The Guitar Gallery Forums - The Guitar Legacy of Matsumoku

Q&A, discussion, and information for the labels covered by The Guitar Gallery (Specifically and exclusively guitars made by Matsumoku up to 1987)
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PostPosted: Mon 12 Apr 2021 04:07 PM 
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Virtuoso
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That is one pretty piece of wood there! :love:

If the only odd thing with the guitar was the fugly fender knobs I don't think it would be a prototype. Knobs aside another thing to keep in mind is many catalogs had "Specifications subject to change without notice" printed at the bottom of the last page. They weren't kidding either! :rofl:


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PostPosted: Tue 13 Apr 2021 08:53 AM 
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When I talked to the ARIA reps at the Frankfurt Music Show last year, I asked about which factory in Japan continued building which models after Matsumoku and also specifically about this particular axe. He couldn't (or wouldn't?) give info about the factories, but did mention that prototypes were often built in a fairly large number (between 50-100 units) to "test the water". Some were provided to known players and the rest were sold. Production was then based on feedback.

Whether this is/was based on actual fact...?

I've actually changed the knobs for "aged" brass ones. Looks a lot better.


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Uncle Mats ES-500, RS Wildcat, RSB Deluxe, FS-750, Magna MA 30 (non-Mat), TA-61 non-Mat), a Westone limited run/proto Thunder and an OAKLAND (Westone) XI100.

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PostPosted: Tue 13 Apr 2021 10:14 AM 
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True it was not unusual for a model have a "test run". Limited runs were another such as the Aria Pro II Black 'N' Gold series.

One thing to keep in mind is models intended for different markets (USA, Europe, Japan, etc.) varied. Some models ran for only a short period due to lack of sales. There is still much information missing where models are concerned.

Any Westone Thunder, prototype or not is equal to or better than any Fender or Gibson custom shop IMHO.

You definitely have a keeper there. :up:


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PostPosted: Tue 13 Apr 2021 10:32 AM 
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I would imagine current Aria reps have no idea about factories used 30+ years ago. It probably doesn't mean anything to them like it does to us. They want you to buy stuff they're making now.
Guitars like this one always make me wonder how many more "experiments in marketing" or "re-badging" are there that we've yet to see?

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