Parker Guitars Fly Concert

In the UK this model is known as the "bronze Fly"...it is the acoustic Fly equipped solely with individual piezo's under the bridge.The locking Sperzel tuners make changing strings a breeze and the simple vol and stacked treble/bass controls are ideal for live use.
The neck is a delight ...so easy to play and string separation fine for finger picking styles.
At first it feels strange after a regular acoustic..thin and sooo light but very soon it is the regular acoustics that feel out of place!

I use this guitar as my main "live" acoustic ...it is easy to dial in a sound that cuts through the mix really well with no boomy bass tones and no danger of feedback.I use D'Addario 10 to 47 bronze strings...these give the best "acoustic" tones for me..any others I've tried [elixirs] sound more electro.
I put the guitar into a board with a Trace Elliot Eq pedal,Boss tuner,vol boost pedal and an Aphex exciter DI...this all goes into our Dynacord PA via a balanced cable..the PA adds a touch of chorus.
The resulting sound is crystal clear but still warm and friendly!

Absolutely stunning...stays in tune...finish is perfect.

No issues at all...competely dependable..the only thing that worries me is whether I could find another if it was stolen.

I bought it second hand...I guess it might be tricky to repair if seriously damaged but you get the feeling that if Parker are so careful about what they turn out then their back up will be equally as good.

I've been playing various acoustics for the last 40 years...I can get richer acoustic sounds from my Fishman equipped Manson Heron but for live use the Fly is the one !

1999 USA Solid Sitka Spruce body/transparent butterscotch and basswood neck w/composite fretboard. Sperzel locking tuners. Parker cast aluminum bridge. Unique Fishman 6-element piezo pickup system w/ preamp designed specifically for bronze strings. Graph-tech nut and 24 stainless steel frets. Two knobs- volume and a dual knob that adjusts treble and bass. Everything I need.

Larry Fishman designed this piezo system especially for the Concert Fly. Each saddle features a single piezo crystal that can be individually adjusted for output, although I have left mine at factory settings. Wonderful system. Each string is articulated extremely well and evenly. The sound is clear and rich unlike many piezo setups out there. Using the treble and bass boost on the guitar, I can dial in my sound with ease. Simple, pure, and sweet; just the way I like it. No effects required, although I will add a touch of reverb at times during the final mix of a recording. Does it sound just like an acoustic? Nope, but does any acoustic sound just like an acoustic when plugged in? This baby sounds just like a Concert Fly. For playing live, I just use a direct box into a PA. At home, I run it through my Tube Works head w/ a 2x12 cab. Either way, it shines. The sound is done.

Mine played great from the start. I haven't tinkered with it at all. The Sperzel tuners are the best I've ever used. The neck is a breeze to play and the stainless steel frets are thin and promote easy playing. Some may question the neck width. It is rather thin, however this is exactly the way I prefer it. Plays like a fine electric. There are things you can do on the Fly that just won't ever happen on an acoustic. Extremely easy to navigate. Can do octaves all the way up to the 24th fret. There is no cumbersome neck joint but rather a seamless meld into the body. Absolutely no trace of fret buzz and my action is set very low. The finish and overall appearance is spectacular. It is flawless in every detail and the most elegant guitar of its time. My admiration for this guitar is renewed with every opening of its case. I never grow tired of it. A well deserved 10.

I trust this guitar more than any other guitar I own or have owned. Period. No need for a backup. I'm not going to break a bronze string, nor anything else on this premium instrument. It may be light, (just a tad over 3 pounds) but it's not a lightwieght. Unbelievably sturdy and well crafted. The stainless steel frets show no wear. I wipe down with a polishing cloth after each use. Still shines like the sun. I can see my smiling face in its reflection. I never got the sense this was a fragile instrument, however, I always handle it with care and the upmost respect. It is my baby and nobody plays it but me.

Never needed.

