DeArmond by Guild

DeArmond by Guild

Unclaimed

DeArmond by Guild was a line of import electric guitars and basses produced in the late 1990s through the early 2000s after Fender acquired Guild Guitars. The DeArmond name itself traces back to pickup designer Harry DeArmond, whose Rowe Industries-made pickups were a fixture on archtop and hollowbody guitars starting in the 1930s. Fender, which held rights to both the Guild and DeArmond names,...

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DeArmond by Guild was a line of import electric guitars and basses produced in the late 1990s through the early 2000s after Fender acquired Guild Guitars. The DeArmond name itself traces back to pickup designer Harry DeArmond, whose Rowe Industries-made pickups were a fixture on archtop and hollowbody guitars starting in the 1930s. Fender, which held rights to both the Guild and DeArmond names, used the DeArmond brand to market Korean- and Indonesian-built reissues of classic Guild designs at a lower price point than the U.S.-built Guild line.

The lineup included reissues of the Starfire thinline hollowbody, the X-155 archtop, the T-400, the M-75 Bluesbird solidbody, the S-73 (a take on the old Guild S-100), the Jet Star (reinterpreting the 1960s Guild Thunderbird/Jet Star body shape), and the Pilot bass. The Korean-made models were generally regarded as the higher-tier offerings, while budget variants were built in Indonesia. Many of the Korean instruments shipped with DeArmond-branded single-coil or humbucking pickups designed to evoke the vintage DeArmond sound.

The brand was phased out in the early 2000s and has not been revived as a guitar line, though Guild still sells DeArmond-branded pickups through its parts store. Used DeArmond by Guild instruments, especially the Korean Starfire Specials, Jet Stars, and M-75 Bluesbirds, retain a following on the secondhand market for offering Guild-derived designs at an accessible price.

DeArmond by Guild has 7 products cataloged on Equipboard, including Solid Body Electric Guitars, Extended Range Guitars, and Semi-Hollowbody Electric Guitars. Their gear is featured by 8 artists, with the strongest followings in Rock and Pop. Notable users include Thurston Moore, John Fogerty, and Travis Barker.

Artists Who Use DeArmond by Guild

Thurston Moore uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Thurston Moore

Singer, Guitarist · Sonic Youth

John Fogerty uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

John Fogerty

Guitarist, Singer · Creedence Clearwater Revival

Travis Barker uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Travis Barker

Drummer, Music Producer · Blink-182

Peter Koppes uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Peter Koppes

Guitarist · The Church

Peter Hammill uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Peter Hammill

Singer, Guitarist · Van der Graaf Generator

Jane Wiedlin uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Jane Wiedlin

Singer, Guitarist · The Go-Go's

Ian Saint Pé uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Ian Saint Pé

Guitarist · Black Lips

Matthew Strong uses 1 DeArmond by Guild product

Matthew Strong

Singer, Guitarist · Custard

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