 | |
 | |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Musical instruments |
| Founded | 1995 |
| Headquarters | Garforth, United Kingdom |
Area served | Global |
| Products |
|
| Owner | John Hornby Skewes & Co. Ltd. |
| Website | vintageguitarsrus.com |
Vintage Guitars is a British manufacturer of electric and acoustic guitars and bass guitars founded in 1995. The Vintage brand is owned by UK musical instrument distributors John Hornby Skewes and Co. Ltd. (JHS), and is based in Garforth, Leeds.
The first guitar series by Vintage called VC1 came out in 1995. [1] In collaboration with Trevor Wilkinson (originator of Fret-King), Vintage's goal was to manufacture affordable but well-made vintage-looking guitars. [2]
Instruments manufactured by Vintage have been used by notable rock, heavy metal and country musicians, including Scott Sharrard, Fred Mollin, Billy Sherwood, John Payne, Dave Colwell, Peter Baltes and Nick Kane. [3] Paul Brett worked as a guitar designer for Vintage. [4] The brand has collaborated with Joe Doe Guitars. [5] Vintage has designed signature model guitars for Thomas Blug, [6] Jerry Donahue, [7] Tony Butler [8] and Midge Ure. [9]
In 2020, due to the brand's 25th anniversary, the "25th Anniversary Series" of V75, V6H and V100, which are considered Vintage's best-selling models, was released, [10] limited to 100 pieces each. [11] In 2022, JHS gifted a Vintage acoustic-electric guitar to a homeless Malvern Link busker who got his Yamaha guitar stolen. [12]
Matt McCracken of Guitar.com noted that "Vintage made its name mixing homegrown design ingenuity with overseas manufacturing to deliver impressive value for money." [13] Dave Burrluck of MusicRadar in his review of Vintage VSA500 (based on Gibson ES-335) acknowledged the brand's "copy-cat status", but concluded that "the guitars might be slight in price but [...] they are far from generic guitar-shaped objects. For the asking price this semi is excellent as is and maybe with a few personalised tweaks could become a serious keeper." [14]
Ibanez is a Japanese guitar brand owned by Hoshino Gakki. Based in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan, Hoshino Gakki were one of the first Japanese musical instrument companies to gain a significant foothold in import guitar sales in the United States and Europe, as well as the first brand of guitars to mass-produce the seven-string guitar and eight-string guitar. Ibanez manufactures effects, accessories, amps, and instruments in Japan, China, Indonesia, and the United States. As of 2017 they marketed nearly 165 models of bass guitar, 130 acoustic guitars, and more than 300 electric guitars. After Gibson and Fender, Ibanez is considered the third biggest guitar brand.
James Ure is a Scottish musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of Jim, the diminutive form of his actual name. Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980s in bands including Slik, Thin Lizzy, Rich Kids and Visage, and as the second frontman of Ultravox. In 1984, he co-wrote and produced the charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?", which has sold 3.7 million copies in the UK. The song is the second-highest-selling single in UK chart history. Ure co-organised Band Aid, Live Aid and Live 8 with Bob Geldof. He acts as a trustee for the charity and also serves as an ambassador for Save the Children.
Paul Reed Smith Guitars, also known as PRS Guitars or simply PRS, is an American guitar and amplifier manufacturer located in Stevensville, Maryland. The company was founded in 1985 in Annapolis, Maryland by Paul Reed Smith. Products manufactured by PRS include electric and acoustic guitars, basses, and amplifiers.
Washburn Guitars is an American brand and importer of guitars, mandolins, and other string instruments, originally established in 1883 in Chicago, Illinois. The Washburn name is controlled by U.S. Music Corp., a subsidiary of Canadian corporate group Exertis|JAM.
Silvertone is a brand created and promoted by Sears for its line of consumer electronics and musical instruments from 1916 to 1972. The rights to the Silvertone brand were purchased by South Korean corporation Samick Music in 2001. Samick made new musical instruments under the Silvertone brand and relaunched some historic models. In 2020, RBI Music was appointed the exclusive worldwide distributor of the Silvertone brand.
