Parker Guitars Fly Deluxe

Had mine since 1998, so its one of the older models. 2 humbuckers, pizo pickup, with the weel that adjusts the spring tension. stainless steel frets,graphite fretbord.

The funny thing about these guitars was that you would go into a shop and find the demo model was always totally F*****,because no on knows how to use it, (so bear that in mind when reading other reviews). In its hay day this guitar was an innovation, it has had its improvements, but over the years parker has "dummbed down" the parker fly deluxe (IMO), restricting the features (and tonal posibilities) cos people didnt bother to get to know the guitar before complaining about it. As you can proabbly gather i much prefer the older models which have more controal over the sound options. No guitar can do everything, but with a little time and patience the parker can make a pretty good shot at most sounds you could immagine/want, I expect thats why I have often seen session musicions useing them.

Firstly, the parker is not like other guitars, you cant max every thing out and expect to get a good sound. The guitar is inherantly bright so backing off the tone in the least is a good idea. Second parker has been the victum of a (sucessfull) money making campain by a certain person, trying to convince every one that it sounds thin/whatever so he can replace ur prikups at great cost. You only need to look at advertizing to know how sugestable people are. If you actually bother to take the time to compare guitars, yes (my older 98) parker is a little thin (and i really mean a little) on the bottom end compared to some others like a LP, but its not an LP, and an LP cant do straty sounds and dosnt have a pizo pickup, so go figure. As an active gigging guitarist, I can tell you that the Parker is not the weak link, Ive seen other bands playing LP's that sounded thin and crappy compared to the sound I get off my rig (with the same guitar), diagnosis crap amp/effects. The other thing is just how much bottm end do you want? when you are sitting at home it may seem to be lacking, but in a band situation, too much low end will piss allover the frequencies of your bassest, and the sound guy will end up cutting it like it or not.

After getting to know the guitar, you can produce pretty much any thing you want from warm jazzy/bluesy to bright stratty like, it may never quite nail it but it will do a dam good job. The Pickups are quite hot, more than ample for any shreadding, and harmonics (pinch/tap) fly out with ease even on the neck pickup.

I give it an 8 because thats how i would rate its ability to get some of the classic tones.

It arived 10 years ago, perfect, absolutly perfect. best intonation i have ever seen on any guitar.

I have been playing for many many years, and gig regularly. My guitars dont get much love, care or attention, most cant hack it....

I owned A fender strat (american). It lasted 7 years before it rattled itslef to peices (liturally, eventually all the screws rattled loose, till the thing rattled like a tin can), and the frets wore down at an increadible rate.

I owned a gibson LP, the neck snapped twice before i got sick of it.

My ibanez are chipped to hell and rusting, but still in working order.

as you can see i really dont take care of my guitars. Yet my parker, with the exception of 3 chips in the paint, is pretty much the same as the day i bought it. I have dropped the guitar 2 times (from chest Height, dam beer) on both occasions landing on hard tarmac,that is where the chips come from, but they are tiny. Also I have travled round the world with it, in the hold only in its soft case. I also left it behind for a year, I returned to find it perfictly in tune, unlke every other guitar in my colleciton, which unsuprizingly has thinned substantially. I have never needed or used a backup, because noting ever goes wrong with it, it is the only guitar that has never let me down, just keep a spare 9v battery.

If you actually bother to contact them then they are very helpfull, i asked them for a wireing diagram, 5 mins later it was in my in box, with a whole load of other usefull info. I also spoke to them extensivly about pickups, they where helpfull and honest.

Through a gruling process of elemination this has become my main axe. At the moment I use a mesa boogie F-50 into an orange 4x12 cab, and I'm pretty happy with it. If versitility is your thing then this is hard to beat, if you want an LP then get an LP, and so on. As a reformed shred-aholic, this guitar is amizin for it, I have not come across a guitar that plays as well as a parker fly, more sustain? not sure if thats possible. If i were to fault it, it would be the sound as it dosnt seem to have a chractor of its own, so if ur lookin for something specific then there will be someing that does it better than the parker.

A lot of thought went into the physical design of these guitars

Sound isn't great on either the acoustic or electric side. Having both in one instrument makes up for that.

Action, intonation, finish are all top level.

