| In the last few years, Gretsch has started offering | | | | sound of the guitar. |
| Korean-import instruments of extremely high quality, | | | | The clean tones were big, clear, and powerful. When |
| including the celebrated Gretsch G5122. This guitar | | | | we cranked the amps a bit, it had just enough grit to |
| offers a lot of "twang" for the buck. So, if you're | | | | cut through a mix. This is definitely no shredder axe, so |
| interested in a guitar with a little different feel than, say, | | | | don't buy it if you're in a Dragonforce tribute band. But |
| a Gibson Les Paul or Fender Stratocaster, you should | | | | if you're into classic rock, blues, jazz, or country, you |
| probably give the G5122 a look. What does it have to | | | | could definitely find a use for the G5122. |
| offer? | | | | Few guitars are perfect, however, so we did have |
| The hollowbody G5122 sports a laminated maple top, | | | | some niggles here and there. The tuners, though |
| body, and neck. A 22-fret rosewood fingerboard is | | | | keeping the tuning well, still felt cheap and could stand |
| standard, as are the medium jumbo frets. The scale is | | | | to be upgraded. The floating bridge felt a bit odd, but it |
| 24.56" with a nut width of 1-11/16" (43mm). The guitar is | | | | didn't affect the intonation. |
| also outfitted with two chrome-covered Dual-Coil | | | | We were very pleased with the overall fit and finish. |
| humbucking pickups. | | | | The guitar has a unique Walnut Stain finish that also |
| The hardware definitely adds to the guitar's style. The | | | | contributes to the classy, vintage feel. Honestly, it make |
| G5122 features G-Arrow Knobs, standard Gretsch | | | | the guitar look a lot more expensive that it really is. We |
| strap knobs, chrome hardware, and vintage-style | | | | were also happy with the action. We had no issues |
| machine heads. A Bigsby B60 vibrato (hey, this is a | | | | with either lead or rhythm work. We only had to make |
| Gretsch after all, right?) and an Adjusto-Matic bridge | | | | some minor adjustments to the bridge and truss rod to |
| complete the picture. | | | | get things working the way we wanted. |
| We tested the G5122 through a Dr. Z MAZ-18 NR | | | | It's hard not to love the Gretsch G5122. It has the |
| combo and a Fender Twin Reverb. Through both | | | | playability, the looks, and the sounds to set it apart |
| amplifiers, the Gretsch just oozed vintage twang. We | | | | from the crowd, especially with the beautiful finish. It's |
| couldn't help but play some of our favorite Beatles, | | | | light enough to play a three hour set and not break |
| Chet Atkins, and even Brian Setzer licks. The stock | | | | your back. Most of all, its price (around $700 new) is |
| pickups did a fine job of translating the naturally large | | | | affordable. |