Duesenberg Starplayer TV

First of all I would rather play than talk but I have to let you know:
With its retro and Humbucker in bridge and p90 in neck this guitar is what its all about. Semi hollowbody makes it fun pluged in and through my Elmwood. I am a gear nut and would not trade for anything but same model in white love that white one.. was not avail when I purchased..only neg I have is the frets are smaller than expected. they said jumbo they are not jumbo but didnt matter Wow what a guitar.

I play with as little effects as possible. Either my original 1965 super reverb or my Elmwood m60 it all sounds good with this guitar. I am a strat guy really but wanted a les paul type guitar but didnt want the same old LP so I ended up with the Duesy. You have to try one of these guitars because they have a sound of there own. The case is nice but not road worthy kind of flemsy and the frets are not big enough for me but I can work around that. Through the M90 its a monster tune down to drop D and watch out its crazy over the top. Stop reading about it go try one.

Set up was great.Action super low to low for me had to bring it up. no flaws and the wood is dry super dry and that makes it sound so much better than green wood...watch out for green wood strat lover..

Dependabilty is to hard to tell. I dont think I would beat on it to much but normal playing to record or to play out is excellant...No pete t Jimi fires..

Very good have talked to the owner many times...A little full of himself but other than that a good guy who loves music and the business and wants to make you happy. I wrote him about an extra pickguard with no response didnt like that much so I give it a 9.

If I lost it I would buy another but in white. I have said enough go try and you will buy. If you like Les Pauls through a Marshall you will really like this guitar its a ball buster. Gotta have nuts and go big.

We all know these. Semi, Somewhere between a Gretsch and a Rick in looks, P90 plus bucker, only 2 controls (Good!)

Very sensitive to string height adjustment of P/Ups.
Good p/ups but in between sound is not great - there is an extra capacitor in there that gives a Strat type sound, get it out, then you have yourself the real deal (more like a 335 in mid position). Great wang bar, stays in tune. Bridge p/up can be aggressive if need be. Not a metal guitar, great all rounder.

An 8 fro middle factory sound - what were they thinking?!

Very solid, well made. Get strap locks. Mine is vintage cream like a Gretsch White Falcon. Nice and versatile, easy to use.

No backup required, also strings are easy to install on wang bar (unlike Gretsch) - have protruding posts to secure strings. Hardware dulls but that's fine.

No opinion. Works fine.

8. I'll never go a 10 on anything.

The guitar is as good as other major brands and has a different look. I'm a semi pro player 25 years gigging several times a week. I like semis and this is good through any amp (valve is my choice), though I like my old 335 and Tele. The simpler the better. Good solid case.

Recommended - get one used!

Bright orange Starplayer TV with tremolo and case. P90 (neck) and humbucker (bridge) pickups, 3 way toggle that clunks nicely into position. Other fetures as listed by preceding reviewers. Appears to be very well made and is heavier than I thought but nicely balanced and comfortable on the shoulder. I especially like the Fender scale and style neck having been a Tele player for years. Good atention to detial and finish. I was not disappointed. Nothing is perfect. They are bright and attract attention. Still somewhat of a novelty amongst players.

I play most styles except country and there's a setting to suit just about every situation. I like the rich, full sound when it's clean and the sustain, harder edge when it's driven. I run it through a 100w classic twin and it sings. It feeds back (hollow body I presume) when driven hard but it's very controllable and actually works well with what I play. The P90 is great for blues soloing.

Very nicely set up and ready to play. I asked for it to have Super Slinkys (9 - 42) fitted and they work well for my playing. The tremolo is an engineering work of art. It takes osme getting used to after Fender style trems but I like it. I don't use it for dive bombing, more for vibrato and it is solid and doesn't make the instrument go out of tune. I haven't tweaked anything on it and am just playing it in however will go back to my dealer to check the set up in about 6 months. It's very well engineered and I think there might be soem Germanic attention to detail involved.

I've used it live a few times and so far no problems. I look after my gear carefully but haven't had it long enough to offer a valid opinion yet. All the same, it looks the goods and I don't expect to bet let down.