I've been playing for 18 years and also teach guitar. I love songwriting and recording the most. I wanted to back off the effects and electric guitars and use something simple and pure for my recordings. I also wanted a guitar with exceptional playability, great sound, and stunning looks. The Concert Fly fits the bill and I have never regretted paying the high price for this instrument. There are so many unique features about this guitar that I admire. If I had to pick my favorite feature, I guess it would be the design of the body. Absolutely brilliant and artistic. Deserves its own exhibit at the MET in New York. I do not believe a finer instrument can be built. Without question, this is my favorite guitar and the one I play most often. No sense comparing it to other guitars. That would be silly. I'm not one to follow trends or imitate other players. I use my own judgement and ears when selecting gear. The Concert Fly is number one in my book and is second to none in the guitar market. One of the very few high end guitars that makes you feel like you got your money's worth.

Ken Parkers revolutionary design joining carbon glass fiber to traditional materials such as basswood for the neck and sitka spruce for the body. Fishman piezo pickups under the bridge, built in preamp. Volume and tone controls. Compound radius neck with stainless steel frets. Very lightweight, which is easy on the back for hours of playing on your feet. Sperzel tuners.

You have to clear your mind of expectations and comparisons and hear it in its own right. Most guitars with piezo pickup systems are either installed in a regular acoustic guitar or combined with magnetic pickups in a solid body. This is piezo in a solid spruce body. Its sort of like the soundboard of an acoustic, without the rest of the body. This gives a resonance more in keeping with traditional acoustic guitars--but it doesn't sound exactly like an acoustic either. I use Thomastik Plectrum strings and it sounds tremendous through an acoustic amp. I use it to play sort of Gabor Szabo inspired jazz, I prefer it to an amplified acoustic, which I used to play. However, sometimes I throw a Blackstone overdrive pedal in front of it, and it sounds pretty gnarly that way as well.

Impeccable. State of the art construction. A work of art.

Materials are excellent. It is very strong for its weight. I would not hesitate to use it wherever.

I've exchanged emails to ask about strings and such and they were prompt and friendly.

Been playing since '64. Played a lot of different guitars. I really love the light weight and fast neck, the sweet tone of this guitar. I don't like the idea of giving anyone a perfect score--but in this case, it is deserved. The guitar is quite an achievment, on its own merits, independent from anything which has come before it.

2000 or so model. Spruce top, etc. As far as features it has everthing you need. Locking tuners, Natural finish, etc. The case it comes with is awesome. I would gladly throw this guitar on a plane with this case because the guitar fits SO SNUGLY and the case is very high quality. Comes with wrenches, owner's manual.

Of course it doesn't sound exactly like an acoustic - that would be impossible. But it does sound wonderful. I bought it primarily to practice without disturbing others. It is perfect for this because it's more comforable to play than an acoustic, the frets won't wear out and it sounds great. For live playing it is awesome. It has adjustments for bass, treble and volume. Nice battery compartment, battery low light alarm.

If God is in the details, God lives and works at Parker Guitars. This guitar is a work of art AND the ultimate in guitar technology. It is worth buying just to put in the corner and look at. It is utterly beautiful, like a Porche 911 Turbo, destinctive, totally high tech, yet somehow simple and friendly, everything you could ever want. Its playability, construction and beauty is simply the best humans can come up with. How much does it weigh? It weighs as much as a feather with light strings, two feathers with medium strings. It was setup perfectly. No flaws. Great action.

So far there has been no problems. It seems quite reliable. It's a simple design so I can't see much going wrong. Finish seems to hold up well, neck hasn't moved. Frets, being stainless steel should last forever considering how much stronger they are than the bronze strings.

Haven't tried it.

I was lucky to buy a demo for $1650. So, the value was unbelievable. But I would say if you have to pay over $2000 it's still definitely worth it. If it were lost or stolen I would immediately go in search of another after crying for days. The only thing not to like is that perhaps the neck is too thin for some acoustic players. I wouldn't mind if it a bit thicker. I like how easy it is to change strings with the locking tuners - just string it through, lock it down and tune up. NO STRING WINDER NEEDED! It doesn't compare to ANY guitars, there are none like this. If you are looking for a nice acoustic sound in a solid body, bronse string guitar, look at this. If you're looking for a practice acoustic that won't bother people in the next room and won't wear out and sounds great, look at this. When I'm not playing it, I leave it out like a piece of fine art, which it is. Thanks to Parker guitars for creating this masterpiece. That Spanish Fly looks really cool too for nylon string players.

