DeArmond M-75T

Korean Made from Agathis (a kind of Conifer that has straight grained wood not unlike Mahogany in colour and texture - see Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agathis)

Gloss black finish in lacquer not Nitro, very nicely finished indeed no overspray or poorly finished areas. 24 3/4 inch scale and wide shallow neck with Guild/Gibson dimensions and string spacing.

Rosewood fretboard showing signs of where the savings were made, irregular colour and surface. Well fretted and finished, I bought used so the frets may have had a work over at some stage, I think so.

2 Single coil pickups made in the USA by DeArmond/Guild/Fender to original specs, some modern manufacturing but essentially the pickups that mad e DeArmond's name and the Sound of country and Rock 'n Roll in the 50's. 2 Volume 2 tone, USA electrics and hardware with the exception of Tuners & Bridge. Tuners are OK and keep tune, feel a little vague like Grovers, but do the job. Bridge is really the main giveaway that this is not a premium USA made guitar, it is cheap, badly finished and does not really work at all well with the 'Digsby'. It tends to rock on flimsy mounting posts rather than allow the strings to pass over it. I replaced this with a Wilkinson Roller unit, viola!

All you need for country, country rock. Petty, Beatles and blues. Also benefits by not being a replica Les Paul shape so has a style of it's own.

Just wonderful sound at the money and pretty good at 3 times the price! I could not fault it for the music I like to play once I sorted out the trable bleed. guild chose an odd wiring regime for this guitar, it has trteble bleed but not enough for my taste, i set it up like a Guild Blues 90 and it now performs perfectly for my taste, retaining treble right through the volume range. Has a bright sound, near to Gretsch but lighter and more sustain, jangles, cuts through and has a very good balance across the strings. This can be adjusted with the pole piece screws which actively raise or lower each one. Brilliant pickups worth the price of the guitar.

Great finish, action needed setting up, nut had to be cut, bridge replaced, intonation etc.

Great playing right up the neck, has less access to the upper frets than a 335 (my other guitar)

OK so far, feels like a quality instrument

Good info on the DeArmond site even thought they are discontinued

Playing electric only 10 years after 20 years playing acoustic, love this instrument through the clean channel on my Rivera M60, dirtys up nicely and will go right along the spectrum to Santana if you want. I have had a few electrics in a short time including a Les Paul Special (too heavy and not so special) '74 Tele (poorly put together) Tokai ES 130 brilliant guitar at any money. I would buy another and may anyway just to have a spare, these are amazing - but change the bridge.

this is blue sparkle, bigsby style tremolo, les paul shape I think... I dont know much about the tech side of it though.

it can be quite bassy, I play droney rock and some heavier feedback sounds, as well as more athmospheric stuff, seems to suit it all.

Amp: Line6 Spider II with foot control and programmed efx.
Efx: Boss me-6, Danelectro Fab Tone, line6 dm4, line6 fm4.

It's a very heavy guitar, hard on your back after a while.

If you go too mental on the tremolo it the spring can catch, or as happened once, fall out of it's housing while on stage, mind you I was swing it about by the whammy bar at the time, and it survived.

I never really change anything, so it's still pretty much factory...

I abuse it, drop it on stage, ram it against mic stands and amps...
I snapped the pick-up selector off, but thats hardly a design fault...

I never gig without back-up as there is too much chance of snapping strings.

never needed to

I have it years and years.
this wipes the floor with most "name guitars", I'd go into mourning if anything happened to it.

Mine is like the others described, except it is a very classy sunburst. Didn't know the M75T came in sunburst. This is an M75T, and it's sunburst, so case closed. Heavy, solid instrument. Sort of like a 15% larger les paul. Rather wide neck, not too deep. I'm used to old strat and tele necks, on the thinner side, so this is a bit of a stretch. But not baseball bat like. Got this used but very lightly judging by the condition. The pots were crap. Felt and sounded nowhere. I could hear the promise in the pickups, but didn't really heard them fully until new pots went in, along with a treble bleed mod for the neck p/u volume. Neck had been dominant, and not quite enough edge even tone full up. That's all solved now. Also got it set up, as the frets are a bit square. It's not perfect, but much better. The love/hate feature on this is the "Digsby". In quality and operation, it is very much the real deal. But because of the neck set and high bridge height, there's quite a steep string angle down to the roller. I've raised the front of the vibrato up a bit. Helped, but still not perfect. Tuners hold tune, and with a little judicious nut, bridge lube, the vibrato works amazingly well. I sort of want to get rid of it to impreve playability, but am addicted to that sound.

