Guild X-150 (Westerly)

[BreckerFan]

Just took delivery yesterday of this beautiful late 90s or early 2000s X-150. Kind of crazy that you can get one of these quality USA made guitars for less than an Eastman.

I've been going to a lot of jams the past 6 months or so and I often try to take my Gibson L-7C, but being a very resonant, lightly built acoustic archtop, I would frequently encounter feedback depending on the volume/placement of the amp, and being a jam there isn't much to be done about it. That and carrying a vintage Gibson late at night on the NYC subway made me nervous. So I was looking for a more affordable, laminate arch top that I could have more confidence bringing out.

So far the X-150 seems to fit the bill. It feels very solidly built, no complaints about craftsmanship. It's about a 16.5 in lower bout, so it's big but definitely feels smaller than the L-7. It has a nice acoustic voice, obviously more electric than the L-7 but still good volume and full frequency range. The previous owner installed a Benedetto B-6, which I was nervous about because I've heard it's a very unique pickup, but so far I like it. Has a bit of a modern, very pristine sound to my ears, pretty compressed, but still full and has character. The neck feels a hair thinner than my L-7 and Es-330, but not uncomfortably so. It came strung with some light gauge Thomastik flats, which I immediately replaced with Chrome 13s, but I practiced for a couple hours and really was not enjoying the chromes, so I replaced them with labella 13s, which fit the guitar much better.

Overall very happy with it so far. It has a unique voice in my collection, a nice bridge between my L-7 and my Es-330. Looking forward to taking it to a jam this week and giving it a test drive.

[chris32895]

Big fan of blonde, single pickup laminate guitars. Looks like the Ibanez Metheny models

[Archie]

You can't really go wrong with Westerly Guilds. They play themselves and look the biz.

[vinnyv1k]

Those are excellent guitars…..Congrats!

[BreckerFan]

Big fan of blonde, single pickup laminate guitars. Looks like the Ibanez Metheny models

Interesting, I didn't make the connection but you're right, especially without the pickgaurd. At some point one of the owners took it off and filled the holes, maybe that's what they were going for.

[nyc chaz]

The x-150's are really great guitars.They sound good acoustically but when plugged in they sound really fantastic.That's a beauty you have there my friend,enjoy.