Zachary Custom Handcrafted Electric Guitars, Bass Guitar

041198    (Purple Beauty)

Comments from the first owner:

Hi Alex, Just to let you know the guitar arrived today in great shape. Thanks for the prompt shipment. I have been playing the guitar tonight, and I like it very much. I have been doing side-by-side comparisons with my PRS single cut, and I think you have a winner. I am looking forward to making other Zachary investments in the future.        Thanks again.       Patrick (California)

Comments from the second owner:

Hi I just came across one of your guitars in a shop. I think it is the 041198 guitar on your website. It's korina with a purple stain and gold hardware. I'm pretty sure it is the same number as the one on your website. i guess I'm wondering if that's the only one built to the specs and color and is one of a kind. I'm very close to making a purchase and it sounds and feels absolutely fantastic.   Thanks Miguel

I just traded a guitar in for the only Purple Z-1 you made. It's made out of Korina and I just wanted to say it's absolutley fantastic. It's very resonant, even acoustically, and it feels as though Ive been playing it for years. I think the reason the guitar sounds so good is because of it's simplicity; it's just excellent materials put together properly without any bells and whistles. and the coil tap really is excellent, completely changing the tonality of the guitar better than coil taps on other guitars. I really respect what you've been doing. It's obvious that you don't do it for the money, as you're not making Strat and LP copies. The guitar is designed the way it is, shape and all, for the reasons of playability, and thats very cool. For a little guitar, it has some pretty big-ass balls.   later Miguel

The guitar was purchased by a place in Livermore California called Fine Fretted Friends. He's a friendly guy who has a lot of nice esoteric guitars. I bought a guitar from him, and he always had the Zach, saying people loved it, but since it wasnt a Fender/PRS/Gibson, people didnt want to buy it, even though they loved it. People are more concerned with the prestige of owning a guitar that everyone else has. He got it from a guy in the area who was weeding out some of his guitars. I have no idea who it was, but I was told it was the original owner. Anyway, after playing it a few times each time I stopped by the store, i traded in a flamed top double cutaway guitar that was really not that fun to play. The Zach has a unique voice, and you dont see many Korina guitars around, and when you do, they are overpriced reissues of something else. It's incredible and easy to play, without all the gloss and shit on the neck. And he gave me a video of you tearing it up and demoing the Z2 with trem. You keep it real and tell it like it is. Thanks for making perhaps the world's most practical guitar. Its like a pizza margherita which only has 4 ingredients, but only the best ingredients put together properly. Unlike the commercial stuff with too much meat and fake cheese. Miguel

Alex, What most people don't understand is that most of these guys playing those hideous PRS' with the terrible Godzilla inlays and crap is that they get 'em for free with their record contract. It's funny how they market themselves as an esoteric, exclusive brand, but give em away to nu-metal guys who can't play, and even worse, can't write a good song. Plus they're made on conveyor belts. Playing one is like being in the waiting room of a hospital - STERILE AS FUCK (I know, trust me) The guitar world is brutal and unrelenting towards people who have actual ideas. At first, I admit I was skeptical about what you said on your website, but I found the guitar that did the talking. I have put a review of it up on that harmony Central website, because I'm a guitar geek. By the way, I also really like the Z2 style, specifically the busywood one for Bobby Simcox. It has a cool, like almost African tribal vibe to it. One of the coolest looking guitars...can only imagine what it plays and sounds like. Keep it real, as usual Miguel

http://www.harmony-central.com/Guitar/Data4/Zachary-Guitars/Z-1- 01.html
is the link to my review. You know, honestly, the more I play it, the more it reminds me of rubbing up against a naked woman. Seriously, it feels like soft skin. I'm a believer now. Miguel

Thanks again. the guitar is incredible, and it will never see the inside of a music store ever again. my buddy had a dumbfounded look on his face when I showed this off to him. Then he played it and raved about the sound. It's pretty satisfying knowing you have a guitar nobody else in the world has. It feels like playing 'air guitar" like when you're drunk and just kicking it. Out of all the Z- 1 styles, is mine the only purple one?   later Miguel

Sorry to bug you again man. I'm really getting quite attached to it, that I might actually give it a name or something.
Anyway, tell me a bit about the ZachAttack pickups. Your early guitars came with the Dimarzios, which sound great on this axe, but how do the Zachs compare? I like the idea of having a unique guitar even further separated from the pack by unique pickups. Most other builders don't do this, and when they do, they usually charge a lot more.
I really dig the Z2 shape, very unique, and really looks like a guitar that easily costs about $10k, like an overpriced Auerswald or something. When you killed the trem on that thing in the video, I knew it owned. I know you dont make custom guitars, but how much freedom do you generally let a customer have when it comes to deciding features like woods, scale length, color etc.? I'm thinking about ordering a Z2 from you somewhere down the road, probably not anytime immediate though. I already have a Z1, so I understand the Z experience.   later Miguel

Thanks for the explanation of the pickups. I think it's really important when luthiers use their own parts in their guitars, and not just making new shapes and whatnot.
For the line "I knew when i saw you kill the trem, I knew it owned." Sorry, that's urban slang around here. Basically what "it owns" means is "it owns the competition" "kicks ass"...etc. Sorry for any confusion, I see how that might have looked strange. I've been using the pricing info on your site to help me with a possible idea/purchase somewhere down the line. Very reasonable, I think my preliminary total is around $2,000. You could easily charge a lot more. What I genuinely like about the way you do things is the almost random combinations of the woods you use. I'll probably need a little more time as I want to learn more about those woods that are uncommon, such as wenge, purpleheart, how they sound etc. Also, how they relate to certain parts on the guitar. I love my Korina guitar, but the next one will have a very different combo of woods. Thanks for letting me bug you again Miguel

www.zacharyguitars.com