Veillette at the Woodstock Invitational Showcase!
We'll be exhibiting some very special pieces, including a very lovely example of our new "Sweet 16" E-tuned Gryphon with Ebony back and sides and Flame maple binding - sure to be a heartbreaker of a guitar!
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The Gryphon "Sweet 16" E tuning and a beguiling new texture After many years (and many, many happy customers) making our Gryphon high-tuned 12-string, we've responded to requests for a piece with the same intriguing range and tonality without the learning curve of the D-D tuning. A shorter 16.3" scale allows the Sweet 16 to tune up to E, a perfect full octave higher than a standard-tuned guitar. This means all the chords and shapes you know and love lay out right in the same positions - making sight-reading, transcription, or simply playing along with friends as easy and simple as with any guitar - no transposing or capoing required! The shorter scale also gives this guitar its own voice and personality - perky and responsive, with a brilliant top end and midrange cut, which complements the 'classic' D-tuned Gryphon beautifully. Scale length gives a guitar much of its personality, and this is much more than simply a Gryphon with two frets missing. Sonically, the new Gryphon Sweet 16 fits into its own new category. In fact, this gorgeous sunburst piece is going to its new home to live alongside a D-tuned Gryphon. We're really excited about how these are coming out! They're charming and really inspiring to play. |
Some Exotic Gryphon Beauties
Beauty sometimes does grow on (or in) trees
This summer, we've been building our ever-popular Gryphons in a wider range of beautiful and sonically intriguing back, side, and even top materials.
Flame maple is always a favorite, and this gorgeous piece featured some of the best flame we've ever used, including a very rare (for us) highly flamed neck. In the same vein, a deeply flamed/"beeswing" myrtle back and sides turned into another stunning Gryphon, with a bright and lively sound quite similar to maple.
In the rosewood genre, we've just finished Gryphons in classic East Indian Rosewood, Yucatan Granadillo, and a stunning multi-color Mexican Cocobolo. The Indian Rosewood guitar also featured a Western Red Cedar top, a combination that sounds warm, rich, and very full-range.
Finally - our "Shop this Week" page featured a few sets of gorgeous Sapele and Macassar Ebony back in the Spring. So, without further ado, we're proud to present two Gryphons made from that very material! (And yes, there is a little bit more of both woods available… but it won't last long!).
New JV doublenecks
Because they don't have to be cumbersome!
We admit it – we're crazy about these doublenecks.
Here's the latest, an all-electric stunner with a number of special features:
We have another pair of special doubleneck electrics in the works, as well as a pretty wild acoustic doubleneck project that will really turn some heads. Stay tuned!
| Less is More The newest (and lightest) headpiece design yet! In our constant quest for a lighter and better-balanced guitar, we've often come up against the limitations of conventional tuning machines - they all weight about the same. Now, thanks to the newest "Stealth" tuner from Gotoh, we've been able to design a truly minimal-weight headpiece. Available for both 6 and 12 string guitars, this new headpiece and tuner combination is significantly lighter: for a 12-string, the tuners alone are over 200 grams lighter than our standard plastic-handled Gotohs! This weight change translates directly into better balance and a lighter instrument. Doublenecks particularly benefit from the compound benefits of this new design. |
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The Nylon Gryphon A logical and sweet-sounding next step for the Gryphon The number of unique stylists that have fallen in love with our steel-strung Gryphon has led us to thinking of other textures to explore. With the same scale as the regular steel-string Gryphon (if you could call such a thing 'regular'), this Nylon-string has a fascinating blend of Gryphon sparkle with the warmth and smoothness of a classical guitar - a very unique voice. Classical pieces played on its full-width neck sound unlike anything you've ever heard before -crisp, delicate, and crystalline. The short scale also means long intervals can be reached incredibly easily, making it possible to play chords and combinations that simply can't be done on a standard guitar. |
| Swift Gryphon MM Dual magnetics on an all-electric Gryphon! Even amidst all the Acoustic Gryphon activity, we've found time to work on our electric models as well. Here, for the first time in a standard model, is our Swift Gryphon in a dual-magnetic pickup arrangement. Outfitted with all-metal hardware and mahogany body and neck, this piece takes a classic tone recipe and lifts it up into the Gryphon realm. |
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The Unibridge! One piece, adjustable, and very low-profile! As pleased as we've been with the evolution of our adjustable-height wooden bridge and dovetail tailpiece, we've always had a dream of a one-piece, adjustable height, all-wood bridge. After the success of our nylon-string 1-piece system, we're thrilled to officially introduce our steel-string "Unibridge": a fantastic-sounding, low-profile, and solid wooden bridge that is user-adjustable for action and string height. Like our classic tailpiece, this design uses string tension to couple the bridge to the body wood for fantastic sustain and all the lively, responsive, and organic tone you expect from a Veillette.
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A very sweet and very simple take on the Paris bass Built to complement this happy customer's Archtop fretless, this Paris 5-string embodies our concept of minimal decoration and maximum function. The dual Citron magnetic pickups run through an Aguilar preamp with custom wiring (bass boost/cut, and passive treble tone control). The responsiveness and quick attack of the poplar body works beautifully in this fretted configuration – this bass had a fat, full, and seriously strong sound that would work for everything from reggae to rock and roll. |
| Minotaur fever breaks out at the Veillette bass department Our nylon-string short-scale (usually) fretless (usually) Minotaurs have really started to catch on. The shorter scale gives a softness and sweetness that is hard to get from other configurations, though longer-scale versions still retain much of that upright-like warmth. It's become a very popular bass model.
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A sleek and beautiful upgrade for our full range of basses For a sleeker, lower-profile look and feel, the wooden tailpiece that anchors our adjustable-height bridge system is now glued in and finished along with the body. This more integrated system improves tone and piezo response by steepening the string break angle, the dovetailed-and-glued joint is rock-solid, and the protective finish makes the tailpiece less susceptible to changes with moisture and humidity. Of course, in our humble opinions, this new approach also happens to look really great! |
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A Matched Pair of no-nonsense Baritones This custom matched pair of guitars are all business. Except for the wood headpiece face and custom wenge knobs, they are purely functional and incredible-sounding guitars. The mahogany bodies and necks just glow underneath the hand-rubbed satin oil finish. This matched steel-string and nylon-string set, combined with the full-range responsiveness of our piezo system, gives their proud new owner access to just about every acoustic-flavored Baritone sound imaginable. |
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Custom is definitely the word!
Our long experience with custom and unusual requests, combined with our small-shop flexibility and open minds, lead us into some very interesting projects.
Here's one of the more special pieces we've done recently:
Designed and built for renowned NYC klezmer guitarist Joey Weisenberg, this guitar has a custom body shape and a number of very custom features.
Most visible is the Hipshot "Trilogy" multiple-tuning bridge, which offers 729(!) different possible tuning combinations without turning a single tuner knob, along with on-the-fly pedal steel effects and B-bender sounds.
The control knobs are carefully placed for easy volume and tone swells. For maximum tonal options, the Duncan Vintage Rails are paired with a GraphTech "Ghost" piezo bridge.
Best Wishes,
Joe, Martin, and AndE
Veillette Guitars
