Guild Bluesbird AAA

1998 guild bluesbird. usa westerly rhode island. 22 frets. solid top chambered out body. 3-way pickup selector. 2 tone knobs 2 volume knobs. 2 seymour duncan pickups. passive electronics. mahogany body and neck rosewood fretboard. flame top. single cut. tune o matic bridge. grover tuners. fat rosewood neck. case.

the bluesbird is perfect for everything i do. I play a lot of different styles like jazz, blues, rock and punk rock. the bird is perfect for all styles. i use it with a fender pro reverb. noise is not too bad but on distortion it is a little bit noisy. it can sound like anything you want it too. bright twangy rich full it is awesome. great variety. i love everything about it.

the guitar was setup great at the factory but the action was a little bit high for me. pickups were right on. everything was perefectly bookmatched and routed. no flaws.

it will take almost anything you canb throw at it. hardware is sturdy and should as long as you own it. with lots of playing you might take off a little finish but it would take a lot of playin. yes the strapbuttons are perfect. definetly dependable. for sure. it hasnt failed me yet. the only thing you will ever have to worry about is the ocasional briken string.

I had a problem with a guild acoustic from them they were very concerned and took care of it right away under the warranty at the custom shop asap. lifetime warranty.

2002 All American Craftmanship. Made in California just after the Fender aquisition. Large single cut-away chambered mohogany body with a nice book matched solid flame maple top. Standard "Les Paul" control features with Seymore Duncan pups. Check prior reviews for specifics. Quality parts on this beauty and a nice hard shell case to boot.

I play Metal and rock. I was looking for a bargin on a Les Paul and found this beauty. I was disappointed with the lack of punch initailly. However, this guitar had great tone and sustain. I changed the pups out with Dimarzio DP-100s (super Ds). Now the punch is a death blow. This ax now screams out of my amp. I play through a Mesa Recto stack and it loves the guitar. The hot pickups articulate as well as the standard pups but are much louder and the distortion can get out of control. I use a Boss noise gate to control it. No need for any type of gain processor in this setup.

I love the ax for it's incredible looks and the fact that it freaks all of my other guitar playing friends out when they play it. IT GETS UP IN YOUR FACE! I would love to try this guitar out on a small tube amp. It would drive the hell out of the tubes and sound incredible.

Nice set up from the factory. Changed the pups after a week. The Cherry Sunburst is incredible. I did have a strap peg pop out during a show. I fixed it and now its solid. I also ended up having to replace the pickup selector. I would lose signal when switching PU from time to time. It should have been solid from the factory but, I did make some personal modifications.

This ax is solid as a rock now. However, I wonder about quality after the Fender buy out. This was a very early production (serial number reads 49) of the actual Guild BB. I hope that Fender will work out the little things after the move from Rhode Island to California.

No dealings with CS. I take pride in the fact that I customize all of my guitars personally.

Great guitar with high end features and an incredible sound. I've been playing for 15 years. This is my number one ax. I play a Fender Strat for my clean stuff. The Guild BB is my nasty monster now. I love it.

2000 Caved Flamed Maple in a dark cherry finish top with a translucent red chambered mahogany body and mahogany neck. Grover tuners with neck and top of body cream binding.

24 3/4" scale length and two Seymour Duncan SH-1 (59) Humbuckers that are controlled with their own seperate volume and tone knobs. The neck is similar to the '59 rounded necks Gibson offers on some of their les paul models and their ES-135/7 series guitars which means this neck is round and beefy, but not with the boat rudder of the vintage V necks. It's still C shaped so your hand won't fatigue like it would on a V style neck.

This bird came with a nice hard case. The finish is most likely a polyurethane or poly blend of some sort as nitrocellulose is becoming more and more rare due to higher EPA restrictions in most states. Sure Gibson claims nitrocellulose is better, but for one thing, it cracks and wears faster then polys, and I have plenty of guitars with a poly finish and I have some Gibson's with their nitrocellulose and I am selling the Gibson as I don't want to part with the others.....That ought to tell you just how great the nitrocellulose finish is. It won't turn a mediocre guitar into a great one. On the other hand, a nice and finely balanced poly finish on a great instrument will protect it and add to the cosmetics without damping the tone.

I guess if I were to rate features on the basis of how much crap is on the guitar, this section would score medium to low. However, I like to grade features from a different angle. It doesn't have to have all that bullshit like active switches, coil taps, locking tuners and a car wash all rolled into one guitar. It doesn't have to sound like 5 different guitars. In fact, I find all that stuff really annoying. Now you you have active/passive and piezo/fishman acoustic/smoustic and the blasphemy of all things A MODELING GUITAR! Good grief man....give it up!

