GUITAR NERDS

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NAMM 2017: Supro Americana and Island series guitars

Following the successful reintroduction of their classic amplifier range, Supro have announced a new line of electric guitars. 

Supro’s Dave Koltai, master-designer Trev Wilkinson and virtuoso luthier Glenn Sweetwood have teamed with vintage pickup expert Ken Calvet to produce 14 new instruments with period correct electronics and the unique construction details of the original Chicago-made models.

With two lines distinct new lines - the Island Series and the Americana Series - the Supro guitar range takes 21st century playability and performance and mates it perfectly with retro looks and iconic tones. 

Based on the Vintage 1962 Supro Ozark body design, the Island Series guitars offer the player a choice of three pickup configurations - the single pickup Jamesport, the twin pickup Westbury and the triple pickup Hampton model. All three models have solid alder bodies, with set maple necks. Each sport Gold Foil pickups based on the units designed in the 1950s and are found in many desirable vintage Supro, National and Airline models. Since there are no pole pieces, this is a “field coil” pickup. It provides a huge, wide-open sound that is best-described as broadband, due to the rather wide frequency response, with big fat bottom and crystal-clear treble. These pickups work very well with overdrive, distortion and fuzz pedals, as well as vintage-voiced amplifiers. 

Meanwhile the Americana Series employ the vintage Supro body design with Acousti-Glass top matched to a semi-hollow mahogany back and uses a redesigned two bolt neck joint for the mahogany neck. Featuring the single pickup Sahara, Dual-Tone and Belmont models, and the Holiday, Coronado II and Martinique twin pickup models, the vintage-correct Vistatone pickups accurately replicate those sought-after tones often found in Supro, National and Airline guitars of the period. The 50’s wiring captures the design developed for Valco by Ralph Keller in the 1950’s whilst the Coronado II, Martinique Deluxe and Belmont Vibrato guitars all feature a period correct fulcrum vibrato tailpiece.

Also included in the new Supro Guitar collection is the Jet Airliner Lapsteel. Using a vintage Supro body design, the Jet Airliner has air deco fingerboard design with a string through body hardtail bridge and features vintage Gold Foil pickups with authentic 50’s wiring and volume and tone controls.

Supro Island and Americana Series guitars will be available across Europe in January and February 2017 respectively. Check out the Supro demo playlist here below:

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