Nothing on this bass hasn't been refurbished, rebuilt or sensitively replaced. < Back Hofner 5148 Verithin Bass Free Consultation Book Now Full repair & restoration to original specification Carrying the serial number 682, this is the last known 5148 Verithin Bass produced . Despite leading a busy life, and slightly less than optimal storage conditions for such an instrument, it is adored by its owner. The initial brief was fairly simple - reset the neck and try and make it playable at the lower end of the fretboard. That brief soon expanded... Disassembling the guitar for checking and cleaning soon produced a seemingly never-ending list of "do while we're there" , and as a result, nothing on this wonderful bass hasn't been refurbished, rebuilt or sensitively replaced. The pick-ups were intermittent in their behaviour. The windings had all but perished . The new replacements for these pick-ups are significantly hotter than the originals and so these originals were re-wound to exact specification . Now we have the original tones, and they are so characterful. The selector switch had thrown a leaf and so was replaced by a modern equivalent albeit identical on the outside. The potentiometers were in poor shape, but we rescued them (they don't build them like this anymore). Via this exercise, I can reliably assure a skeptical world that there is a noticeable change in tone when running these pick-ups through CTS pots, although renewing capacitors made no difference at all with the original pots. I think we'd need to find a Tupolev TU-104 cockpit on Ebay to find a suitable replacement for these. The obvious issue with this at the outset was of course the neck . Half in half out of its pocket, major surgery was required to release it fully, and get it back where it should be in order to compensate for the bowed neck (way beyond truss-rod correction). A second round of work may take place in the future that removes the fretboard and deals with the ski-slope at the upper frets, but for now, the guitar plays perfectly well between the 1st and 13th fret . Until this work takes place, a Viola style bridge saddle replaces the original item due to having more adjustment potential therefore allowing an appropriate action working together with the revised neck angle, and getting over the ski-jump. This Verithin is now back in service, looking and sounding glorious, playing comfortably and most of all reliably. (Photo credit to Andrew V., owner of the Verithin Bass) Gallery ← Previous Next→

Jimmy Page Conversion < Back Epiphone Les Paul Upgrade Free Consultation Book Now Full Electrics Upgrade Once understood, the complexity of this configuration is always forgiven as the enormous range and types of tone now available gives you ample reason to include a few timeless classics in the set-list because you can nail the exact sound. Knowing the riff is fair enough, but getting the sound as well will get you more appreciation. You are likely to fiddle around with the push pulls and declare "that's that sound!" more than once. This configuration can be achieved for any 4-conductor pick-ups, but I strongly advise you to opt for Tony Edwards' Jimmy Page humbucker set (in any look you wish, we just adore zebra) and then it is the best of all worlds - these medium output pick-ups are sublime, and if you are used to the mid-heavy raunch of mega-DCR pick-ups, just pull up the neck tone knob and bring in more DCR - tailor the sound precisely. If you need a Mustang skinny punk riff, it's there; if you need a bluesy neck Strat tone, a damn close version is there. This is not just for Jimmy Page covers. Peter Green is there, just about any Les Paul tone is there or close enough. Swiss army knife with magnifying glass and tweezers and toothpick. Only CTS pots are used - we can work with skinny bodied guitars - even SG's have been achieved. No silliness with mega-bucks BumbleBee caps unless you have the budget for it - there is not a lot of room in the cavity for all this wizardry - stick to Sozo, it will sound the same. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kj5EaqAxjos Gallery ← Previous Next→