Sorry for the rant, but sometimes technology is nothing more than a fart that starts a fad only to be realized by most later down the road where they turn back to the real stuff. Feature wise, I think the appointments on the Bluesbird compliment this instrument nicely and I wouldn't want anything more on it that it already has. Very nice.

One word can describe how I think this guitar sounds....Great! I sold a BB Goldtop last year and bought a Robin Avalon. The Robin is a great guitar, but there was absolutely nothing wrong with the Guild I had. In fact, I was in love with the guitar. I thought I needed more punch only a solid body guitar could give me. How wrong and how dumb I was. The Guild gives you plenty of punch and warmth without being muddy or harsh. On top of that it's a real pleasure to play. the Gibson was dull and made weird buzzing noises when I played it, while the Robin did sound great, but had an imposing neck joint that reminded you when you got past the 12th fret. Also, it's great to collect and have guitars. You really can never have too many...But, I notice I pick up a few and don't really play the rest. So, why not get rid of two and have one that does both? And that's what I did.

I can say I have never played a more smooth sounding humbucker guitar. And I've had a les paul and a 335, a Paul Reed Smith CE22, along with the Robin and the 135 and they've all left me with the feeling something was lacking. I've never felt that with the Bluesbird. The other guitars did offer me a great sound on one or two settings, but not on all settings like the blues bird.

This is trully an exceptional sounding guitar and will work with any amp you plug it into. I've also noticed you don't have to be as pickey with these guitars as you do on others meaning the consistency and quality control seems to be good enough to know you're going to get a great sound no matter what or whose bluesbird you pick up and play.

As I said before, consistency seems to be the name of the game for this guitar and I found the action, playability and finish to be top notch.

Consistency from the factory generally means reliability and durability. Take a look around these reviews. And not just the AAA flamed reviews either. Look at the standard and the goldtop and find a guy or gal that was pissed at the quality of their guitar. You just don't see it like you would on the average guitar review where at least a few people are unhappy with something breaking or going out after a short period.

Quality all around safe and sound......Pun intended.

I know I'm popping out 10's like flies seem to pop out of poop, but I've given some less than stellar reviews before when I thought certain aspects of a product warranted a lower score. So, for you guys that get mad at people who give out 10's you can rest easy. I am not giving a score here because I've never had to call them or email them for anything. Which should tell the rest of the world that since the guitar was built right in the first place, there is little need to contact the manufacturer.

20 years of playing and I've been through a lot of gear and still have quite a bit. I've consolidated my stash (if you will) of just having lots of guitars for bragging purposes to keeping the guitar that inspire me to play while still providing a different sound. Currenty I have an Am. Standard Strat, an Ernie Ball Music Man Axis Super Sport (fantastic guitar) a Paul Reed Smith Custom22 Soapbar and now the Bluesbird. I've recently sold my G&L ASAT Classic, the Robin Avalon and the ES-135. If I had a million bucks, I'd have kept the guitars I sold because they were great guitars. But.......The guitars you see above are the guitars that make me smile when I play....I smile because they feel damn good in my hands and they make great tones regardless of what (or if) they are plugged into. They all have unique characteristics but also are very versatile and I could easily take one of them out with me and not need another guitar.

I suppose the only thing I wish it had was a different color.....Not really, but I have 3 other red guitars and a change of pace would not have hurt my feelings. But seriously, I am very satisfied with the appointments this guitar came with.

Lost or stolen, I'd try and get another one for sure and the only other guitar I thought about getting was another 335 or Les Paul. Two big reasons I stuck with the Bluesbird....1.) I like the bluesbird better than either of the two mentioned. 2.) The above two mentioned are way too expensive and overpriced not to mention consistency with Gibson is like Russian Roulette. I've had several gibsons and the 335 was the only one that I didn't have some sort of problem with. I guess I should make a third point which is: 3.) The bluesbird can do both of the above mentioned without a hickup at about half the price of either one of the other guitars, so like an ealier reviewer said...Save your money and get a good amp head or combo...It would be totally worth it to go that route and you'd be getting as good, if not, a much better guitar.

Am I biased? Yes. Why? I don't work for Fender or Guild, but I like the guitars and their pricing strategies a lot better than Gibsons. Also, unlike Gibson, who buys a company and turns it to shit, Fender can acquire another corporation and keep that companies logo on the headstock while ensuring that product is probably going to be of consistent quality. And if anything, a better product thanks to great quality control.

So, if you're in the market for a versatile double humbucking guitar that looks great, but really uses its playability and tone as its selling point, then you should strongly consider a Blues Bird, because the Eagle Flies high at Guild.