I picked this up strictly on reputation. Have always disliked LPs, so wasn't sure how this would go. But when I tried it, the vibe was right. So what the hell. Get it home to realize these pickups are truely something special. They look like the RI Gretsch Doujet p/us, but are not the same. Hot, but not that hot. P90ish in some ways. Smoother, less bite. I was already impressed when I tuned to open and played some slide. WHAMMO!! I'm always playing slide, lap steel too. This thing has that rarest of guitar benefits, a distinctive, HUGE sound with the slide. Sounds more like a lap steel than anything else. Ixcept I play lots of rhythm and lead w/o the slide. Up loud on stage, this thing crunches, snarls, soars. Reminds me sometimes of my Rickenbacker lap steel. Gets an edge up real loud I can't quite describe. Remarkable sound for short money, for any money. I'm going to have it refretted. Sounds so good I'm willing to outspend the original purchase price to get it even more playable.

Other than the pots, seems completely solid. even the dipped finish is not offensive. It looks so beautiful, heavy and stong enough to knock down a wall if that becomes necessary.

It's durable like a large rock is durable. This is no delicate instrument.

Forget it.

Many decades playing, running old strat, 335, newer G&L ASAT Classic through many different tube amps. I like old tones, the pre-high gain sound of single coils (mostly) cooking tubes. This guitar is really not comparable to any others I've tried. It's my go to slide guitar, along with the G&L, which on any given night may still be my favorite for open tuning work. I wish it were a little lighter. I wish it played a little easier. I wish it had more recess on the p/us, to allow a shallower neck angle, to make the Bigshy work not as hard ... screw it, that's idiotic. This is the best 350 I've spent in years, a wonderful sounding guitar.

DeArmond M-75T in champange sparkle and those cool single coil USA DeArmond pick ups.

The pick ups are awesome.

The guitar is very heavy. Frets are excellent, plays very well, neck shape is very comfortable, whammy is good when used in moderation. The tuners were the worst part of this guitar. I changed them out with Spertzel lockings and now it's fine. This guitar is a bargain! I can't begin to say how wonderful the pick ups sound.

Extreme bargain. Single coil DeArmonds are unbelievable!

I've got a champagne sparkle M75 T, or whatever, and it's simply a beautiful look. + cool points for the awesome wammy. It's got pretty simple features- tone and volume for both pickups, three way pickup selector, tuners are fine, everything works fine on this baby. The DeArmond pickups are the greatest feature which, of course, comes standard with this guitar. I have to stress again how beautiful that vibrato arm is though... and it works like magic, too. This thing is a BEAUTY

Okay okay done with the features, whatever, who cares about that. This is what you want to hear about- the SOUND! I play this baby through my Orange RK30 and she sings like an angel. I mostly play on the neck position, and sometimes in the middle position with the bridge pickup acting as a slight crunchy overtone. On the neck position, this angel is smooth as silk, with nice, lush, warm tones. Very full. Nothing I would've expected from any other guitar I picked up for three hundred bucks (plus case)

The bridge pickup is a bit too trebly for my taste, but it's got a lot of bite, if that's what you're looking for. usually when I use the bridge pickup, it's in the middle position, with the tone and volume turned a little bit down. That gives it the nice full tone of the neck pickup with a little bit of a kick underneath it. Either way, this thing sounds great. She's the best guitar I've found for the music I play- truly a magnificient find

I bought this guitar used, and I must say, there were a few minor problems with it. Namely- the screws are falling out on the input jack and the strap lock. Annoying, but with a bit of wood filler, not really a problem at all. Everything else with the guitar works beautifully, though. Haven't needed to alter a thing

Oh, everything on this guitar will last, I'm sure. It's nice and heavy and the hardware's all built fine. It doesn't go out of tune too quickly, even with the vibrato. That's real reliability. Everything about it is built to last

Never tried. Never had a problem

I've been playing guitar for almost a year now, bass for two years. I own three guitars and a bass, and a BEAUTIFUL Orange RK30 (I would also strongly reccomend this amp. it's wonderful)

this guitar though... it's my life. If you don't know, Benjamin Curtis of the Secret Machines uses this guitar- it's featured on the album art on Now Here is Nowhere. And man, if you don't trust what I have to say about this guitar, you can surely trust the Secret Machines. This guitar is not only beautiful and stylish, but she sings like a bird and will really carry through for you. If I lost this guitar or if it were stolen, you bet I would find another one. More likely, I would track down whoever took it and beat them to a pulp... but I would get it back, one way or another...

