Baker Ed Roman B1+

I purchased a 2004 blonde Baker mail order from Ed Roman's in Jan '05. I was blown away by the maple top. Beautiful quilt top that beats any PRS I have seen under $4000. 24 frets, Ebony fretboard with crowns, gold grovers. Push/pull pots. Case was extra :(

I play mostly clean, with a little reverb, jazz/blues on a Fender 69 deluxe. The push/pull pots give me plenty of variety. I prefer a strat for a real strat sound, but this does give me options. I have no problems with the sound.

When the guitar arrived, it was pretty much ready to play. I did spend some time intonnating, but overall it didn't take much. There are a few minor flaws in the finish, I noticed with a close inspection. Frets are well done, neck fits tight. Grover tuners stay in tune. I do have to put a pillow case under the neck in the case to keep it from going out of tune. I will probably end up getting a new case for it.

Guitar seems pretty solid. I prefer a lighter body, and the finish seems durable enough. I have banged it a few times without any noticeable scratching. The gold finish on the bridge is the only thing wearing through from playing. I do have to keep tightening the nut on the jack plate.
Another thing I want to mention. I noticed after the guitar arrived that the binding on the body (in the cutaway's and to the neck) hides the maple. In other words there is no maple underneath the 1/4 inch binding. I became very disturbed. I thought I had bought a laminate top guitar. So I took it to my local guitar store to have them help me examine it. I wanted an expert's opinion before I loaded up for war. We took the pups out and scratched down through the shielding paint (by the way everything looked pretty clean down there, saudering etc)
and found that the maple is 1/4 in the neck and around 3/8 behind the bridge. It looked as though the mahogony back was carved as well as the underside of the maple. So I called Ed Roman's and talked to Jared again, he said that they cnc the underside of the maple to make room for the deeper set neck. It does appear to be the case. The neck is rock solid, and I don't really want to tear up the guitar any more just to make sure.

Jared has been very helpful and attentive. I usually ask for him when I call. He still remembers my name 10 months later even though I have only talked to him a few times. I have also dealt with Stephan who was just as accomodating. I have never dealt with Ed. I am amazed at what I read about him. Love him or hate him it appears. I did notice on occasion that there appears to be somewhat of a breakdown in communication between employees. When I called to order the Baker, I was told a different price than what was posted on the web-site. Apparently the sale was not still going. However they did honor the original price posted. Later I bought a Jay Turser for my son, and ran into the same thing. Again they honored the posted price.

I am in my local guitar store at least once a week, and I play pretty much everything that comes in. In almost a year I have only found two guitars that compare to it in comfort and overall easiness to play. A Fender Custom Shop Tele, and a PRS Santana II.
I am not sure I would buy this guitar again if it were lost or stolen. I very well might. I haven't seen anything from a big company that compares to it for under $2,500, so I think it was a baragain, but I am always looking for something new that catches my eye. Who knows? I have a Martin, a custom Strat that I built, as well as a prototype Ernie Ball copy from luthier John Guilford (http://www.guilfordguitars.com) that is absolutely fantastic, and I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of a custom LP copy.

Made in 2004 by the Samick group I'm told. I had the Black Backs installed. The case included is pretty poor, and had to add a "lift" under the neck in the case to prevent the guitar from rolling, and laying against the tuners and causing tuning problems. I tried 5 of the same color, and did find a difference in weight and sound.

I am a worship leader at our church, and it fits my needs just fine. I use the Vox SE Tonelab, and go direct to the house. With the single pickup selection, it is bright and cuts through the mix well. The combo pickup selection (humbucker/neck-middle and the single coil at the bridge) is very pleasing too.

It was set-up at Ed Romans per my requirements. After receiving the guitar, I did have to take it to my guitar tech for edge filing, pick-up adjusting, straighting the neck, and installing a "bone" nut. This cost more, but after this was done, it sounded and played excellent.

I do use this a my main guitar sometimes, and have used it without a backup. It will withstand live playing. I replaced the strap buttons with strap locks, and also replaced the plastic knobs with gold "Tele" type knobs, which make it easier to use the pull/push - humbucker/single coil selections.