I purchased it from a reputable dealer and will go back there if any poblems arise. I don't expect any.

I like it but can't afford another one so I'll keep it close. I don't know what to compare it to bout it's like playing my much loved Tele but more interesting. It certaily attracts attention! If you're interested in something a little different and like the Mike Campbell style of playing without going for his Duesenberg signature model, you won't be disappointed with this one. It's a lovely pice of wrk and I really enjoy playing it. My band mates have all reacted very positively when they have tried it so my thoughts are resonably unanimous. I've been ragged over it's looks but they all want to play it. Nothing's perfect!

Im literally comparing this to Gibson Standards, realistically its far better allround in terms of Tone, build quality and looks. Duesenberg have realy excelled themselves and sit quite highly on the professionals list of high end palyable equipment.

I love this guitar for smooth mellow Blues tones and when needed, I hit the hums for a really big unique rock sound. Its a very versatile guitar with tons of Tone and lovable character. The sound literally sits between a Telecaster and a Les Paul, great tonal range unlike any other guitar on the market.

Pretty good setup, mine came from a UK dealer, being left handed my guitar was fitted with a genuine Bigsby Trem. Tuning is solid, the string gauge is 10-50 with a fairly lowish action. The bast hardware I have ever witnessed on any guitar. Took a bit of getting used to the P90 and the Humbucker combination.

Total confidence, look at the A list using these, Ron Woods, Joe Walsh, Carl Carlton, Elvis Costello the list goes on, this is a players guitar and delivers excellent results for the giiging artist. No rattles, no looseness, no fears..

Dont Know?? not needed them yet!

This alongside my 57 RI Strat make the ideal combination for me. I would seriously recommend a visit to a Doozy dealer, bet you take on home.
Came with a stunning custom built Duesenberg Case

Hollow bodied, Black, P-90 neck pickup, Humbucker bridge. No trem on my model - the trem can be installed easiy but I asked for a Starplayer TV without the trem. 3-way pickup selector. Les Paul type shape. Quite a beautiful looking guitar!

Unsure of exact woods etc - see the official site for all that.

Well this is what this guitar is all about. Sound.

I'll be brief but to the point:

Warm. Maybe not ES-335 warm, but still a nice, rounded warmness to it. I think the P-90 neck is fantastic. Very versatile - dig in hard on a valve amp and you'll be happy.

The bridge pickup is the dogs bollox though. You can go from mild drive to fully screaming, and has a vocal vowel type quality to it. It sounds brilliant.

This guitar sounds great in most styles - not really suited to metal though but can go right up to heavy rock if needed. Great stuff.

Tone wise, I think it's fairly similar to a Les Paul, but with more air to it so to speak. Imagine a Les Paul type tone with a the relief of an openess to the sound. Definately has bags of character to the tone in all pickups.

Faultless. Well mine is...

Solid, solid, solid. All the components feel chunky, and solid. The guitar feels like an awesome piece of engineering. Really well thought out. It was the compontents that really made me go WOW when trying it out in the shop. It just felt good....

Dont know.

Very versatile.
Very easy to play.
A great range of tones.
Definately a guitar to keep, and proves to be a nice surprise everytime I play it. I put it down and say to myself: Damn. That is a fine guitar.

Great neck, one of thebest i've played. Finish is very very high. Semi hollow, trem, p90, bucker etc.......

Very high quality guitar, as y ou would expect from Germany.

I would say this is very verstile. It can cope with alot of types of music. The bridge bucker is bright and ballsy. Great for anything really. The p90 i found a bit useless. It is a bit dark for me, will find a use for it though. Nice clean tones with it. The middle is like a gretsch, great for all sorts of stuff.

The trem is wonderful. No probs at all. Did need the strings to strech a bit though.

Perfect. Very low. The buiold quality is much higher than the USA big makes.

Very solid.

Excellent. Very helpful.

The Duesenberg's are great guitars.
Lots of features for a reasonable price.

More and more people are playing them as well. I was watching Glastonbury and quite a few people we're playing them there.