Reliability got left off the design board in my opinion. If you want to really enjoy this guitar, get out a micrometer, slide rule and some calipers. I own two Parkers the Deluxe that I'm reviewing now and a Nitefly neither of them have all functions working, I would never show up to a session or gig with a single Parker as my only guitar.
I own 8 guitars, two Parkers, a Gibson LP, an Ibanez and some other stuff. Of the 8 only two aren't working to their full capacity. The two Parkers.

I've never gotten anywhere with Parker customer support. I get things like... "Oh that's the older one.." etc.

I've been playing for over 30 years in clubs, churches, recording sessions and I also teach. If my Parkers were stolen and the culprit found I would ask that the judge sentence the theif to play nothing but the two Parkers he stole for life.

A lot of thought went into the physical design of these guitars

Sound isn't great on either the acoustic or electric side. Having both in one instrument makes up for that.

Action, intonation, finish are all top level.

Reliability got left off the design board in my opinion. If you want to really enjoy this guitar, get out a micrometer, slide rule and some calipers. I own two Parkers the Deluxe that I'm reviewing now and a Nitefly neither of them have all functions working, I would never show up to a session or gig with a single Parker as my only guitar.
I own 8 guitars, two Parkers, a Gibson LP, an Ibanez and some other stuff. Of the 8 only two aren't working to their full capacity. The two Parkers.

I've never gotten anywhere with Parker customer support. I get things like... "Oh that's the older one.." etc.

I've been playing for over 30 years in clubs, churches, recording sessions and I also teach. If my Parkers were stolen and the culprit found I would ask that the judge sentence the theif to play nothing but the two Parkers he stole for life.

I purchased a 2007 Mint Burst Parker Fly Deluxe from a Canadian store/seller on EBay. I am sad to say the post-USMC (2004) Parker's are nothing like their 1990's versions. If you've ever picked up a 90's Parker, the first thing you fall in love with is the glass-like neck. You can be severely out of practice & still sound like a riff monster since the necks are so smooth & lively. The 2007 version is dry and lifeless, like a Japanese Fender knockoff. This is the place USMC decided to save the most money & that's just a shame.

I've never heard a Parker I didn't agree with, at least the non-bolt on neck variety. This one is no different. The Dimarzio's are awesome. They can't go very deep, but the mids are great & it screams on solo's. I play in the Michael Schenker style, and the vibrato is great.

I'll try to paraphrase here, but the guitar came with a factory defect, and it took over a month to resolve. The guitar got past Parker's QA department with a bridge that was somehow installed off-center. The bridge (inset in the body) was installed right against the bass side, so when you pressed the whammy bar it wouldn't retract because of rubbing up against the wall of the bridge hole. This led to a bubble appearing on the finish before it was sent back to the seller. The set-up was horrible, very high action. Needed an $80 set-up with my guitar tech.

I'm on the fence about the finish. My old 1995 Black Deluxe had a hard, beautiful glossy finish. The Mint Burst has no gloss whatsoever, and doesn't appear very sturdy. I would have hated to bang it into something. Some rough spots in the paint as well. Everything else seemed O.K.

Good lord. Again, I'll paraphrase, but I spent a month with an EBay seller trying to avoid me about the return, and every time I emailed the USMC customer support guy to keep him in the loop, I would have to write him back and explain everything from the beginning. He'd completely forget the scenario and never once offered to investigate any further into the seller's credibility. It's not like you can go to Guitar Center and buy a Parker anymore (they quit selling them years ago), so you're forced to go online. The intital USMC support person I contacted tried to get out of any liability because 'The seller is in Canada', rather than help out. These guys were the worst, not proactive at all.

I waited 2 years for a Mint Burst Deluxe to show up on EBay. The Canadian seller (I'll let you figure out who he is, the only store with a bunch of Parker's) initially asked me to insure the guitar for $50 on the return, so in his words, "Wouldn't have to pay customs fees, possibly in the hundreds". If he had known his own business, he would have known there are no customs fees on returns. Still he avoided me and FedEx for over a month while the guitar sat in customs collecting dust. Only when EBay threatened to revoke his selling rights did my money magically arrive in my PayPal account without an explanation. Be careful out there, folks... About me: I've been playing 35 years, have an ES-335 with a Hughes-Kettner tube amp (the best!) & think Parker's (pre-2004 at least) are the coolest guitars ever made. The necks are magic and you can do anything with them. I am back to shopping for another Deluxe. I'd rate pre-3004 models as 10's and the new one's 5's since they're like cheaper knock-offs, even though they cost almost double!

