Brian Moore Guitars MC/1

My Mc-1 is the numebr #174, signed by Brian Moore himself.
It has 24 frets, and the most beautiful quilted top i've ever seen.
It has a 5 way selector with push-pull option, a H-S-H configurations with seymour Duncan pick-ups.
The color is vintage yellow i think, or honey, matching headstock, with wilkinson bridge (the one made especially for this model).
It has also Sperzel Locking tuners, ebony fretboard, and i mean the most black and perfect ebony i ever had in my hands, and it came with it's hardcase and documentation.

The only thing it miss, it's a nice signed leather strap.
To be a 15 years old instrument, (it's from 1992) it's just CRAZY!!!

It's AMAZING.
Can have almost every sound, of course can't get the strat-tele perfect feel, but it has a huge range of tones to reach, and it's just so easy to get the sound you want just with pick ups configurations.
I'm using it trough a Mesa Boogie Formula Pre, a T.c. Electronics GMajor, a Brunetti Silver Bullet 50/50 and a MArshall 4x12 jcm.
It' has no buzzing frets, it's tuned till death, rich, bright sound in every fret, even 24.

It just has no protections from interferences, like phones, or pc-monitor, that's the only thing could be better.

Never seen something like this.
The lowest action, the brightest sound, the CRAZIEST quilt ever seen, the best finish.

Even after 15 years, it's incredible.

It seems very solid and durable, and it has 15 years, so i think it's gonna be like this for loooon time :)

I'm going to use this fine instrument only in well known situations.
Not to use when i'll go teaching or playing in unknown places.

This one, needs respect.

I'm it's 3rd owner, i asked something to Brian Moore about this instrument but never had an answer.
the last Owner told me he had an answer about the history of this model calling by phone after many emails (from Italy...).
So not very satisfied about this.

I've been playng for 10 years, i own many nice guitars like Fender, Gibson, Ibanez, Prs.
I'm just happy with this instrument and i'm writing this because this guitar is not very famous in Europe, and i was looking for some infos about it before buying it and this website was the only help i found.

I just love the look of this guitar, the finish and the feel i get when i play it.
I would like it only had a natural color on it's backside, not all black painted, but it's very nice even this way.

Guys, if u can, get your hands on one of theese. ;)

Got this used at Guitar Center for $1500. After doing a little research I think the price was way below what other places are selling a used MC/1 for! I've seen used MC/1's go for $3500 so I wasn't sure why the one at Guitar Center was so cheap. I purchased it and then after I went to another guitar shop to ask them if this was a real MC/1 as I got nervous. They called BM and confirmed everything. Serial#467 with Brian Moore's signature. It has a quilted maple top extreamly figured and natural in color. Composite body and neck with woods in the right places. I was told there are two hollowed out tone chambers in the body. H/S/H p/u config. Fixed bridge. Did not come with any case.

I play this through a Koch Multi Tone amp. I play jazz/blues/country/rock. This guitar has a very distinct sound. The tone is very versatile but its not the same as an all wood guitar. Its very hard to explain. The tone is just not what I really like. At the store I loved it but as time went (3 weeks actually) I guess I kinda wished I went for a used McNaught Double Cut Guitar Center had. But of course it was $1500 more than the MC/1. To be fair I should have done more research on a composite style guitar (a la Steinberger). They have distinct tones. So it may not be for everyone.

Well considering this is an old guitar the set up was bad. I had to take it to a luthier who set up the guitar for me. Pickups were all out of wack. No neck adjustment but the action was messy. Guitar had a few nicks on the body. Bad nick on the headstock also. The quilt was INCREDIBLE. I mean the luthier told me it was the most insane quilt he had ever seen on a guitar. So I have to give it a 10 for the top!!!

I think this is a very reliable guitar minus the shoddy 5 way switch but again this is an old guitar. Hardware showed rust or corrosion. I think its a dependable guitar.

Told me the history of the guitar. Very good.

Well the guitar is nice and it is different but after a month I sold it for $1700 to someone locally (made $200!). I then went to the bank and withdrew $1500 from savings and with my MC/1 money I went back to Guitar Center and bought a used custom built David Thomas Mcnaught guitar they had. This guitar sounds INCREDIBLE. A lot better than the MC/1. I have to say you gotta play the MC/1 to see if you like the way it feels, sounds, and handles. I do not think they make this guitar anymore but certain people are crazy and will pay $3000 for it. I have been told Brian Moore guitars are not very desirable or wanted. I'd think real hard about dropping more than $1500 on an MC/1 as you can get a maybe better guitar at that price point. I've seen the MC/1 go for $3500 used, that is just insane as I got it for $1500 + tax used. I don't know. The MC/1 did not do it for me.