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Such an honour to play a part in the history of this fine guitar < Back Levin Goliath Free Consultation Book Now Neck repair and general recommissioning This example is made public with the owner's permission. A bettered, cobweb covered, rat-gnawed tobacco-burst acoustic guitar is held out to me - the metal emblem truss rod cover rattling as I receive it. Thankfully I am sitting down as I learn this is the guitar referred to in several books and has been used by Clapton, Buddy Guy, and Peter Green. Knowing a little history of this era, but only a little, I recognized the name of the guitar's actual owner, but after the aforementioned trio, he would forgive me for not putting a face or a song to the name. Geoff Krivit. The guy that bailed Clapton out a few times in the Bluesbreakers era. He has passed the guitar to a life long friend and new guardian who happens to live nearby. "Is it worth making it playable again?" was the question: "well of course" was the immediate answer. The biggest issue with this old Goliath was the neck. A perfect excuse to get a fabulously skilled luthier out of retirement and back to performing magic. Alan is only semi-retired. Guitars such as this are the 'semi' bit. Lifting the Levin beyond the reach of Ryker, the over-excited Alsatian puppy (now the size of a horse) that guards Chez Arnold, the patient experience and talent pours onto the stepped neck, and a few weeks later, I have the pleasure of strumming a few chords mid way up the neck - previously impossible. Smooth as silk, that unforgettable tone ringing out free from choking and buzz. What a guitar this is. The patina retained, the weak spots under the rosette strengthened, the bracing shored up - this guitar now has its mojo back, and strength to continue delighting guitarists for a long while to come. We elected to stop that emblem rattling around, just in case this Levin needs to be mic'ed up in the future. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-f-9mHznI8 Gallery ← Previous Next→

A very rare Rose Morris Rickenbacker recommissioned with the correct bridge < Back Rickenbacker 1997 Free Consultation Book Now General restoration to original specification Let’s pretend Pete Townshend didn’t smash so many of these into Marshalls for a moment and savour one he never got his hands upon! A 21-fret Rickie with an f-hole means only one thing – it’s a Rose Morris import – this isn’t a re-issue, it’s a best guess 1965. It’s a 1 o’clock model – only eight 2 o’clock models are known to exist. It has obviously had a decent and busy life in its early years – the owner put a fair few miles on the clock back then, but as with many beautiful old guitars like this, they get put in a case, left alone while life takes over, and then re-surfaces 40 years later looking just as good but not playing so well. This sensitive restoration involved replacing a Gibson tail-piece with a period-correct Trapeze style item, careful repair of a bent machine-head (don’t believe what you read on the forums, this can be done) to keep it as original as possible, replacement of chipped and broken knobs, an electrical service, a careful fret dress, a sensitive clean, new saddle cover and general recommissioning which thankfully requires a lot of testing, playing and having fun with. The goal with this one was to keep its fabulous patina, but make it play as smoothly and comfortably as it once did; the expression on the face of the owner as he was re-united with it spelled success. Always beautiful in looks and sounds, always a challenge, and the types of challenge we relish. Gallery ← Previous Next→

The journey of putting the name of Matsumoku legitimately and deservedly on a guitar headstock. Our Story Matsumoku as its original iteration likely needs no introduction to many - it is an iconic subject for the history of Japanese Guitar production. If it's a new subject and of interest, Google Frank Meyer for some informative pages covering the rise and sudden fall of the plant. As this project develops, we may uncover more information and anecdotes - they will be appropriately recorded here. We think it is time that the name appeared legitimately on a guitar headstock, not confined to the neck-plate. Many of the celebrated brands produced at Matsumoku are still alive and kicking; some retaining their original brief, others heading in new directions. Some previous employees and creators are still producing guitars - they are very special indeed. We are developing some exciting prototypes to be produced in Japan for limited commercial runs. Matsumoku Guitar and Bass Ltd was established to celebrate the guitars, restore the guitars, create evolutions of the models , and try out configurations that open up their potential yet retain the soul that make these guitars so special, cherished and respected. The primary focus is on Matsumoku produced models, but we have many other models from other contemporary manufacturers. The collection is constantly changing, but always interesting. We are based at Ketteringham Hall , just south of Norwich, and easily accessible from the A11. We are not a guitar store - not a shop at all, but we are open to visitors, and have a small showroom where our ever evolving collection of guitars is displayed; and a small studio where they can be played and explored. Some are for sale, some will always stay with us. If, as sometimes happens, a visitor falls so spectacularly in love with an instrument that isn't for sale, a case may be made for us to bid farewell to it and frantically search for an appropriate replacement. We can chat about guitars, have a look at yours (regardless of brand), find examples you may be looking for, serve decent coffee and tea. Matsumoku Guitar and Bass Ltd is driven by Tom and Steffie . We have a healthy stock of Matsumoku and other Nagano products that could form the basis of exciting projects - we have our own ideas on what they could become; your ideas might be better so if this concept interests you, pay us a visit either in person or virtually. We have a remarkable team of luthiers and recording artists who all contribute their amazing skills to these guitars and we can offer restoration and recommissioning of your favourite guitars too. We have one of our workshops open to visitors to discuss projects, or to drop off and collect. This workshop is close to Snetterton Racetrack - happy to give directions by appointment. Find Us ADDRESS Matsumoku Guitar and Bass Ltd Ketteringham Hall, Church Road, Wymondham NR18 9RS FOR INQUIRIES 01953 686861 tom@matsumoku.rocks