2003 Bluesbird AAA Cherry Sunburst Finish. Gorgeous quilted maple top (identical to 2002's Fender Frontline cover), Seymore Duncan SH-1 Humbuckers... great grover tuners. Feels much like a Les Paul but with far more substance due to the larger body. The Bluesbird's chunky neck feels wonderful, and the action right from the factory needed no adjustments, aggressively low and playable.

I play mainly blues, blues rock, some country-esque rockabilly etc. I'm running the Bluesbird through two different rigs; a yamaha DG-80 112 with yamaha s112 extention speaker cabinet and a Fender the Twin (Evil) running through a Boss ME-50 Guitar Stompbox. This guitar sounds absolutely incredible. The chambered body gives this axe a voice of its own, sustains are huge and rhythmic tones are lovely. The Duncan SH-1 humbuckers are quiet, confident, and well-suited to this instrument. I've found that this guitar is equally at home with many a musical style and sound, from jazzier neck pickup business to searing rock on the bridge bucker, or from Peter Green-esqe leads on the combination setting to Ry Cooder-esque tremelo riffing on any setting. The guitar responds well to changes in amp and effects sounds, and easily holds its own against my strat and tele. In fact, I often prefer the sultry tones of the bluesbird- its quite versatile.

Good lord, this guitar makes my others look bad for playability. The action from the factory was really low, and I'm considering raising it slightly so that when I switch to the strat or tele the difference isn't so noticeable. The action is so fast, and the shape of the bluesbird neck allows for wonderful flying up and down the board... Pick-ups were perfectly adjusted from the factory. I was extremely irritated however with the faulty pick-up selector switch on my bluesbird... the metal piece that completes the contact circuit broke right off not twenty minutes out of the case (the same thing happenned on another bluesbird i tried in the store, and I'm not abusive with the switch at all). I immediately installed a Gibson pickup selector and it works perfectly. Plus, I thought the original chrome selector switch looked a bit inappropriate so the new cream colour of the gibson switch is a visual improvement (especially against the cream binding and pickup mounting rings) Plus, the hardshell case that accompanied the guitar had a long cut along the edge of the covering.... so for that and the selector switch difficulties it gets a slightly lower rating.... additionally, the front strap button was loose and the thread stripped, so that needed some wood filler etc.... after these issues it has been a dream.... the finish is truly the most spectacular I've seen, and I couldn't be more pleased... perfectly bookmatched quilt/flame.....awesome

There isn't much that can fail on this guitar, and after making the aforementioned selector switch modification I'm sure the reliability will be flawless.

I've been playing for tweleve years, and mainly use a strat deluxe plus and a tele deluxe... (both mid-nineties era) If It were stolen or lost I would without question replace it. The craftsmanship in my opinion is superior to that of your average les paul, and for half the price you have a more versatile, beautiful guitar. The finish continues to amaze... kudos guild, on a job well done.

this is my baby. i seriously would have a hard time choosing between this and a girlfriend. no lie...i actually have the serial number tattooed on my ankle.tahts how much i love it. its a '73 new-old-stock i picked up for $580.00 in springfield, il. the funny part is the tag said "les paul copy". 22 frets. les paul style selector. not sure on the pick-ups...definately pre-seymour duncan...guild or maybe dearmond. its got two humbuckers, but also a mid-lift type switch to sound like a les paul custom triple-humbucker-style configuration. all maple. tobacco to purplish flame.

fits any style. ive used it for punk,blues,country,hardcore,metal, jazz, classical, raggae, anything really. i use a red bear mk60 with a boss super-overdrive in the punk/blues hybrid im doing now. as far as sound goes it has its own tones. it sounds like the best les paul you ever played(maybe a '59). the only thing i dont like about it is the signal is so hot that it overloaded a boss ds-2 that i used to have and i think it ruined my metal-zone pedal. it could mean that these pick-ps are microphonic.

it came with an adjustomatic bridge, so i can keep the action minimal.
the pickups are "lab-monkey" simple to adjust with the action.the finish is gorgeous. BUT...im not a fan of glue-on necks.

i have played over 100 shows, 500 or so practices, and an estimated 4-hours-a-day-outside-band-practice practice without any sign of a problem. ive only brought other guitars to shows if i needed a different tuning for a certain number. the strap pegs it came with are not locking. i put a locking one on the neck, but i couldn't get the rivet-style peg from the tail...ever!in fact i was trying to unscrew it with channel locks when they slipped and i pinched the palm of my hand so hard that blood squirted out!

guild has been owned by fender for a while now, and quite frankly the stuff from guild now-a-days is pitiful compared to the vintage. i havent ever tried to talk to the company.

this guitar buries everything else...hands down. if you can get your hands on an early seventies bluesbird like this...for god's/devil's/krishna's/hubbard's sake, man, do it!