SERIAL NUMBER 376 OF 1995 , BEAUTIFUL PURPLE QUILTED TOP , HSH PICKS
DUNCAN , 24 FRETS , EBONY FINGERBOARD , TAGS ECC .

WHAT CAN I SAY . . . I HAVE A 63 STRATO , A 68 TELE MAPLE CAP , A 69
LES PAUL CUSTOM ONE PIECE BODY AND ONE PIECE NECK , A 59 REISSUE LES
PAUL , BUT THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL RAINBOW OF DIFFERENT SOUND , FROM A THIN TELE TO A FAT STRATO , A LUKE SOUND , A THINNER LES PAUL , A SWEET 335 , REALLY BEAUTIFUL SOUNDS!! FANTASTIC FINGERBOARD , PERFECT
FRETS , I'VE NO MORE WORDS TO DESCRIBE THIS PURPLE BEAUTY!!!ONLY THE
NECK OF MY REISSUE 59 GIBSON IS NOT IN THIS GUITAR ! BUT IS REALLY
FANTASTIC.

SIMPLY PERFECT !

IS THE UNIQUE PROBLEM OF THESE GUITARS. IN ITALY BRIAN MOORE IS NOT VERY FAMOUS AND THIS IS NOT A GOOD THING!

I'VE NEVER PROBLEM WITH MY BM.

I PLAY TOTO, YES , GARY MOORE , P. GABRIEL , AND SHE'S ALWAYS MY
WORK HORSE!!

This is a 95 Model, 24 Frets. All composite back with a Quilt Maple top. Has 1 Vol. 1 Tone w/coil cut by pulling tone knob up. This is a
2 humbucker model which are not that common. Most of the MC 1's are a Hum-single-hum configuration. It has a Wilkinson Trem combined with Sperzel Trim-Lok tuners (great feature). Pickups are Duncans, a Alnico II in the neck and a Jeff Beck in the Bridge. Sound Great.

I love the versatility this guitar has as far as sounds go. From clean to mean it covers the spectrum. The bidy is chambered so although it's fairly lightweight, it still produces a nice tight bottom end.

Fit & Finish are top notch, Patrick Cummings and the gang do a phenomenal job. Quality control is A-1.

Whether live or in the studio or reherasing in small situations the guitar is consistant. It's compsosite body back is a little different than natural tone woods, but once you get use to it, it's fine. Thus far the only problem I've had is the 5 way switch going out. I replaced that myself.

These guys are great to deal with. Anytime I drop an e-mail I get a response usally the same day as long as they are in the shop. If not it's the next business day. They handle phone calls promptly as effectively as well.

I've been playing over 20 years. I have some custom built guitars and a slew of Carvin's. If this were lost or stolen I would absolutely replace it. Great guitar. The only feature I would possibly add in the future is the Piezo option.

This MC/1 was made in 1994, with 24 frets. It has 3 pots (1 push-pull) and a 5-way PU selector switch controlling the signal to the stereo phone plug output. It has 3 pots and 2 toggle switch controlling the output to the Roland 13-pin output. There is a door on the back for a 9 v. battery to power the RMC pre-amp for the piezo bridge mounted Roland-ready. Brian Moore have changed this configuration because people thought it was too complicated. The PUs are in H/S/H configuration. Seymour Duncans. APH1 neck, APS1 middle and JB bridge.
The mag PUs are passive, while the piezo PUs require the internally mounted pre-amp.

The body is graphite composite with beautiful flamed maple top, stained red, with natural edge forming an attractive "binding." Neck is graphite composite with maple fretboard.

The bridge is a Wilkinson "Convertible" trem, which can be locked in place by rotating the trem bar. There is an adjustable plate to set up the locking, and an external adjustment for trem spring tension. There is no access to the string locking screws in the trem block, but I don't know why you would need it. Finish appears to be quite thick polyurethane, but I'm not sure. Tuners are Sperzel locking.

