REVIEW: Spear RD Relic

Every now and again a guitar comes along which you either love or hate, I think the SPEAR RD RELIC is one of those.  It's finish won't be for everyone but from playing it for a couple of hours I would like people to see past this and actually pick one up and give it a chance.

Spear RD Relic

It's a single cut fitted with two P90's and sanded back to give a worn finish, but the thing that makes this stand out from the crowd is the top.

Few facts:

• Vietnam manufactured
• Two Spear P90's
• Set neck
• Sanded back finish
• 22 Frets

RRP £329 GBP

Build Quality
Setup out of the box was good, just needed a tune up.  Had a good look around the guitar and there were no sharp frets to be seen and everything worked as expected.  As seen with other Spear guitars they appear to have a good checking process at the factory, although I would suggest that it is shipped with a set of 10's instead of 9's.

In use
Nice weight for a single cut, after playing stood up for half an hour I wasn't feeling the strain that I normally do with a single cut.

The unfinished neck is very comfortable and there is excellent access to the higher frets thanks to the set neck and cutaway design.

Sounds
This is the first time I've used a guitar with P90's and they give a great vintage vibe that harks back to the 50's.  They are very bright and great for blues and can also deal with some gain to give a nice tone for rocking out.

Not recommended for metal players.

In the bridge and neck positions I experienced a lot of hum but when using both pickups (middle setting on selector) the hum is cancelled.

Relic'd Top

Overall
If you can see past the finish then this is a great blues guitar and good value for money, if you can't then at least give it a sound test before making your mind up.

Pros:

• P90 goodness
• Comfortable neck
• Nice weight for a single cut

Cons:

• That finish wont be for everyone

G | H rating - 3.5/5

- Lee

Thanks to Black I Distribution.