D'Aquisto DQ-CRE Centura Electric

This is a replica of the very few compact electric guitars Jimmy D'Aquisto made before his untimely death. It is built by Aria in Japan and seems likely that it is a prestige instrument from their custom shop. I got a great deal on this new (2006) instrument because the US distributor is changing and they were selling out remaining stock.

As the other ratings show, this is a mahogany body with a spruce top. The neck is flamey maple; fingerboard, bridge and tailpiece are ebony, as is the headstock overlay. Even the truss rod cover and tuner keys are ebony. The vol/tone knobs are black, but not wood. The body is nearly hollow; it has structure below the pickup and bridge but there's a lot of open space inside. The top is actually thick layers of spruce; it's not contour carved on the inside. Still, it rings hollow and there's enough volume to practice acoustically.

The Gotoh tuners are certainly the best I've used - and I have been playing for forty years.

Single humbucker at the neck, under a plain black plastic cover - it's just a generic HB inside.

The D'Aquisto all wood bridge/saddle design (with the "popsicle stick") is lovely; it doesn't have much range of adjustment though. More follows...

Material quality pretty good (caveats below) and I'm very happy at the price I paid; would be concerned at the original list price.

The instrument is very compact, light in weight, and has a lively acoustic sound. With the original pickup, the plugged-in tone was harsh and thin. I anticipated having to replace the P/U, so I was ready.

I happened to have a 35 year old Gibson HB around; it went in first. Like I said, it's just a regular pickup under the plastic cover. The tone with the Gibson P/U was just as you would expect - like syrup. Quite suitable for archtop jazz styles.

The tone control was practically useless; I determined it is a linear pot and when I changed to an audio taper pot, it became functional.

The pickup I currently have in the Centura is, believe it or not, a Lace Alumitone! Yeah, I was intrigued by that pickup design and it works great in this guitar. More frequency response than the Gibson, yet still has strong low end.

Other things: had to replace the output jack right away as it was cutting out. I made a control cover plate out of aluminum and red tortoise just to look better than the black plastic. There is no shielding at all in the cavity and I may attend to that later.

I'll rate this category somewhat lower for the original electronics. If you get a Centura electric, plan on doing some work to make this guitar what it should be.

The fret, neck and nut work from the factory were fine; I work on my own stuff and made just minor refinements.

The mahogany back has a mineral grain line running from the tail to the strap pin and I thought it was cracked clear through! Man, I panicked when I took it out of the case the first time. Upon close inspection, I realized it was just a dark line, but it was not reflected in the bookmatch, so I got thrown off. The figure in the maple neck is more prominent on the bottom side (away from the player) but that's just the luck of what you get when the carving is done. As I said, at the price I paid, I'm happy - if I'd paid list, I would be disappointed.

The bridge was a new experience for me. How many people get to work with these bridges? To get the "stick" centered and not looking like it was set too far to one side, I had to mill the bridge slot and take material off the saddle to set the action lower. I didn't want to thin the stick any; it's the weakest part. After I got in the ballpark (and it was way off from the factory) the range of adjustment is very little. The old adjuster posts that are normally found on archtop bridges may be more versatile. But the D'A design is like an artist's sculpture.

This guitar replaced my custom archtop for jazz gigs; it's just so small and easy to carry. The sound is great (now) and just about versatile enough for the several styles I play.

The only item of concern is the output jack - a thick wall jack for acoustic guitars. The original one wouldn't hold the plug at all and the replacement I put in isn't much better (function of the internal design I suppose). I have to run the cable through the strap to support it.

I was happy with the dealer I got this from, but I don't think D'Aquisto in the USA will be any use. They barely have a web site for this line of guitars and I wouldn't want to pursue them for warranty work. I'll leave this rating at No Opinion because I just don't know.

I've been at this forty years. I play acoustic instruments (mandolins, banjos) and electric bass too. I'm really into fingerstyle jazz and have had this D'Aquisto electric on my wish list for years. When the distributor started clearing them out, they suddenly became available at conceivable prices. Still, I'm selling a Gibson archtop to afford this.

The one thing I would prefer is a longer scale length (it's 24 3/4) but that's a whole 'nother design issue.

I'm glad I finally got one of these. I don't think it's worth three grand, or whatever they were, because of various flaws. The electronics definitely have to be attended to. Now that mine is "tweaked", I'm really enjoying it.

Just a followup note, since I have submitted the previous review. I have swapped out the original electronics, that by most standards was of inferior quality. I put in quality CTS pots for volume and tone and now the tone can be rolled off gradually and a wide range of tones can be dialed in. I took out the cheesy original pickup with a stunning Bennedetto B-6. The tonal difference is like night and night, in comoarison to before the mods. Now the guitar sounds something like a 16" archtop with the tone fully "open" or you can get a Martino sound with the tone rolled off. I have it strung with D'Addario 13's. I am very satisfied. Like a lot of Asian-made instruments, the electronics seem to be an afterthought, but the craftsmanship is excellent. I reccommend doing this mod if you purchase the CRE. It's worth it because it's such a unique and beautiful instrument.

http://www.ariaguitars.com/int/03_products/pro_ob_dq_cre.html

The sound of this guitar is bright and cuts through the mix very strongly. There is some woodyness to the sound that comes through more at higher volumes, as the guitar resonates more. I have used this with a polytone Teeny Brute and a Fender Deluxe, and it sounds great through both. If your're looking for a kind of clean Pat Martino sound this guitar is for you. If you are looking for more of a Kenny Burrell sound this isn't for you. I agree with the previous reviewer in that the tone control sucks, but I generally don't mess with the tone on the guitar - only on the amp.