The neck is shape is one of the best things about this guitar, in my opinion, being about 0.05" wider and thicker throughout than the Korean Brian Moores. 25.5" scale. It is just very comfortable for me to play... more so than any other electric I've played.

I got it used, and it came with a hard case with Brian Moore plate on it, tools for all the adjustments, a satin blanket with BM logo.

I play fingerstyle blues and instrumentals mostly. My models are Ry Cooder and Snooks Eaglin, so if you see what they've got in common, that's my style. This thing can make a lot more sounds than I will ever use. It is very resonant, and I practice with it all the time without plugging in. I use an old Fender Bandmaster, Fender Sidekick Chorus, Roland VG-8, and Boss GT-6, and Big Muff Pi. It is quiet, although I've had problems with stereo cords (the piezo comes out one channel, and the mag/piezo mix comes out the other).

Because of the stiff neck and resonant body I'd say the natural tone is full, and not particularly bright. With the VG-8 you can make sounds like synths or like a mandolin or a banjo, and although some people gripe about digital, I like it. The question about how much variety in sound is available is kind of a joke for Roland-ready guitars. That said, most of the time I just play the mag PUs through a little amp, and I'm happy with that, getting nice clean sounds. The strat-like combinations of the neck-middle make a good blues tone with a little distortion.

I don't see how you could play this guitar with a pick without changing/limiting your playing style or giving up some of the sounds by lowering a pickup. The PUs are too close together, and you'll hit them. When I got it, the middle PU was lowered out of the way.

I got the guitar used. And had to work on it to get it the way I wanted. I very much doubt this was the responsibility of the factory. Now it's set up for me I think it's great. The routing looks OK, although if I was paying list, I'd expect better finishing at the bottom of the routing around the bridge, where it's visible.

I think this guitar has been gigging it's whole life. It has 4 noticiable chips out of the finish, and there is some pick wear that would probalby polish out. When I got it, the 13-pin connector had a bad socket, and to fix it, I had to replace the connector on it's circuit board. RMC was very helpful with this project. The plate securing the connector to the body of the guitar is held on with 4 wood screws, and they were all stripped, requiring filling the holes. I imagine the screws were stripped when a previous owner noticed his connector starting to fail. The connector was chosen by Roland, so it's not RMC's or BM's fault, but it is not reliable unless you are very careful with it (and is that reliability?). I very much doubt any 13-pin Roland system guitar can be considered reliable. The 13 pin cords are very expensive and the jacks on them are cheap, too, making for an iffy situation if you want to play out with the VG system.

The earlier owner had replaced the Convertable trem arm (which locks) with a standard Wilk trem arm, so I guess he didn't like the locking feature, or he maybe had trouble keeping it adjusted.

I'm giving an 8, but it's probably as good as you can do with a guitar this complex.

The company has been great!! I got a replacement Wilkinson Convertible trem arm from them, learned the history of the guitar, and so on. I've e-mailed and phoned, and everyone I talked to was friendly and helpful, and I can't say enough about the personal service. This is really unusual these days, and deserves recognition. It's the main reason I'm submitting the review.

I've been playing for 40 years. I have a 60s D-28, a 70s SG-STD, and a 2001 Brian Moore iGuitar, along with the above-mentioned amps and effects, and several other non-guitar instruments. If this were stolen or lost, I doubt I could afford to replace it unless I could find a similar deal on a used one, even though I think the world of the company, and like the idea of graphite bombproofness.

I love the neck, hate nothing, but if I were specifying things I think I'd loose the humbuckers for single-coils or single-coil size buckers just so I could use a pick if I wanted. My favorite feature is the Roland 13-pin system, which is a lot of fun.

US handmade, ~ 1996
24 Frets
Solid Top, quilted maple
Chamber body with mahogany block and composite shell
Hum/Single/Hum with 5 way switch and pull pot
Duncan pickups
Wilkinson locking trem

This guitar is extremely versatile. It has the choice of humbucking and single coil sounds, although is definitely not a Strat sound. The composite body and combination of wood block with sound chambers give it incredible sustain and eveness of tone.

The guitar was finished and set up to perfection

Seems like an extremely high quality instrument that should last for many years

Company was a pleasure to deal with during pre-sales. I had the guitar sent back to the factory to have the RMC 13 pin Piezo system installed and the service was excellent when I asked questions about the installation and time frame.

Have been playing guitar for 25 years and owned and played many different guitars, amps and effects. This guitar represents the next level of evolution beyond the standard approaches to electric guitar. I highly recommend it and the only downside is the high price.

