CONTEMPORARY ORIGINAL

With a collection of vibes, these models are cut from a different cloth

SHERGOLD PROVOCATEUR SP02-SD £809

Designed by UK-based luthier extraordinaire Patrick James Eggle, the Shergold Provocateur SP02-SD maintains the classic dual-’bucker single-cutaway format, albeit with a sleek, understated modern aesthetic. Brandishing quality throughout, including a pair of Seymour Duncan ’59 Model pickups and compensated brass saddles, this ebony’boarded mahogany solidbody offers exceptional value for money.

SKINTED: Shergold Masquerader SM01-SD, £765 MINTED: Shergold Provocateur SP01-SD, £829

YAMAHA REVSTAR RS502T £775

The stylish aluminium tailpiece with tune-o-matic bridge, the dual Alnico V P-90-style soapbar pickups, the 629mm (24.75-inch) scale length mahogany neck with rosewood fretboard – all combine to form a perfectly balanced retro-modern design. The RS502T boils the Revstar aesthetic down to its fundamental essence. It’s a contemporary classic in our book (and for well under a grand!).

SKINTED: Yamaha Revstar RS320, £434 MINTED: Yamaha Revstar RS820CR, £1,108

STERLING BY MUSIC MAN VALENTINE JV60 £879

Also available with a vibrato in Toluca Lake Blue finish as the JV60T, the Valentine JV60 hardtail from Sterling by Music Man’s Artist Series comes in two finishes – namely Trans Buttermilk and Vintage Sunburst – and features a unique front humbucker/slanted single-coil rear pickup combination augmented by a 12dB boost for expanded tonal range.

SKINTED: Sterling by Music Man Axis, £439 MINTED: Sterling by Music Man John Petrucci Majesty, from £1,199

MANSON MBM-1 META SERIES MATTHEW BELLAMY £569

Produced under licence by Cort, this year’s Manson Meta Series MBM1 Matthew Bellamy signature model has been designed to reproduce the sounds and feel of those instruments played by the Muse guitarist himself. With a lightweight basswood body and compound radius ‘V’-profile maple neck, this progressive design includes powerful dual humbuckers and locking tuners.

SKINTED: Cort/Manson Stage Series Classic TC, £469 MINTED: Manson MD-1 Mikey Demus, from £1,199

PRS SE CUSTOM 24 £799

Originally unveiled at NAMM back in 1985, the Custom 24 is the PRS model that started it all. Featuring a smart mahogany/bevelled maple body with a flame maple veneer and a 635mm (25-inch) scale length maple neck with a 24-fret rosewood ’board, this version from PRS’s SE range offers players a more affordable alternative to its Core line counterpart.

SKINTED: PRS SE Standard 24, £475 MINTED: PRS SE Custom 24 “Floyd”, £899

CORT X300 LTD EDITION MOSAIC £699

With its bolt-on maple neck and ebony ’board, the X300 Ltd Edition Mosaic’s eye-catching cap – comprising maple, rosewood, panga panga and purpleheart – sits atop an S-type double-cutaway mahogany body. Highly original in appearance, its unconventional design is complemented by a set of EMG Retro Active Hot 70 humbuckers and a Floyd Rose Special vibrato.

SKINTED: Cort X100, £179 MINTED: Cort X700 Duality, £899