Update to my review below. USMC sent me a replacement! It is so much better than my old one!

This one is better sounding than my old '05 model. Much better EQ.

See below

This is a lot more reliable than my old '05 model ['05 was a problem year for Parkers. There were lots of returns and complaints.]

THANK YOU USMC!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You did the right thing by sending me a new Deluxe! And to Buckleys Music. I will be doing all my business for new equipment with you. If you are in Halifax N.S, Canada, go to Buckleys Music!

I am 13 and have been playing for 10 years. I love this Parker and I will never be without a Fly. EVER.

This guitar is killer! The Features are sick and cannot be found in any other production guitar. I mean c'mon,Neck through body with no heel,Sperzel Locking Tuners,Carbon Fibre Fretboard,custom DiMarzio Humbuckers [Based on the Tone Zone and Air Norton] and a piezo pickup,all weighing in at just under 5 pounds? Kudos to Ken Parker for creating such a SICK guitar!

The sound can vary depending on your ampilfier[s] and style[s] of music. I play it through a Peavey ValveKing 112 and a Yamaha DG60 [Soon to be traded on another ValveKing 112] and it is AWESOME! The tone is punchy and clear with lots of defination and clarity. The piezo pickup is very trebly sounding on its own and it sounds best blended with the mag pickups. I play Shred Metal [think Yngwie,Jason Becker,Steve Vai,Shawn Lane,Eric Johnson,Dave Martone,etc]and some Classic/Prog rock and a bit of fusion. This guitar fits it all PERFECTLY! I love it! Perfect 10 here but....[to be con't]

It came set up decently from the factory with a smooth as butter action and brand new Ddarrio 009s! Just how I like it! Anyway,it was pretty much perfect right out of the box but...

OK! RANT ON! This is where I get mad! I cannot belive Ken Parker would make such a great guitar but cut so many corners [BTW,Mine is actually made by USMC,Not by Ken]Number one,The switches! This is a very common problem among Fly Owners but,c'mon Parker? Do something about it. Becuase of the cheap switches,my Fly was in and out of the shop about 8 times because they first took forever to send it and then they sent the wrong one! I am still waiting for a second switch and a 10 spring,both of which were due to arrive months ago! Anyway,to add to this,my Piezo system had dead crystals! Again,in and out of the shop getting them fixed. Not impressed here USMC! Wake up and build the darn guitars right! Anyway,props to Murray and the gang at Buckleys Music! YOU GUYS ROCK! If it weren't for them,my Parker would be in some warehouse or in UPS somewhere. Anyway,Buyer Beware!

OK! Continued on! Parker was bought by USMC [US Music Corp] in 2003. They proceeded to "refine" the Fly,which they did and some things were for the better but,c'mon guys! You're turning into 70s era Fender [CBS]. No love for the guitars,just money it seems. If you cared more,you'd replace the dang switches[And maybe not do so many import "Flys"! As i've said,Props to Buckleys Music in Halifax NS! YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!

I am 13 years old and have been playing for 10 years. I own several other guitars including:3 Late 80s Yamaha RGXs,a 1985 Tokai V,a custom built Yngwie style strat and I plan to purchase a Fender Eric Johnson Strat in the next year. I would defanitly buy one again,but only becuase the neck,pickups and the weight kick axe!

I have a "refined" 2005 in ice burst. Everything on mine is stock and that's the way I like it. I use the acoustic pickup often on stage and I love not having to switch guitars all the time. Being able to split the pickups also gives me a ton of versatility.

I play classic and new rock and pop and this axe can do it all. I play it through a '67 Fender Super Reverb. I can make the room rumble on the neck pickup and shatter glass with the bridge pickup. The acoustic piezo sounds almost like a real acoustic guitar. Honestly, you can make this guitar sound any way you want it to.

I don't know how it came from the factory becasue the place where I bought it set it up as soon as they got it into the store. I've found absolutely nothing wrong with it.