I forgot something in my previous review: I hated the chrome strip above the pickguard, it interfered with my playing > so I removed it.
Still the looks of the guitar remain awesome, the design is very good.

Features are all known. The things that where important for me: 25,5 inch scale length, a really nice neck, with a good feel (gives me more confidence than my former Musicman Silhouette Special!) and it had more sustain and was better balanced strapped on than the Gretsch Spectrasonic. Plus: you have pinky volumecontrol, as with a strat! Most semihollows don't offer this.

The strapbuttons don't need to be replaced for straplocks, they are compatible.

Mine is white-blonde, sort of a fifties telecaster colour. And it came in a beautiful case.

My style is mainly rock, alternative and a little bit of jazz. I play though some pedals: TU2, Toadworks Lil' Leo, ProCo RAT and a Line 6 DL4 plugged into a Marble Bluebird (a PTP-wired tweed fender deluxe 1x12").

The P90 at the neck sounds a bit dull, the bridge PU (PAF-style) is ok and the in between setting is useless (maybe for disco? But who plays that anyway?). You would expect it to sound more like a 335, but it's quite clear and bright (longer scale-length perhaps) warmed up by the alnico magnets of the pickups. It's not like a tele, strat or LP, it's basically a gretsch on stero??ds what it pretends to be in some way. It's not an allround guitar, but you can play rock, blues and jazz really well with it.

I'm thinking about switching the pickups to TV Jones TV Tron's, more specific: a Powertron at the bridge and a Magna'tron at the neck. That way I have a big filtertron meets PAF-sound at the bridge and a Dynasonic/single coil spank at the neck. This gives some more edge to the sound.

Finish on the top is not the prettiest: a thick layer of paint/laquer and not applied at the most beautiful way.

The (improved) bigsby-style vibrato works very well, the guitar stays in tune properly. It doesn't need locking tuners. Maybe graphite saddles and a graphite nut would come in handy on the long term...

It seems a solid guitar, I've played live without a backup and I'll do that again. I'm confident it's built to last.

I've been playing for almost ten years and I'm really happy with this guitar (except for the pickups). It has a fantastic value for money, if you find one secondhand buy it! (it doesn't keep a good value easily because it's an unknown brand). The price new is really good also, but secondhand it's a true bargain.

Black with a trem. Check out the other reviews for spec.

I brought it because i wanted something that covers a range of sounds. Looked at p90's wanted a humbucker and a trem with something that was semi. Most others are sky high with prices and i already knew of a couple of pro players that used them and loved the sounds.

Huge range. P90 is quite soft but a nice punky break up and nice cleans. The bucker is really cool. Like a more defined Les paul.
The trem is wonderful. In the middle it's like a gretsch, but fuller.

i use a fender vibrolux with two aramat pedals (OD AND FUZZ), a dd3 delay and a boss tuner. I'm really pleased with this guitar and the sounds it can make.

Top notch. Finish was perfect. Loved the scale of the neck, slightly longer than my LP.

Will last forever. Very dependable.

Not dealt with them yet.

Great guitar. I've grown tired of gibson etc and i wanted something with more personality. This has it in spades. Great.

So here are the features of my starplayer TV
it's surf green
has this bigsby bridge
single volume, single tone
p90 / humbucker configuration
maple set neck, fat and lovely
maple back, spruce top (i think), mahogany sustain block (i think)
the tuners are too sensitive
I don't rate the features as I think they are qualitative, not quantitative

Not much of a all around axe, it has a sound of it's own, though it's a great sound. The p90 is slightly too tame for my needs and the humbucker has deficient low end. Sounds average in drop D, though it's absolutely great standard tuned. I absolutely love the sounds it produces, but I'm considering swaping the bridge pup for a p90 too.

It arrived from the factory with a prefect set up and it was even in tune! Really a rock'n'roll guitar, plug'n'play ;)
The finish is what's wrong. There are several binding defects, some scratches... like a monday morning guitar. Looks beautiful even though, but those flaws are ibanez-artcore type flaws, not those you'd expect on a high quality expensive guitar.

