Custom Guitars: The Best and the Brightest

• April 4, 2017
• Guitar

When it comes to custom guitars, there seems to be an endless supply of contenders, all of them having their own unique finish or set up. It’s a daunting task to narrow them down to a few of the best and brightest, but we can sure give you some of our favorites. With respect, there are small companies and bigger, more successful companies, but size doesn’t always decide the winner. Some of the smaller companies give a ton of attention to detail and stand out as some of the best in the business. Before you leap into a mega purchase of a custom built guitar, really do some research and, if at all possible, go play one and spend some time with it before you spend the money. Having a guitar custom built is risky. You could spend thousands of dollars and not be satisfied in how the guitar feels in your hands. You want custom guitars that are more than collector’s items. Your guitar has to perform well and sound amazing. Let’s take a look at some cool custom guitars.

Carvin Custom Built Guitars

Carvin has been building great guitars for years. They also offer a custom department that’ll customize a guitar to your specs and likings. You get to pick out everything and they put it together. With Kiesel Guitars building these beauties, you can look for the best of the best. It’s worthy of your time if you’re looking for custom guitars.

Kiesel / Carvin has some of the sweetest finishes in custom guitar building. They are very contemporary but will not disappoint you with the vintage or modern tones of the pickups they use. Because they are made to order, you might want to find a Carvin and play it first. You should get a feel for the guitar you wish to build. Don’t just guess at it! They offer so many choices to pick from when putting your custom guitar together. Do your research and build your dream guitar.

Vigier Guitars

Vigier builds some mean custom guitars. Known for their precision and overall desirability, they have now branched out from the UK to the US and even to Japan. You can get your hands on one of these custom built marvels if you’re interest is really piqued, but you might not see them in your local music shop. Just look on the Vigier website to locate a dealer you can reach out to. This is a great company to deal with too. They are very customer oriented and try hard to make things work for you. Vigier is one of the best custom guitars you’ll ever put your hands on. Lightweight and loaded with tone, they perform like an electric guitar was meant to perform. Their guitars have very accurate intonation and the sustain is off the charts. You will absolutely love playing a Vigier guitar.

Tom Anderson Guitars

In at least some parts of the country, you can run down to Guitar Center and put your hands on a Tom Anderson custom built guitar. Anderson has been building great guitars for 30 years and has a reputation that is indisputable. Known for tone and playability, these pricey custom built guitars are among the finest on earth. You need to play one of these beauties to appreciate the attention to detail and quality. Yes, you’ll likely spend $3500 or more to get one in your collection, but it’s money well spent if you’re a professional guitarist or just want one of the best custom built guitars available. Check them out online and you can see the cool things people are saying about them.

Collings and Waterloo Guitars

You will not play a finer guitar than one of Bill Collings custom built acoustic or electric guitars. Mr. Collings has been on quite a journey from Ohio, to Houston, to South California and then to Texas. Bill’s reputation as a custom guitar builder has followed him everywhere and spread around the world. He is considered a master guitar engineer.

Known for their balance and volume, these custom built acoustic guitars are among the world’s best. You can check out his story and review these great guitars online or look for a dealer and put your hands on one. Bill also has a cool vintage series called Waterloo guitars that have the sweetest look and sound. Again, they're as pricey as any other custom built guitar, but so well worth the investment. When it comes to custom guitars, you can expect to pay $2500 to $10,000 or more. It’s the difference in attention to detail and the quality of wood, etc. you are paying for, as well as the name and reputation of the builder.

Suhr Custom Guitars

John Suhr has been building extreme guitars for 35 years and has a reputation around the world among players as an experienced custom guitar builder. His dream was and is to build the highest quality instruments available. In that respect, John sure has hit the mark. Just a peek at the website and you can see the quality. The colors and finishes are as beautiful as you can lay your eyes on. The attention to every detail is what sets Suhr custom guitars apart. Suhr is about all things tone and designs killer amps too. We’re talking about a company here that really appreciates the world of guitar and its folks. You can find a dealer on the site and sit down to an amazing experience if you wanna play one of these monster custom electric guitars. You will be pleased if you purchase one.

Finally, there are literally dozens of custom guitar builders in the world and there are plenty more that are worthy of mentioning but you can start with these best and brightest and explore the world of custom guitar builders for yourself. Don’t stop searching until you find the perfect guitar for you. You’ll be amazed at how many cool designs there are out there. Have fun and good luck with finding your perfect custom built guitar.

Once you’ve settled on which guitar you’re playing, you’ll need to brush up on your skills to really try it out. No matter what skill level you’re at, having affordable online guitar lessons is a great resource to keep you fresh. Pro Lessons offers easy to understand guitar lessons at a great price. Better yet, the instructors are experienced musicians who play with popular bands around the country. Find out how you can get in on the action by clicking below.