Ed needs the Lord. I complemented him on the Baker purchase, and he quickly referred me to a salesperson. Stefan was patient with me as I picked 5 of the same color guitar and played each one a good 20-30 minutes each before choosing.

I've played guitar for thirty years, and own Tom Anderson, Fender, Heritage, Gretsch, Danolectro, and Paul Reed Smith electrics, and 4 Taylor acoustics. I would have requested a bone nut, and a better quality case if I were to buy this guitar again. I'm not 100% convinced this would be my favorite #1 guitar, but it's close. The tone and sounds from this guitar is great and have had complements to reflect this.

My guitar has the duncan blackbacks and other than that is completely stock the way ed sells them. Being an assembly line non-custom guitar I wont bore you with the details. Personally I like the options ed has chosen, mahogany, ebony, medium frets, grovers, push pull pots, makes for a versatile guitar.

I play through a Marshall halfstack, live, and a Boss GT8 [killer] in my recording setup. I play classic rock, BOC, foghat, whitesnake etc and this has killer les paul crunchiness without being muddy the way my custom sometimes is. The push/pull pots allow you to go from crunch to strat or tele with the yank on a pot. VERSATILE!!

How well are any guitars set up at the factory?? I ALWAYS have to tweek and play in any guitar a bit. The intonation on each of these guitars ive owned has been flawless. Necks have been good and straight, fretwork could be 'slightly' better. After I did a setup on mine, it plays right with my PRS custom. Not really thrilled with the unimaginative inlays, Ive commented to ed about this several times, I really like the inlays on the original bakers, but I didnt pay $3000 either. Would like to see a graphite or at least bone nut, rather than the funky plastic one thats stock. I have noticed that on the 2nd batch of guitars, with the flametops, the necks are a bit beefier than the really thin necks of the 1st batch, nice job on that!

This guitar is solid, well built, dependable and versatile enough to gig with. Mine have stayed in tune and thats HUGE! I think ed has used for the most part quality components for a long-lasting durable guitar. I think the finish is just fab!

Eds place is just amazing, the staff is helpful and always nice. Never had any need to be repaired.

Been playing longer than i care to admit. Have a Schon, LP custom historic 3PU, Jackson Kelly, Peavey EVH, Marshall...yada yada yada.
I would buy another if this were stolen, I feel its a very versatile guitar that would be a welcome addition to almost everyones collection.

DO TO THE RIDICULOUS BASHING, I'm going to do a simultaneous review to try and set some of this confusion straight on a USA B1C, and 2 Ed Roman B1+.

ALL Numerical RATINGS WILL BE FOR THE Ed Roman Asian B1+ though.

READ MY REVIEW, as I think my opionion is especially relevant to all the Ed bashing going on hear since I own an AMAZING ALL CUSTOM USA Baker built by Gene, AND BOUGHT 2 Asian made Baker's early 2005 from Stephan and Alan at Ed Roman's.

These were identical solid bodie's, the standard upgraded ones advertised on the web site. While these new ones not beeing made in the US were not advertised loudly by Ed, it was clearly no secret either. There was absolutely no misleading that these were inspired by the great, original Baker design, with Ed's influence like the deep neck tenon and 24 frett's, his preference for a thinner lighter weight body, and a desire to cut manufacuring cost in reputable factories where other "high end" guitars are made, so that he could bring an incredible design to market at an exceptional value.

(BTW- I did not origianly purchase my US Baker from Ed, but they did do $1000 of custom work on it, a neck recarve and oil finish, and a graphtec retro midi/piezo system)

Any one who ASSUMED they were buying a US made Baker identical to the original ones, either can't read Ed's clearly presented web site, can't ask questions or just assumed and blindly hoped they were somehow getting the steal of the century. Period. I mean come on- these people really thought they were buying a US handmade Baker at less than half the cost? I guess they saw the price and the name and just ordered with out researching it with his excellent sales people and luthiers. (they spent literally hours on the phone getting my guitars right and hand customizing them to my specs, at a cost of course)

TOPS: Ok- so these both have nice tops, one beeing the black quilted and looks pretty nice, but not great (and is a dog compared to my $6000 US Baker. The other one, a natural quilted top that is STUNNING, and more stunning than my AAAAAA top on my $6000 hand made Amber California Chambered #751! The guitars on both the asian ones from Ed AND the US made Baker are SOLID tops (those very nice Shecters that people are trying to compare these to are NOT solid tops, but a thin veneer).

