What do you think of Warrior guitars?

[HaloMaster]

Has anyone owned/played a warrior guitar, and if so did you like or dislike it?
They look like beautiful guitars and I haven't had a chance to play one. How do they match up against some of the other custom guitas like Heately, McInturff, Mcnaught....ect., ect.?

[mischultz]

They had a gallery here in Atlanta for a few years. Very well executed and great wood selection in terms of the visual aesthetic. The artsy inlay/carving/storytelling stuff was/is ridiculously over the top. But to the point: I probably played a half dozen at different times in their shop and they felt/sounded stiff to me. Not a lot of depth or life to the tone. Of the alternatives you've mentioned, I've played a couple McInturffs and would certainly prefer those for depth and chime.

Best,

Michael

[KLB]

I live within walking distance of the former Warrior Gallery in Atlanta (which is now a high-end bass store.) I visited it often and knew the guy who ran the store on a social basis. He put a lot into trying to make the store successful, but just couldn't make it fly. The market was not there. Apparently, their target was high-end PRS buyers.

Warrior guitars and basses are beautiful and very well made. Some have extremely intricate inlay. All use the highest quality materials.

I think the basses are superb in all ways!

However, the guitars did not appeal to me as musical instruments. I played nearly every guitar in the store over a period of two years. I really tried to like them.

I did not like the neck shape, which was typically a "D" profile like the wide-necked 5-7 string basses. Most, perhaps all (?), Warrior guitars have 24 frets. This forces the neck pickup out of the harmonic sweet spot, and gives the neck tone a thinner, "quacky" character.

One of Atlanta's best guitarists, Ede Wright, was (is?) a Warrior endorsee. Listening to him play his Warrior live confirmed that I don't care for the sound of these guitars. For sure, Ede's chops and overall musicality are awesome, regardless of the guitar his is playing!

So, between not liking the feel and tone, and frankly, not wanting such a fancy looking guitar, I could never bond with Warrior, though I could have picked up one for a good price.

I also did not care for the sword inlays and the "Crusader" imagery of the Warrior brand name. Perhaps without the sword imagery I could have thought of it as the "Way of the Peaceful Warrior." Music as an instrument of peace. All that.

Regardless of my personal feelings about these instruments, it was frustrating watching my good acquaintence loose the Warrior business after putting so much money and effort into it.

All this said, you might play one and fall in love with it, so be sure to give them a try.

Best wishes in your tone quest.

I also spent some time in the Warrior store in Atlanta and could never find a guitar that I thought was top notch. Very pretty, but I didn't care for the neck carve and feel. I never played one that I thought had a special tone. I tried really hard to like them because they are beautiful in appearance. Unfortunately, of the probably 20 or so that I played, the beauty was skin deep. The basses were another story altogether.

[BradKM]

I like strolling through their booth at shows and enjoying their guitars as art...but I've never plugged one in.

Recently Sam Ash started carrying them, and I spent a little time with the two that were in stock at the store near my office.

The Warriors in Sam Ash weren't as fancy. It appears Sam Ash is offering two basic models...a double cutaway and a single cutaway. No exotic tops, matte finish, no fancy inlays, etc.. Still, they were tagged at $3,200. Seems like a lot for a stripped down model. The single cutaway didn't float my boat, and also had a little extra glue that had leaked out at one of the joints and was clearly visible. Refer back to the price when you think about that one. I was much more impressed by one of the Ibanez Artcores that I strummed the same day (it was less than 1/10th the price).

The double cutaway (sorry I didn't pay attention to model names or numbers) was flawless, and seemed to have a better tone as well. I really liked the neck profile (the same one others here say they don't like) and had a hard time putting the guitar down. Still, the stripped down guitar, as great as it was, didn't live up the $3,200 price tag.

One detail that had me scratching my head: The control cavity covers on the back are metal (which is cool) but have the Warrior logo cut into them...leaving portions of the pots and switches exposed to the elements. It looks cool, but WTF?!?

Originally Posted by DualRectifier

I always know it's a losing battle defending these things...oh well.

What is there to defend? Do you make Warriors? Sell them? Have a personal stake in the success of the firm? I don't think KLB or I were 'attacking', just offering opinions shaped by playing a number of the guitars. Isn't that what discussion is?

[BradKM]

I always know it's a losing battle defending these things...oh well.

I probably came off sounding a little hard on them, and that wasn't my intent.

The one messy glue spot was the only physical flaw I've ever seen on the dozens and dozens of Warriors that I've examined in person.

The other guitar that I mentioned was fantastic, and absolutely flawless. I just think that once you pass a certain price point, you should expect a nice finish and maybe a little bit of flamey wood (although I'd prefer a nice solid color over a flamey finish personally).

So overall, I give a big thumbs up for quality, a big thumbs up for the fancy tops and inlays on the models that have them (if that floats your boat), and a big "?!?" on the price of the stripped down base models.

[matte]

A monument to bad taste.

[bikerdude2]

I've owned 4 of them. The first 2 were early models before the cost cutting measures..They both had Sperzel tuners, Duncan pups, purple tone bar thru the bodies and necks, etc. Both were amazing guitars. The 2 later models I owned? Nice, but not worth the $$$ IMHO.

[angelo]

A lot of them do look like show pieces.

But, the only Warrior I ever played was a plain jane ugly teal green that was simply THE most resonant guitar I have ever played. Should have bought it.

So, there are good ones out there.

Originally Posted by Matte

A monument to bad taste.

Tell us how you really feel.

Some are a little gaudy, huh? But, many of the guitars that I played were pretty plain and had excellent finishes and design. Great looking instruments.

[matte]

Originally Posted by hemlock

Tell us how you really feel.

Some are a little gaudy, huh? But, many of the guitars that I played were pretty plain and had excellent finishes and design. Great looking instruments.

I played a shitload of them @ a Philly show a few years back and they felt all unfinished, rough, uninviting, etc.

Originally Posted by Matte

I played a shitload of them @ a Philly show a few years back and they felt all unfinished, rough, uninviting, etc.

That's interesting. A few of the ones I played right before the shop in ATL closed really needed setups. Maybe he tried to expand too quickly and fell behind in the QC battle that always ensues there. I haven't played one in a couple of years now, so I can't comment about anything recent.

[matte]

Originally Posted by hemlock

That's interesting. A few of the ones I played right before the shop in ATL closed really needed setups. Maybe he tried to expand too quickly and fell behind in the QC battle that always ensues there. I haven't played one in a couple of years now, so I can't comment about anything recent.

Put a Warrrior next to any JG, Stevens, Koll, Baker/B3 and Warrior would mos def be embarrassing the (Warrior) family.

[HHB]

I'm holding out for the DaVinci Code inlay