The Resonator Guitars
Currently, there are three models. The rezentine, The Hi Rez and the Supro
All guitar bodies are made from marine grade aluminum
Both the bodies and necks are HAND FORMED. I do not use CNC for anything other than the cone ring and headstock symbol. there will be some very modest +/- variation in dimensional tolerance.
Please visit the IMS page to learn more about what I feel is the best, most versatile and most convenient mic/pickup combination for amplifying a resonator guitar that I know of.
The Supro Sparkle up close, left-handed. Pickups in both neck and bridge.
The Hi Rez with distressed paint. Active piezo pickup on the bridge.
The Rezentine satin finish. Phat Cat pickup on the neck.
Most guitars are made using biscuit bridge configurations, but willing to build a spider bridge on request. All body styles and finishes are priced the same. the biggest cost difference lies in the electronics. List price is $2,600 for the guitar with no electronics. $2,400 for the inclusion of one pickup or mic (details below). $2,600 for the inclusion of both a neck pickup and bridge pickup, or one pickup and one mic (IMC). $2,500 for both pickups and mic (IMs+). Left-handed models get the “leftie” discount.
Within this framework, almost all of the details can be customized to your order. Those details include the finish, pickup/IMS configuration, the cone, material of biscuit or spider saddle (wood or aluminum), fretboard wood and width of neck at the nut (up to 2 inches with the expectation of modest +/- tolerance). There may be modest price changes between most of the choices that aren’t mentioned below. The differences are based on material costs. A few things I don’t do are custom body shapes, custom scale lengths and compound fretboards. With that said, there are guitars available at all times. All are listed in the shop. Detailed descriptions of each guitar are provided. I am also happy to provide suggestions on orders if you find all of the choices too daunting.
I prefer to use maple for the necks. I dye them with black India ink and sand them to give a mild weathered appearance. Fretboards in the past have been rosewood, but future builds will use ebony species not on the CITES list, or pau Ferro. I also love the use of woods like zircote, wenge or purple heart, and I am open to using other varieties. All body dimensions are similar to a style O tenor guitar. The Supro has a soft cutaway, while the Rezentine, has a traditional florentine cutaway giving accessibility all the way to the 18th fret.
Since all guitars, with the exception of those listed in the shop are custom built to order, I require a $300 deposit. For an additional $150 (non-refundable), I will mail you the neck before attaching to the body for fitting. First revision is included. Additional costs for further revisions.
Components and specs: I use Seymour Duncan for all magnetic pickups at the neck- either a ’59 Humbucker or Phat Cat. The piezo pickup in the bridge is made by Schatten Design with an internally mounted preamp powered with a 9v battery located inside of body under the neck. Standard Microphone is a Behringer CB 100 with phantom power preamp mounted in foot pedal (requires phantom power from most house PA systems, or an additional DI box). I usually use Grover 136 series tuners. Unless requested otherwise, scale length is 25″ and a neck width at the nut at 1 7/8″ Body dimensions are: length-18″ Lower bout-13.5″ Upper bout-10.5″ Waist-9″ Depth-3″ Body finishes are satin, sparkle, polished or distressed paint with any requested color combination.
The gallery below is a mix of custom and previous stock models
