mystixboi1
Kick Henry Jackassowski
Today I received my first Balaguer build. I went with a Growler. I placed the other on Jan 27. Before I get into any of the details of the guitar, I want to give Joe Balaguer and Jaime Gold major props for putting up with my changes. I basically started off with a purple stain growler with a maple neck and maple fretboard and chrome hardware.
A few hours later, I decided to change the fretboard to ebony. This began a slow series of me making small changes to the build every few days. Joe even contacted me about a particular spec I had chosen and told me why he didn’t think it would be a good idea based on the rest of the guitar. It made sense… so we made the change. Weeks after the order was placed, I asked if I change the finish to purple sparkle.
The entire time, Joe and Jaime worked with me and got the changes in. They didn’t charge me any crazy fee with each change I made… just the actual cost of what it would have been if I selected that option originally.
So fast forward to earlier this afternoon. I got the guitar and unboxed it.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t know what to expect when I first placed the order because I never ordered anything from Balaguer and the stigma about overseas builds lingered in the back of my mind. (Note: Joe designs the guitars and builds the USA custom shop models, but he uses a company in South Korea to build the production and semi-custom guitars). Most of my guitars from the past few years have been all USA made from companies like Suhr, PRS, and Music Man. So my bar was set pretty high.
As soon as I took the guitar out of the gig bag, I went over it to look for any sharp frets, finish flaws, etc. I didn’t find any sharp frets or neck pocket cracks. I did find a few bumps in the finish where the front of the guitar meets the side of the guitar, but only because that’s where some of the sparkle accumulated when the finish was applied. But even though there were a few bumps, it was completely smooth. I don’t see anything bad happening(like chipping or flaking) to the finish in the future. And you can’t see it even if you are looking from 6 inches away. It’s totally fine.
As far as the finish itself, it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. I’ve already told Joe this…. The sample I sent Joe was from a purple sparkle finish that Marty Bell did for me on another guitar. This was more of a purple base with sparkles throughout. Joe calls it purple space. To be honest, I got used to it pretty quickly and I like it. It has character. It’s not just another sparkle finish. It totally pops!!!!
I spent a good amount of time with the guitar this evening and I can’t find any other flaws on it. I had to lower the action a bit using the truss rod, but that’s just me and where I like my action. It was the slightest turn of the truss rod. The action is low without any buzzing. The neck itself is a C shape, a bit girthier than what I am used to, but it took moments to get used to.
I don’t feel that the guitar sits awkwardly as a I play sitting. It had a nice balance to it.
As far as tones from the guitar. The guitar has a Feral humbucker and the bridge and a P90 in the neck. Both pickups were designed by Joe. They complement each other very well. The Feral is modern voiced. It is punchy and articulate without driving the amp too much. The P90 neck is just liquid love. Lead lines are so smoith they just role off it. It almost plays itself.
The sustain on this guitar is great too. It’s a bolt on so it has the snap to it, but it sustains nicely. Unplugged, the guitar sounds full and has a nice acoustic quality to it.
So far so good… I’m happy with this purchase and I can’t wait to play it more and discover more tones.
I have to say that working with Joe on this guitar was a great experience. He took my very first phone call and was able to respond to me via text or FB messenger within minutes. What other company do you have direct access to the guy who designed the guitar and will work with you to make sure you are happy with the final product? He’s the prime example of why working with “smaller” builders can be an awesome experience.
I already placed an order for another Balaguer!!!!
A few hours later, I decided to change the fretboard to ebony. This began a slow series of me making small changes to the build every few days. Joe even contacted me about a particular spec I had chosen and told me why he didn’t think it would be a good idea based on the rest of the guitar. It made sense… so we made the change. Weeks after the order was placed, I asked if I change the finish to purple sparkle.
The entire time, Joe and Jaime worked with me and got the changes in. They didn’t charge me any crazy fee with each change I made… just the actual cost of what it would have been if I selected that option originally.
So fast forward to earlier this afternoon. I got the guitar and unboxed it.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t know what to expect when I first placed the order because I never ordered anything from Balaguer and the stigma about overseas builds lingered in the back of my mind. (Note: Joe designs the guitars and builds the USA custom shop models, but he uses a company in South Korea to build the production and semi-custom guitars). Most of my guitars from the past few years have been all USA made from companies like Suhr, PRS, and Music Man. So my bar was set pretty high.
As soon as I took the guitar out of the gig bag, I went over it to look for any sharp frets, finish flaws, etc. I didn’t find any sharp frets or neck pocket cracks. I did find a few bumps in the finish where the front of the guitar meets the side of the guitar, but only because that’s where some of the sparkle accumulated when the finish was applied. But even though there were a few bumps, it was completely smooth. I don’t see anything bad happening(like chipping or flaking) to the finish in the future. And you can’t see it even if you are looking from 6 inches away. It’s totally fine.
As far as the finish itself, it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. I’ve already told Joe this…. The sample I sent Joe was from a purple sparkle finish that Marty Bell did for me on another guitar. This was more of a purple base with sparkles throughout. Joe calls it purple space. To be honest, I got used to it pretty quickly and I like it. It has character. It’s not just another sparkle finish. It totally pops!!!!
I spent a good amount of time with the guitar this evening and I can’t find any other flaws on it. I had to lower the action a bit using the truss rod, but that’s just me and where I like my action. It was the slightest turn of the truss rod. The action is low without any buzzing. The neck itself is a C shape, a bit girthier than what I am used to, but it took moments to get used to.
I don’t feel that the guitar sits awkwardly as a I play sitting. It had a nice balance to it.
As far as tones from the guitar. The guitar has a Feral humbucker and the bridge and a P90 in the neck. Both pickups were designed by Joe. They complement each other very well. The Feral is modern voiced. It is punchy and articulate without driving the amp too much. The P90 neck is just liquid love. Lead lines are so smoith they just role off it. It almost plays itself.
The sustain on this guitar is great too. It’s a bolt on so it has the snap to it, but it sustains nicely. Unplugged, the guitar sounds full and has a nice acoustic quality to it.
So far so good… I’m happy with this purchase and I can’t wait to play it more and discover more tones.
I have to say that working with Joe on this guitar was a great experience. He took my very first phone call and was able to respond to me via text or FB messenger within minutes. What other company do you have direct access to the guy who designed the guitar and will work with you to make sure you are happy with the final product? He’s the prime example of why working with “smaller” builders can be an awesome experience.
I already placed an order for another Balaguer!!!!
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