Our signature Sao Paolo Solution < Back 1995 American Standard Strat Free Consultation Book Now Full Electrics Upgrade In walks a chap with a beaten-up case and a conundrum. Always a good sign of an exciting project. This was a case of someone having a guitar they adore, have owned for years but as the musical tastes and styles evolved, the guitar couldn’t keep up. This is a frequent story. And as usual, single coil pick-ups can’t achieve the sonic brief of humbuckers. I lent him a couple of humbucker-equipped guitars to take away to explore and drew up a list of options for his beloved US Strat. A second meeting soon followed with his own DAW and set-up, and a line of guitars with different styles of pick-up to play through ready for him to explore the realities of the options. Many types and designs of single coil, P-90 and humbuckers fed his tracks and the nearest we could get to what he needed was a pair of VH-7 Fernandes dual blade single coil sized humbuckers. High powered ceramic pick-ups such as the VH-7 are ideal for the heavy distortion sounds but lose their advantage with softer clean tones, where the original Fender AmStd coils delivered that perfectly. What this chap really wanted was everything and all in between! A few conversations with some of the industry’s finest brains later and we draw up a plan that takes a few risks, but we think will deliver. A set of custom wound AlNiCo 8 blade single coil sized humbuckers was ordered from Harry Häussel – Germany’s finest pick-up winder. I will set them low in the plate and find that pick-up height that gets the “sweetness”, yet has all the power and definition expected from a hot ceramic. The pick-ups would be 4-conductor so he can obtain true single coil tones from all 3 – this guy uses all 5 positions on the selector but left the TBX control alone, keeping it just on the bright side. The upper tone knob had nearly seized up through lack of use. This gave me ample room to develop a wiring and control philosophy to really unlock the available tones from these pick-ups. A criticism of all the single coil guitars in the DAW experiment was the buzz – especially with saturated signal paths. A criticism of master coil split functions is the usual volume drop and essentially changing the whole guitar from one set of tones to another. A limitation of the traditional coil split function is a coil removed completely from the palette. A criticism of traditional designs to overcome all of this is a guitar full of switches and knobs – usually hard to identify in the dark, and a messy looking guitar. My control philosophy would therefore attempt to unlock as much of the tonal palette from 3 humbuckers as possible without changing the fundamental look of the guitar. The neck and bridge humbuckers are controlled by the lower tone control. At zero setting, the pick-up is a single coil with 15% of the adjoining coil in the circuit. Turning the knob increases the percentage of the adjoining coil until a true humbucker is reached at 10. This is a push-pull pot and the position of this determines which coil is permanently in the circuit. Pulling up the knob selects the coil nearest the bridge as the permanent coil; pushing it down swaps this to the adjoining coil. This does a decent job of migrating the humbucker tone towards a Tele or a Strat tone – not exactly emulating a Tele obviously, but the brightness of that coil gives it an extra treble edge. The middle humbucker is split in half by an S-1 switch on the master volume, and the upper tone knob is a master tone control with a Centralab PIO 0.022μf capacitor. The range of tones is vast, while still behaving, feeling and playing like a Stratocaster. As with all upgrades that take a departure from the original control philosophy, this takes a few hours to get used to, and probably a few months to discover what the guitar can deliver for you, but this achieved and exceeded the initial brief. A few raised eyebrows expected with the AlNiCo8 spec, but set them at the right height from the strings and you will be rewarded by the best of all worlds. This particular specification suited this project – but the fundamental design would be applicable to many others with different types of pick-ups and budgets. This was not a cheap project, but when the inspiration and thinking is taken to this level, this investment has saved the customer money in that he doesn’t need to buy another guitar. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw29LA2TI7o Gallery ← Previous Next→

