Godin Freeway Classic

about the "silk screen" flame top that someone less informed mentioned, i will say this..
hello! it is a thin veneer of flamed maple, not a printed flame.
if you have ever seen a printed fake flame top you would notice that the grain does not change when you tilt the guitar in light. real wood shows depth in the grain.
Godin uses real wood, though it is a thin veneer, hence the name "leaf top"..thin like a leaf..ok. they state this in print. so they are not trying to pull the wool over anyones eyes
don't blame your ignorance on Godin.
since flamed maple is mainly a decorative touch, a veneer does the job nicely.
here is the specs for those who want the truth
body: silver leaf maple center with poplar wings to save weight, with a thin veneer of flamed maple on the leaf top models
pickups: h/s/h
godin designed pickups ( wound at the same factory as a big wellknown pickup maker)
neck: eastern maple with choice of maple or rosewood fretboard
bridge: vintage style trem with solid saddles as opposed to bent metal vintage style saddles, push in bar with tension adjuster
thin finish for tone, as opposed to bullet proof (and tone proof) thick finish.
25.5 inch scale neck with rounded edges, 22 medium jumbo frets and 12 inch radius.
schaller strap locks
one of the best designed neck pockets and accessable neck heels in the business.
one hell of a great gig bag included, more like a case in fact.
how do i know this?
research, and the fact that i have played, own, and owned several models of Godin guitars.
check out the website and get the scoop.
5 way switch, even though the 2nd and 4th positions don't tap the buckers they still smoke in the strat sense.

oh yes, many sounds available.
no noise
rich and full tone.
nothing to dislike here

you can't expect Godin to nail the perfect setup for every one.
and most stores tweak guitars as they get them so this rating is redundant.
but as far as construction, there are a few north american makers that can learn a trick or two from Godin.

solid guitar that i would trust.
the only flaw is the occasional volume pot, but if you buy one and it goes bad, use the warranty and get it replaced, duh.

great response every time i have contacted Godin.
they have even gone beyond my expectations.

i wish the floyd rose model came with a maple fretboard.
i have been playing over 20 years and do most of my own setups and work on my guitars. i like to keep up to speed on info on guitar makers and i try not to speak unless i have researched enough to know what i am saying.
this review is for my friends Freeway which i have spent a good deal of quality time.
if you want a good review, check out the Jan 2005 issue of guitar player. they review the Freeway and Montreal from Godin.
don't take my word or the word of anyone without trying one out for yourself. and do yourself a favour and visit the website and check out the specs.
there are too many people writing reviews who haven't done thier homework.

Mine is a HSH Freeway classic in Black Pearl (metallic paint) with a plain maple fingerboard. Bought it from a local music shop as it was marked down dramatically, and I needed a HB guitar to put the set of Dimarzio Steve Morse humbuckers that I had sitting around at home.

Of special note is the gigbag they give you with this thing - it's awesome. It's the first guitar I haven't felt the need to buy a hardcase for, it's so sturdy.

The stock pickups were muddy and low-output, which was a shame. After a couple of weeks, I put in the Steve Morse humbuckers, as well as a Seymour Duncan Custom staggered single coil in the middle. After the mods, the guitar really came alive. The pickups are pretty high output, but the Duncan does a pretty good job for the low-gain stuff. That said, I mainly use this guitar for jamming with my metalhead buddies, and it's fantastic for that. I'll give it a 10 for the current sound, but pre-mods it would have been a 5.

The guitar came pretty well set up, with a medium low action and no buzzes anywhere. The bridge is pretty poor, is a bit rough in use, and doesn't hold the tuning too well. As I don't use the trem much it's not a big issue, but if you do, make sure you get the thing set up well.

The only niggle I've had with this guitar was a malfunctioning volume pot - though admittedly this only became apparent after the pickup mod and could well have been caused by that. The hardware all seems pretty good quality, though the bridge could do with some work, and I'll probably fit some smoother tuners later on. Came with Straplock buttons, which is handy, too.

My volume pot issue was fixed by the store pretty quickly at no charge, even though it was probably my fault anyways. Can't complain here.

Nice guitar, does it's job well. I've got other guitars for country, blues, rock etc etc, and this thing could do all those in a pinch, but really excels in the metal arena. Buy one if that's what you're after, budget for some new pickups and this thing is a killer.