This is just to follow us on customer support after my previous review where I trashed them. I finally got an email response and they were very friendly and apologetic. It seems they recently lost the main support guy and were having to spread the load, which is why it took a few days for them to get back. However, they did get back, and they answered all of my questions.

I've had this guitar long enough now to know that it is quite special. With bronze strings it sounds like a fine acoustic guitar. With flatwounds, which is how I have it strung--it goes into another realm altogether--its hard to explain--it sounds like an archtop strung with flatwounds. Very sweet.

This is the second time I have submitted this review. The first time, it got stuck in the Fly Classic review stack. Tsk, tsk. So maybe they'll get it right this time around.

Not shure the year made. 24 stainless steel frets, compound radius,
Fishman Piezo system, volume and tone controls. Simple, elegant, minimal, precise. The body is so thin, and curves to accept the belly of the player. The whole guitar is one integrated system, the body carved spruce, the neck, wide fat basswood, all joined together by some super tough carbon epoxy layer. It is a guitar that uncompromizingly expresses what can be accomplished with modern technology and modern materials.

You can't compare it to anything, really. It occupies a weird zone. It can sound like a very nice acoustic electric, it can sound like a nice archtop. You can run it through an fx processor or an overdrive. Its strictly Piezo, but sounds different from any Piezo I've played. At max volume, I noticed no quacking. I am treating it like any other electric guitar. It came with D'Addario flatwounds, which are not the factory standard, but I really liked the sound, so I will probably throw a set of Thomastik Swing strings on it. I'm playing it through a DR that has a Weber BP12 in it, 5751's, and 4024's, and it is very sweet. It struck me as a jazz axe and I can get to places on the map I could not get to before. Havn't found anything to dislike.

You know, its just flawless. A scultured work of art and science.

Looks very durable. Like--its post Space Age, Man! It's tough. Very lightweight. Its not a guitar to set on fire or trash a Marshall with.

Well, I don't know what to think. I didn't get an owners manual, so I send an email to customer support and never got a reply to my questions about maintenance issues and such. Not very impressive, I must say, for an instrument that lists for $3500.

Been playing since 1964, right after the Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. Had a ton of guitars over the years, including Wechter electric-acoustic piezo's, Godin piezo synth guitars, Fender Strat's, Schecter's,Gibson SG's. My only other axe is a PRS CE-22 that I rewired to accept Joe Barden pickups. I love the fact that this guitar gets the kind of pure, bell like tones you get from a fine acoustic, but you can run em through a processor, and your arm stays close to your body, and its very light, and the neck is fat and smooth and fast. Might be more efficient for me to have a guitar that combines both the sound of Joe Barden's(best pickups imho) and the Piezo system, but It would not be as lightweight as this, and anyway, this thing is just a butterscotch dream machine. My only wish is that I had the typical Y stereo cable, so I could split it down two separate fx paths--but, that's a minor wish.

This is a 1999 stripped down piece of art!!! Made in the USA It has a solid spruce top (ultra cool) a seamless neck to body connection - Sperzel locking tuners (the best)and a active custom larry Fishman Piezo system. The bridge is a nontrem alum.-alloy Parker Bridge (perfect).The Elec. runs off a 9 volt system with low battery indicator. The finish is liquid butterscotch with a complementing black gloss rear exterior.The controls are three- volume -bass & treble which is all I need. The features are sweet and simple!

This guitar fits my playing style perfect and I mostly use it to write songs. First of all this guitar is a acoustic masterpiece it was not designed for the garage punk thing (tho to each his own)it was designed for Angel like chording and Heavenly runs up and down its sweet neck (can you see I like this guitar).I currently play it through my Fender Acoustisonic Jr.- which is a perfect match.

This guitar was totally flawless - It was set up perfect and it fit like a glove. the finish was inpeccable!!!

This guitar is totally dependable -- just always carry a spare 9 volt battery!!! This guitar is a timeless masterpiece --like an old stratavarious I expect it to hold up for ever! But you have to handle it kindly it is not a rock.