This is this guitar's weak point. My volume dial on the electric side keeps shorting out on me. It's just a dirty or corroded pot, but it's a pain. I also owned an original generation Fly and the truss rod broke on it. So, reliability wise, I'm not impressed

Parker stood behind their product in both cases, but it took forever, and as I said, the volume pot keeps shorting out on me, even after the repair. I took over 2 months to get the truss rod fixed. From what I understand, you don't have to send their guitars all the way back to them any more for warrenty repairs, but don't quote me on that.

I've been playing for over 40 years, and this is the finest guitar I've ever owned. Nothing looks like a Parker, but more importantly, nothing plays like one. The neck is phenominal. It can be set up incredibly low without any buzz at all. Being carbon, it stays in tune no matter what. What I really like is how light and thin it is. It really saves my back when I'm on stage for 4 hours at a time. My biggest complaint with my first Fly was constantly hitting the master volume dial with my pinky while strumming. By eliminating that dial entirely the new generation Flys are so much easier to play. There are about a half dozen new features on the new generation Flys that are perfect fixes for the old problems. A lot of players don't know how to get the most of these guitars, so they slam them. They also compare the sound of them to Strats and LPs. Why would you do that? This is a unique guitar with unique sounds. It has its own sound and was never meant to mimic a Strat, LP, or anything else. Accept it for what it is. Don't get me wrong, I own about 15 guitars, and 4 of them are Strats, and I love them, but this guitar is something else. To put it simply, this is the guitar I pick up first and play the most.

My Parker is a very early Deluxe - one of the first in Boston in the 90's. I've never tracked down it's actual year. Sperzel locking tuners, graphite/balsa composite. This is the first version of the Deluxe before Parker started making bodies in different woods. It was so revolutionary to me back then, that I had to have one just because it blew me away that a guitar like this existed. I've submitted a review for it a long time ago, but thought I would write an update as I have some new insights after having left it unplayed for about a year and come back to it.

I stopped playing the Parker when a friend of mine lent me her 1972 Fender Mustang Competition while I was in an experimental rock project. I fell in love with that guitar for awhile and used my Parker mostly as a backup. I've rediscovered the sound of my Parker over the last 4 months after shifting to some blues/jazz.

If you know anything about this guitar, you know it is incredibly versatile. The piezo is really the bomb in terms of getting different sounds. And the ability to mix the pickups in either stereo or mono (and send the stereo outs to different setups) also leads you down total possibility road. It doesn't truly sound exactly like an acoustic, and it will never play like one. You can't get that string noise kind of acoustic sound going. But it does come close, and I have used it for recording "acoustic" sounds for years with excellent results.

There is much said here and elsewhere about the Deluxe's tone being "tinny." Originally, I agreed with this opinion, but I have found over the years, that tweaking your setup can make a world of difference. I run mine through a Digitech RP-20 Valve and a series of pedals (one of which being a Menatone Red Snapper) ending in either my Marshall Valvestate or a Fender Princeton Chorus and it is fairly easy to get some beef going. On every gig I've ever played with this guitar, I hear at least one person comment on the "warmth." So, if that's your primary concern, between processing and knob twiddling, that can be worked with, and I wouldn't even consider it a drawback.

There is only one real drawback for using this guitar in the rock vein, and that's that the pickups are seriously hot and have a tendency to feedback a lot at high volumes. That was one of the reasons I dropped it in favor of the Mustang while in the rock band. When using high-gain distortion, unless you are going to be on your volume pedal the whole show, the squeal will torture you. I have seen it used by a metal guy in LA recently who did just that - rode the volume pedal the whole time - meaning, when you want to mute, it's volume off. That's a pretty natural state for metal players, but I had other things to be switching on and off with my feet, so that was hell for me. I had one really horrid show at The Whisky A Go Go, with this problem, because it also fed back into my PA monitor. Not fun. This could probably be worked with with some tweaking, but I found it too difficult to deal with in the LA club scene where you get almost no time to soundcheck.

Having said that - for anything else - blues, jazz, acoustic, softer rock - at moderate volumes, the sound on the Parker is absolutely stunning, and I've had too many people over the years to count compliment me about it. Fairly simple to get a nice round blues tone with the right amp. Ditto for muted jazz box. It will never sound like a Les Paul, so forget about that altogether. For that you're going to have to endure the godawful weight, and that is just not the Parker's strong suit.

