Godin xtSA

Excellent selection of features, exactly my wish-list: h-s-h pickup configuration, black hardware, flamed maple top, excellent piezo with great eq available, simple whammy, great machines, neck just right, and synth-ready. Wow. This is an incredible mix... but wait, there's more...

Talk about rich array of sounds. I am amazed by the variety I can get. Besides the mag pups, which are great (I normally play duncans, and these sound a little different but totally satisfying), the piezo is very good. I'm comparing to a Brian Moore I had before, this Godin kicks serious ass over the Brian Moore. It's so nice to be able to tweak the sound by fading the piezo into the mag and fiddling with the eq sliders. Great design. Plus! SUSTAIN... I mean, this baby's got it... amazing for a trem bridge...the neck joint is set very well so the notes just ring and ring. And this makes for some very rich harmonics in cords and double-stops. I love this axe!

About the synth, in the store I tried it with the Roland GR-20 and it tracked very well, much better than my Brian Moore with the Roland GR-33. It feels like a whole generation of improvement in the technology.

The guitar appears to be well made and the finish is good. I'm giving it a point off because the pots feel a little wiggly, like they're mounted as tightly as they might otherwise be. The action was acceptable off the shelf, but I lowered it a tad with the supplied tools and it's even better now. A fast neck, has a finger-style feel to it (spacious). Frets are just a hair larger than I like, I may have my tech file them down a bit.

I'll take it to its first gig tomorrow, and I feel totally confident about it. But time will tell. I will have a backup at the gig, but don't expect to have to use it... just something to switch to if a string breaks. In fact, I definitely don't want to switch because the sustain of this Godin works so well for the volume swells that I use in a couple of songs...like it was built for my style of playing. All that said, I'm going to pass on rating this because as I said, time will tell.

No experience yet; I emailed a request for a manual or some kind of instructions (although I've already figured it all out, not that difficult). They don't have a manual posted on their website, which seems a bit anachronistic.

I've been playing 35 years; I don't own a lot of gear, but I've gone through many types and brands of guitars. This is my favorite of them all--fender, gibson, washburn, parker, epiphone. Before buying this I went to several stores and tried a lot of guitars, but none had the right mix of features... I knew what I wanted. And when I picked up this Godin I played about three notes and thought, this might be the one... I went through my checklist with it...and fell in love.

I keep a trusty low-end cort that I've moded somewhat as a backup. I play through a POD XT directly into a PA, no guitar amp. My gigs are as lead player for singer-songwriter acts, and with my acoustic guitar solo progressive folk acts.

I would play this guitar with any style of music.

I've been looking for this guitar for years. all the sounds I need and playable!

Compare to a "popular" brand, much quieter. Sounds have my fellow band members admiring it (and they don't even play). This axe plays EVERYTHING.

3 Guitars.
Electric 2 Humbucker settings 2 Single coils (low noise) and 1 razor sharp split.
Acoustic with adjustable 3 band equalizer
Synth - Midi with any sound your module can produce
Mixer - to combine all three any way you want!

Played GOOD to start, need some adjustment now for my string guage,
Pickups are great.
Top is fine!
Bridge is great
No Flaws. Well assembled.

Oh yeah. It will be fine, already has.
It can fly on its own.

Extremely helpful, very responsive.
About to try to get it adjusted, we'll see.

Playing 30 years +
Didn't have to ask much, staff was excellent.
Not only would I, I AM buying another one just in case.
1) Sound, 2) Playbility, 3) Quality of construction
Compare to PRS (all models up to 513), Fender Strats (all models), G&L all models, Gibson all models, Epiphone all models.
Chose this one because it played right off the rack and had the versatility to reproduce (or so close that only a real player would notice) ALL of the sounds from the above mentioned instruments.
All it needs is a manual and a patch cable designed to carry all three signals away elegantly. I would definitely buy a higher end version of this guitar (like the LGSA with this sound, I tried them all and none could do what this guitar can do).
It will take upwards of 3-4 months to learn all of what this axe can do.

New 2004 model.. Canadian made Solid Body, Silver Leaf Maple center with Poplar wings. Ebony Fingerboard, Mahogany bolt on Neck. It has an H-S-H Godin pickup configuration with synth access optimized for the Roland GR synths. Medium Jumbo frets, locking tuners, RMC transducer pickups and on board 3 band EQ for acoustic sound and the 13 pin synth connector. It's like having three guitars in one.

The sound is exceptionally good, the pickups have a good balance between clean and warm, the pickup configuration is well executed. I find that you can make this guitar wail even with the ebony fretboard compared to a maple one that usually makes a guitar sound a little more on the treble side. I also own a US made fender strat deluxe with a maple fretboard. The xtSA sounds different than my Strat, but it?s ardent and energetic and I was nicely surprised with the sound. You have to hear it, it?s hard to describe. Ample sustain for a bolted on neck. The synth tracking is outstanding and much better than with my GK-2A pickup.

Off the rack there was a slight buzz at the 12th fret, low E string. The store technician fixed that easily and adjusted the action to my exact liking and it?s now a real marvel to play. Aside from that everything else was top notch right off the rack. From open strings to the 22nd fret every string is and stays accurately in tune. The finish of the guitar is excellent, there are NO imperfections. Every part fits flawlessly and I?m amazed at the precision that went into the building of this guitar considering the price. I?ve owned a lot of guitars in my lifetime and many times I was dissatisfied with the construction of guitars 3 times the price of this one.