Of course, made in "God Bless the USA!" 22 fret, AAA gorgeous Amber top with Grover tuners. You know the deal. www.guildguitars.com. I've owned many guitars in the past from Gretsches to Gibsons but nothing compares to this piece of artwork. As far as the looks, I'd be offended if they told me this guitar looked like an LP. In my opinion, LP's got a long ways to go to match up to a Bluesbird. Killer looks and light weight so you don't have to take 15 minute breaks between sets as with your LP. Got a nice hardshell case with it.

I'm almost debating getting rid of my Strat to use this full time. I play anything from blues to modern rock so demand for a unique sound is high, and this guitar provides just that. Seymour Duncan SH-1's provide you with a mile long schreeeeeches, or if you'd prefer, full, clean, and warm non-distorted tones it delivers just that and more. You won't miss your heavy wood sound of an LP with this guitar, because it can do much more than that!

When I first got this guitar, the action was a bit high, due to non-setup by the previous owner. Now it's got better action than my '57. Cosmetics on it are just flawless. The neck is a big bulky for my taste, but does not affect my playing.

If there is one suggestion I can make with this guitar, it needs a second straplock on the tail. It only comes with one straplock so you can't really go crazy with your over the head playing or guitar flinging tricks. If I wasn't so damn rough on the strings (my 10's break all the time), I'd not need a second guiar on stage.

Put a straplock on it and call it a 10!

I've only owned this guitar for few weeks. No CS yet...

Keep your 1000 extra bucks and buy yourself a nice amp head. You DON'T need an LP. I am so happy I sold my Gibson to get this one. You don't need a Gibson to make history. You need this guitar to make yourself and your audience happy.

Amber Maple Bluesbird, bought new October 2001. Les Paul type configuration, Duncans, Grovers, Gotoh bridge, etc. Quilted maple top looks like a million dollars. Honduran Mahogany back and neck. Superb action straight from factory, ultra low strings, no fret buzz, still very good resonance.

Normally play strat, or archtop. Fell in love with look and playability of this guitar before plugging it in, even thought I did not think it would suit my playing style. Very surprised with flexibility of sound. Has Les Paul sustain, but light bell like, lively tone. Clean sound great for jazz, punchy Duncan SH 1's wail with the volume cranked. Cannot fault the sound, it begs to be played unplugged, or cranked.

Setup as close to perfection as factory can achieve. No flaws whatsoever.

Problem with selector switch, replaced it and don't anticipate any other issues. Very sturdy.

No idea

Been playing since just after Hendrix died. Long time strat guy, but have always liked Guild archtops, thought their solids were great guitars, but a bit ugly till I saw this one. Absolutely superb looking/sounding/playing guitar for $1500. I could not resist clearance deal of $799. I have more than 20 guitars in my collection. This one stands up against any other I own, or have ever played.

2001 Guild Bluesbird AAA, Semi-Hollow Body, Maple top, HH config, Amber finish (sooooo pretty), blah blah blah, pretty much what you get when you buy a guitar. It's nice and light too (comparitively of course to standard les pauls and such, thank you semi-hollow)

Clean sound is just wonderful. Gets a wonderful jazz-like tone when played, and if you pick harder you can get a nice blues sound. I'm playing through a DBX 486 Tube Preamp into a Marshall AVT150H and Slant Cab. The sound distorted is fantastic, pretty much my dream guitar in every sense of the word dream. I was thinking of changing the pickups to Classic 57z, but decided no need in getting something better than perfect for me.

Action was set a little high when I got it, but I got it set up and it plays like a dream.

I treat this guitar like a baby essentially, so I don't pull any hendrix stops and such. I don't play with a backup, mainly because I sold them to get this, although I do use a Martin D15 along side this to gig.

Haven't dealt with them yet, hopefully won't have to.

I honestly haven't been playing guitar that long, I just decided to pick up and play one day to learn another instrument to contribute to my composing. Then I started up my band platypi (http://www.mp3.com/platypi) and I started writting just bout everynight and practicing. I also play harmonica, piano, organ, and low whistle. The majority of my equipment is for harmonica strangely enough, but considering its mostly guitar effects, playing the guitar comes in handy. I shudder at the thought of the lil guy being stolen, I think I would go into solitude for around a year or so. No question would I buy this guitar again, its exactly what I was looking for. My band plays Dave Matthews styles with Blues Traveler mix, so its kinda funky, sometimes laid back, and sometimes pretty hard (When I want to kick in A Perfect Circle, Tool, Sevendust stylez), so the guitar does it all. But of course, don't take my word for it, try the sucker out. It rocks no doubt. Peace.