2005 model, Canadian Parts assembled in Berlin, NH
HSH pickup configuration, pickups suck, replace asap.
I replaced with duncan 59 in the neck and a JB in the bridge, left the single coil alone. I installed a ciol tap switch for the JB and came to the realization that the "flamed maple top" is nothing more than a silk screen print on top of a piece of alder. CHEEZY!
How do I know you ask? well, when I drilled the hole for the coil tap, it distorted the paint around the hole and revealed the true grain that was underneath. I also am experiencing a lot of wear on the fret board and I have only had it since Dec 05'. I gave it a 5 for the deception of the top and the poor fretboard.

I bought it as a giging guitar only to acheive some strat type sounds, as I primarily use Les Pauls. I use a Fender 59 Bassman with a Boss GT6. After the pickup changes, it is a ctually quite useful. I like the coil tap function that I installed which by the way I was told by a customer service rep that the stock godin pups were not four conductor wire and could not be coil tapped. What a moron, the stock pups are in fact four conductor and I would reccomend a coil tap to increase the guitars sound capabilities.

Neck buzzed above the 12 fret, had to do a neck adjustment right out of the box, pick up poles did not match up with the strings at all, I have seen Korean model guitars for half this price with a better fit in this area. Tuners are adequate but I replaced them with grover locking tuners. Again, the finish is wearing off the fretboard, looks like shit now.

They are misinforming the public about these guitars, they say it has a flamed maple top, it is SILK SCREENED ON!!! If you want a nice guitar in this price range, buy a Stratocaster. The pick up info really made me mad, they should know if it is a four conductor wire or not.

There you go, straight from Godin ;)
http://www.godinguitars.com/godinfreewayclassicp.htm
Built in USA by Canadian parts. Great Quality for the price!

The neck of this guitar is ABSOLUTLY INCREDIBLE. The shape of it is perfect and cannot complain. I like it more than my friend Fender Strat or my other friend Gibson SG.

The pickup are great for a guitar of that price. I've replaced the bridge pickup for a Seymour Duncan JB. There wasn't much difference in terms of sound but the quality of the SD is much better: more output, more clarity, less fuzz.

Oh by the way, the gig bag is very nice.

I mostly play classic rock (Led Zep, AC/DC, Pink Floyd, Hendrix), Alternative rock (Radiohead, RHCP, RATM), metal (Metallica, Juda's Priest, Iron Maiden) and blues (Clapton).

It excels in all of this, you only need the right amp. I've got a Peavey Ultra, and it's great for all of those style. Except that the bridge PU gets muddy with too much distortion. That's why I now have a Seymour Duncan JB.

Sound is rich and full but a little bit too bright. But hey, it's not mahagony, what did I expected !

This guitar sells for around 500$CDN. The finis, the action is equivalent to a 1200$ fender.

It's been one year I have it and I'm pleased.

One problem: the volume knobs is noisy and I can loose sound sometime. A 25$ replacement.

It says it all

10 - F A N T A S T I C VALUE

There is nothing fancy here but if you look in person, it looks expensive and sound just like big ol name guitar brand ... very impressive

- I dont when it was made.
- It is written assembled in USA and parts hand crafted in Canada
- It has 1 volume and 1 tone (just like fender strat) 5 ways selector
- H-S-H pickup configuration
- Passive electronic (great !! coz i dont need to worry about carrying extra battery)
- Neck Maple, Body Silver Leaf Maple center with Poplar wings
- Mine with a flamed burst color (looks very nice with the price!!)
- Fender Strat body style
- Bridge just like strat (i dont know what its called)
- Non-locking tuner (this may be problem if you use tremolo bar often!, so I'd do is tighten the screw on the tuner ... hey at least its a cheap way to fix such problem :p lol)
- It comes with a deluxe gig bag ... This is very nice, coz I wasnt expecting but heyyyyyy this is VERYYY niceee!!! ... I give 9 only for the non-locking tuner

- Well firstly this is my 3rd electriv guitar ... for my last electric guitar I like something that can play jazz, blues, pop, metal and this baby right here can do everything.

- I tried this baby with Traynor YCW80 custom valve at the music store. But I use marshall MG100Head and Boss GT8 fx pedal

- No it is not noisy at all!! suprisingly for this price

- The sound is so full, rich, bright you name it. Coz with the alder body I suppose.

