For fall 2016, Charvel is offering a limited run of the Guthrie Govan Signature model that shares many of the unique features of the original 2014 model, but in a handsome Britannica Red finish trimmed with a black burst.
The San Dimas body has a bird’s-eye maple top with a thin clear matte finish and a specially contoured heel (sans neck plate) for easy access to the upper reaches of the fingerboard. The bolt-on neck is quarter sawn flame maple with a “caramelized” heat and drying treatment that makes it sound and feel much older, with graphite reinforcement, hand-rubbed urethane gel on the back of the neck and a convenient truss rod adjustment wheel at the body end. Most unusually for a San Dimas model, the compound- radius (12”-16”) flame-maple fingerboard spans two octaves, with the same caramelized treatment as the neck, 24 jumbo stainless steel frets and special maple dot inlays with ebony borders.
Other premium features include three specially wound Charvel custom MF pickups arranged in a versatile HSH configuration with five-way switching for the expansive tonal openness and dynamic sensitivity that Govan demands, two domed control knobs (master volume, master tone), U.S.- made recessed Charvel locking tremolo bridge with Tremol- NoTM unit and oversized brass block, bone nut, chrome hardware and 25.5” scale length.