Dosen't seam to break on me. I'd never gig it with a backup because I hate changing string midset.

Duesenberg are not this supportive. They take a long time to answer e-mails and keep the illusion that their gutiare are crafted in germany, which is not true. Most of the parts originate in Korea, and I think that only the inspection is made in germany.

It is a great playing and sounding instrument, though the finish defects are the boo part.

Duesenberg Starplayer blk.StopTail Build i 2004 Hannover Germany
Eur 1000 / almost new.
P90 Domino PU Neck
GrandVintag Humbucker Bridge
22 frets, vintage neck a D shaped,
arched spruce top - maple back
Trancelucent Blank color
1 F-hole on the beyond strings
black pickguard

LOOKS DAMN COOL

Blues and RocknRoll
Engl Straigh 100 Combo
Fender 210FMR
H&K TubeFactor
----
A unique tone, a TWANG I never heard before. It a tone AWESOME UNIQUE
make you love to play more clean and crunch; Not a HEAVY AXE of course! Its P90 sings the blues and all combinations are COOL -
man what a horny piece of wood you got. (decide your own more player or more the guitar)

low action the 14 fret cd be trimmed better,
the tone controll has a stop on the half way not sure if it is planned??
Toggle is stable. the guitar is really strong build.
it fits perfect to me!!! A very nice case was included make it is iressitable even for my made for LP friends has to admin DAMN GOOD TONE.

YEAH it is true Performer- NO DOUBT AT ALL

Very engaged thanks to Ingo Renner!

I love this guitar from beginning; I plan to add a Les Trem tremolo as it has a stop tailpiece - It was a special deal on this guitar; I simply had a conversion in my mind as buying it.
It shd has come with a trem. But I can easily convert and this is without drilling and "screwing" the guitar. ;-)

Built in July this year. It's a spruce top semi hollow body covered with a mosiac pattern of mother of pearl, headstock too. The back is a flame maple body. To traditionalists, a bit over the top, to me it's a work of art...very much in the Zemaitis vein. Les Paul build with an F hole and improved Bigsby like tremolo. Easier to string due to holes instad of pins to hold the string ball ends. Why didn't someone think of this earlier??? Bound body and neck in deep cream binding, very vintage looking. Proprietary humbucker size P90 at the neck and hot PAF style p'up at the bridge. Three way switch, middle position is unique, lots of sparkle. All the hardware is milled by Duesenberg...nickel plated brass pickguard, unique bean tuners with ridges (smooth and tight), even the swith tip, truss rod cover and jack are all nickel plated. Stair step headstock adds to the overall art deco feel and mojo. Really light weight fabric covered hard case with extra cushion grip. Coil tap for the bridge and it would've been a 10 for features.

I play most blues and classic rock, trying to pick up a little jazz, rockabilly and country. This would do it all. A 'real' player at the local guitar shop did it all. The semihollow body gives the tone 'breath' and it sustains all day. Crystal clear bell tones and raunchy overdrive. extremely versatile is an understatement as it excels in all styles. I'm amazed at how quiet it is in P90 mode. The linear tone control really works and you can go from jazz to ZZ Top "Tush" in a heartbeat.

Amazing...from Germany to LA to Florida to Dallas. Darn thing was still in tune when I got it. Took it to my set up guy and he strobed it, the intonation was on the money. He said save your money, it doesn't need anything done to it. Frets were polished and crowned superbly (his words). Binding is clean and evenly colored.
Only nit pick is the mother of pearl is so beautiful people may be focusing on the guitar instead of it's tone! Nick is straight and true. It practically plays itself.

I don't gig and I baby this one...but It's solidly built and the nickel plated hardware has that 'heavy' high quality feel to it.
Strap buttons are Gretsch inspired with knurled screw locks, but with the screw locks off, the buttons are Schaller locking compatible! Sheer genius!