- I only can say that this thing is so versatile. You can play anything. Metal chugging, bluesy playing, pop tune, punk ... you name it. System of a down to chet atkins

- I only wish it has better machine head thats all

Very nice bang for the bucks

This baby rock thats all i can say ...
The strap buttons look weak though, but nevermind its okay ...
i can depend on it ...

never deal with them ...

I've been playing for 11 years

I have 3 great guitar brand, they all not really expensive but Im planning to modified them If I need to. But they are all great ... Ibanez SZ520, Yamaha AES620, and Godin Freeway Classic

Marshall MG100 head n box, planning to buy Laney TT100 combo

With Boss GT8 (great its so simple, i like simplicity)

Before I got this I was looking for Yamaha Pacifica 812, but man when I got to the music shop it has sold out. Darn ... so I looked for another Yamaha of course the I looked Yamaha Pacifica 904 (which is the highest level of pacifica) and then I looked this baby and I was comparing both. Pacifica - nothing really impressive with the sound but the price is really expensive $3000ish in here (Perth, Australia). And then I tried this baby .... BAMMMMMM I was knocked out by the sound, full blown by the sound from neck pickup to bridge. Okay this baby is the winner.

My Freeway Classic was built on 6/16/05. 21 frets. Solid body with light-burst flame maple finish (beautiful!). Volume, tone, 5-way pickup selection. Standard H-S-H pickup config with Godin pickups. Neck is Candadian Rock Maple, fingerboard is rosewood. Gig bag included is very feature-rich, with lots of pockets, handles, shoulder strap, and backpack-style straps built in. I would like to seen Godin put the locking tuners on this model (like on the Solidac).

I grew up on hard rock and some metal, and this guitar does that well. All of my playing is done with church worship teams, so I've tamed my style down a bit. I've always loved the double-cutaway design, so the Freeway is a perfect fit for me. Sound is great. Good bite from the bridge humbucker, and this is the first guitar that I actually liked the sound from the neck pickup (also a humbucker). I never used anything but the bridge humbucker on my last guitar (a Peavey Nitro III Custom, H-S-S). Sustain is much better than my Peavey, and I attribute that to better tone woods, and a fantastic neck/pocket fit. Guitar stays in tune better than any I've ever played (vintage, strat-style tremolo bridge).

Fit an finish is, well, flawless. Deep, dark color to the wood, and the shiniest, clearest, smoothest surface finish I could imagine. It's amazing what Godin can do at this price point. Center picked seemed high, and I was constantly hitting it with my pick, so I adjusted it down, and it didn't seem to diminish volume or tone.

This guitar is built to last. Very solid feeling, but not *heavy*. The finish is so beautiful I hate to think of the day when I put a scratch in it, but I've very careful with my gear, so I'll just keep my fingers crossed that won't be for a while. The clearcoat seems tremendously thick. Strap buttons are chrome Schaller (Strap-Lock) buttons -- very solid, and set with long screws. The guitar, other than a bad volume pot which start rearing its ugly head two days after I bought the guitar, seems very dependable. I gigged with it (played a festival with ~4,000 people) two days after I bought it and didn't have a backup. I notified my dealer of the bad volume pot just over a week ago, and I'm *hoping* the replacement pot arrives before the end of this week. Once the defective volume pot is swapped, the guitar should be perfect. The volume pot which started acting up on day #2 is the reason for my scoring this area a "7". I've read a few other reviews of Godin guitar that mentioned issues with either a noisy or defective volume pot; I was hoping Godin had that all ironed out by now.

My dealer is slow, and they're acting as the middle-man on this volume pot replacement issue. Had I dealt directly with Godin, they might have sent the pot directly to me by now. I've emailed Godin a couple times (pre- and post-sales) and they always responded within a couple days.

I've been playing guitar on and off for the past 22 years. I'm mostly self-taught. I use a Behringer V-Amp2 for most of my sound anymore (much lighter than hauling around the old amps). I'd definitely pick up another Freeway Classic if this was lost or stolen. My previous guitar (19 year-old Peavey Nitro III Custom) had a Kahler (Floyd Rose licensed) floating tremolo. It was cool when I was younger, but I don't play around as much or as aggressively with the tremolo anymore. I love the fact that if I break a string with the Freeway, I can keep playing 'cause the strat-style tremolo doesn't float, so the strings that remain don't all get pulled sharp.

I wish it had Duncan in the bridge position, and locking tuners, but it's great the way it is, so I'm not going to complain. (Just give me my replacement volume pot!) I considered Ibanez when I was preparing to buy a new guitar, but I really wanted to stay away from the big names. I'm sort of a fan of going with the less-known names, and have had great luck doing that in the past.

