Hamer Monaco 3

This guitar is a recent model semi-hollow archtop with 3 Seymour Duncan P-90s and strat-style pickup selection via a 5-way chicken-head rotary switch. There is one master volume and one master tone control. The single cutaway body is mahogany with a thick laminated spruce top and 2 F-holes -- ivoroid binding all the way around. The set neck is 25 ? ? scale ? I have the optional fatter neck. The fingerboard is rosewood with pearl triple inlay ?victory? fret markers. The fret marking dots on the side of the neck are some type of reflective material that shows up well in the dark. The bridge is a tune-o-matic with a Bigsby tremolo. Tuners are schallers. Mine is the red model ? and I mean RED!

Overall, the guitar has a fairly unique appearance -- it doesn't really resembly any other guitar out there that I can think of Overall, it gives the impression of being a rockabilly machine. Spruce is not a figured wood so the top is not real showy -- but it the guitar is still nice to look at.

This guitar sounds remarkably like a strat but with the punch of P90 pickups instead of the typical Fender single coils -- more like a strat on steroids. The semi hollow construction and the spruce top give the sound a little more depth and dimension that you get on a typical solid-body. The 2 and 4 "in between" positions have a pretty good "quack" like a strat. The Seymour Duncan pickups must be really overwound because they have huge output and wallop the hell out of the front end of an amp (in a good way). They are a little more dark and mid-rangy than I would like, but I'm not ready to swap them out just yet. The one thing I really would like to see on this guitar is a switch to engage the bridge and neck pickups at the same time -- Hamer missed a good opportunity by not doing this. The neck pickup has a hint of that glassy acoustic strat sound and the bridge pickup is biting without being piercing -- very nice for either rock or country.

This guitar probably sounds best through brighter Fender blackface type amps like the Deluxe Reverb or the Super Reverb. It also can sound good through a tweed amp. I've played it with good results through a Reverend Kingsnake, a Vibrolux and Victoria low power twin, among others.

About the chicken head rotary switch -- at first I thought it was a gimmick to make the guitar look retro -- but I actually have gotten to like it. With the rotary switch it is IMPOSSIBLE to accidently change the pickup setting -- strat players will know what I'm talking about. The only problem is that the knob tends to loosen occasionally and needs to have the screw tightened on a regular basis. Also, over time, some circular scratch patterns are likely to develop around the knob.

For having a Bigsby, the guitar stays in tune fairly well -- no complaints about the Schallers.

Unamplified, the guitar is not particularly loud even with the spruce top. But the top does resonate like hell when the guitar is amplified -- when playing loud you can feel the hair on your forearm vibrating from the force of the air coming out of the f-holes.

This is the most perfectly finished, flawless guitar I have ever owned. The set-up was unbelievably perfect. The action is relatively low but every note rings true without any buzzing. The frets are like jewelry. I looked at every square inch of the guitar and can't find even the slightest hint of a flaw.

There is nothing delicate about this guitar. It is pretty to look at but it is a workhorse, not a show-horse.

Never dealt with the company.

I have been playing 45+ years and have lots of guitars and amps. My tastes change over time and I can be fickle about which guitar and/or amp I prefer at any given time. Most often I play a Tom Anderson Hollow T but I also like Guild or Gibson semi-hollow guitars and lately I've been enjoying a Brian Moore C90P (even though it has a skinny pencil neck). I also have a very nice custom guitar that was made by a guy name Jeff Sokol who works out of Scottsdale, AZ. When I play classic rock covers I like to use a versatile guitar that can produce a lot of different sounds but when I am in blues mode I like a more warm, woody type sound -- something hollow with humbuckers.

This guitar was made in the USA by Hamer in 2004. It was custom made for someone else, who never purchased it, so I bought it, based on seeing it online at a leading Hamer dealer. It has 22 frets, a solid spruce top, which is hand carved, and a solid mahogany semi-hollow body. It comes stock with 3 Seymour Duncan Soapbar p-90 pickups (the bridge pickup is the "Custom" soapbar and the middle and neck pickups are the Seymour Duncan "Hot" soapbar. Passive elctronics. There is a 5 way selector switch that works exactly like a Strat 5-way switch, but it's situated at the top of the body (where a Gibson switch would typically be). The 5-way switch is a very stylish, retro looking "chicken head" knob. The bridge is tune-o-matic and the guitar comes stock with a Bigsby vibrato. This particular guitar has Schaller tuners with ebony tuning buttons (the ebony buttons are not a stock option but are a nice touch). The neck has a fat, full feel. The guitar has a 25 1/2 scale length and unlike a Telecaster (which I own) bends are absolutely effortless and the fretwork is pristine. This guitar is easily the most comfortable I've played and I've been playing for about 30 years.

