All Activity

I guess we'll see. F-brand and G-brand still continue their made in USA standard lines, at the apex of their standard lines. It is undeniable that inexpensive guitars sell in higher volume and make up the bulk of revenue, at much thinner margins. The lure of inexpensive off-shore products is undeniable. Pretty much everyone with some volume is doing it. I think it waters down the brand, especially if not clearly labeled in a way that is clear what it is. Strangely, Gibson will make some Epiphone models in the US from time to time, despite its position as their off-shore less-expensive line.

Well said Kuz! Almost every new guitar I see on the three different Heritage FB pages I follow/moderate, people are buying the Custom Core models and loving them. I think Heritage has shown the CC line is fine instrument for the money. Heritage maybe following the PRS business model making their USA models as their high-end and the budget models being the SE lineup (and the SE's have drastically bridged the gap to be gig worthy guitars that closer resemble their USA made counter-parts0

I am happy they are selling robustly! And I am glad you are enjoying yours as well. I just hope Heritage keeps manufacturing their standard line as I believe there is a market, they are great guitars in their own right. If I could afford a CC I would buy one. But being retired and on a fixed income has its limitations

I have both Dan!!!

What size do you want? How many pedals are you going to use? Are you going to be using a pedal looper system or only the pedals themselves? Do you want a 2 tier system? Do you want a hard lid or gig bag? Are you going to be using multiple power supplies? I just finished a pedalboard rebuild that is HUGE and the cost was significant. My pedalboard weighs 40-45lbs. It is perfect for me for use at home with almost all my pedals available at anytime for recording use or just playing at home. I think you need to be more specific to the questions above to get a recommendation.

Well, considering there are not a lot of manufacturing differences for Heritage between the standard line and the custom core line, and considering they are pricing the custom core line anywhere from 1/2 to 1/3 more than the standards,... then I would say Heritage's profit margin is MUCH higher with the custom core line. And thus, fewer custom core guitars need to be sold to keep a higher profit over the standard line. Also, I think the custom core line has been a HUGE success. Of all the Heritage guitar owners groups forums (obviously here at HOC and on Facebook), the number of owners reporting a new custom core Heritage purchase BY FAR out weighs the number of new standard line Heritage purchases. For me, the lighter weight on my Custom Core 150 has justified it's price. Last night, I played the Aged CC 150 comparing it to my Murphy Ultra Lite aged R9. Other than the different frets on the CC 150, I am not so sure the CC 150 is not a better guitar.... again, validating the price of the custom core line.

I'm an established guitar hoarder.

Get a piece of wood !

From what Pete Farmer said in the Rich Severenson interview, the Bespoke program is really on hold unless you're an "established artist".

Sorry, Will, but I don't have any experience with those. I have a PedalTrain with an Eventide power supply. A nice setup, but it stays on the shelf mostly. I generally plug straight in.

I may be mistaken, but here is what I remember/assumptions: Mahogany Body with a Strat-like body Bolt-On Maple Neck Banana Headstock Bill Lawerence Humbucker Bridge Pickup Single Volume Control Only 24.75" Scale Maple Fretboard Fixed Tele-like bridge Some weird fuzzy like paint finish. Does that sound about right? I believe this is bare-bones student model like guitar. My guess is this developed from the short-lived idea of Heritage building Fender guitars.

My guess is the Custom Shop Bespoke program and Custom Core line need the capacity to keep up with demand....

You just demonstrated the difference between a CPA and MBA (Me Being Amusing) =MBA

That analogy is not completely accurate! As I said, I am not the bean counter for Heritage, but I would be willing to bet that their CC sales are less than 10% of their total sales. Now in terms of revenue, yes, they realize a larger profit margin % with the CC line. But think about all the international sales they do each month, and I am pretty sure they are mostly from the standard lineup. If you beg to differ, lets hear it!!

Cause you can sell buttered bread for more that the ingredients alone. Take coffee: A bag of beans is $6 for 10 ounces. Add hot waters and you can sell it for $5 for 12 ounces of mostly water. If you can make 30 cups out of 10 oz of beans that's $150 from a $6 investment.

Thanks for the hundreds of suggestions peeps, ya'll are awesome, which is why I am on here so much! 🤷‍♀️

I would have to disagree and say that if they did that, it would be the dumbest marketing move they could possibly make! Why get rid of your bread and butter? Granted, the Standard line is not cheap anymore, but the CC line is stratospheric in price! I think having an Asian line, an affordable USA Standard line and the CC (for the snobs, just kidding of course) is the right direction to go in. But hey, I am not the bean counter for Heritage, so I know nuttin.

I found the Heritage to be a little muddy/midrange certainly not bat sounding but not too my taste. The Lollar is fuller and more rounded. It also will let you have some harmonics if you increase your pick attack which is great for Billy and old school rock. it was not a direct replacement but was not at all difficult to install.

I would love to check out a Heritage floater but they are not on their web site. Is there a way to get one? I have an L5 custom that has a Johnny Smith floater on it. It is not bad but I would love to see what the heritage folks have designed and try one out.

A very nice one!

Hmm. That's really interesting. How would you describe the tone? Did it slide into the pickguard mount like the Floating #3?

I replaced the floater on my sweet 16 with a lollar gold foil floater. Would definitely recommend it.

I believe Ken made 3 versions, the large majority being Floating #3. Ken Armstrong would rebuild these to a higher output for about $100. I have what's probably a unique one rebuilt as a single coil by one of the current Heritage team. People bad mouthed the Floating #3 a lot. I firmly believe much of the criticism came from the urge to guild the lilly. The #3 is an excellent low output humbucker. It is very clean, almost acoustic sounding.

Ken Rambo made the first floaters Heritage used. There were 2 or 3 different pickups designated by stickers on the bottom. Heritage floating pickups are now made in house and they are Fab.

I reached out to Ren. He said they never were used as floaters.