The Folks at the Parker company go beyond the call of duty to help their customers. They are just nice- nice people. I think my warranty was for 1 year.

I would just like to say that Parker guitars are not for everyone but the people that like them -REALLY LIKE THEM!!! The coolest thing about this guitar is it only weighs about 3.5 Lbs. it defies the laws of gravity!!!I have owned and played many many guitars and this one happens to be my Favorite. And last but not least the Parker Concert Fly is a expensive guitar but worth every penny!!!

Made in USA Oct 1999 Guitar with piezo pickup only, solid sitka spruce body and basswood neck. Very light (much lighter than Parkers with pickups) body vibrates like in acoustic guitars. Active electronic circuit is fed from 9V battery.
Controls are volume treble and bass

It sounds very nice on Pevey Classic 30. can produce sound similar to Ovation guitars. It comes with D'Addario Strings phosphor bronze custom gague ( 10,13,24,32,42,52) These string are hard to bend.
plugged the guitar via Morley wah-wah, sounds OK.

Fit and Finish are perfect, I have not noticed any flaws.

This is extremely playable instrument.

Warranty is valid for 1 year.

I have been playing Fender Stratocaster for 18 years If I loose Parker I would buy a new one. I compared Parker Concert to Parker Supreme and Classic and I decided to buy Concert. If I loose Stratocaster I would buy Parker Classic.

The answer to a question that only a die hard luthier would even think to ask, this guitar is the "acoustic only" version of the parker fly line. As such, it has no magnetic pickups, and is designed for players who want the sound of an acoustic, but plug in all of the time. The guitar I have was made in 99' and is a pearly black solid body acoustic electric in the same shape as the rest of the parker line. The body of the concert is spruce (you can actually hear this wood at work!) and the neck, like most flys, is basswood with a carbon fiber fretboard. The back of the entire guitar (neck and body) is fortified with parker's unique blend of carbon and glass fiber, apparently to give the vibrational (and hence the acoustic nature) character of the instrument discipline and predictability. The instrument comes equiped with a fishman designed piezo system as its only amplification source. Fishman tells me that the sytem is different than their copolymer technology (such as their after market matrix under the saddle system); rather, the bridge is fitted with six individual piezo crystals, which gives better clarity and a more distinct played note in a solid body application. The electronics feature a voltage doubler to give 18 volt clarity and headroom in a nine volt system, and the controls are a usable two band stacked eq knob as well as a volume control. The neck is a 25 1/2 compound radius (10 1/3" at nut to 13" at the 24th fret) with medium stainless frets glued directly to the carbon fiber board. Parker claims that the frets last longer and can be fitted with more precision with out the crowning that might subtly effect the intonation. Nut width is about 1 11/16th. Oddly, the guitar ships with a custom string gauge of .010 through .052, D'Addarios. You have to call the factory to find this out -when I tried to put on my standard pack of gore elixir 12-52s, the top two strings wouldn't go into the nut slot!! Some people do things because that's the way it has always been done (like my knee jerk reaction to pop on a set of 12s) and some people choose to rewrite the rules. The guitar also features a dedicated hatch for the battery on the back of the instrument, complete with a low power indicator led, and sperzel locking tuners complete the package. A lot of thinking (outside the box) went into the design of this bird. I should add that the guitar weighs under 4 pounds and will balance on a fingertip (should you be so brave!) A true joy in life is handing this axe to a player for the first time and watching the reaction to the feather like feel. A detailed instruction manual, various allen wrenches and a molded square skb case are also included with the fly.

