Gretsch Tim Armstrong G5191BK Electromatic

125
GRETSCH TIM ARMSTRONG ELECTROMATIC HOLLOWBODY REVIEW
Gretsch Tim Armstrong
G5191BK Electromatic
Meet the Rancid man’s hollowbody
signature for punks on a salary
For:
That great Gretsch sound
Against: Great guitars cost money
F
ollowing Fender’s Hellcat
electro-acoustic last
year, it was only a matter
of time before Gretsch
delivered a Tim Armstrong
signature model. This one’s
based around the Rancid
frontman’s coveted 70s Grestch
Country Club – a right-handed
guitar that Tim (a lefty) plays
upside-down. Where Armstrong’s
acoustic was a relatively budget
model aimed at that punk down
the pub, Tim has pushed the
boat out with his Gretsch. A quick
look at the price tag (add £150 if
you’re a lefty) signals that as well
as being armed with three chords
and the truth, you might need 12
months’ interest free to go with it.
As soon as you get it out of the
box, though, you’ll understand
why. The awesome Urethane
matte black finish is similar to
Tim’s spray-painted job (albeit
without the battle scars) and
is offset by neatly fitted white
binding, bound f-holes and gold
hardware. The maple hollowbody
is loaded with a pair of black
top Gretsch Filter’Tron pickups,
which set the blueprint for the
‘in-between’ sound of a mini-
humbucker.
Start clean on the neck pickup
for a massive rhythm sound; the
bass-heavy, woody tone reminds
you why hollowbody guitars are
so well loved. Applying some
crunch and clamping down some
open chords adds to this, while
staying tight and maintaining
the attack of your notes. Go too
far with the distortion, however,
and it starts to get mushy. At this
point, it’s time to switch to the
bridge pickup. Compared to the
neck pickup, this one sounds a
little weak on our review model.
Still, throw some powerchords at
it with higher-gain settings and
the Filter’Tron bites at your ears
harder than Mike Tyson. Roll the
master volume back a bit and
jangly melodic lines also ring out
well. Clean up even more and
you’ll reveal a little of the honk-a-
billy tone that has been drawing
rock ’n’ rollers to Gretsch guitars
for so many years.
Conclusion: We love Rancid,
and we love this guitar, but it’s
not without its faults. It’s big and
cumbersome with a tendency
for it to pull forward on a strap,
and it’ll set you back a lot of gig
fees. The lack of a Bigsby could
be a downer for some and gold
hardware is like Marmite, but our
review model was set up well
with a comfortable neck, great
sounds and amazing looks – plus
it didn’t fall into the hollowbody
trap of relentless feedback. It’s
clear that while it could have
pumped out a cheaper model,
Gretsch has created a serious
guitar for punk fans.
Stuart Williams
✮✮✮✮✮
SUMMARY
TG says… Let’s go! (and buy one)
Armstrong’s
signature
doesn’t fall
into the
hollowbody
trap of
relentless
feedback
■ Finish
The matte paintjob,
tidy binding and gold
hardware give this
guitar a cool look
■ Signature
The only sign that this
is a signature guitar is
Tim’s squiggle on the
trussrod cover
At a glance
Gretsch Tim Armstrong
G5191BK Electromatic
Hollowbody
BODY: Maple, laminate
NECK: Maple
FINGERBOARD: Rosewood
FRETS: 22
SCALE: 24
1
/3”
PICKUPS: 2x Black Top
Filter’Tron
CONTROLS: 2x Volume, 2x
tone, master volume
HARDWARE: Gold
LEFT-HANDED: Yes (£1,189)
FINISH: Black (matte,
pictured)
C O N TA C T: Fender GBI
01342 331700
WEB: www.gretschguitars.
com
Gretch’s Filter’Tron
pickups nail Tim’s
punk rock snarl
■ Pickups
These Filter’Tron
pickups do the
business when you
want a balance
between beef and bite
£1,039
TGR201.gear_tim 125 24/3/10 2:04:39 pm