Purchased a 2003 Model the same year, Black Finish, Rock Maple Neck/Fingerboard, Maple Centre block, Poplar Sides, H/S/H Godin Pickups, 1 Volume, 1 Tone, 5-way Switch, 22 Medium Jumbo Frets. Came with a really good gig bag. However, I would have preferred 2 tone knobs.

Please note that the pots used for volume and tone are smaller than CTS pots used on Fender. You'll need to widen the holes in the guitar and break off the little metal chip on top of a CTS pot to fit them in. Also, the selector switch uses a different knob, which doesn't fit on CTS switches. Finally, I had to route out some wood to fit in the new selector switch I put in with my new pickups. I thought that as a Canadian/American guitar, it would be using the same size electronics as Fender/Gibson. Instead, the parts are slightly smaller like the ones used on Asian copies, like my friend's Dillion LP and Strat.

I play rock, jazz and some funk through a Traynor YCV40 tube amp or a Tech21 Trademark 10 solidstate. I will sometimes use a Vox 847 wah and a modded Boss SD-1 overdrive. Overall, the stock Godin pickups didn't really do it for me. They didn't sound as full as the Seymour Duncan pickups I have on my Strat. They are pretty good for stock pups, but I felt they were thin-sounding when compared to Seymour Duncans.

That said, I changed out the pups for a Seymour Duncan Jazz Neck, SSL-1 Vintage for the Middle, and a Jeff Beck Trembucker for the bridge. Now this guitar sounds really good. This guitar sounds very rich, smooth and full in the neck position, bridge is thick and crunchy, and the tapped plus middle pickup positions sound very Stratish.

Can't comment on the factory set-up as the guys at Long and Mcquade do their own thing to every guitar. But straight from the store it was set up well. Pickup sound output was as matched as possible. Action was set quite low, but there was some buzz on the first few frets of the lower strings. Tuners hold tune well. Frets were nice and smooth and didn't stick out of the neck anywhere along the neck. The maple neck is pretty smooth and easy to play, not sticky at all. I don't use the tremolo, but it can only be pushed downward, it doesn't pull upwards. So I tightened the screws to get it flush as possible.
Black finish on the body was pretty good, although I can easily see one of the three sections of wood used. It's just a straight line where the wing connects to the centre which can be seen, not the bare wood. The control cavities have a type of goldish shielding paint inside.
I'm not sure if it came from the factory with a misaligned bridge or not, because I only noticed it after my pickup change. The strings are slightly off centred with the neck from the 12fret onwards, and the high e string is pretty much beside the neck at the 22nd fret. It doesn't really affect the playability, which is probably why I didn't notice sooner. But I think this is something that shouldn't be overlooked by QC.

I've played live a few times with it before and after the pickup change. I've also let my friends who play death metal shred for hours on this guitar. It stays in tune every time. I can depend on this guitar and play without a backup. I do have a strat, but it's used for a different tuning. There are a few scatches in the paint already, but that doesn't really matter to me as long as the paint doesn't just fall off on its own.
The strap button on the top horn kind of worries me though. The horn itself is pretty thin where the strap button is screwed in, so I'll have to see how that holds up. I assume the screw will not break through the wood and my guitar won't drop down onto the floor or any similar fate.

I've emailed CS a few times in the past and always had a reply within a business week, so response is pretty quick. I had some issues with my Godin LG-SP90 which the rep help resolve. I also emailed them about color options on the Freeway before I bought it and they responded within a few days.

I've played for about 10 years now, played live with bands and jammed with friends at home. I traded in my Godin LG-SP90 for the Freeway and I don't feel like I made a mistake. I've been pretty satisfied with this guitar for the past two years and now, after the pickup change, I expect to be satisfied for many more years to come. I do plan on purchasing more Godin instruemnts, namely the Freeway Bass and eventually an LG Signature when money is available.

2005 model, made in the US with Canadian parts. Solid black finish, HSH Godin pickup config with a 5-way switch. Rock maple neck, silver leaf maple body with poplar wings. Rosewood fingerboard.