CONTROLS: mini toggle for mag-both-piezo, master tone, piezo volume and master mag pu volume with tone coil tap. (A more coplicated layout on my US Baker, detail not relevant here since they address the MIDI system). I can tell the 3 way in my Asian Baker feels MUCH better than the one that came on my US Baker!

NECK/FRETTS: They are both the 24 hand fretted ebony frett board models with the Buzz Feiten retro and the Graphtec Piezo sadle upgrade. The ebony neck defintely sounds brighter and edgier than my rosewood on my US Baker, which is exactly what I was after.

PICKUPS: Both the Ed-Asians got the Seymor Duncan Black Back PU upgrades. They are way hotter and more edge than my US Baker, but the US Baker's vintage Dimarzio PAF's with PU covers are sweet and mellow, exaclty what I wanted on the thick, chambered body. Passive mag PU's, but active Piezo on all 3 models.

NECK: The neck on the asian ones is a 3 piece mahogany neck, similar to what is on my superbly sounding and constructed 914ce Taylor, so no tonal complaints. Ofcourse a one piece neck would be nice, but no problem. You gotta reduce cost somehwere to get from a $3000 and up US Baker to a affordable one and retain the key features, tone and playability. Further more, I'm fairly convinced the 7" neck through IS very worthy traid off since other independent companies have confirmed that multi piece necks can work very well. Look at some other $5000 guitars with multi piece necks. If built right, they are actually STRONGER than a one piece neck!

FINISH: is pretty good, probably more like what you find on a $500 to $1000 guitar like the impressi

STYLE: All 3 of my Baker's fit the style I bought them for, and I think this why I'm such a happy Ed Roman Customer.

The 2 Asian-Ed's are used for rock, reggae, blues and jazzy R&B primarily, and I also use them extensively for the killer acoustic tone the graphtec piezo provides- everything from folky Neil/Pink Floyd stuff through flamenco fired runs. The 2nd of the 2 asian Bakers was given to my close friend who has played professional for 20 years, the last 10 with a full time, regionally touring reggae act in the mid west. He has been blown away with it, and can't believe it hangs with or exceeed every PRS he's been lusting over for 10 years. I really didn't think I'd use the piezo much on my original US Baker, as it was an extra that just came with their system if you wanted MIDI- well I actually use more than I ever thought and WAY more than I use the MIDI. Especially on the chambered US Baker it sounds SUPERB- better than most Acoustics. The Asian-Ed Bakers sound very good as well, but no where as resonant and more bright since they are solid bodies. Now, the piezo doesn't compare to a my 914ce solid rosewood acoustic, but it shouldn't. 2 things make the piezo a must have- the ability to add a damn good acoustic tone to your existing tone or go solo with it, and most of, the ability to pull of truely authentic sounding solos all over then neck with an acoustic tone without killing your fingers!

The Asian-Ed's are defintely brighter and meaner, with the chambered US Baker beeing a much sweeter, mellow, open jazzy sound, also capable of some full on metal tones.

For all 3, the coil split isn't really blowing me away yet- I'm not a big srat single coil guy so no biggie for me, but don't buy it thinking its gonna get you a true fender strat sc sound. I see it as a nice trick for humbucker lovers who want to play around with a thinned out, lower gain tone occasionally.

Overall, killer, maybe a bit edgy, but thats what I wanted- a rocking guitar. I do really think its VERY comprable to the tones you get from your standard PRS's. Excellent sustain with incredibly easy to play. And fat like a Les Paul with out the MUDDY neck pick up tones. (Don't get me wrong the LP neck can sound good and had sounded great on hundreds of legendarhy albums, but you'll be dialing in a better neck LP pu tone on the Baker in half the time)

I must say the chambered Baker's tone overall is just heavinly- definitely check one out of you have a chance!