Nathan at Duesenberg USA is extremely proud of the line and we talked extensively before I made my purchase. I have no doubt that if anything went south on this guitar, he would make it right. A rare thing to be able to call the main man on his cell phone and chat away. He stands behind his instruments 100%. The store I bought it from was also very helpful and patient with me. I asked a lot of questions and they took care of me.

Been playing since college but am now getting serious at 40. I've been fortunate to own/collect instruments way above my talent level but hey, I'm sure most art collectors can't paint. My only doubts were this guitar was too flashy for my skill level, thought about trading it in for a less flamboyant model but the pure tones I get from it made me keep it. I will have another one from this line before it's all over with.

Trans Orange,22 frets,set neck, hollow body with sustain block and bowed sides, arched spruce top, arched flamed maple back, binding on headstock, fingerboard, body top & back, F-hole & neck heel, Super Tremola, floating bridge,1 x P-90 single coil pickup,1 x vintage humbucker,Guitar included deluxe Duesenberg hard case.

I like to try and play several styles of guitar playing (to varying degrees of success)and this is probably why i find this guitar so perfect for me. The sounds this guitar can produce unplugged are amazing. Clean and warm tones are achieved without even trying and it just gets better when you plug it in. I am yet to find the guitar lacking for any style of play. The neck makes for quick changes and after owning the guitar for 6 months i can honestly say it has improved me as a player. My previous guitar for around 10 years was a Les Paul and i wish these had been around sooner. My confidence when soloing has risen as it seems too easy to make great sounds. I feel as though you could play any style with this guitar. This was backed up when using it with a Vox AD50 and the results were amazing.

My guitar came set up from the shop and nothing needed changing action wise. No major flaws when received except some slight oxidization on a couple of frets but that was soon polished out with a careful application of motorcycle chrome polish. I think oxidization like this comes from the guitar not being used for a while and sitting on a shelf. I consulted the nice folks at duesenberg usa who were quick to reccommend the right polish.

As far as i can tell the hardware on this guitar is built to last,nice heavyweight selector switch and vol/tone knobs and the Super Tremolo is heavy duty too. The finish is superb with nice thick vaneer so it's built to last. I don't gig anymore but if i decided to go back on the road then yes, this would be my first choice and i would be more than confident if no back up were available.

Only spoke to Duesenberg USA via Email for advice re: oxidization and I found them (Nathan i think his name was) to be very pleasant and helpful.

If this guitar was stolen or lost??? (not sure how i could lose a bright orange guitar) i would replace it as soon as my insurance permitted. Before buying this guitar i was looking at Epiphone Casino's/Riviera's, Gretsch Electromatics and even the new Ibanez Artcore's. After playing them all in various shops here and there i just wasn't convinced (although for the price the Ibanez Artcore AF75T is a wonderful guitar)Once i'd tried this my mind was made up. Anyone who is thinking about these guitars,go and try one, you will not regret it.

Built in 2000 in GERMANY, all the features listed before, hollow-body corina, mahogany sides, rosewood neck in a trans orange finish with a sparkle pickguard and badass Duesenberg bigsby-like tremolo. Body style is somewhat close to a LesPaul Florentine.

Lots of chrome...if you like hot rods and retro cars you'll love the looks of this guitar. Pure mojo on the looks!

Sounds great playing Blues, New Orleans Funk, Roots Rock whatever...get some nice tones off the neck p90 pup. The middle position is pure twang and really a different beast than anything else I've played. This guitar really has a tone all of it's own...finally not another Gibson -Strat clone. This guitar screams mojo! The p90 is not silent but it's certainly not as noisy as a single coil pup. Effects - a wah and a Providence Stampede overdrive pedal (boutique type pedal...nice) I play this set up through a variety of amps... Tone King Meteor II, Carvin Nomad, and a custom Allen PTP fender-deluxe type amp. Meaty & ballsy-bridge; Singing bluesy neck and a twang middle position. I play mostly clean with the tube amps cranked on volume (as loud as my bandmates will allow) so the notes are articulate and present..in your face. I would give it a 10 but you know...tone is like art very subjective...my 10 could be another's 7.

