Members Eddie27 Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 I stumbled on a reference to custom First Act guitars the other day and have been smitten by what I've seen on their website. The stock Lola and Delia are 2 of the coolest looking guitars I've seen in years. And the custom page is amazing. Has anybody played these things? There are few HC reviews. The custom are expensive and the SFA models are dirt cheap - I'd probably pull the trigger on one if it was somewhere in between. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vrm Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 I'm in the same boat. Wish I could find one around here to try out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metallica_00 Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 I've been to the showroom in Boston. Played a few of their USA Custom Shop Guitars - all very nicely made, unique vibe, but expensive - $2-$3K. Imports were a total mixed bag. Some were nice, others were dog {censored}, in the $300-500 range. I wouldn't order one unseen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Blue Lec Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 I've been to the showroom in Boston. Played a few of their USA Custom Shop Guitars - all very nicely made, unique vibe, but expensive - $2-$3K. Imports were a total mixed bag. Some were nice, others were dog {censored}, in the $300-500 range. I wouldn't order one unseen. My brother has the one that they gave him when he bought his Volkswagen. I keep telling him to smash it onstage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members loganonymous Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 The thing about First Act is, they go from selling $200-$300 crap, to $2k-$5k gold. There is no in between. So the poor people have to settle for crap, and the rich guys get the best. Again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metallica_00 Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 The thing about First Act is, they go from selling $200-$300 crap, to $2k-$5k gold. There is no in between. So the poor people have to settle for crap, and the rich guys get the best. Again. I think they're trying to fill it in a little bit - I thought I saw them bring out some stuff in the $700-900 area recently. But who knows if its actually good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BAXANDALL Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 On the High On Fire album Matt Pike is appearantly playing First Act guitars. I would guess that they're the high end ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Fernabulax Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 i bought the Paul Westerberg one with one single coil and the one with 2 singles and the built in distortion. They both sound pretty good and play ok. The only thing is, after some time, they kinda feel like a toy. Don't know what it is, exactly, but there's something lacking. the necks are sort of like a PRS, except the finish is rougher. I'm hooked on SX and Agile, currently, which are more like what I enjoy playing. hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members golias Posted July 10, 2008 Members Share Posted July 10, 2008 Their music-store guitars (as opposed to the Wal-Mart specials) are legitimate instruments. That said, I've never been fond of the necks on any of the ones I've tried. To me, they are terrible-feeling guitars. But as has been mentioned elsewhere, they deserve props for at least going with some original and interesting designs, instead of just being yet another company that lives off clones of Fender & Gibson models. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frets99 Posted July 11, 2008 Share Posted July 11, 2008 I have been to the First Act store as well and I came away feeling that the medium range guitars were pretty damn good. Well built instruments with very nice tone. I can't vouch for every guitar in their line but my suspicion was that you could get an excellent instrument at a reasonable price without much problem there. They have a cheapie I really liked. Under $200 with nice P90 like punch. It's the Paul Westerberg model. I got lucky and fell across this First Act at a Guitar Center inventory clearance sale for $150. As excellent a guitar as I've ever played. It's an ME821 Here are a couple of semi hollows from their store: This is a clip of me playing my ME821! http://hcbts.arkay.de/frets99/Feed%20the%20poor%20jamFirst%20Act.mp3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metallica_00 Posted July 11, 2008 Members Share Posted July 11, 2008 I played that EXACT light blue semi-hollow when I was there. That one in particular was a real stinker. Very muddy and the tone controls were useless. Give me an Epi Sheraton any day of the week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frets99 Posted July 11, 2008 Share Posted July 11, 2008 I played that EXACT light blue semi-hollow when I was there. That one in particular was a real stinker. Very muddy and the tone controls were useless. Give me an Epi Sheraton any day of the week. I didn't play those. I just thought they looked cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metallica_00 Posted July 11, 2008 Members Share Posted July 11, 2008 I didn't play those. I just thought they looked cool. Well rest assured they're all show and no go I played a couple cheaper ones in there that were better - save your money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frets99 Posted July 11, 2008 Share Posted July 11, 2008 Well rest assured they're all show and no go I played a couple cheaper ones in there that were better - save your money What do you think of the clip of my First Act? Be honest. I gots teh thick skin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Strat87 Posted July 11, 2008 Members Share Posted July 11, 2008 I bought a Delia from the store in Boston and love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grantus Posted July 11, 2008 Members Share Posted July 11, 2008 I'd love to try out one of their guitars made out of bamboo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metallica_00 Posted July 11, 2008 Members Share Posted July 11, 2008 What do you think of the clip of my First Act? Be honest. I gots teh thick skin! I like it. Very thick and smooth. Really nothing to complain about there! The particular guitar I referenced in your picture was particularly disappointing because I had just finished playing two First Acts that were a couple hundred dollars cheaper - and they were pretty solid. Nothing mind blowing, but for $200 or whatever they played reasonably well and had a decent middle of the road sound. Which is the most I expect out a guitar of that price, but you know me, I'm picky. Then I picked up the blue one, which is the next price bracket up and semi-hollow (and I usually love semis) and it was just a totally bummer. So it definitely made me call into question their consistency which is why I wouldn't recommend buying without trying. But I would say the same for Epi and Squier as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members book_of_lies777 Posted July 11, 2008 Members Share Posted July 11, 2008 On the High On Fire album Matt Pike is appearantly playing First Act guitars. I would guess that they're the high end ones. Matt's is a custom designed 9-string guitar from First Act "The bottom three strings (E, A, and D) are regular guitar strings, while the top three (G, B, and high E) are from a twelve-string making the total number of strings nine. Apparently, First Act constructed the guitar just for Matt." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Pike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frets99 Posted July 11, 2008 Share Posted July 11, 2008 I like it. Very thick and smooth. Really nothing to complain about there! The particular guitar I referenced in your picture was particularly disappointing because I had just finished playing two First Acts that were a couple hundred dollars cheaper - and they were pretty solid. Nothing mind blowing, but for $200 or whatever they played reasonably well and had a decent middle of the road sound. Which is the most I expect out a guitar of that price, but you know me, I'm picky. Then I picked up the blue one, which is the next price bracket up and semi-hollow (and I usually love semis) and it was just a totally bummer. So it definitely made me call into question their consistency which is why I wouldn't recommend buying without trying. But I would say the same for Epi and Squier as well. Fair statements! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dad_of_five Posted August 5, 2008 Members Share Posted August 5, 2008 I have to say +1 to First Act as well. I purchased a Custom Delia (Picked it up December '07). I absolutely love this guitar. Great action, sustain for days. Could not be happier. Kelly, Jay and the rest really took car of me on this one. www.myspace.com/kpatrickmckinney Rhythm Guitarist Half Shell Band ( www.halfshellband.com ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bad Chile Posted August 5, 2008 Members Share Posted August 5, 2008 I've played both the CE-530 and CE-540 Delia. If you keep checking the J&R website, you might find the 540 for $169: set neck hollowbody, nice axe. I had a 530 for a while, returned it because it was more purple than red.... The 540 is a nice axe. If I had room... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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