Guitar World is a monthly music magazine for guitarists – and fans of guitar-based music and trends – that has been published since July 1980. Guitar World, the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original artist interviews and profiles, plus lessons/columns, gear reviews, news and exclusive tablature of three songs per issue. The magazine is published 13 times per year by Future plc. Damian Fanelli has been Guitar World's Editor-in-Chief since June 2018.
Badass was first trademarked by Leo Quan, a manufacturer of bridges for guitars and basses. Badass bridges feature individually adjustable saddles, which allows for "extremely accurate intonation adjustments." The Badass came on the market in the 1970s, and was made by entrepreneur and guitar repairman Glen Quan, of Marin County music store Bananas At Large and Leo Malliaris of Oakland's Leo's Music. The first Badass bridges were built from diecast zinc and were considered somewhat rough; later models were made from a high-density zinc alloy and more finely milled. Badass is currently owned and distributed by Allparts Music, a subsidiary of Morse Group. In late 2022 and early 2023 Allparts Music relaunched the entire Badass bridge line including the Badass II bass bridge, Badass III bass bridge, Badass V bass bridge, Badass Wraparound Guitar Bridge, and Badass Fine Tuner Guitar Tailpiece.
Reverend Musical Instruments, commonly known as Reverend Guitars, is an American manufacturer of electric guitars and basses. The company was established in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan by noted guitar and amplifier technician Joe Naylor, a graduate of the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery. Reverend guitars are known for their combination of unorthodox construction methods, retro design, playability and affordable price.
Bolt-on neck is a method of guitar construction that involves joining a guitar neck and body using screws or bolts, as opposed to glue and joinery as with set-in neck joints.
Gordon Smith Guitars is a manufacturer of hand-crafted electric guitars. They are the UK's longest-established electric guitar manufacturer and have been called the English equivalent to Gibson on that basis.
The Gibson Advanced Jumbo was an acoustic flattop guitar made by the Gibson Guitar Corporation. Introduced in 1936, is still considered a classic. Only 300 guitars were produced before Gibson replaced it with the Gibson J-200 Super Jumbo, but these guitars are still prized by collectors and musicians today.
Taylor Guitars is an American guitar manufacturer based in El Cajon, California, and is one of the largest manufacturers of acoustic guitars in the United States. They specialize in acoustic guitars and semi-hollow electric guitars. The company was founded in 1974 by Bob Taylor and Kurt Listug.
The Ovation Viper is an electric guitar made by Ovation Guitar Company from 1977 to the early 1980s; it was available with two single-coil pickups (1271), and Viper III, with a third middle pickup (1273).
The Martin D-45 is a steel-string acoustic guitar model made by C. F. Martin & Company. The model was manufactured from 1933 to 1942, and in a second production series since 1968. Martin originally made the guitar's sides and backs of Brazilian rosewood. Martins are ranked among the highest-quality, as well as among the most expensive guitars, and the D-45, regarded as one of the first "luxury guitars", was listed in 2011 as the most valuable production-model guitar.
Patrick James Eggle is a British guitar designer and luthier.
JHS Pedals is a guitar effects pedals manufacturer with headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri.
Fret-King is a UK manufacturer of stringed instruments and musical accessories, originally conceived by guitar designer Trevor Wilkinson in the early 1990s. The company has manufactured a number of electric and bass guitars noted for their distinct appearance and non-traditional aesthetic.
The Gibson L series is a series of small-body guitars produced and sold by Gibson Guitar Corporation in the early 20th century. The first guitars of this series, Gibson L-0 and Gibson L-1, were introduced first as arch-tops (1902), and later as flat tops in 1926. The L series was later gradually replaced by the LG series in the 1940s.
ES-Les Paul is a Memphis Gibson branded semi-hollow guitar produced in Memphis Tennessee from 2014 to 2016. It was produced with several different variations including a model with no f holes.
