I had the pleasure of reviewing the Hanson
Chicagoan about a year ago and was delighted
to discover a new guitar company that
seemed to have all of its ducks in a row from
the outset. That Bigsby-equipped, semi-hollow
honey had me from the moment I spied
it at Summer NAMM 2009.
As it turns out, the Hanson crew has been supplying
pickups and manufacturing instruments
for other brand names since the ’90s. That
helps explain why the Chicagoan displayed
none of the new-to-the-biz growing pains, such
as funky frets or finish. So when PG presented
me with a new Hanson model to review, I
jumped at the opportunity to test it out. I put
the Firenze T-90 through its paces, running it
into Orange Tiny Terror and Egnater Rebel 30
heads, each in turn driving a custom 1x12 cab
with an Eminence Texas Heat speaker.
Ciao, Bella
As soon as I pulled the Firenze T-90 from
its rectangular hardshell case (street $90),
I understood the “T-90” part of its name.
The bridge pickup, bridge, pickguard, and
control assembly scream T-type guitar, while
the “90” part is an obvious reference to the
P-90-style neck pickup.
The “Firenze” part was not as quick to
reveal its origin. I deduced that it’s Italian
for the city of Florence, Italy, which is known
as a place of great beauty. So that part of
the name might symbolize the spectacular
splendor of the figured maple top, glowing
through the awesome orange finish that
coats both it and the ash body. Still, the
name could just as easily hint at funky Italian
guitars—like Eko or Wandre—whose off-kilter
styling is reflected in the truncated lower cutaway
and the Teisco-inspired headstock. (Yes,
I know Teisco is not an Italian make, but it is
funky.) The truth of the matter proved closer
to home and unrelated to guitar: Florence
was a grandmother in the Hanson clan.
Though the design might not appeal to all,
the fiery figuring of the top and marvelous
workmanship evidenced in the construction,
finish, and frets is indisputably on par with
the craftsmanship that gave us Florence’s
Ponte Vecchio and Boboli Gardens. There is
even a hint of flame in the maple neck. (A
hint is plenty—you don’t want too much, as
flame maple necks are notoriously unstable.)
The finish on the back of the neck is highly
glossed but smooth as silk, with none of the
stickiness that sometimes rears its ugly head
on heavily finished necks.
Lord of the Ring
Before plugging in the Firenze, I played it
acoustically for a while. Strumming open
chords produced a satisfying ring that I suspected
would translate well electrically. In
my hand, the neck vibrated like the “Magic
Fingers” bed massager in cheap hotels. The
body’s modest weight sat easily on my shoulder,
and as a longtime Fender player, the 25
1/2" scale length was right in my comfort
zone, too. The neck’s C-curve profile felt
solid, and the high, narrow frets contributed
to the instrument’s precise intonation, as did
the six-saddle bridge. The frets were nicely
rounded, which made it easy to slide into
notes. The flattish neck radius and the height
of the frets had me bending with the supple
ease of a yoga instructor. The tuners moved
smoothly and held their tuning well.