Here's the funny part- and I swear to God- the US Baker had SERIOUS issues from the factory that Allen and Ed Roman resolved for me at NO CHARGE since they bought the Baker name at that time. The neck and frett job from the US Baker was so bad that the MIDI system would not function right on about 25% of the fretboard due to a poor fretjob, and some neck issues. Fortunately Allen was able to resolve it, and it nows plays beautifully (Allen also covered this significant service free of charge even though they didn't make the guitar).

FRET/NECK JOB: The Asian B1+ Ed Bakers were set up FLAWLESSLY as far as the fret job. %200 better than my US BAKER! Perfect action.

PU, top matched well, bridge good but not perfect, etc on the Asian Baker. On these details the US Baker WAS perfect.

FINISH: as I said above, the Asian Baker's had some very minor finish flaws, the US was absolutely perfect.

NUT: US Baker nut was perfect, the custom graphite-Buzz Feiten cut nut for the two Asian Bakers were NOT cut perfect. Bummer here, but they are happy to fix it, no questions asked.

POTS: US Baker- one bad pot (which Allen also covered free of charge even though they didn't make the guitar). All Asian Bakers pots and switches are more positive, and much cleaner.

Again, they are always happy to fix issues asap, but I do have a perfect expectation from these guys out of the box.

I'd absolutely use any of the 3 Bakers US or Asian on any tour, in any session, etc. without hesitation. I always keep a backup for string breaks etc, and the possible failure of a pot due to wear or whatever, which is best practise with any guitar.

I'll be honest- I met Ed, and was NOT impressed. He's not too friendly and comes of as a cold jerk. As a matter of fact, I thought to myself when I met him on a tour of their new Vegas facilty- "I'll never buy anything from him". HOWEVER- I continue to get to know him through his rants, and see the standard he rigorously maintains and coaches through his luthiers and sales people, his often controversial points the has the guts to make, REGARDLESS of who he's going to piss off, and he tells you the real deal truth about it all. While I don't want to hug him when I see him, I do absolutely respect him, truely believe he knows guitars, how to build them and the business as well as anyone, and has set an uncompromsing stanard. If you appreciate that level of relentless commitement, you'll appreciate these guys. They may not always make you feel like a hug from grandma- but you can be sure you are getting the best instument you can buy whether you are spending $125 or $12,500 with them. Sincerely.

Ed's not so friendly- but ALL the staff I've dealt with have been top shelf, truely nice and always work to resolve any issue in a resonable amount of time. AND these dudes are career guys with tons of experience- not some nice high school kid working for a discount. They know there stuff, or Ed's righteous ass would fire them quick!

Like I said above, they have covered warranty issues for me on a US Baker that they didn't even make! And quickly helped me with any minor issues I had with my B1+'s.

I've been dealing with them since 2003 and so far have spent about $6500 of my hard earned cash with them, and plan on buying more exceptional guitars from them in the future.

Despite Ed's lack of congeniality, I give them whole crew a 10. Ed is not mister warm and inviting- but who cares really- he gets it done- he's sorta like the CEO who is a good person, but doesn't BS and sugar coat, so they come off that way.

I've been playing for over 20 years. Everything from Metal and Classical in the 80's to folk, jazz, reggae, R&B, jam band style improv, and even a few country tunes :o

I own 4 Taylors: a 914CE, NS72, 414CE-LE Rosewood, Baby Taylor, an old low end Ovation, Garcia Classical, and a Charvel Dinky style metal schredder. Oh yeah and the US Baker B1C, and the B1+.

BELOW COMMENTS REGARDING THE ASIAN Ed Roman B1+'s:
I ASKED ALL THE QUESTIONS I NEEDED TO, AND GOT EXACTLY THE GUITAR I EXPECTED AND NEEDED.

If it were stolen, I'd save up $$$ and have Ed Roman build me a US custom version of it, and I'd pay the price it warranted. (Same for my Chambered US Gene Baker)

I love all of them, and hate nothing about them.

My favorite feature is the value, and the Baker design, and that I got it at a good price, and I like that Its unique custom features and upgrades that you CAN NOT get on a Gibson, PRS, etc.