Anyway. This guitar- wonderful. Go out. Buy one. Love it and cherish it forever.

1999 or 2000 manufactured in ROK. champagne sparkle finish, Gretsch Silver Jet copy, with two DeArmond 2K pickups, 3-way pickup selector switch, (humbucking in middle position),individual volume and tone knobs, Bigsby-type vibrato arm, 22 frets, agathis body, rosewood fingerboard. Came with a gig bag.

I enjoy the all the unfiltered guitar sounds of the '50s through the '70s. This axe yields two of those classic tones -- Cliff Gallup, (in the middle p.u. selector position), and Pete Townsend's "Who's Next" tone in the bridge position. The harmonics the bridge p.u. emits are near Hiwatt-ish. Amazing! There is a 60 cycle hum present in the neck and bridge positions. I use this guitar with my Magnatone 260A or my BF TR. The pickups are sensitive. The position of your right hand and how you fret the strings makes a big difference.

Loose tuning pegs, loose jack, 2 stripped screw holes on the jack plate, a small excess of plastic around the screw holes where the pickguard attaches. Excellent body binding, a seamless glue-in neck/body joint. Not bad for a $300 guitar. The Bigsby appears to stay in tune reasonably well.

I will find out how it stands up to live playing tonight, as it stands in for my Strat. This guitar, like its stepfather, the Gretsch Silver Jet, isn't made to be thrown around. The plastic top could crack if dropped.

N/A

21 years playing geetar. I chose it because I wanted the sound of DeArmonds without paying $1500 or more. It sounds more like a '50s Gretsch than the reissues do.

No idea of the year, around 1990 I'd guess. Korean made LP type body with a set neck, 2 s/c De Armond P/Us. 2 tones, 2 volumes 3-way P/U selector a Bigsby style tailpiece, a tune-o-matic bridge, a silver sparkle finish.
Fairly generic neck & tuners.

Suits me fine, clean pop/rock/ blues with an added wobble from the Bigsby.

Probably not your 1st choice for heavy rock or metal!!

Well really no problems. I own a PRS goldtop and I can't honestly say that's built or finished any better!

It seems solid enough. Not gigged it yet, but it does NOT feel flimsy

I guess it's down to the local repairman since Fender no loger acknowledge this brand ( some say it was just TOO high quality!!(

Buy one from SouthPaw guitars while you still can. It's basically a better version of a Gretsch Sparklejet with better build quality for 1/3 of the price!!!

les paul style body, 2 DeArmond single coil pu's.. bigsby, mine is the silver sparkle.... the most stunning looking guitar ive ever seen i believe. the finish is unreal.

i play powerpoprock ala cheaptrick/big star/The La's(remember lee mavers or there she goes???) duh.. i play it thru a hot rod deluxe but hope to upgrade soon to an Orange AD-30r. The hot rod is an ok amp for the money... Very good standard tube amp but this thing would just sing thru a 30 watt Class A rig. makes a lil noise but come on, single coils!! duh! THE SOUND of this guitar is simply unreal! the bridge pickup is twangy/growly/and CHIME!! the neck is jangly as all hell and FAT.... its strange... if u strum the neck, u get chime and nashville... if u pick, u get chicago PHATASS blues haha. Mixing the pickups is the best feature though... just imagine the 2 pickups mentioned with the characteristics mentioned and blending what u want... PLUS the option of mixing the tone knobs... this is a chimey rock machine... TO HELL WITH YOUR GIBSON HUMBUCKER MUD!!! this thing cost under 400 bux and sounds so damn much better than any gibson ive ever played... honestly. Had some tuning problems early on but i got it set up and put some new strings on and boom..... sings just fine! GRETSCH plus TELE plus RICKENBACKER eqauls the m75t!

bought it on ebay so when i got it, it was sorta messed and didnt stay in tune but i installed a graphite nut and now it plays SUPER well.... pickups were adjusted perfectly but it DOESNT MATTER IF THEIR NOT because u can adjust the damn pole pieces with a screwdriver in like seconds!!! TRY THAT WITH A GIBSON, rich boy!! the finish is unreal... so perfect and just downright stunning to the eye.... SUPER FAST NECK! plays super easy.

