Alamo Tonemonger

Just wanted to follow up and say that I still have, will always have it, and it's the only strat I'll probably ever truly dig. Just sounds so FAT, the knobs are extremely useful, and the trem on it feels so smooth and sounds gorgeous. After using it all this time I know I'll get another soon. Thanks to Alamo for building such a keeper.

2001/2002 Alamo Tonemonger made in Houston Texas. It has a beautiful swamp ash body in the 2-tone sunset color. It also has a very nice figured maple neck w/ rosewood fretboard, 3 Rio Grande Super Grande single coil pickups, 1 tone knob, 1 volume knob, 5 way pickup selector and a custom trem system (reminds me of a Bigsby but more stable). In my opinion it has tons of features since it is pretty much a custom build.

This guitar just sounds almost 100% better than some mass produced Stratocaster or Stratocaster knock-off. There just is no comparison. The amp I use is a Blues Pearl Texas Tornado (repro of an old Deluxe Reverb). My effects are a Tube Screamer, and Fulltone Fulldrive 2. With this combo, I can cover all spectrums of music. I play mostly rock and blues so this guitar covers it all.

The finish on this guitar is perfect. I could not find a flaw when I recieved it. The only problem I had was that the neck took a little while to get used to. It's a little chunkier than one would think....but after playing a few times, it just feels natural.

This guitar is built to last. The finish and hardware are top-notch. I was surprised at the strap buttons.....they are bigger than the average ones you see on most guitars, and I haven't had any problems w/ straps coming off. That is a nice feature. I don't play too hard, so I believe that I could go thru an entire gig w/ just this guitar. Just hope a string don't break.

Dave is a very pleasant and easy guy to talk to. When I first called him to ask about the guitar, he went over the features of the Tonemonger and what makes it different that your run-of-the-mill Strat. When I recieved the guitar, the action was terrible. I figured on fixing myself, but I thought I'd call Dave again to make sure I didn't do anything stupid......he told me what I needed to know and now the guitar plays like butta'. Great customer support!

I've been playing for almost 10 years now. I once did a list of all the guitars I've owned since I started and it made me ill. I think I've calmed down now and stopped buying anything that looks pretty. Now I search for the thing that all guitarists search for...TONE. This guitar is a tone machine. I've had my share of Strats and none of them suited me for some reason. Now I know why...they just sounded too blah. I also own 2 Gibson 335's and a Les Paul Classic. I play them all still, but they all have their own niche in my collection. As far a gigging, I use the Tonemonger cause it comes down to 2 things for me......it's comfortable, and it sounds awesome. If I can get the money, I'd like to get one of Dave's Robin guitars....the Avalon. But, that will be another day.

This is a prototype(#5) and not the current production model. It's made in good ol' Houston, TX.!! It features a Swamp ash body with the desert blonde color(nitro-cellulose finish for the true vintage freak!) flamed-maple neck(V shaped for comfort, IMO) with rosewood fretboard, tilted headstock(doesn't need string trees, and this is good for tuning stability, I think. The headstock is also like a Tele headstock that got pregnant...it's really fat after that initial round bend at the end. Maybe this is the same principle used for the GT Fat Finger...for more sustain and balance? You decide. All I know is that the guitar is FAT and eats Fender Strats for lunch!!), grover tuners, volume, 1 tone, 3 super grande(RIO GRANDE) pickups, vintage style bridge with unique center-point tremolo(feels like an improved Bigsby to me), pearloid dot fret markers, tall and nicely crowned frets and a tortoise shell pickguard. The pickups are great sounding, but don't seem to be as adjustable as I'd like,(if anyone out there knows the trick, let me know) so this category gets a 9.

This guitar really sounds incredible! I've always had problems with Fender Strats, and this guitar buries them!! Very fat sounding, yet articulate. Hard to describe, but you get more twang or bite from the low strings(where it counts) and a full (not harsh at all) sound from the high strings. This is, IMO, due to not only the great sounding pickups but the reverse slant on the pickups, as well. (very easy observation to make...how often do you see a guitar with the pickups slanted the opposite way of a Tele or Strat's bridge pickup?) Go to Alamoguitars.com to see what I mean. To me it sounds sort-of like the pickups are a hybrid of a vintage strat single coil and a P-90. Very ballsy! Mucho Gusto!! Great Texas Tone!! I'm very picky, so there ARE a few things I'd change tone-wise about the pickups. To be fair, though, I've only played this guitar through a Soldano Astroverb, Zinky MOFO and a Dr. Z Maz Jr. This guitar makes me very happy, though, and tone IS very subjective to a person's ear and combined gear...so this may not apply to you. If you were wondering about the "9" in this category...that's why. Bear in mind, though, that I would only give a Fender Strat a "5"; regardless of the model. I play country, rock, Texas blues and jazz/western swing. This guitar gives me a great tonal array or palette, if you will.

I can't comment on the action and pickup setup since I got it used. The rest, though, (finish, neck, frets) were perfect. I probably would have set it up to suit me anyway, so it gets a 10. Moving on...

This guitar would withstand any abuse, I think, but I'll be ordering another one for road use.(so I can retire this one to the house and studio...it is a prototype, after all.)

I got it used, as I've said, but I did email and call Dave @ Alamo before I got it and he was very helpful and nice. By the way, I also bought a set of Rio Grande Vintage Tallboys for my '52 reissue Tele a while back and they smoke! I've tried Duncans(good), Dimarzios, Bardens, etc., and these Rio's top 'em for my style.

The only things I'd change are: making the pickups a little more adjustable(too hot for some lower powered amps), moving the volume knob further from the pickups and bridge(some players embrace the closeness of the knob, but it haunts me) and making the heel more comfort-contoured.(think Ernie Ball/Music Man neck heel) These are mostly minor gripes, though, as I'm concerned primarily with tone and playability. This is the best strat-style guitar on the market, and believe me when I say that Dave and the crew from Alamo/Rio Grande/Robin/Metropolitan are Tone-meisters! I'm not affiliated with them in any way, but I'm learning a lot about their products because they're great products.

The Strat with balls..Made in houston texas,by the guy who makes Robin guitars.22 frets,rosewood finger board,maple back(figured maple all the way down the back of the neck).the fret are tall not wide.I believe its a swamp ash body. nitrocellulose finish for the vintage freaks.Pickups are the Super Muy-Grande pickups that are only available in this guitar(ha,we`ll see how long that lasts).5-way selector.volume and tone.Angled headstock.the bridge is a tremolo with the coolest looking whammy bar ever.the bar is mounted in the back of the bridge as opposed to the bottom half,which is supposed to give it a more even drop.It feels like a bigsby.the body is shaped like a slightly bigger strat with a little longer horn on the top.Grover tuning keys.the head stock is like a tele headstock that got fat.comes with a case and tool for the tremolo arm adjustment.

It`s a strat on steriods.watch regular strats die.I have played it through a number of amps.Lately a Bogner Shiva.It really cuts nice and stays fat.certain rooms I`ve noticed it gets noisy,but thats the single-coil thing.

the guitar was not set up properly at the factory.It played great but wouldn`t stay in tune for shit.I got it set up and it `s fine now.I also had to re-adjust the pickups.

Dave is great.he knows his stuff.