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| Few companies in the rarified world of custom guitars would be equally proud to tout the quality of their mass-retail starter instruments as the panache and appeal of their limited editions and one-off designs. That, however, is exactly how the people at First Act feel. A winning formula in the classic sense of American entrepreneurship, First Act began as the dream of a home-based business into a company that offers virtually everything for the intrepid player, whether you're a local hero or the new god of stringdom. Step into the First Act Guitar Studio and witness an awe-inspiring display of the craft. Bring your ideas for that dream guitar, and let a First Act luthier make them real. Try some of those jaw-dropping licks on a high-end Lola solid-body or Delia flametop semi, and stick around for a clinic with one of the country's hottest players. It's true: the sun really does rise in the East. Vice-President of Marketing Jeff Walker and Chief Luthier Kelly Butler tell Musicians Hotline® about their philosophy on guitar design and what the Boston-based company is doing to transform the world of music. |
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Jeff, give us a history of how, when and where First Act Guitars got its formal start in the business.
Jeff Walker: We've always had a mission to make guitars more affordable, and to put them where people shop every day. So, we wanted to reach an audience that hadn't been reached before, and to get more players involved. The reason being, not everyone lives down the street from a music store. Our goal was to make guitars and playing more accessible to everyone.
The company is owned by three principles. It was established by Mark Izen, who is the President and CEO. He put together a business plan that included putting music in retail centers and providing access, basically mini music stores, in places where people shop every day. After tests in the Northeast market, the company was formed. The Chairman of the Board, Bernard Chiu, and Ronald Izen as Vice Chairman became involved in the company at that point.
Tell us about the first models that were produced, and the vision of the company early on.
Kelly Butler: The first electric models were industry-standard guitars that were geared to the younger player. We also made some acoustics. At the time, you couldn't go into your mass retailer and find a guitar, but these models were intended to provide that opportunity. The younger player usually starts by having mom or dad go into a store and get it. So, when mom and dad can do that at the same place where they buy socks and motor oil, it makes it that much more accessible for them.
Jeff: Affordability is another issue, because $500 isn't necessarily an amount that many people would consider "affordable."
Kelly: That's especially true for someone who's an absolute beginner. It's just not worth it.
Jeff: We were looking at getting players in at around $150. That was the average, but actually we offered guitars at price points ranging from $99 to $249.
An important aspect of this is making informative and attractive packaging that projects the quality of our guitars. We know it can be an impulse buy, and that the person who walks by could picture the guitar as his nephew's 14th birthday present.
One of our guitars caught the eye of Paul Westerberg [The Replacements] when he went into a Wal-Mart for some toothpaste. He saw some of our guitars up at the front of the store, so he bought one and brought it onto his tour bus. As he tryed out the guitar he really got into it, to the point that he was soon playing it for at least half of every show on the tour.
Kelly: As with any type of guitar, we put a lot of effort into picking the right types of materials, including the woods and applying extensive quality control. Many people, even experienced guitarists, might not realize it, but there's an awful lot that goes into making a guitar sound good and function well. The slightest change or variation can make a guitar sound totally different. Even if you were to take several identical guitars and play them one after the other, they'd all sound different.
Were there unique or special aspects that the company felt it could bring to the higher-end marketplace?
Kelly: We make full-on custom-built guitars, which is something you can't get just anywhere. But you should understand the difference between "custom made" and "customized." Most any company can give you a customized version of an existing model, but we'll build your guitar from the ground up. The idea can be as developed as you'd like to give us. If you have a certain kind of wood in mind, we can take it from there. Or, if you know what you'd like it to sound like or who you'd like to sound like, we can design and build the guitar on that basis. So, whether you're someone who knows a lot or a little, we can get it done for you. One thing though, when you're talking about wood and other organic materials, we obviously have things we'd recommend based on our experience. But you might have your own ideas or opinions, and we'll listen to them. For a full-on custom piece, some of the hardware is up to the consumer. Though we try to put as much of our own signature hardware on as possible. We want it to have that signature look.
What best describes the company's unique approach to guitar building?
Kelly: We have our own building methods, some of which are proprietary. We have our own methods of neck construction that add considerable strength and rigidity. We also have our own way of joining the neck to the body. People who know guitars understand the importance of that, but our approach really maximizes the efficiency of sound transfer. We also have our own tailpiece designs. It's amazing, the degree of note clarity you get from having the strings run through the body. However, you also get great tones when the strings run through that big chunk of metal bolted to the body. Anything you can do to get the wood to resonate with every note just adds to the fullness of what you play. And when you can get a nice even response from every note, that's better too. But you could hand the same guitar to ten players and each one will see it differently. So, when you try to be unique in building, you have to factor in a certain familiarity and then include your own uniqueness.
Give us a breakdown of the product line of guitars that First Act currently offers, and describe them.