Can't find a thing to complain about the finish, action or construction. The back is nicely matched flamed maple. I cant say enough about the construction...appears to be bult like a custom boutique guitar costing thousands more. I was looking for a 24" scale neck gtr. Being female with aging fingers (do I dare say arthritis) the Dues 25.5" is slightly less forgiving for me to bend the medium gauge strings I use...guys should have no problem and will love the playability of this sweet guitar.

I have/had some great guitars and this has got to be the most solidly constructed guitar I have ever put my hands on. No flimsy switches, bad electronics, misaligned nuts, nothing cheap about this guitar. The Bigsby-like tremolo is logical and sturdy German engineering at it's best. I usually put strap locks on my guitars as soon as I get them. This one I havent felt an urgent need to replace as the original buttons work fine. I probably will because I really would not like to drop this baby. P.S. I never gig without a backup..or two.

Nathan @ Duesenberg USA is a top-notch cat who is willing to chat with you at great lengths about Duesenbergs...he truely loves this product and this company.

I LOVE THE FEEL AND VIBE OF THIS GUITAR. THE TONE IS ORIGINAL. 21 years playing off and on giving me plenty of time to collect some nice guitars - I have a 1984 G&L SC-3...one of Leo's most underrated designs...and most playable guitars, a G&L Legacy, a G&L ASAT thinline, a G&L S-500 Deluxe, a PRS Custom 24, a Music Man Axis Super Sport, 1982 Gibson ES 335 Dot, 1982 ES-369 RARE, and soon another Duesenberg (DCC model). I have owned a 69 Les Paul Custom (stolen), a Carvin V220 (stolen), a Carvin DC400, a 68 tele and a Fender American Strat. I look all the time for another piece of playable art. I checked out Gretsch CG and 6120...had the looks but just felt poorly constructed and played like a cheap guitar. I looked at a hollow body PRS. Looked for a hollow body Les Paul. I even checked out some of the new custom shop Fenders but I find that decent Fenders are way over priced and the new ones are just made with sloppy and cheap production. Actually, I really didnt NEED another guitar. Some women buy shoes...I buy guitars. I purchased the Dues without ever playing it or hearing it. I LOVED THE LOOK. I took a chance that I definitely do not regret.

The Starplayer TV is a single-cut hollowbody with one f-hole from Duesenberg in Germany. It's a 22-fret guitar with a 25 1/2" fretboard which makes for easy playing and string bending. The neck pickup is a P-90 and the bridge pickup is a humbucker with a PAF59 sound; with the switch in the middle, you hear a really awesome tone. Either way, the tone from this guitar is unbelievable -- I use a Fender Blues Jr. It also has a tremola tailpiece with a lock -- a first -- to keep the tremola bar out of the way when not in use.

The body is corina and has an arched spruce top and arched maple back. The binding, wood and workmanship are simply the best. This is a quality guitar, well-built and beautiful.

The case, just like the guitar, is beautiful and built like a tank.

I use a Fender Blues Jr. The Deusenberg can drive this amp with unbelievably clean sounds, and growls with some drive. I play classic rock, blues and jazz -- this does it all. No noise, just clean sound. The bridge pickup is strong and bright, almost like a tele.

I ordered the guitar from Westwood Music in LA, one of 2 dealers in the US. When it arrived in VA, it was set up perfectly. Flawless is the best word I can use to describe this guitar.

It's built like a tank and will last forever. Very solid but light. It even has it's own strap-lock system. Plus, the lock for the tremola bar is innovative.

The only negative thing I can say is the saddles are not made of graphite, so if you use the tremola the guitar will end up out of tune. Adding graphite saddles may help, or they may affect the sound -- I'll leave mine as-is for now.

I don't think I'll need any support -- this is built to last forever. It has a lifetime warranty. http://www.duesenbergusa.com for more info.

I've been playing for about 9 months and have a Les Paul Studio and a Gibson Little Lucille. I was looking at either an ES-335 or ES-175 but couldn't find any in my area. I did some research on the Duesenberg and am extraordinarily happy with my choice. I would buy another Duesenberg in a second, no doubts or hesitation.