My MC/1 was custom-made to my detailed specs back in '97. I talked with Pat Cummings, the President of Brian Moore Guitars, over several months making sure the guitar was set up exactly the way I wanted it to be. My MC/1 has an unbelievable "12-top" quilted maple in black cherry (dark red or burgundy-like color) with ebony fingerboard. As you know, the MC/1 is essentially a composite material guitar with woods used in strategic areas to add harmonic depth and warmth. I personally love the feel of the MC/1 but could understand why a lot of guitarists do not like the composite sound and feel. For me, it adds a lot of clarity and a tonal "purity" that you just can't get out of all-wood guitars. I also used to own a Steinberger, so I'm used to the sound of the composite guitars and their inherent benefits. It's not for most people, but for what I like to do, it's just great.

My MC/1 is tricked out to the max as far as sounds are concerned. It has an HSH pickup configuration that is extremely versatile. With the push-pull tone pot, you get 7 sounds that are all distinctive and quite useful. From a hot-rodded over-the-top lead sound to a warm jazzy neck pickup sound to a twangy Tele sound to a glassy funky rhythm sound, the MC/1 can pretty much deliver it all. I've also got the RMC piezos on the Wilkinson bridge. The piezo sounds can only be routed out through a stereo Y cable to a separte acoustic amp or PA, but the sound is definitely usabe -- especially when combined with the magnetic sounds. On its own, the piezo sounds a little too shrill with that pingy character which can be annoying.

The Duncan pickups are a JB in the bridge, an Alnico II Pro single-coil in the middle and an Alnico II Pro humbucker in the neck position. Of all the pickup configurations I've tried, this is the most versatile and toneful. Combining the piezo sounds with the split single-coil modes provide some wonderfully lush clean rhythm tones.

The capper on my MC/1 is the Roland-compatible 13-pin output. It's really low profile and adds an infinite number of tonal options to the guitar. I use the Roland VG-8 and the GR-30 Guitar Synth with the RMC hex driver and it tracks extremely well. The best thing is not having to add that hideous GK-2A contraption on a guitar.

Acoustically, the MC/1 has its own character that is difficult to describe. It is certainly a bright guitar, but I've played brighter ones and own a Parker Fly Artist, which is certainly brighter than the MC/1. The guitar is essentially a one-piece (neck-thru-body) composite molded design with wood "toppings". The body is actually hollow with a swamp ash block of wood in the middle. So the sides are actually hollow, adding some acoustic warmth. The figured maple top and the ebony fingerboard adds some wood warmth, but even these are bright woods, so you're dealing with a bright, brilliant guitar with powerful and focused fundamental notes. It's ideal for high-speed fusion-type of playing with high-gain distortion. Think Holdsworth, Shawn Lane, Scott Henderson, Buckethead kind of playing...

In terms of features, this one is hard to beat. I had the knobs and the switches laid out like a Strat: one volume for the magnetic pickups really close to the bridge pickup, one push-pull tone knob that's not wired to the bridge pickup, and a volume knob for the piezo output. Then right below there is a black volume knob for the synth output and a mini-toggle to control some functions on the Roland synths. That's a lot of stuff on one guitar, but it doesn't look too tricked out or anything like that. It actually looks very clean and pleasing to the eyes.

The only thing that has disappointed me about this guitar is that the tremolo system doesn't stay in tune very well when it's used hard. Even though it has Sperzel locking tuners and a graphite nut, it just doesn't stay in tune very well when the tremolo is used with a moderate amount of force. The G string always goes shar

Well, I already described most of the sounds on the features section. I play all kinds of musical style and this one can cover any style I throw at it, but the MC/1 excels in a high-speed fusion kind of setting. This guitar is like a Ferrari or a Lamborghini that needs to be on the Autobahn. This is not the guitar you want to play to play some down-home blues on a dirt country road.

I have a bunch of other great guitars: a Parker Fly Artist, a PRS Custom 22, an Ibanez JS1000, Fender Jeff Beck Signature Strat, and a Fender American Deluxe Strat. But the MC/1 remains my favorite. It plays so easy and it's got the sound and feel that I like for the kind of stuff I like to play most of the time.