I've heard it said before, but I'll say it again. This guitar is very versatile in the sounds you can get out of it. The pickups that come with it aren't bad at all; they're not AMAZING but they sound nice and only the single coil gives any buzz (which is understandable). I've used it with a variety of amps: 1958 Fender Deluxe tweed amp, Peavey Bandit 112, a Peavey Backstage and a Peavey Classic. You can get some nice sounds on this guitar, especially if you have the right effects.

The guitar was spotless when I received it. The action is a little higher than what I'm used to, but it's by no means very high. I lowered it slightly and now I've adjusted nicely. I was playing on a '73 Tele before and this plays almost as good, honestly. The guitar is well-made.

I find this guitar to be very reliable and durable. But keep in mind that like any guitar you should always take care of it and treat it well.

I've been playing guitar for about 11 years. I own a '73 Tele, some amps previously mentioned, some effects pedals. I played this guitar in-store (like everyone should) before buying it and I liked it. I would definitely replace my Godin Freeway Classic, I want to keep it as part of my permanent collection. I would like if it came with some Seymour Duncan pickups like some other Godins, and a Floyd Rose bridge (there is a Freeway Floyd model out as well that has this). This guitar is the best guitar you can get for the money. I would say it performs like a guitar that costs twice as much. Give it a spin and maybe you'll take one home too.

Made in 2004. Flame maple leaftop in light burst. Very nice.Gigbag is awesome!
Beautiful neck feel!

Stock pickups sound very nice and balanced.Give them a chance before replacing the pups. I've made some mods:
I've replaced bridge pup with SD Pearly Gates+, middle single coil with Fender Lace Sensor-Silver, neck pup with DiMarzio Bluesbucker.
Whow!! I like the versatility of that configuration. In clean situations Lace works like a dream alone, or in the combination with Gates in pos. 2 ( full humbucker+ Lace) or with Bluesbucker in pos. 4. ( full humbucker + Lace ). Result: beautiful fender-ish sounds.
Dirty: Pearly Gates alone ( pos. 1): ZZ TOP ( many nice harmonics )!
Pearly Gates + Lace ( pos. 2 ): lead works
Lace ( middle pos. ): nice SingleCoil sound ( NO HUM )!
Bluesbucker ( awsome pup that sounds like PAF and P-90 )+ Lace (pos. 4 ): ACDC ( so many harmonics for neck pickup ! )!
Bluesbucker alone ( pos. 5 )- Dark sounding P-90. Mapple fingerboard helps for highs.

Now I have a very versatile guitar with full range of sounds, powerfull Fat strat tones + humbucking and P-90, WITH NO HUM!!!

I've made some little adjustments to my playing style.

Yes, I can depend on it. Very solid made.

I've been playing about 25 years. I've owned PRS Standard 24, Fender Strat Paisley and Schecter ( 1976 ). My second guitar is Ibanez SZ 520 QM with DiMarzioPAF PRO ( bridge ) and Ibanez Super58 ( neck ), very beautiful sound !

Mine is a black finish, very nice nothing fancy. As far as pick ups and switching goes it has been well described in previous reviews. Very comfortable neck & body. I have played for along time and find the features on this guitar well balanced. The tremelo works well and stays in tune. (most of the time) The gig bag alone is worth buying the guitar.

I play all types of music form country to acdc depending on the gig. I generally play through a vintage Crate tube amp, when I use an amp. When I am playing on stage I use line6 stuff with in ear plugs with little stage noise. I find the Godin has all the versatility I need from heavy to mellow. I play with a G&L most of the time and bought this for more of a practice guitar. Having said that, I really enjoy playing live with the Godin and the guy that does sound for us seems to like it to. I like the single coil center pick up for it's sharp tone and when using other effects on live feed it has the most edge.

Bang for the buck it is tough to beat the finish and fit on this guitar. The neck is straight and very easy to set up for personal adjustment. It is a good guitar for the price. If you want to spend $3000 for a PRS you can complain about imperfections but for $400 the pick ups and finish are great

I had to get the volume pot changed by Long & Mcquade. It was cutting out and very scratchy. Other than that no problems. I also put strap locks on the guitar as I found the Godins abit thin. I usually put strap locks on all my guitars, cheaper that fixing dents.

I like that fact that this guitar is Canadian parts assembled in USA. The company is small and proud of there producted making it easy to deal with and very informative.

If a person is just starting out or a player that needs a reliable practice axe with great versatility this would be a good investment. I have owned many guitars,(just ask my wife) and would not to hesitate to recommend the Godin to anyone. You generally get what you pay for and with this guitar you will get your monies worth