I think the playability is comprable to a NICE PRS, blows a Gibson away on playabilty, and provides a tone that nearly covers both the Les Paul and PRS guitars extremely well. I compared it about 50 guitars. After playing for many years, I know exactly what I want and these guys provide it.

Bottom line with Baker's and all the other custom builders out there is you get what you want, better quality and playabilty, about any customization you want, = or better tone to the classics like LP's, etc. that poeple shell out way too much $$$ for the name, when you can have superior small company build instruments for the same $ or sometimes even less $, I think its a no brainer. You owe it to yourself to check out the independent market unless you really wanna look cool like every one else and get the name brand guitar. And check out the single build guys in you local areas, they deserve some props for the efforts as well (guys Ed Roman doesn't stock).

Not what I wanted

No sustain, mediocre tone.

I hope Gene Baker got a good wad of cash from Ed Roman for his company because it IS costing him ten-fold in reputation. If I were a renowned master builder like Gene Baker and saw my name on an unmitigated piece of crap like the Baker guitars Ed Roman sells, my heart would ache. The only way to describe the action, fit, and finish of this guitar is: CHEAP AND CRAPPY.

I'll never find out. I will return this guitar and contest the credit card charges, whether Ed Roman likes it or not. He is known to tape conversations of complaining customers, but two can play that game, I DO have a tape of his description of the guitar he sold me. And if a judge hears an expert witness opinion on whether the guitar fits the description Ed gave me, Ed will not like the outcome if there is any justice in the judge's heart.

At Ed Roman Guitars once you pay your money you join the dead.

Yet again, a guitar made by Ed Roman evokes widespread disgust. Reading the reviews in Harmony Central for any guitar built by Ed Roman is not only an eye-opener but also as funny as a Las Vegas comedy shtick; the wailing and gnashing of teeth from Ed's many unsatisfied customers is growing into a veritable Wall of Sound. Not so funny, though, for the poor souls who forked out thousands to get a toneless guitar assembled by apprentice robots.

The few good reviews for Ed Roman guitars bear Ed Roman's personal hallmark, like the review from "Jerry" in this lot. In his shop Ed Roman and his henchmen can put the phone down one complaining customers unsparingly, but in Harmony Central they can't stem the river of complaints from souls in purgatory that are legion. All Ed can do is to try to counteract the bewailing with glowing reviews of his own products. That he does with the jest and verbosity one sees in his web site everywhere -- the pomp in self-praise and disdain for competitors and critics unmistakeable.

The bottom line is that one MUST resist the unctuous promises from Ed Roman and his associates for one's own good. Don't cave in at his oily offers unless you have cash to burn. Ed is the archetypical dishonest salesman, and his profits come mostly from deceiving people. That is his central philosophy which he camouflages with tacky salesmanship. There is just not need to become another Ed Roman's victim given the numerous excellent guitar makers in the market today.

This is just to clarify a few points. One-off does not mean "the basic guitar is pulled from the assembly line and then partially hand made" as stated below. It means that the guitar is built to the customer's specifications, or is a prototype. Ed Roman Bakers are NOT considered one-off guitars, thus they can be cheaper than true one-off instruments. For example, you cannot select scale, wiring, neck shape/size, etc. With true custom instruments you would be able to do that. When Baker guitars were built by Gene Baker and his team, anything you could think of that made sense in terms of design and price, they would build it for you. The customer could choose options "from scale lengths to electronic layouts, fretwire selections, neck shapes, wood types, inlay patterns, pickup choices, various colors, Buzz Feiten Tuning System, TonePros System 2 Bridge and Stop Tailpiece" as mentioned in http://www.musicianshotline.com/archive/interviews/genebaker2.htm
The exception, I assume, is the Baker Signature Series. Perhaps those are indeed custom instruments, or one-off.