As for the amp, I'm using the new Hughes & Kettner zenTera now and it's awesome. As for the effects, I'm using the Fulltone Clyde wah-wah, the Fulltone Ultimate Octave and the Digitech Whammy pedal. I plan to add some more Fulltone stuff like the new Distortion Pro and the Choralflange pedals.

This guitar has a very full range of usable sounds. It almost seems to change character with the different pickup settings. As I mentioned before, the guitar has a fairly bright but "pure" uncolored character which can easily be shaped further by the amp.

Whether it's over-the-top shred, nu-metal, jazz, funk, country, or classic rock, the MC/1 can come up with some great convincing sounds, especially when coupled with a versatile amp like the H&K zenTera.

This is an ultra high-end guitar, so it goes without saying that fit and finish is excellent. The set-up, though, is where the MC/1 really excels. I set the action on this baby to 2/64" at the 12th fret. That is damn low action! And I play with a touch that's not all that light. The string bends are clean throughout the entire range and there's nary a buzz anywhere even with a pretty good attack. No other guitar has been able to approach the MC/1 in that regard. The Parker Fly Artist needs to be at over 3/64" to play like the MC/1 without buzzing. The PRS and the Strats need to be at around 4/64" to play without buzzing with the same amount of pick attack I use.

The fret-dress job on the MC/1 is just stupendous. The MC/1 has the Dunlop 6105 wires and I think this is the best in terms of both intonation and easy playability. It's also a high fret, so string bends are really easy as well.

Well, at $3800 (which I spent over 4 years ago), it'd better do all these things you are asking. I see now that the MC/1s are only produced on a limited basis by Brian Moore and they're like $8000 now! That's pretty absurd. I don't understand what they're doing. It seems they don't want to sell this guitar anymore. Even as much as I love this guitar, I'm not going to spend $8000~$9000 on a guitar! I'm going to have to get my MC/1 insured.

They're a very helpful, friendly bunch.

The MC/1 is, to me, the ultimate electric solid-body guitar. But that being said, the Parker Fly Artist and the PRS Custom 22 aren't far behind. And I still have Strats and an Ibanez JS1000, which I also love.

If this guitar got lost or stolen, I'll definitely replace with another exactly like it. In fact, since Brian Moore raised the price of the MC/1 so much the last several years, I'm going to insure it to match the new prices.

I do wish it had better tuning stability when the tremolo is used, but I wouldn't want a Floyd on this guitar. Overall, the MC/1 is one great guitar, but as I mentioned before, it's not for most people. But if you, like me, are the adventurous type who's into discovering new sounds and enjoy the benefits of technological advances, this guitar delivers and then some. I only rate it a 7 now because Brian Moore raised the price to $8000. If you could find a used one, by all means look into it. This is a special guitar.

This is a 1996 model, 24 frets, quilted maple top in transparent blue that actually has some amazing dark blue and black highlights, a beautiful instrument. The pickups are SD hotrails in the neck and middle and a SD humbucker at the bridge. It's outfitted with a Wilkinson piezo bridge with tremolo and has a five way strat style switch with a push/pull feature on the tone knob to give about 7 distinct sounds. It also has stereo out for the piezo and comes with a stereo cable. The case has a cool BM signiture blanket that rests on top of the guitar.

The more I play this guitar, the more I like it. It might not quite have the beefy Les Paul tone but it gets pretty close and I can make it sound pretty dark and throaty through my Line 6 set to the dual rectifier setting. It also has some strat-like tones, not quite as bright as my CS strat but clsoe again. All in all, it has a lot of distinctive voicing and I can get 7 pretty different sounds out of it, not counting the piezo.

The action is awesome, mine has an optional maple fretboard made of beautiful bird's eye maple. The neck is somewhre between a strat and a Les Paul Classic, fairly thin but not wimpy at all, I like it's feel a lot. I got the guitar used but the fit and finish were primo, excellent concern for detail, a true high-end guitar.

The guitar so far has only seen home play but I wouldn't hesitate to take it out, it feels really light and weak but in fact it's built very tough. Everything on it seems solid and built to last.

When I first got the guitar I emailed BMG for info on it and they were very responsive and helpful, telling me the year it was made and the options that were ordered. Very nice people.

I've been playing for about 30 years and over those years I've owned just about every guitar you could imagine. Right now I have 3 Les Pauls, a strat, an ES335TD, a PRS Custom 24 and a few others. This guitar is now one of my favorites, if it was stolen I would definitely get another one. The one thing I would do if I replaced it is get a true S-S-H configuration, I'm fairly happy with the hot rails but they have their limitations and to get a true strat-like sound it's always better to have real single coils than to split humbuckers.

