G&L Custom Shop ASAT Classic Bluesboy Old School Tobacco 2022 Electric w/ Hardshell Case *Authorized Dealer*

The G&L Custom Shop is a dedicated area of the G&L factory in Fullerton, CA where G&L's finest work is produced. The Custom Shop allows for an even wider range of options than their Build-to-Order line, along with the type of personal attention that makes every guitar something special. This ASAT Classic Bluesboy with roasted Ash body and Seymour Duncan Seth Lover pick is another great Custom Shop creation.

 This Custom Shop ASAT Bluesboy features:

• Old School Tobacco finish, 7.2 pounds
• Roasted Ash body
• Quarter-sawn 3A flame maple neck with matching fingerboard
• Modern Classic neck profile
• 9.5” radius, 1-11/16” nut width
• Satin clear neck finish
• 1-Ply black pickguard
• Seymour Duncan Seth Lover neck pickup
• G&L Alnico bridge pickup
• 3-position pickup switch
• Volume and tone controls
• Logo Delete option
• Plek fret finishing
• Custom Shop Deluxe case

While all guitar tone woods are dried to remove moisture, roasted woods are baked at a much higher temperature than typical drying processes. Besides imparting a rich dark color, roasting drives out all the moisture, resulting in a lightweight and resonant end product. Some feel that roasted woods sound "old" similar to instruments that have been around for ages naturally drying out.

While we can't vouch to how "old" this ASAT sounds, roasted bodies tend to have really nice resonance. And paired with a roasted quarter-sawn neck, this ASAT Bluesboy has a strong natural acoustic tone and plenty of attack and note articulation. The benefits of a quarter-sawn neck is that the grain is oriented perpendicular to the fretboard (as opposed to a typical flat sawn-neck where the grain is parallel to the fretboard). The perpendicular grain orientation results in a stiffer "beam" structure which makes the neck more stable and more responsive.

While G&L has been making their own humbucker pickups for years, this build came with a Seymour Duncan Seth Lover neck pickup, which was previously standard in the Bluesboy up until a few years ago. The Seth Lover is an "old school" un-potted pickup using Alnico 2 magnets. In the realm of guitar magnets, Alnico 2 has a soft magnetic field, giving the pickup a smooth attack, a more relaxed feel and silky top end. Overdriven tones are smooth and creamy with plenty of sustain. This is the tone of the early Gibson Humbucker pickups before higher outputs and stronger magnets became the norm. While Seth Lovers can get a bit too squishy, especially on the wound strings, the bolt-on neck construction and roasted Ash body creates a nice blend of warmth and note clarity.

G&L's trusty ASAT Classic MFD pickup counterbalances the neck pickup with a twangy piano-like low end attack, strong output, and shimmering highs that aren't icy or brittle. The ample midrange content also makes it a great lead pickup, and it absolutely loves overdrive pedals, creating harmonically complex rock crunch that is bristling with overtones. It's both a great traditional country pickup, and a very capable rock pickup. 

These two pickups together are a perfect match, just like Peanut Butter and Chocolate: Sweet, bell-like and impeccably clear, with enough heft to work well for rhythm, single note work, and detailed picking.

Another feature that disappeared from regular production G&L's back around 2018 is Plek fret finishing. Plek laser-guided fret finishing is done under string tension, which assures that your frets are level in real-world playing conditions, and not just on the repair bench. It's a slow process, but it results in the best possible playing experience.

The G&L ASAT Classic Bluesboy has been a perennial favorite for years, and the Custom Shop treatment makes it just that much better. This Bluesboy is a beautiful looking instrument that is meant to be both played and admired.