It is interesting that Roman has stated the he "was surprised to find out that Baker was an automated operation and had been pulling the wool over people's eyes under the disguise of being handmade. There will be some major changes to the Baker line for 2004 and 2005... I can't discuss them at this time." http://www.musicianshotline.com/archive/dealer_spotlight/roman_new.htm

It is actually common knowledge that Baker used CNC machines in combination with hand work. http://www.musicianshotline.com/archive/interviews/genebaker2.htm
With the changes to the Baker line of guitars, if anything they are less handmade now. After visiting Ed Roman's website I found that I could NOT order a Baker the way I would want it. The prices are very attractive, but then again there are many really nice Korean or Japanese made guitars that are also very attractive, and much cheaper. The exception is the Baker Signature Series, which MAY be what Baker guitars were originally; custom instruments built with superb attention to detail. There's a 6 month wait for a Baker Signature Series guitar, and who knows how much they will cost. The name may be the same, but the guitars are apparently quite different, at least in the case of the B1 and B1+.

Made 2004 I believe, since I bought it early March. 24 frets 25" scale. Salesman said it was made in Korea. Quilt top arched, 2 tone push pull knobs and one volume with a 3 way switch. Seymour Duncan black backs added, as well as graphite nut. Seems all the Bakers at Ed Romans had ebony fret board, gold hardware, tune-o-matic tone pros bridge, full binding neck and body, grover tuners, deep set neck tenon, quilt or flame top with matching headstock and choice of colors. Some of these features were listed as extras on his website, but then again, price was over 1k. I don't think they make a $999.00 Baker.

Sounded great with stock pickups, but I went ahead and switched to the black backs. Holly crap, that guitar sounded cool. It was played through a Line 6 amp, and I was amazed of all the different sounds that came out of the guitar. This can almost be called a guitar modeling guitar. When the pots were pulled and played with, the phase reversal made some great tone. I was looking for a PRS, and a Les Paul and found both in this guitar. Sound was rich and full. There was a little brightness if needed, but I was looking for warm and clean. No noise at all. With distortion added, amazing fuzz.

The new Baker is light, compared to most guitars I have been looking at, but the sales person said it was a little heavy. Compared to a les Paul, it is a feather. I had practiced on my bass and moving to this Baker, it seemed small and easy to reach all areas of the guitar. The neck 7+ inches into the body is very cool. All work done on the guitar was first class and right on. I asked for low action, and that's how they set it up. Quilted top in black gives an amazing look.

The quality this guitar was put together, I don't think it will ever fall apart. The guitar is machine made, but I believe the neck has to be basically hand assembled because of the deep set neck tanon and ebony fret board. It is what they in the guitar business call a one off, where the basic guitar is pulled from the assembly line and then partially hand made, and maybe back to the assembly line for finish. You guys keep asking about the strap buttons. I will not buy a guitar with bad manufacturing done to it. So stop asking about the strap buttons. I would and will use this guitar on a gig, but being a drummer, I think it is going to mostly be staying in my studio for guests to play with.

Ed Roman Guitars in Las Vegas is a sight to see. Thousands of guitars from $129.00 kids specials to some costing tens of thousands. Living in Las Vegas, I don't think I will have a problem if something goes wrong, and I need to take it back. That being said, the products are great, but there is a bit of a how dare you attitued when going to the store. I would assume they have a hugh internet business, because 2 of the 3 times I went into the store, there was only 2 or 3 customers, and a dozen sales people. These sales people all were busy running papers here and there, and didn't seem interested in helping me or anybody. They looked busy, but I don't exactly know what they all were doing just sitting there. I approached one and asked for help and got very personalized attention at that point. There is a sign on every guitar saying hands off and 2 big signs at the front door stating no cell phones and no smoking within 50 feet. Of course there were 2 sales or shop guys about 20 feet away smoking, but I guess that only applies to customers. I would imagine that the do not touch signs were there because they don't want street punks coming in and just sitting there all day beating up instruments. I can appreciate the quiteness, especially after being at Guitar Center. I had one kid over there jamming away on a crap strat and a 50 watt amp, while I was trying to listen to my sales guy. Then the punk had the balls to ask if I had any requests before he put the guitar away. I said yes, turn down your amp so I can hear this guitar you ass.