I must first admit my biases -I generally loathe piezo systems by themselves, finding them wimpy and thin. My idea of a good acoustic guitar pickup is the Fishman rear earth blend (see the raves elsewhere on harmony central!). That said, this is easily one of the most convincing bridge pickup sounds that I have come across. This is a good thing, since there will be no adding internal mikes or soundhole pickups here -what you see is what you get. The plugged in sound is full, very clear, very balanced and easy to shape using the simple and musical EQ knobs on board. The trebles in particular are sinfully good, rich and ripe with fine sprucy overtones. In that aspect, the guitar reminds me of the hand made classicals that my peers and I all played in college degree programs; You can hear the spruce open up each day for the first half hour of playing and this phenomenon continues for the first few weeks of heavy playing, gradually giving way to a permanent openess that will make the hair on the bqck of your neck stand up. This may be in part due to the fact that the piezo bridge is immaculately coupled to the body of the guitar, and it feels every movement the piece makes. If you have ever played a really well installed fishman bridge pickup (one where the bridge was balanced, and shimmed to within a gnat's ass of perfection), in a good spuce guitar, then you will get the picture. I have had a chance to play this guitar, (and its predecessor, more on that below) in public several times now, and people that are familiar with my music love this guitar. Generally, I run through a mackie 1202 into a crown K2 amp and out to EAW jf100i speakers. Being an electro-acoustic musician, I also add delay and reverb to taste. In smaller settings, I use a fender acoustasonic SFX amp, and that is a particularly good match with this fly. I am basically a bonehead fingerstylist (with Walter Mitty rock n' roll ambitions!) and the sound works extremely well in a live setting. I have recorded this guitar to hard disk and truthfully, I do miss having a mic for recording. My vocalist partner (and wife, I might add) really likes the recorded sound, however. I suspect that if your tastes run in favor of bridge pickups, you will fall in love. I was able to zip off a quick demo using a sansamp acoustic DI, about 1/3 sansamp and 2/3 direct. I can live with that! I will make the DI my next purchase and die happy. Admittedly, I am so biased in favor of magnetic soundhole pickups that I border on irrational, but I still give this guitar a seven, for clarity, balance and those crisp, silky trebles. Your mileage may vary.

This guitar is flawless, period. do not pass go, do not collect $200 and do not expect better craftsmanship anywhere at any price. This guitar would be worth the price just to hang on a wall, and the fly body in general should be in the permanent display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I am thinking that there may be something to this glued on fret trip -never has a guitar given me such wicked intonation from the bottom open string to the high 24th fret. The action is so low, the neck so well shaped, the finish so fine and the over all feel so addictive that the fly should be classified as a schedule three drug! The cast bridge is beautiful, perfectly complimenting the lines set up by the headstock, upper and lower bouts. One guy at a a CD promo event at a record store walked by me and said "Hey, its Darth Vader's strat..." (what's wrong with these people, I was in the middle of a performance) but generally speaking, the guitar draws a crowd long before sound check -black, pearly, sleek and dead sexy, everyone from ten year old boys to 55 year old women stop to ask what it is made out of. No buzzes, no finish flaws -just tight fittings, raw resonance and visceral appeal. This is my second fly, however, see story below.

Truth be known, I have not had this guitar long enough to develop a significant track record, that is just an accident of timing rather than an insecurity. This fly has a feeling of quality that makes me feel safe enough to do concerts with out a backup if I have to, so time will tell. I actually purchased this instrument because i am starting to do more travel by air to perform, and everthing about this guitar, from tuners to temperature changes, says "road rat". I am also weary of wondering if I will win my arguments with gate attendants as to the likelyhood of my thin body jumbo fitting in the overhead bin of a 707 or MD-80 (Shakespear was wrong, forget killing the lawyers, lets go after baggage handlers...) The knobs are solid, the neck is more stable than most governments, the finish is tight and the strap buttons could support the weight of an entire music store's inventory of flys, I mean what can go wrong -the thing will wink at me if the battery gets low! Spruce infused with carbon fiber will last longer than any musician this side of keith richards (who will be a head in a jar, mark my words), so i go forth unconcerned. I suspect that if I waited a year to type this, we would see high marks, but for now...