this guitar is SOLID as a rock with pretty descent hardware... i may put new tuners on in time though... This thing is built to last and i put my faith in it . i mean.... its as solid as a gibson or any other rich man's guitar.

never had to deal with Dearmond or Guild.

along with an artcore ibanez, fender standard tele, its BY FAR my favorite! If i lost it or some lucky bastard ripped it off from me, i'd cut him and then i'd go get 2 more hah. This thing is just an all around GREAT guitar for rock and roll.... ballsy midrange growling twangy chime!! can sound DEEEP or it can cut your head off! AND A BIGSBY?!?!!? CANT BEAT IT! The only other guitar i need now is a cheap 12 string elec. maybe a daisyrock or dano... other than that, this thing kinda seals the option for buying another 6 st. elec. ITS THE ULTIMATE....NOT FOR METAL HEADS, although, it could do it... but.... CMON! get some soul!

Don't know year of manufacture. Bought it at Music Live at the NEC in 2000. It was as new, with the film still on the pickguard and controls. Tempted by the retro looks and the USA pickups. See other reviews for construction, etc. Mine is the vintage sunburst flavour.

It suited what I expected of it at the time. I was playing rock&roll at the time and wanted a Gretsch without the price tag. I use it with a blues deville 2 x 12 and it sounds just great. I also use it for recording, thro the effects you can get some nice tele/gretsch sounds. the neck pickup is quite warm and dark. lovely for blues.
Its quite heavy to stand with, and upper neck access is not so easy as the tele or the strat. nice sitting down guitar tho.

Guitar had been wrongly strung with strings over rather than under the bar on the trem. action was a bit high and when I tried to lower it there were some buzzy frets. so out with the stone and the emery cloth. also cut the nut in a bit while I was at it. The result? a brilliant low action. loads of sustain and even response across the strings on all pickup settings. Had to tweak the back pickup cos the D was a bit quiet. its OK now. I don't have any hardware problems. The build quality is excellent. Maple top is nice but join is not central. Minor gripe really. Rating applies to guitar as it is now.

Have used it on stage a few times but I always take 2 Strats. they're my main tools. As I said already the hardware sems ok, pots are amooth to operate, strap buttons seem secure enough.(they work loose on my red strat tho.)The finish looks thick and well applied so should stand up to gigging. I never gig without a backup but I've used the DeArmond alone in rehearsals many times and it hasn't let me down.

Don't know how long warranty is. Tend to do any adjustments myself, or if there are electrical problems I have a friend who sorts them out. It wouldn't cross my mind to contact manufacturers unless dedicated new parts were involved.

I've been playing 40 years. I have USA 1991 Strat, Jap 60's Strat 1991, Mexican Tele 1996, Fender Blues Deville 2x12, Fender Bronco Amp for practise. Zoom effects. Various acoustics, Peavey Foundation Bass. I'd read the reviews on the DeArmond so I knew what I was looking for. If it were stolen or lost I would try and replace it with another. Might not be that easy though. I love the action and the nice mellow woody warm sound. I don't like the weight, it hurts my back after standing with it for a while. the top frets are a bit awkward. But I'm a Strat man, so anything else.... My favourite feature is the retro looks. There's nothing else like it at the price. There's Epiphones but they aren't in the same league. It doesn't need any other features. it does what it says on the can.

2 DeArmond pickups, solid black front and sides, although
in bright sunlight, some wood grain on the back is visible.
22 fret neck,tremolo bar.

mellow jazzy tone with neck pickup, lots of blasting crunch for the bridge pickup

not a flaw anywhere, great action, sound quality, tone. i've never adjusted anything on this baby and i'm a mechanic by trade, so i play with everything on most guitars

this instrument is exceptional. i rarely even need to tune this guitar. unlike my Epiphone Les Paul which i tune every ten minutes, or my Strat which i retune every 4 or 5 songs, this baby just stays in tune,,, and i use the tremelo alot.

no support needed.

i've played stringed instruments for over 40 yrs. this is the best guitar i've ever owned. i kiss it everytime i take it out of the case and also when i put it back into the case. that's how much i love it. it responds. other DeArmonds in stores are $500-$750, and that's their asking prices. i own ten instruments presently and this is my favorite.