An early model, I think '94. Neck-thru, with some graphite in there somewhere. Neck is not chunky, but not wimpy. 25.5" scale (strat scale). Quilted top, very nice (though my particular top is not as nice as some other Brian Moore's I've seen). Hum/Sing/Hum configuration. Position 1 ("up") is neck hummer. 2 is outer coil of neck hummer with center single coil pickup. Center position is outer coil of each hummer for quasi-tele vibe. Position 4 is inner coil of bridge hummer and center pickup; position 5 is bridge hummer. Interesting wiring. My pickups are Duncans, but the company will do just about anything if you buy one new (at nearly 4k retail, they better! Want fries with that??). Flawless setup, fit, finish. Wilkinson trem is way cool; the lock gizmo really works. Double stops, dropped d tuning, whatever, it stays in tune really well and you can still use the trem. When you let go of the bar, it slides down a cam as it falls to whatever position you preset, and the base of the arm slides into a little hole in the backplate which locks the whole thing into place. You *do* have to spend some time setting the guitar up (especially if you change string guages) to make sure that the bar is centered over the little hole when the trem is floating. So, you can have the advantages of a "locked" bridge and a floating trem at the same time. Locking sperzel tuners, ebony board. Their website lists features really well. Important! As with any Hum/Sing/Hum configuration with 24 frets, you may find that the middle pickup gets in the way when you try to play! Your pick *will* hit it. There's nowhere to go, and dramatically lowering the middle pickup kind of messes up the sound. However, the guitar is very hot, and lowering all the pickups a little still maintains a good overall output level.

I have lots of guitars and amps. My main axes include a PRS custom 24, a McCarty, a custom fender strat, a les paul standard, and a few others. This guitar, quality-wise, fits in well with other high-end boutique guitars in it's price range. The sound is *very* bright. The guitar has a tremendous amount of clarity, which I'm sure is due in part to the long scale, as well as the neck-thru design and the graphite in the neck. It's NOT what I'd call a "fat" sounding guitar (as compared to a LP or McCarty). There are those who might describe it as a little thin; I just see it as tremendous clarity and string balance. However, I've found that in order to get a nice creamy fat sound, I have to set up my amp rig in such a way that my LP will be overly heavy and my strat not bright enough. If it's the main or only guitar, this is no problem. If you switch around a lot onstage like I do, it's best to use this guitar for situations where the extra clarity is needed (in other words, don't use it as a paul or strat if you have those onstage). I've found that it's great for songs where I use a somewhat high gain and some flange or chorus, and I need to alternate between arpeggios or plucked notes and hitting huge chords; it's got the clarity for the individual notes to jump out even at high gain. I'm an only guitarist and often find myself covering (faking) two parts at once; hit a power chord, hold part of it, and overlay some arpeggiation or a run. It's sort of a niche for this guitar. The middle "tele" setting very bright and is useful for such passages. Both "strat" positions (2 and 4) are *much* brighter and a tad thinner than the same positions on a strat; they'll make your ears bleed and are also good for this sort of thing. No reason you can't play Stevie Ray with these positions, but the sound will be more like razor blades than a nice fat rusty texas switchblade. The hummer settings are nice, but clearer and a little thinner than a LP (think PRS custom 24 here). Sustain is very good. Overall, a very nice sounding axe, but it has sort of a bright and clear personality (as opposed to heavy and obese) which has to be worked with to some degree.

Very nice setup and feel. Extremely stable neck. I'm becoming partial to a chunkier neck as I age, but this one isn't wimpy; it's sort of middle of the road. Medium jumbo frets are OK.

So far so good. Nice strap buttons, stable neck, great tuning stability. Interesting output jack position (back of guitar, indented and slanted like a strat, higher than the strap button, so your cord comes out right over your strap).

I've emailed them and they're very responsive.

