Want to test the prototype from Guitar Center’s new in-house guitar brand? Here’s how you can
Back in April, Guitar Center got the guitar world talking when it announced plans to launch its own in-house guitar brand, outsourcing some ideas to its community while offering limited rights or remuneration for successful ideas.
The response wasn’t all positive at the time, but the retail giant has steamed ahead, and after months of R&D, is finally offering players the chance to test its first prototype…
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In May, CEO Gabe Dalporto elaborated on how the company became inspired to start its own guitar brand. As he explained, a lot of it came down to his perceived lack of variation or substantial innovation in the guitar industry. “The world doesn’t need another Tele or Strat clone – it just doesn’t,” he said.
Now, Guitar Center has issued an open invitation for guitarists to come and taste what it’s been cooking. Concrete information as to the build remains pretty limited – testers need to sign an NDA in order to do so – but you can bet your bottom dollar it won’t be another S-type or Les Paul copy…
As it stands, neither the new guitar design or in-house guitar brand as a whole has been publicly given a name.
“We’ve been building and creating a new guitar line from scratch, and that new guitar line has been based on interactions with you and your feedback,” Dalporto says in a new post on Instagram.
“You guys have been giving us tons of feedback on your aspirations and dreams and hopes of what you would like to see in a new guitar. We are now at the point where we’re getting prototypes into our office and we want real-world feedback – feedback from you.”
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Fancy getting your hands on the prototype? If you’re in the LA area, you might be in luck. Testing for the new guitar will take place at Guitar Center’s Westlake Village, California offices in late September and early October. If you want to participate, you can email Guitar Center at info@GCPLB.com.
Rich Thrush, the man in charge of the new project at Guitar Center, has also taken to Reddit to confirm those wanting to test the prototype will need to sign an NDA.
“We’re now entering the next phase of the project, and we’ll have a new round of prototypes ready to test near the end of September and into October,” he writes. “The prototypes are still early and we have a long way to go but the vision is coming together. As always, we’ll be inviting players to come in, spend time with the guitars and give us honest, unfiltered feedback. We’d love to open that opportunity up to members of this community as well.
Because we’re still working on features and designs that aren’t public yet, there are a couple of requirements. You’ll need to visit our Westlake Village, CA office in early October, leave your phone outside the testing area, and sign a Non Disclosure Agreement before participating.”
“If you’re primarily an influencer or represent a brand, please let us know when you reach out. We’d still love to connect, but we’ll likely involve you at a later stage of the project.”
You can learn more at the official r/GuitarLab subreddit.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
