As we have said for over 28 years (and that's longer than Leo Fender was at Fender), “We are a small American Company dedicated to creating the world's finest feeling, playing and sounding electric guitar—period!”
Also, we love it when our guitars look good—
and they certainly do that—but, without sacrificing any playability or sonic depth. That's one of the keys: no frills or trendy gismos before tone and flawless function.
Everything has to flow with excellence and grace—all working in “concert” for the whole, bringing forth the best playing experience imaginable.
With great honor and reverence to traditions of the past, we want your new Anderson Guitar to be your best guitar, by far—no comparison.
How it's done:
We can maximize all of these desirable attributes by not making giant hordes of guitars but by making a smaller number and taking the time to do it all just right.
Each and every guitar is a special individual to us because we are making each and every guitar for a very special individual—you.
With this process, all details of every guitar gets the attention it, and you, deserve—from start to finish—no exceptions—whether you're Keith Richards or you're not Keith Richards—it's all good.
Everyone is equally important.
Isn't that the way it should be?
Just a few of the many Anderson assets include:
- Hand selected body and neck wood—literally every piece.
- Wood kiln dried to perfection—not only to our specs at the mill but again at the Anderson facility—no rushing here.
- Wood handled in a real-world environment After the kiln, all our wood spends time in a real-world environment so stability is enhanced and there are no surprises when the guitar is out gigging in diverse conditions—all is well.
Necks: carved to your specifications (one of our 14+ available neck shapes) and then allowed to acclimate to the environment in their new form for a month (at least, no rushing here either) before the precision fingerboard radius is finalized and your choice of Anderson stainless steel frets installed.
The result is a neck of unparalleled stability and playability.
Stainless Steel frets:
- Originally exclusive to Anderson—5 sizes to choose from.
- All play like warm butter, smooth and more effortless than any other fret material—for sure.
- And because of their slicker surface and enhanced durability, it feels like we do a new fret dress for you every morning. Your vibrato can improve just by having them on your guitar (not kidding about that).
- Big woody tone is truly maximized as string vibration is more easily conducted directly to the wood—so rich.
- There is no downside to these frets, just pure guitar playability and sound through and through—otherwise we wouldn't choose to use them.
Each body and neck are specifically made for one another and then precisely “fit” together.
A–Wedgie neck joint is vastly superior, sonically as well as structurally.
- This superior bolt–on neck joint also grants greater comfort and easier access to the upper frets—so very nice to play.
(You will have to smash the body to bits to move this neck out of position—certainly not recommended—although we did have one whose girlfriend tried this out in the streets of New York. Even though the body was in two pieces, the neck and body were still in perfect alignment. Really makes you love getting A–Wedgie—the Anderson kind, of course. And because A–Wedgie is a revolutionary bolt–on design, parts could be replaced and the guitar ended up as good as new.)
Finishes:
Paint is meticulously applied—a proprietary ultraviolet light process that always yields an ultra thin and breathable finish so the instrument's resonance is never impaired but always imparted.
- All our finishes are as breathable and as resonant (or more so) than the best of the best of the legendary nitro cellous lacquer finishes—without the intrinsic drying problems of lacquer.
- Proof of this can be heard in the vibrance of the instrument. One strum unplugged tells the whole story—loud, rich, full and ringing. Nothing rings out like an Anderson.
Hardware is hand selected and many parts are Anderson–modified and assembled to insure superior function in every way. There are no compromises here either. Want some for instances:
Our vintage tremolo bridge is assembled in-house from four different, specially selected components for superior function, tone and feel.All Bigsby bridges are modified and play wonderfully in tune. You can jump on this like a diving board.Each and every Floyd Rose bridge is individually radius-calibrated to perfectly match neck radius.Tuner buttons are specifically selected to give a vintage look while underneath is a high level tuning machine.
Anderson Advantage: Twin Rear Strap Buttons ensure your guitar will not topple over during a quick break in your playing action, while equally comfortable to strap on with greater adjustment.
- Pickups—so many models available that we would have to go back and count to know how many we actually now offer. All of our pickups are built and wound in our factory using only the finest materials—some exclusive to Anderson alone. All are tone developed and tested in Anderson guitars for Anderson guitars—anything from real vintage single coils to hum-canceling singles to full humbucks to hum-free Soapbars to our unique M–series pickups—vintage or modern, sweet or aggressive.
- Switching—the accomplished goal here is to give you simple and familiar control with the greatest versatility possibility—almost every combination, simply at your fingertips, while pure and unaltered tone remains soundly intact. So sweet!
- Final Assembly—is a work of art within itself. Components made to their highest level now come together to create a whole greater than the sum of the parts, and function as one smooth and sleek instrument. Every detail of every detail is addressed. This is where our amazing fretwork is finalized with a fret dress that addresses each and every detail of the fret surface—not just the flat areas. The most detailed fret job in the industry, and you can easily tell every time you play any Anderson guitar—pure ecstasy of playability.
- Every aspect of every design, every component used and every model of every guitar is tested, re-tested, played, gigged, tested again, gigged again and felt through our souls, until we are completely satisfied that nothing is left unintended and all aspects are supremely pleasing. In some cases this process can go on for over a year before any new Anderson instrument or innovation gets to your hands. But it is so worth it in the end.
- When your Anderson arrives, you can lift it from its case (quick touch up of tuning and maybe truss rod, of course) and right to the stage where Anderson resonance, playability and magic will clearly make itself known to all. And you don't have to think about any of the above-listed attributes (and many more unlisted) because we do that for you, so all you have to do is play.
The process is such a fun one here at Anderson Guitarworks:
We spend countless hours listening, testing, and playing our instruments and our pickups (we really do this, and we like it…a lot).
The process begins with the creation of the most precise and comfortable bodies and necks possible. We accomplish this by choosing only the finest and most beautiful woods from select lumber mills. Our design and manufacturing process utilizes the best of both old and new world craftsmanship. Ground breaking computer-aided technology is used to achieve the most exacting tolerances found in the guitar industry, while the fine-detail woodwork and beautiful finish-sanding are done by the hands of a master.
919-682-5552