Make looking right sound right! < Back Gretsch G2622T Free Consultation Book Now Pick-up Upgrade An expensive Gretsch is a wonderful thing - an old White Falcon, a 6120-55 Chet Atkins and a custom-built Stephen Stern Penguin have impressed and challenged us in equal measure. Gretsches are also readily available with much lower price tags - they look right, but come with a specification that may underwhelm - especially the pick-ups. (Upgrade completed.) (Upgrade completed.) Maintaining and upgrading these lower order Gretsches is a proper nightmare - changing the pots and output jack makes the bench look like an operating theatre. But I am a sucker for these jobs and here are a couple that we have done recently: First up is a G2655T that has gracefully lost its Bigsby. It contained a pair of very mid-heavy Fidelisonic P-90s that despite having staples on the pick-up cover, are in fact ordinary round pole single coils underneath. Micro-budget mini-pots that fit through the f-holes are what Gretsch fit to meet the price. So, clear the room, fire up the coffee machine, Crosby Stills and Nash on the iPod Touch, and after more hours than I would admit to (or charge for!), this guitar now has a pair of TV Jones Magnatrons, each splitable with CTS push-pulls, and the master controls replaced with full size premium grade CTS pots. These Magnatrons are low output genuine humbuckers with plenty of "honk" and "twang" - the glassy jangly tones available when set to single coil. A titanium saddle piece and a set of remarkable DrBlues 011-050 completes this amazing upgrade. Secondly, enter a gorgeous blue G2622T with Broadtron humbuckers. When you have to check your volume controls are up on a Gretsch, you know there is a problem. Once again, TV Jones to the rescue; and a Powertron at the neck with a coil split function; and a Classic Plus at the bridge with a ‘coils in parallel’ option on the volume push-pull. The Powertron is the right pick-up for those heavier blues solos, and pulling up the volume pot (proper metal knobs now rather than those plastic slippery ones) gets you that sparkly DeArmond type of sound that you expect from a high end Gretsch at the neck. Flick the selector down to the bridge pick-up and the power and grit of the Classic Plus drives a valve amp beautifully, and without buzz. Pull up the volume control and the parallel setting nails that classic Gretsch clean bridge jangle. With the myriad of tones available in the middle setting, the versatility of this guitar is sensational. Neither of these projects were cheap, but both guitars would have cost 3 or 4 times more to buy new in this specification. What a smart way of getting a top-end Gretsch. I am not pretending to be Stephen Stern here, but without the lottery win, I’ll have to suffice! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qG3s3a_kxh8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=116gzZ1DtDI Gretsches are used for all sorts of different music styles, and after a chat with me, we can select the most appropriate pick-ups from the TV Jones range (or alternatives if necessary) to get you exactly where you want to be with it. Gallery ← Previous Next→

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Shop Policy Terms & Conditions This website is owned and operated by MATSUMOKU GUITAR AND BASS LTD (abbreviated MATSUMOKU). These Terms set forth the terms and conditions under which you may use our website and services as offered by us. This website offers visitors the services and goods provided by MATSUMOKU. By accessing or using the website of our service, you approve that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms. In order to use our website and/or receive our services, you must be at least 18 years of age, or of the legal age of majority in your jurisdiction, and possess the legal authority, right and freedom to enter into these Terms as a binding agreement. You are not allowed to use this website and/or receive services if doing so is prohibited in your country or under any law or regulation applicable to you. When buying an item, you agree that: (i) you are responsible for reading the full item listing and our shop policy before making a commitment to buy it; (ii) you enter into a legally binding contract to purchase an item when you commit to buy an item and you complete the payment process. The prices we charge for using our services / for our products are listed on the website. We reserve the right to change our prices for products displayed at any time, and to correct pricing errors that may inadvertently occur. Additional information about pricing and sales tax is available on the payments page. Shipping Policy We're based in the UK. UK Buyers Shipping cost is automatically calculated at check-out if your shipping address is in the UK. International Buyers If your shipping address is located outside the UK, manual shipping calculation is required as international shipping rates fluctuate a lot. When choosing "Manual Shipping Calculation Required" at check-out, shipping cost will not be included in your order. Buyer is advised to contact us for precise shipping quotes and we will issue an invoice or payment link for the additional shipping cost accordingly. Your order will be shipped when payments for the product and shipping are both cleared. If your shipping address is located outside the UK, you may be subject to import duties and taxes required by your local government. These costs are not included in your order. To get a precise international shipping rate, please get in touch on the page or via tom@matsumoku.rocks. Return Policy Guitars All our guitars are pre-owned and sold As-Is unless otherwise specified. Items sold As-Is cannot be returned unless they arrive in a condition different from how they were described or photographed. New Items - 14 days New items can be returned within 14 days of the delivery date due to quality issues or damages. Return Items must be returned in original, as-shipped condition with all original packaging and no signs of use. Buyer assumes responsibility for all return shipping costs. Refund Buyer receives full refund in their original payment method less any shipping charges and/or restocking fees. To initiate a refund, please email tom@matsumoku.rocks. A restocking fee of 5% is applied when issuing refunds. When we confirm your refund, we will communicate any restocking fees that apply to your purchase and will confirm the refund amount owed to you, minus any restocking fees and shipping charges. Refund is issued after an item is returned to us. If upon inspection, an item is not returned in the same condition in which it was sent to you, additional fees may be deducted from the refund.