I've been playing over 30 years, and have a boatload of high-end stuff. I bought this guitar on a bit of a whim (and the price was right; I don't think I've ever seen one this cheap). BMC guitars has built a very unique instrument, and it's certainly a high-end ferrari type deal. It's got it's own voice and personality, and it's *not* something that can be compared to a strat or a paul or even a PRS. I think the basic instrument has a tremendous amount of string-to-string clarity, and that the tones available will vary based on the pickup configuration. It's an interesting guitar, and with the right rig could be an "only" guitar. It's versatile, and does a reasonable job with the hummer, tele, and strat bases covered. Of concern to those who need a really heavy or fat sound, it's very clear but not very fat (but then again, neither is a PRS 24). You can compensate for this with the right rig, but if you don't have the capability to have multiple patches, you may find that it's difficult to switch around between this and other guitars, because it's so bright. I think it would be important, as with any guitar at this price point, to play it thru your own rig and see if it's for you.

This piece of jewelry is made in the USA and has probably more features than any other guitar. The neck-thru design is made of different kinds of wood and ash and has a wonderful sustain. If you buy a new one, you can choose the hardware, top, color, type of fingerboard-wood etc, bridge, passive/active pickups etc. Standard the guitar has a 24 fret neck, sperzel tuners, wilkinson tremolo with an awesome fisman piezo option. And check this out: It also actually has an MIDI-out option. The shape of the guitar will definately blow your mind, you can hardly compare it with anything else I guess, closest I can think of is a Paul Reed Smith model, but way different, I am quite picky when it comes to shapes, I have 8 other guitars but simply none of them look as good as this one. I bought mine second handed, it has an wilkinson piezo tremolo, ebony fingerboard and a quilted maple top. It has 2 seymour duncan humbuckers and 1 single-coil pickup in the middle, passive electronics, 25.5" scale dunlop frets 15" radius neck. It also came with a nice case which is pretty heavy though, since the guitar is quite light-weighted, some tuning tools, and a satin sheet in the case.

I'm into funk, rock, jazz, fusion music (at the moment) and it really does everything extremely well, since the neck is not-too-thin-and-not too-thick, it has a good balance between flexibility and grip. I like to play it on my Tech 21 amp, which lets you hear every fibre of the guitar, also sounds great on Mesa and Fender tube amps. The sound is very rich, but there are so many ways to circuit your pickups I can't really discribe it. It has more than a lot of sustain and sounds quite bright(again, depending on the pickup.) The piezo tremolo (which is an tremolo with built-in minipickups in every saddle) really gives extraordinary steel-guitar like sound, the output jack is in stereo, one channel for the pickups and one for the piezo, it has an separate volume knob for the piezo so you can easily mix the piezo with the pickups, which ofcourse again really has a great variety of sounds. You can play rock with it, country, jazz, funk, metal etc. The thing really keeping it from making it the 'perfect' guitar is the 'honk' type of sound with it. On my tech-21, and fender-amp I get a good 'honk' but not like a strat.
Bottom line: If you look at the specs of the guitar you'll know that it sounds absolutely awesome and natural, it has an almost ridiculous variety of sounds in it.

I don't know about factory setup, but my guitar also came with a checklist of the guitar. About 50 things have been checked. Intonation, pickup height, scraches etc. Altough it wasn't a new one everything looked brand-new, and the guitar was in perfect shape exept for the tremolo but read that later.

This guitar costs a LOT, but that wasn't a bit suprise for you anyway, thats why you don't want the guitar in a bar playing a gig. But the guitar can handle quite a lot of tortures, It has some transparent kind of protection quilted around the whole guitar like it's the NightRider. So I guess it will last for a very long time. I've been playing on if for about 1 and a half years now but really didn't notice ANY wearing off. Frets, tremolo, buttons still look like I bought the guitar yesterday. I guess you can use it on a gig without backup.

When I got the guitar which my strings kept on braking. Polishing didn't help so I contacted Brian Moore via their website and they simply said I should send the tremolo to them and they'll have it replaced. So said so I've done, within three weeks(!)(I live in the Netherlands) they have sent me a brand new tremolo back. The only thing I had to pay for was a one way ticket for the tremolo. This and the friendly email support really again blew my mind. The warranty on the guitar is 5 years.

I've been playing on it for about 1 and a half years now and I don't play on my other guitar so much anymore. Maybe I wouldn't have bought it used if I knew then it was fully customizable but than I would have paid double the price. What I love about it is the looks and the playability. What I hate about it is that I didn't have any money left to get myself a decent meal. I don't think I have seen any better guitar than this one, exept a nice old fender-strat/telecaster sounding that I also really like sometimes. I can't think of anything this guitar can have more. This guitar simply Rules.