This is the best made guitar I have ever played. The fret finish is pure silk. The action has always been perfect for me - particularly with light strings, it has a lot of big beautiful bounce which I like because I like to experiment with playing bass lines while I comp. On mine the E and A strings are pretty beefy and provide a nice ballsy bass that is easy to play with a heavy thumb.

I've had only two problems with this guitar: a fret coming unglued at the bottom causing my E string to catch under it (mentioned elsewhere here) and wear and tear on the battery connection, which I have become an expert at replacing (soldering and all). In my opinion, this is the Parker's one design flaw. Those flimsy connection wires are no match for the tugging, pinching, and pulling in and out required to keep the Parker in 9 volts. In truth, I would love to have a Parker that includes phantom power on the piezo because the battery thing is a real pain in the butt after awhile.

Other than that, it is so well made that it's hard to describe. I agree with others here who dislike the placement of the main volume knob, but there are four knobs to consider here and you want easy access to all of them, so I'm not sure that can be helped.

I've gigged with this guitar over a span of 15 years, but I treat it with kid gloves. I don't consider it incredibly durable, and I can't say it would survive a bad drop, so I'm careful with it. I also don't let others goof off with it. It's just not that kind of instrument. If you want a shit-kicker that you don't have to worry about, get something else.

Over the years, the finish has chipped a little here and there, but it has also withstood a lot of handling. Strap buttons are solid. I probably would not consider gigging without a backup with this guitar only because of the battery factor - and my particular issue with the battery connector.

Up until the last few years it was also a dream to travel with. Fit in the overhead bins in its custom gig bag on most flights and was easy to get around with because it's so compact. That's obviously changed a lot lately, and, truthfully, I'm not so sure I will risk it again until they get some new planes out there or somehow fix our dismal airline system. The fight over overhead bin space has just become too contentious. But depending on where you're going and when, that could still be a possibility.

I'm giving it an 8 in this category only because it's not built like a tank. But if it were, it wouldn't be a Parker, so you've got to make a choice there.

No idea. Never had to use them.

I love this guitar. I have never once regretted buying it and would probably cry if it ever got stolen. I would not hesitate for a second to replace it with another Parker.

I'm totally enamored with it's ability to adapt at the flick of a switch to a different sound. Going from blues to realistic jazz box is one switch and a knob tweak away. As is getting a really great amplified acoustic sound for one section of the song and flipping to electric later without having to change guitars.

On days I feel really sassy, I pump one side of the stereo send out to one effects setup/amp and the other to a different one and play in big-ass surround stereo. Makes me feel like I belong in a stadium. I've never used that feature live because of time constraints but it makes me happy just knowing I have the option. ;)

I wish mind had a floating bridge, which is probably the only option I would want to add to it, because some natural trem here and there is something I like to play with. Since there are models with that, it's something I would look for in a future Parker purchase.

Having come off the honeymoon phase with my Mustang, I can honestly say that I'm sorry I stayed away from it so long. This guitar plays like silk, opens new possibilities in my head, and I always put it down after a jam session feeling like I'm lucky to have it.

There weren't many models of Parker Flys when I bought this. It is a blue finished guitar with one piece straight-through neck, built-in piezo pickups, tremelo bar. I added a "drop-D thing tuner". I purchased the guitar used in 1997.

I have used this guitar to lead worship for the past ten years. The humbuckers are split and the variety of sound ranges from the middle position on a Strat to that of a Les Paul. The piezzo is brilliant and clear but lacks the compression of a true accoustic. I find it works well when finger picking but sounds "tinny" when strummed. By running the piezo through a Boss AD5 acoustic processor and all controls flat except boosting the bass to a 7 or 8 then going straight to the board, I can recapture some of that natural compression for strumming.

Bear in mind this is a heavily used ten year-old guitar. The guitar fits like a glove and the weight is too die for. However, the master volume control is directly in the strum path and it gets turned down at embarrasingly inopportune moments. I have had to change my strum patterns. also, the volume control turns too easilty. I have inserted a small strip of adhesive tape to slow down. I have also found it hard to visually identfy where the volume is set. to fix this I added a white dot on the volume control knobs. As the guitar has aged the 2nd fret has crept up and the top E string can get caught under it. The top E string can also get caught under the low edge of the neck humbucker. The bridge has gotten notched and created a "sitar" tone on the top E string. The string bone at the head has split once and has been replaced.