So here is the secret, i actually purchased my original fly concert from a dealer in florida that had to ditch inventory for taxes. That guitar for the most part had the same attention to detail, the same sound (complete down to the trebles) and the same finish as the one that I have now. (That's the guitar that einstein called darth vader's strat at the in-store). One problem however; there was a resonance in the neck than was violent enough to be heard in a few instances through the piezos, and loud enough to be heard acoustically over the SFX amp in quieter coffee house venues (this is probably the loudest solid body on the planet). It only reared its head at the open b string in standard tuning, and variations of cminor in dadgad tuning. At first I tried to ignore it, but it was the one glaring flaw that kept intruding into my guitar playing reveries. My tech -Rick Rubin of Dutch's music -had a look and said that something in the neck was bouncing around and that with the way the fly is put together, there was no relief to be had locally. (incidentally, the d and g string also buzzed out at the 11th fret, rick gently crowned the "perfect" stainless fret to fix that). By now, I was hooked on the feel of the guitar, so it was with great reluctance that I called Korg, (courteous enough folks) and received a work order. I packed the guitar up along with a detailed letter, my gig timeline, and a one off CD of the buzz in question. In following up with Will at parker, (actually, he called me from his home phone!) he commented that no one in the shop was able to reproduce the buzz, but that he would keep at it. He seemed a bit skeptical, but they had the CD, so I adopted a wait and see attitude. Incidentally, I had actually experimented with alternate strap button locations to get the neck to sit higher (i am classically trained) but had gone back to the stock arrangement, leaving a hole in the guitar (hey, I buy my guitars to play, not wipe with a diaper!). Will graciously offered to fill the hole for free just to be cool about the whole thing, so everything was on hold while the paint dried. a week later, I called to see what was up (I felt bad for pulling this guy off of the floor all of the time) and was told that they would be stringing it back up soon and they would try again to get the buzz, but I was warned that if they couldn't find a cause, they would really be forced to send it back and see if it still was a problem for me. About this time, I am starting to get concerned about my sanity. I mean, I'm no eric johnson, so if I can hear a buzz, it must be so -right? So I went back down to dutch's music, and sure enough, everyone at the shop remembered the problem as well as I did. Rick said that he would back me up if parker still couldn't find the buzz, so home I went. As a pesimist at heart, I was trying to figure out how best to convince parker to see things my way. I mean, they were very professional on the phone, and the stories about Ken Parker are legendary, but I was not convinced, and I had gigs to fly out to. Two days later, I get a call from the folks at mailboxes etc. saying that there is a guitar waiting for me, and to pick it up anytime (they are used to this from me, I have had the box for years). Burning rubber, I made it to the drop almost instantly. Parker had fedexed my guitar back to me! A quick set of scales and a few runs up the entire neck convinved me in less than 120 seconds: The guitar was immaculate! Immediately, I turned the thing over -it was a different serial #! Folks, these are serious guitars for professionals, and the professionals at parker are deadly serious about their guitars. They had overnighted a new guitar to me. I have generally been happy with warranty work from most reputable music companies over the years, but this flat out rocks! In my experience, Only Fishman has provided this level of tech support for no name musicians (maybe it is something in the water, Fishman and Parker

This guitar needs its own PR firm. What a sleeper. Parker obviously has both feet completely in the door of the rock and roll world, but not many people have experienced this odd little instrument. I can easily see the concert in the hands of working singer-song writers all over the country, but not many people have the opportunity to try one out. The only big name that I am aware of touring with one is the reclusive Joni Mitchell (this makes sense, she has the bucks, the need and she has probably seen it all). Let's face it Taylor and Martin have acquired a lot of the fingerstyle and folk market, so it may be a while before a new way of thinking takes hold in the land. (On the other hand, I have a friend who is a taylor artist and a Gore Elixir endorsee, He played my new parker on a stop over, and will most likely own one soon) Really, unless one plays a lot of acoustic music amplified and/or travels a lot, no one needs this guitar. On the other hand, since when is the art guitar community defined by need? I plug in all the time and I gig a lot, but basically I just fell in love with the vibrant sustain, sensual feel, blazingly fast neck, and all the rest (yes, even those damn piezo crystals). I will still use my mahogany thinline jumbo to record with, but this fly will be my main live guitar for sure. Generally, guitars stay with me about as long as beer, but this guitar fits a niche that only people like Ken Parker can see, let alone think to fill. I recommend it highly for any amplified acooustic music that you can use a standard out of the box acoustic for. Its not cheap, but neither is a lowden, lakewood, taylor or vintage D-28 with an under the saddle transducer! "I love music, and I love guitars." -Ken Parker, parkerguitars.com