My Bluesbird is kind of a unique beast. Although I bought it new, it has some features I've never seen on another Bluesbird and that aren't listed on the Guild web site. It is an AAA model, but instead of a flame top it has a quilted top. In addition, it has a clear finish which is no longer an option. It is beautiful! Has two Seymour Duncan humbuckers, a cream binding on the body and neck, MOP block inlays, chrome hardware, and a volume and tone for each pickup. It has a mahogany body and mahogany set neck. The body is hollowed out. Everything you need, nothing you don't.

I play blues, jazz, all types of rock, progressive metal......basically whatever strikes my fancy at the moment. I use the BB for all of them, into any of a number of tube amps, but typically use a Carvin Legacy or Bel Air.

The clean sound of the BB is awesome....it's full and rich-sounding, and the hollow body lends a nice woody tone. It isn't jangly and sparkly like my Strat, which makes it my first choice for jazz and other technical chording. It sounds tonally much richer and feels livelier than a Les Paul for clean licks and has a certain something you can't put a finger on. It just sounds great.

Played through some pushed tubes, the BB really comes to life. It's fat and thick but still detailed and articulate. You can still hear the distinct tone from the hollowed out body, and she sings and cries without ever getting muddy. The BB feels alive in your hands and ready to do your bidding with sweet singing emotion. If you hold a note with moderately high gain, the note eventually turns into a beautiful 5th harmonic and sustains forever. It doesn't get any better than this.

The only problem with the sound of the BB is that every time I pick up a different guitar I'm disappointed.

The factory setup of the guitar was damn near perfect, and completely perfect after 10 minutes of setup. The quilted top is beautiful, the mahogany on the back and neck is straight-grained and evenly colored. The finish is flawless, even around the neck joint and other tight places. Inlays are fitted perfectly with no filler and the rosewood board is quality. The only slight discrepancy was in the control cavity size versus the cover plate size, and that was TINY and to be expected with hand-made guitars. The whole guitar feels like one piece of wood. Gibsons can't even come close until you are in the $3500+ range, and even then it's inconsistent.

The hardware is all top-notch stuff, except for the cheesy tone and volume knobs (a tiny nitpick). The finish does not appear to be polyurethane like the newer BBs, I believe mine is nitrocellulose lacquer that will get better with age. This guitar will be around long after I'm dead and gone, and I would not hestitate to count on this guitar 100%. But alas, I never gig without a backup.

No idea, never dealt with them.....but I DON'T like the fact that since the Fender acquisition you can't contact them from thier web site, and no phone number is listed. The documentation included with the guitar has this information, though.

I've been playing almost 9 years and have loads of gear. This is my first Guild, and I love it. If it were stolen I would mourn for months since I could never get an identical one. I can't think of a single thing to hate about this guitar, it is one of the best guitars I have ever played

I can't think of a single reason to spend my dough on Gibson products when I can get a superior guitar for 1/3 of the price. If word gets out, these BBs might all get snapped up!! If you're even remotely considering one.....GO BUY IT. You will not be disappointed.

AAA Cherry Sunburst Guild Bluesbird made in Westerly, RI in the year 2000. Hollow chambered body, flame maple top, HUGE thick neck with rosewood board and block MOP inlays. Two Duncan HB's. Everything you want in set neck guitar.

First off, the hollow chambers make this guitar very acoustically alive--it's quite a pleasure to play by itself when the neighbors wouldn't take kindly to plugging it in.

The setup is Bluesbird into several effects (Soulbender, Budda Wah, Line 6 MM4, Ibanez AD-9) and then a Hot Rod Deluxe. Clean, it sounds very full, but a bit brittle when compared to a strat. But I don't think people buy these kind of guitars to play clean. This thing roars with the HRD's drive channel and has tremendous sustain. With the Soulbender, it's very easy to get a lot of Cream/Zeppelin tones.

Since this guitar draws a lot of Les Paul comparisons, I'll ad my $.02: It's a bit brigther and has less sustain than a LP. But this thing really is its own instrument.

Arrived with a very good appearance and setup. I've since tweaked the setup to get the action very, very low. Only flaw was one of the Guild stickers fell off the knob the day I got it. A little glue fixed that problem.

Only owned it 2.5 months. Appears to be extremely durable.

Never dealt with FMIC/Guild

I was looking for a set-neck, two HB guitar to compliment my American series strat, and I found a keeper in the Bluesbird. I play blues, rock, funk, etc. My strat still is my #1 since it sounds better clean, but the Bluesbird is a close #2.