I have replaced the strap buttons with lock buttons. I always travel with replacement batteries for the active system. I bring a backup guitar at least 50% of the time but have never had to use it except for a brokemn string once.

My repairs have been all non-warranty and have been satisfactory.

It's like family. I may complain but I'll defend this guitar to the death. After ten years it remains a staple. For its two humbuckers my amp is a rack Mesa Boogie studio stereo preamp and a 20-20 mesa stereo amp with two single 12" closed back cabs. My pedal lineup is a Line 6 DM4 Distortion Modeler>mesa boogie studio preamp>effect loop out>Line 6 MM-4 modulation modeler>Line 6 DL-4 Delay/Echo Modeler>mesa boogie 20-20 power amp. For the peizo: Boss AD5 accoustic processer>PA system

I have just taken possession of what the factory calls a Refined Fly Deluxe Custom. It is a late 2006 model ordered by one of their vendors with the discontinued Italian Plum color and Seymour Duncans. Although I'm in the "Honeymoon" stage, just the physical sight of this piece brings you to your knees. Its construction is very impeccable. The finishes end where they are supposed to. The attention to subdued elegance is paramount. The sculpted body and the overall template of the guitar has been well thought-out to portray a progressive, leading edge player. The only failure in its design is the cheap, funky rear access panel. It needs redesign with a ledge for inset mounting, greater precision locations for the access holes with possible small trim surrounds there, and made of material worthy of a place on such an excellent instrument (like the panel on my Guild Nightbird II.)

I'm just getting to know this guitar. I play jazz mostly and various other styles as well as acoustic and bass. My biggest challenge was to get a "Big Box" jazz guitar sound from this Deluxe, and I did achieve it. I use the neck only SD in single coil (or even Humbucker mode) and almost full bleed thru the capacitor (meaning almost all bass tone). I run thru an Alesis Microverb 4, then into an Ampeg B3 bass amp with 2-8" and a high freq. horn. The beauty of the B3 is that I have nine equalizer slide controls to completely taylor the frequency response thru the nine ranges (definitely better than the knobs). Voila!! Big Box jazz guitar!! I am having trouble getting the acoustic sound that the Parker website displays, however, its early in the game. One thing for sure, the SD mags can blow the wings off of a stealth bomber if thats what you want. I am sure to develop the more refined settings
which appeal to me as I log-in time on the fretboard.

I feel the action is a moderately high compared to the set up of my Guild which I carved-in myself. The intonation of the bridge seems very good and I am confident I can "lay it down", however, there is scarcely any arc in the overall length of neck so it will be a very delicate venture. I thought I played fast necks before. WRONG! The only limitations on speed here is your gene pool! Why don't all manufacturers use this modeling? The only thing I would have liked better in the finish is to be able to see the outstanding micro-metal flake plum color a little more. It is very dark and to lighten up the face just a bit would be an attractive change. The refined fly controls are positive and positioned for intuitive playing.

I cannot attest to the reliability and durability from length of owner-ship but after 44 years of playing, my sixth sense tells me this guitar will go the distance. No doubt. No doubt.

I have yet to really see how strong customer support is. They did return a couple of ****** inquiries relatively quick, but their information to me about not being able to opt for Seymour Duncan in place of DeMarzios was completely wrong. I have SDs and a discontinued finish on a brand new guitar right here and now. Go figure! I believe the Parker website is probably not as fastidiously maintained now that U.S. Music is in ownership. I use two different web browsers and neither have been able to glean certain offered materials from the site.

I swear, the first experience with this instrument is surreal! Nothing fights you. Its wide open. Its being free. Now that you've found another world, what are you going to do with it? Yes, all of those statements apply. I am 57 years old, a business owner, and a realist. I had vowed never to buy a guitar sight unseen or untried. It just doesn't make good sense. Well, I went completely against all of my rules of engagement on this one and how unbelievably fortunate it was. If all of my guitars were stolen, my first purchase would be another Parker from my source in Minnesota ( I'm in Calif.). Wherever I have a 9 rating in this review, It's really a 10. Although I want to say the jury is still out, something is telling me I know better already.