I don't play guitar but am learning. This guitar is for guests. I have way too much gear to mention here but am a drummer and an audio engineer. I would probably get another Ed Roman Baker guitar if this one goes away. I love the look and the sound. I wish it had a tremelo bridge, and that Buzz Fentin tuning system installed. The truss rod cover needs to go. The stock plastic nut went away for the best. I studied several guitars and wanted a PRS, but the Ed Roman Baker++, I say ++ because I got more features than even the +, is half the price and all the quality and sound.

Guitar was made in Japan in 2004. Pickups and wiring done at World Class Guitars in Las Vegas, NV USA. The B1+ has a Ebony 24 fret fingerboard with real MOP crown inlays, a transparent blue stained Mahogany body & neck with a AAA grade quilted Maple top finished in Blueburst, Seymour Duncan Black Back pickups, 1 vol & 2 push/pull tone knobs with coil tap, fully bound neck and body, tummy cut, matching quilted headstock overlay, gold hardware, tune-o-matic style bridge, Grover tuners and a deep set neck tenon that extends 7" into the body.

This is probably the best sounding and most versatile electric guitar that I own and I own about 30 guitars - virtually all of them VERY high end. This thing does a great Les Paul only a lot better plus it can get very convincing Telecaster, strat, hollowbody, semi-hollow and even some Gretsch sounds if you can believe that. I highly recommend the Seymour Duncan Black Back pickup upgrade. These pickups can't be beat.

I have been playing the Baker through a Mesa Boodie Triple Channel Triple Recto head & circa 1968 Marshall 4 x12 basketweave cab, a 1963 Fender Bandmaster, a 1963 Fender Vibroverb and a POD. It sounds killer through all of them. It sounds inspirational. There isn't a sound I can think of that this thing can't produce. It can be very defined or creamy/meaty sounding and has very tight low end.

The guitar needed a minor truss rod adjustment - probably a result of being shipped from a dry Vegas climate to Boston. Other than that the setup was very good. No string height adjustment was needed and the intonation was fine. Pickup height was perfectly adjusted - they were just installed prior to shipping.

The finish, binding and routings were all very well done. There were no fit & finish problems at all. My only negative comment is that the nut is plastic. It is horrible and I will be replacing it soon. For this reason I give fit & finish a 9. Otherwise it is a 10 for sure.

Everything on this guitar seems to be very good quality with a couple notable exceptions. The plastic nut HAS to go. There's no excuse for that! Also, the truss rod cover is cheap plastic - like Gibson. I am spoiled by my other guitars which are all handmade. There's no plastic on them. Plastic sucks.

I would personally prefer a different choice in tuners and nut and would like the guitar better if it had Tone Pros locking bridge & tailpiece. I can't really mark off much for that though. Of course I can purchase those things separately but it is greater out of pocket expense.

I have no doubt that the guitar will last a VERY long time as is.

Ed Roman has always been good to me in terms of introducing me to new high quality guitars and taking plenty of time to talk to me about them so I keep giving him my business. I've bought a few guitars from him and I'd buy from him again.

I have been displeased in the past with the internal communication within his shop though. One person says something another person say another thing. Messages often don't get relayed or phone calls don't always get returned. I'd recommend that when dealing with world class guitars that you speak to one person and only that person regarding your purchase if possible. I usually go through Ed but Scott is a good guy too.

I have heard a lot of ugly stories/rumors about Ed on the net. All I can say is that the guy has never misled me (although his website is not always the most accurate or up to date). Get whatever you want in writing, don't make assumptions and you will most likely be fine. If you know how to navigate the process in that place you can get some of the best guitars on earth. That being said, I understand why so many people walk away being disappointed with customer support at Roman's WCG.

I've been playing for 22 years and I own too much gear to list including high end guitars such as JET Earlewood, Gretsch White Falcon and Jaros Bluzeman Plus. This guitar sounds and plays absolutely amazing and is THE BEST DEAL on earth in terms of value for the dollar. The guitar blows away Gibson and PRS and certainly gives the best of the custom high end boutique builders something to worry about.

I'd replace this guitar in a heartbeat if something happened to it. Like I said, with the exception of the plastic nut and truss rod cover, this baby is a total gem.