The way this guitar was put together it should last a lifetime. I don?t think I could play this guitar into the ground even if I spent all my time trying. It feels solid and built to last; since it?s a fairly new model it?s still too early to tell.

Here I have to say that I never dealt with Godin directly. On their web site they stress the fact that they don?t sell direct and to that effect they transact business through their retailers and not the end user per say. Well I have to give them a 10 on the training they give to their retailers. I can?t say enough on the level of service I received from the store staff throughout the sale process, from beginning to end. They answered all my questions and since the guitar didn?t come with documents I was given a detailed explanation of the product?s functions and pick up configurations. The staff was superbly educated on the Godin product. The warranty is handled by the retailer. When it came to the adjustment of the neck to get rid of the buzzing string I was even formally introduced to the technician that did the work on my guitar and he asked me specific questions on what I was expecting of the fret action and went to work on what I wanted.

I?ve been playing for 32 years. I already own a US made Fender Strat Plus (1994). The xtSA is not to replace my strat. I?ve been playing US made Fender products since 1975. I was initially looking for a guitar with a synth access because I wasn?t satisfied with the tracking of the GK-2A pick up in my setup. In the xtSA I found a lot more than great tracking. I actually got an instrument that feels plays and sounds as good as any worth twice what I paid for it. Obviously this instrument is not as visually striking as other more high end models I?ve looked at but what matters to me is when I pick up this guitar I get a superb playing experience and it feels good in my hands. In that area the xtSA exceeded my expectations. If it was lost or stolen I?d certainly replace it.

Trans black, 3-tone ( mix,electric,13 pin ), ebony neck, amazing H-S-H config, this guitar really are fascinating, nice finish and cool shape.....nice medium fretboard...uh..suitable for Asian finger

Cristal clean sound i can easily get from the mixed output, this is cool, i don't have to switch to another guitar on stage...at least i dont have to bring 2 guitars which always makes me asked by neigbour.." hey man...moving from this town..??" hehe...

Excellent finish....good playability, low noise pickup.....no hissing or humming when I get my distortion box on...

Seems to be tough enough....well lets see...i just bought it 3 days ago after waiting the gear shipped fron canada 32 days ago....??

COME ON.....No Warranty letter....no manual book...no wiring diagram...even i couldnt find the manual in the web....ugh...

Yeah...i think i must get GR-33 soon unless i will only look at the 13pin and murmuring....hmmmm

Brand new, 2004. Solid Body, contoured Silver Leaf Maple center with Poplar wings. In a beautiful flamed top with black striping awsome fit and finish like most godens. I was really looking for a three voice guitar with the Roland thirteen pin output.

H-S-H pickup setup with synth access from Godin. has a awsome natyral accoustic sound from the piezo style pickups

great abilty to place all three at one and sound like your own band all alone.

this is what I was waiting for a top of the line three voice with great sound and ease of use the H-S-H gives a almost unlimited sound options very quiet pickups with strong low end and a sharp bright mids and highs more than I was expecting from a guitar in this price range.

beautiful guitar with well matched top overall, this is the only downfallo on godins they don't always match the grain on the tops as well as PRS and others do. Luckily I had several to choose from and got a very tight good looking grain.

seems tough but it's only two months old so durability is still a unknown

N/A heard the nightmares but always been good to deal with i asked for a wiring and control diagram and I had it by e-mail within 24 hours

fourth Godin and everything I expected and then some. Wont replace My multiac Jazz as my favorite but it's a solid second behind a custom PRS i play everynight

Brand new, 2004. Solid Body, contoured Silver Leaf Maple center with Poplar wings. See Mfg desc: http://www.godinguitars.com/godinxtsap.htm
I was anxious to get a H-S-H pickup setup with synth access from Godin. This is it. Medium frets, locking tuners, piezo RMC pickups for acoustic and 13 pin to go to my GR-30. That what I was waiting for.

I play al kind of stuff and have a American TELE, a RG-550, a baby Taylor. This godin is a good mix of them all, it sound great as a normal electric, very good accoustic rendition and superb tracking for synth access, I use to have a Multiac Steel SA and it tracks better. I have a Custom Shop Fender Blues Junior, a Digi101 and a PA, so I can have the sound I want. I also get the MIDI out of the GR-30 to a EMU HALO Key (64 voice) and a Mophatt (128 voice synth). The synth/waves are incredible.

Came perfectly adjusted, The finish is good but you can guess the wings from the center of the body. Mine is Trans-Black. The frets are a little small to my taste (Medium) I'm use to jumbo, it probably has to dbe like that for better tracking. The neck is perfect and since I love ebony fretboard, i'm in heaven. This guitar is priced lower than their LGxt-SA and LG-SA (signature series).

I would think this guitar will last a long time, all the parts looks to be very good quality. I would rely on this one if I had to carry only one guitar, that's for sure!

I ordered my guitar the day they anouced it, I think, I had to wait 16 weeks, I was told 4-6. I contacted my reseller several time, anxious customer..., who answered well. I then email Godin and, as it is stated in their introduction page, I got an answer from an informed tech guy. He explained the delays without any BS and I was very pleased. After the guitar came I had a question and ,again I received an answer 2 days later, as stated.

If it was stolen I would definitly get another one. I wanted a solid body 2 Humbucker 1 single coil in the middle, an ebony fretboard, synth access and a great play feel on the neck. Godin just made my dream guitar... I don't give a 10 for the lack of docs that came with the guitar, even if I pretty much knew what all the swith, pots, Slider were supose to do I would have like to get real specs. I did not even found it on the Godin web site.