Dearmond M72 M75 M77
Lee Nicholson
my Kramer Focus. I once played an old Guild Bluesbird, which I really
liked and these seem like a modern, cheap copy. Anyone familiar
with these? Do the all have a chambered, lighter weight body? Do
that all sound/play well? What are the differences between the three?
Anyone got one to sell?
Thanks for any info!
Bongolation
> I am interested in one of these guitars as a replacement
> (step up) from my Kramer Focus. I once played an old Guild
> Bluesbird, which I really liked and these seem like a modern,
> cheap copy.
Actually, they are based on the lovely Guild "Aristocrat" of the early
1950s, from which the "Bluesbird" also evolved.
> Anyone familiar with these?
Fairly well, yes.
> Do the all have a chambered, lighter weight body?
I am not certain about the M72, but the other ones you mention, yes.
> Do that all sound/play well?
"All" is a big word!
> What are the differences between the three?
The M72 is a flat-topped, cheaper version of the M-75s and M-77s, which
were successive top-of-the-line models with carved maple tops.
I am not sure if you actually mean M-75 and M-77 or M-75T and M-77T, which
are very different versions, all built on the same basic body. The M-75 is
quite rare. The M-75T has the excellent DeArmond 2K pickups, made in the
Fender pickup shop at Corona, California. The electrics are all US-made,
usually down to the cable. The 2K is a recreation of the DeArmond pickups
that were on classic Gretsch guitars. It also has a nicely-made
Bigsby-style vibrato.
The M-77T was the successor to the M-75T. It is basically the same, but
has a narrower headstock profile (the earlier M-75T had a classic Guild
trademark headstock), a roller bridge, different tuner knob shape, some
different colors, different tone and volume knobs. There is some talk
about there being some minor differences between early and later 2K
pickups, but I am not sure about this. The M-77T is lighter, which may or
may not mean there is more chambering. Nobody seems to be really clear on
this. The M-75T had a "By Guild" two-screw truss rod cover plate. The
M-77T had a plain one-screw plate
Some people prefer the M-75T to the M-77T and vice-versa, largely depending
on how they feel about the roller bridge. There's not much difference
otherwise.
The M-77 is the same basic guitar as the other two, but does not have the
vibrato and uses the Fender-made DeArmond "GoldTone" humbuckers. While
people rave about the 2ks, the reviews are mixed about the GoldTones, which
seem to vary somewhat in their tones through the production history. Some
seem to accent the high-mid frequencies ("twang") and some don't. Whether
this is a function of the pickup or the interaction with other factors in
different guitars is not clear. They are definitely high-quality pickups
which Fender offered as aftermarket items at a very steep price. It's just
a matter of how they sound to you in your application. I hate how they
sound on my X-155, but love the way they sound on my M-77, and they sound
very different on these two DeArmonds. Why, I can't say.
The M-77 is more of a Les Paul type guitar and the M-75T/M-77T is more like
a Gretsch, but all are unique instruments.
Though generally very well-made (certainly better than, say, Gibson), there
can be substantial differences between instruments. Good examples can be
absolutely superb guitars, and I say this as a former dealer in high-end
and vintage instruments.
The particular black M-77T I bought exactly a year ago, is possibly the
finest all-around guitar I have ever played, simply perfect for my hands,
flawlessly made and finished. I have a M-75T that is very close to being
as nice, but has a couple of minor finish flaws and a very slightly
different neck profile. It is also about two pounds heavier.
My M-77 is not quite as nice as these other two, but is close. The M-77
suffered from some truly horrible metallic (not metalflake) colors and
two-tone metal. The least offensive color is probably the silver, but it
seems to be rare. The "Moon Blue" is so loud that when I first took mine
outside, hummingbirds tried to mate with it. If one can get past these
unfortunate colors, the guitar is an excellent, pro-quality hardtail
humbucker rock/blues axe.
These guitars were undervalued even at their list prices and were never
properly marketed by FMIC during their three-year run. As nominally Guild
instruments, they fell victim to the Guild reorganization and were dumped
at incredibly low prices in 2001, usually 18%-20% of FMIC's MSRP. My
wonderful M-77T I purchased for $199.99 last Memorial Day. They suffered
the final indignity of being stripped of their expensive US Fender/DeArmond
pickups and reintroduced in a somewhat different form as the current Squier
"24" series guitars.
> Anyone got one to sell?
Check EBay. There are usually tons of them. I advise against buying any
guitar sight-unseen, but generally speaking these are excellent guitars and
outstanding values even at current prices, which are up to twice the
closeout prices of last year.
> Thanks for any info!
You can also find more info at the FDP's DeArmond/Guild forum:
http://www.fenderforum.com/forum.html?db=&message_area_number=9
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E-mail: bongolation<AT>mail.md - Change <AT> to @ symbol to reply.
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