My musical style covers pretty much everything from singer-songwriter stuff to bluesy "heavier" tones. However, I primarily was looking for a guitar I could use on my solo (guitar/vocal) gigs, where I perform "standards" type repertoire (Sinatra, Tom Jones, Nat King Cole etc). I needed a nice clean sound and this guitar delivers. I am running it through a Vox AC15 tube amplifier, and micing that amp into my PA system. The guitar sounds fantastic on all settings--now that I've changed the pickups. I did not like the way it sounded with the stock Duncan pickups. They were much too midrangey and the pickups rendered the "inbetween" sounds almost unusable for me. A guitar this nice deserves better pickups than the stock offering included by Hamer. I believe that an overwound, P-90 with extra midrange is a silly design, since P-90's are inherently midrangey. It's like getting a tele pickup with "extra treble." This was not a big deal however, as I knew when I bought the guitar that I would be changing to a set of Lollar p-90's. He makes a set calibrated and designed for guitars with 3 pickups, even though he doesn't list it on his site. With these pickups, the sound is stunning and an absolute "10" but without the pickup swap I have to take off a couple points. I'm sure the Duncan pickups are fine if you just want to crank through a Marshall, but for clean sounds they're sorely lacking. With the Lollar's though, this guitar sounds absolutely world class and as good as or better than anything I've owned. I highly recommend this upgrade if you're looking for stellar clean sounds (they do driven sounds great too). All of the settings on the selector switch are excellent now and as a few reviews I've read have stated "Stratlike" in character (but somewhat fatter). Between the 5-way selector switch and the volume knobs, it's a guitar that can cover any musical style you need it to (from hard rock, to jazz to country and everything inbetween). I rate this guitar a "10" after the pickup change but my rating below reflects how I felt about the sound with the original Duncan pickups.

This guitar was set up flawlessly, with no need to have the action adjusted or have any additional work done (other than changing the pickups.) The pickup height was adjusted perfectly by Hamer, and pickup height is extremely important with p-90's. I'm very picky about this, but they clearly know what they're doing here. The finish on this guitar is beautiful, tobacco sunburst and the guitar has a beautiful ivoroid binding that's been applied with perfection. Visually this guitar is a stunner.

I would (and do) gig with this guitar without a backup. All I need are spare strings. I expect this guitar to last a lifetime of sounding and looking great.

I emailed Hamer once via email with questions about their stock pickups. They responded promptly and gave me the info I needed. The guitar is under warranty but I can't recall how long the warranty is for. I imagine their customer service would be good if needed, as Hamer's reputation in all other areas is excellent.

I've been playing for almost 30 years and have owned Gibson, Fender, Martin and Epiphone guitars. This ranks with the best of the best. I'd buy one again if it was lost or stolen. This purchase has opened my eyes to the world of Hamer, which admittedly is rather new to me. I wanted to make a purchase of a "world class" guitar and I was at one point considering a Gibson Historic 1956 Gold Top re-issue. After discovering the stylishness of the Monaco III along with it's features (like the Bigsby and 5-way switch), a Les Paul suddenly seemed like a boring choice. Also cnsidering Hamer's reputation for quality guitar building, the Monaco III won out, and I have no regrets. This thing is as cool as I imagined it would be, considering I ordered it over the Internet without actually seeing it (other than photos on the Willcutt site). I'd like to add that Willcutt is a great place to buy from, and Eric was excellent to deal with.

2003 red carved spruce top with f-holes and Bigsby. One-piece Mahogany semi-hollow body with center block supporting the Bigsby, bridge and pick-ups. 3 Seymour Duncan P-90 style pick-ups with black covers. 3-piece mahogany neck. Binding on body, neck, and headstock. MOP Hamer headstock logo. 5-way rotary switch with one volume and one tone control. A bit heavy, but not as bad as a typical newer Les Paul. The current Hamer website does not have any information on the Monaco 3, but it is essentially a Monaco with the details mentioned above.

Very versatile guitar. Can get strat sounds including the in-between tones (which I do not use). The P-90s are a LOT fatter than strat pick-ups - the bridge pick-up is a lot more useful than a typical strat bridge pickup. Even though there is a definite nod to Fender here, the Monaco 3 goes way beyond the standard sounds. The notes carry a lot of weight and have a beautiful sustain. It is never harsh or brittle, no matter what the settings or what attack you are using. This guitar loves to be pushed but can produce chimey brilliance with the right amp. I don't think the Monaco 3 does the big body jazz tones as well as the humbucker Monaco (see my review), but it shines on rock sounds, clean or distorted. The Monaco 3 is now my main (I only bring one) gigging guitar because of its versatility.

As usual, Hamer has done a beautiful job. There is not a flaw on the guitar. I changed the strings and adjusted the action to my preference after I bought it and it handled the changes without problems. Very easy to tweak, by the way.

Hamers are the definition of reliablity. I always gig without backup and never have problems. Solid guitar and quality components.

Have not used them - don't need to. They do reply quickly to my email questions.

This is my third Hamer and between them I can cover any tone. I have been playing a long time and can appreciate the time and care that goes into these guitars. They continue to make high quality guitars and are pushing the envelope with the Monaco and Newport series. These are innovative and beautifully crafted instruments - the best!