Jeff: It's pretty simple, actually: We have our regular production First Act line for young adults and teen players. They're full-size guitars. Then we have our custom pieces that Kelly was describing, which are built from the ground up from the buyer's plans or suggestions. Then we have our Limited Edition series of three models: Lola, Delia and Sheena.
Kelly: Lola is a solid mahogany body with a solid mahogany set neck, 22 stainless-steel frets on a rosewood board, two humbuckers, one volume control, one tone control and a three-way toggle. It's a classic design, and something that anyone who's into solid-body guitars can pick up and play. Delia is a semi-hollow. It has a flame-maple top with f-holes, mahogany back and sides, flame-maple neck and ebony fretboard. There are two humbuckers, two volume controls, one tone control and a three-way toggle. It has a bracing system that's integrated with the back of the guitar and only contacts the top underneath the bridge. We've been getting great response from it. The Sheena is probably the most versatile of the three. It has an alder body, a 22-fret birds-eye maple board and a flame-maple neck. It has a single-coil pickup at the neck and a humbucker at the bridge, plus two volume controls, one tone control and a three-way toggle. All three of these models have set-necks. They all use our patented bridge system and our own pickups, which are made for us by Kent Armstrong. The benefit of stainless steel frets, apart from the silky smooth feel they offer, is that they just last forever. You're not going to wear them out.
First Act Guitars has captured the attention of several endorsers. Tell us a bit about the cutting-edge players who are currently using your guitars.
Kelly: Not only are cutting edge players using our guitars, but there's a very broad scope of players using them now. Not only virtuosos like Buckethead but long-established acts like the Rolling Stones. Also, Kelly Clarkson's two guitarists, as well as Franz Ferdinand and Rusty Anderson, guitarist for Paul McCartney .
First Act Guitars has a full-line custom shop that offers some incredible one-off designs. Tell us about what the shop provides and how this segment has continued to grow within the company.
Kelly: The custom shop started about three years ago, with just me working as a one-man operation. Now there are 13 people there and a six to eight month waiting list for a one of a kind custom guitar. We're working hard to put those custom guitars into the hands of professional players.
Jeff: It's part of our overall strategy to reach all levels of players, which certainly includes the professional level. We understand the importance of getting a foothold in the market. The aspect of accessibility and affordability has been instrumental in bringing many new players to the market.
All the designs for our production guitars start at our corporate offices here in Boston. Our design team works with Kelly very closely on all the aspects of design in order to decide what younger players really want. That information also helps us provide better guitars for consumers. When we sit down with professional players, we want to hear what they want and expect. So, the same thing goes for the entry-level guitars we make. We use the same approach so that we can bring that same attention of quality to the mass retailers. Then, once we have that information, it's taken to our manufacturing operation in China. We have a few key managers over there, and they are very involved in the quality of our product. They all work together in maintaining our quality standards. Look at the Westerberg story, where he quickly added a First Act guitar to the arsenal of instruments he plays on stage on a nightly basis.
Kelly: However, as far as design and construction methods are concerned, those things will always be determined here at our design studio in the United States.
First Act is also involved in other segments of manufacturing. Tell us about the company's manufacturing portfolio.
Jeff: We have four product lines: First Act Discovery, instruments for children; First Act, for teens and young adults; Concert Series, which includes trumpets, flutes, saxophones, clarinets and the recent introduction of an entry-level full-size violin. Also, we have the Custom Shop.
The company recently opened its First Act Guitar Studio. Tell us how this facility is designed to educate players, and how the interactive experience is truly pushing the envelope in retail functionality.
Jeff: The store opened July 1st. It's really meant to be an interactive, innovative guitar store that's like nothing else out there. First of all, it's a welcoming atmosphere. You can sit down and consult with an on-site luthier and talk about the guitar you'd like to see made. You can take a guitar off the wall and play it for five minutes or an hour-and-a-half. You can sit down at a computer and compose every single aspect of your own guitar with the click of a mouse. There's a mini luthier's studio in the store, and we can sit down with you and design every aspect of your guitar. So, no matter what the price tag, it's there for the testing and trying of it. We also have amps in the store with proprietary technology, and V-Stack by First Act effects pedals. We're also in the process of developing amps using the V-Stack technology. It involves the emulation of tube amps, but it's analog rather than digital.
Tell us about any new developments in the company's R&D department. Are there any new designs set to premiere at Winter NAMM?
Kelly: You'll see a lot of new stuff from First Act at NAMM, Limited Edition models, custom models, effects pedals, and our new line of amplifiers. Some of the custom one-offs will be high-end basses.
In closing, what do feel is unique about First Act Guitars, and to what would you attribute the company's success?
Jeff: The key is our ability to offer a quality, affordable guitar. What we take most pride in is quality, along with accessibility and affordability. It goes back to our mission, which is to make playing music a reality for more people in America.
First Act Guitars
745 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02116
1-888-551-1115
info@firstact.com
www.firstact.com
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