Superb craftsmanship from the Aria "custom shop". The "Cherryburst" was done well and gradates smoothly. The woods and bindings are tight and flawless as far as I can tell. The frets and Ebony fretboard are excellent and finished well. The only flaw in workmanship that I can tell is a kind of sloppy solder job of the ground wire to the brass in the tailpiece, and one of the dot markers on the 12 fret is a little off kilter. Very minor items.

The CRE seems very solid (although it's a hollowbody) and can withstand the rigors of all sorts of live playing situations, which is part of the reason I got it. I wanted a guitar that could cut thru the mix, sound Jazzy, be highly resistant to feedback. The other big advantage is it's very manageable size, weight and thin profile.

I probably would deal with Aria directly, I would just have the dealer try to sort out any problems.

A big traditional Jazzbox this is not, nor does it sound like one. The sound is much more bold and modern. Many Jazzers like the tone and playability of the Tele. I actually use a mid 60's Harmony Stratotone (a single coil semihollow body) and my satisfaction with that style of guitar inspired me to purchase this. Depending on your amp settings you can get a wide array of sounds, much greater, I think than a typical Jazzbox.

this is an addendum to my previous review. there are two things i'd like to ad;

first of all, i'd like to have the coils on the pickup split and install a push/pull knob on the volume to add a bit more versatility to the guitar. i'll let you know how that goes. secondly, my one complaint is that the tone control does not work very well. it basicall sounds the same and then suddenly drops off at the low end as you turn down. i'll have a new tone control installed and experiment untill i'm happy, but a guitar at this price should not have this problem.

This is a pretty simple guitar. It is manufactured by the Aria company in Japan. As far as I can tell, they purchased the D'aquisto name and manufacture guitars featuring some of his design components and specs. These guitars are built in a custom shop in japan. I believe several other brands are made there, including at least some of the Vestax D'angelico guitars. This guitar is a semi-hollow, single cutaway guitar that has no parallel in the original D'aquisto catalogue, but features some of his design, innovations, most notably the Acutone bridge. Here are the specs;

Body : 14? width Semi-hollow, with flame maple multiple binding
Top : Spruce, carved
Back : Mahogany, hollow construction
Neck : Maple
Fretboard : Ebony with Flamed maple binding
Frets : 22F, #213
Scale : 24 5/8"
Pickups : 1 x Original Covered Humbucker
Controls : 1 x Volume, 1 x Tone
Bridge : Ebony, "Acutone" height adjustable
Tailpiece : Ebony
Machineheads : Gotoh SG30 with Ebony Keys

I ordered mine from The Musicians General Store in Brooklyn, NY, near where I live with a Natural finish. It comes with a case and a truss rod adjuster. I am currently playing it with round wound 11's. The neck is a nice medium round.

This guitar sounds fantastic. It has a very clear, natural clean sound, somewhat bright, with nice acoustic qualities. You can really hear the hollowness and woodiness of the instrument. I am currently running it through a reissue Tube Screamer and a reissue 65' Fender Deluxe Reverb. A friend of mine noticed at a gig that it really growls when I dig in, but smooths out nicely when I back off a bit. He was impressed and so was I. It was the first gig I had played with it.

This guitar was finished very well. The finish is clear and thin with no flaws. The set-up was fine, allthough I adjusted it as I always do when I get a new guitar. I've tried several string guages and types, and have settled on roundwound 11's. Ive tried flatwound, semi flatwound, 12's and 13's as well. The truss rod and action are easily adjusted, and I intonate using my Peterson Strobo-Stomp.

I've had this guitar only a few months, but I can't forsee any problems.

I bought this guitar from a dealer, and I hope they will be accountable, allthough I have no idea what to expect if I run into a warranty issue. Aria and the D'aquisto brand have been hard to find, but they do have a website and an oulet in New Jersey.

I love this guitar. It plays and sounds fantastic, and so far has been reliable. I have owned many guitars over the years, and this is a top quality instrument. I would definitely buy another if it were lost or stolen. It is a beautiful guitar and I love it's simplicity, but I may have the coils split and use a push/pull knob.

The guitar is incredibly thin and light, which I love. I can stand and practice for hours with no back trouble, and it is really comfortable.

This guitar replaces a 1979 Gibson ES Artist that I had taken all the active electronics out of. That was a fine guitar, but this one is much better on all levels, except possibly resale value, but I am not a collector.