I decided it would live on in style. This Monaco is one of a pair - it accompanies the SuperMonaco, and both are so much fun, and so adorable that I intend to make more of these offering different options for sounds. This Monaco features a single Haeussel Tapped 1956 P-90, wound specifically for this build, and a dummy coil hidden beneath the plate to offer various hum cancelling options for studio work. It is a brave move, or a decision made by someone with the budget for many guitars, to opt for a single pick-up guitar - Esquires are very rare compared to Teles. This single pick-up no nonsense guitar has 5 tone options governed by that 5-way switch. They are:

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1) tapped P-90 (6.5k) with 470k pot value - rude and aggressive sound. 2) tapped P-90 (6.5k) with 220k pot value - warm and pleasant sound 3) full winding P-90 (8.2k) in parallel with dummy coil with 470k pot value - unique and addictive sound 4) full winding P-90 (8.2k) with 470k pot value - the traditional Gibson sound 5) full winding P-90 (8.2k) in series with dummy coil with 550k pot value - another unique and useful sound There is a sound in there to suit most requirements of a player with a yellow guitar no-one else has ever seen before. The bridge is a black Gotoh GE101TS providing ample sustain and great stability. High quality Aria tuners are rebuilt and ready for many years of reliable service. Like most of our guitars, they are not supposed to look brand new - neither do we intend to add flaws, or relic anything. The finish on this guitar is supposed to reflect the life it has led, but add a radiance; some excitement and new character to enjoy.

Details

The Look

A radical new look and expression. Everyone needs at least one yellow guitar in their lives

Headstock

Rebuilt Aria Pro II (by Gotoh) black tuners on a black refinished headstock, but refinished over the scars.

Neck

New Dunlop 6100 frets on adjusted and resettled neck geometry.

Pick-ups

1 x Haeussel 1956 P-90 (tapped) custom wound for this guitar by one of the finest pick-up creators in the world. Thanks Harry. (There is one of his secret dummy coils in there too)