Never forget your first... < Back Framus Strato 6 10230 Free Consultation Book Now Recommissioning Unfairly ranked amongst the 1970s starter guitars such as Guyatone, Satellite and Teisco - the ones sold in department stores, the Framus models were a cut above. Like Kent, Avon and a few other cheap but good guitars from the era, they were eventually relegated to the attic when the Fender came along, or the adverts in the Guitarist magazine lured you into the world of Hohner Professional, or in this case, Washburn. Those that didn't get dumped at the charity shop eventually become victims of parents downscaling; attics cleared and reunions happen - usually, they just need mild recommissioning as Framus guitars were built to survive. Good quality electrics mean a forensic clean, a bit of joint reflowing and a gentle appointment with a can of Silvo will remove the tarnish. This Strato 6 simply needed a nut and bolt rebuild, a deep clean and some adjustments to join the collection of posh moderns on the wall - it joins them and stands proudly next to them. The pick-ups have such character, the mystery of the lower tone control solved and now it dials in and out the lower mid-range frequencies to suit. Take a listen to the video to see how these can and should live amongst the modern stuff. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygLjmlZGzsg Since these photos were taken, the one and only weak-spot of these models has been addressed - the tuners are now replaced with Gotoh SG-381 - the only quality (affordable) products that fit the headstock design. Gallery ← Previous Next→

Reaching The Final 5% - The Ibanez Case < Back 2008 Ibanez J-Custom Free Consultation Book Now Reaching The Final 5% This is one of the first RG8470Zs off the Fujigen lines and it is in magnificent condition. A very prudent purchase by a keen talented young guitarist - a very good investment. This particular guitar was originally sold in Japan and arrived in UK needing a little work to get it back to playing as it should. It had been very well looked after, and had received a decent fret-dress that would have satisfied most shredders . This chap needed a little more - he flies around the fretboard faster then my eyes can keep up with, but also wishes to bend the strings quite aggressively. These flat boards should take this treatment, but as the frets get more worn, there is a delicate balance to find between micro-action and fret buzzing. This one choked out on the upper frets unless the action was raised by nearly 1mm - sacrilege on an instrument like this. This is not unusual on this style of guitar at this age. As professional grade instruments, they have mostly been used intensively and it is usual to forgive them for aging gracefully. Here at Matsumoku, we have an attitude that declares if something can theoretically be done, we will do it, even if it is extremely difficult and carries a level of risk. So we dared to hold a different view to everyone else and finally all reached agreement that there was theoretically enough meat left in the frets to get this guitar right for the owner for a few more years. Several hours in a quiet room, no disturbances and the finest touches achieved the improbable. Now re-united with a happy and relieved owner, this guitar will go another few years on its frets playing like the owner desires. Additional work included renewing some wiring on the selector switch to make the potentiometers more accessible to service and clean - these pots had never been serviced properly in their life as Fuji doesn't put enough wire in to get them out without breaking. We now have silent pots - no scratching and dead spots. The output socket didn't quite hold the cable sufficiently, so this was replaced. The tremolo arm insert had given up giving that annoying wobble. That's sorted now. This now looks and feels like a guitar a quarter of its age, and has taken the crown for the nicest Ibanez we have seen here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRU2u3XJVG8 Gallery ← Previous Next→