What is it?
Vintage has been making lookalike electric guitars for 25 years now, so how else to mark the passing of time but to collect all the best units of Trevor Wilkinson hardware from the shop floor, pick a Silverburst finish equal to the occasion and for a limited edition T-style, an S-style and LP-style?
This, after all, is Vintage's bread and butter. Having made its peace with the relevant brands whose inspirations are behind the company's copycat approach, Vintage has built quite the reputation as an imitator par excellence. Hey, if you can't afford an Gibson Adam Jones Signature Les Paul, then maybe the V100-SVB could be workable alternative, right?
The Am Pro II Telecaster in Mercury is a pro-quality guitar with a professional price tag, but maybe the the V75-SVB at its sub-£500 price point is something beginners could get their teeth into. And it's a similar idea with the 6H-SVB, only with the S-style format downsized for fiscal responsibility.
Are these Vintage guitars going to dampen anyone's enthusiasm for the quote/unquote real deal? No, but if they do as Vintage has been doing they will have quality builds, a quality feel, and just enough originality that you don't have to be doing a double-take at the headstock every two minutes.
Now, these are limited edition models. Only 100 units will be produced of each. You'll need to be quick. Vintage runs these models in different finishes, all very nice, but this one really is exquisite. Let's run through some spec, starting with the V75-SVB.
No prizes for guessing what vibe the V75-SVB is aiming for here. As the picture above suggests, it wears its influences on its sleeve. What is interesting is the build, the quality of the components and the finish.
The hardware is all from Trevor Wilkinson, who stood at the prow of the Vintage design team until 2019. We've got a Wilkinson WTB bridge, which, like the Fender Am Pro II Telecaster allows the player to string-through the body or top-load the strings as per Jimmy Page. The latter method allows for a little more slinkiness in the feel, the opportunity to really lean into your bends and vibrato. The compensated brass saddles
It feels heavy duty. Everything feels heavy duty here, from the steel neckplate to the E-Z-Lok tuners, which take vintage-style Klusons and run with the idea, with a dual hole method for tidy string wraps. There's a Graph Tech NuBone nut, too, which is always nice to see.
As for pickups, there are Wilkinson WVTB and WVTN pickups in the bridge and neck positions, the neck pickup secreted under a chrome cover, the bridge single coil an open-coil design. You are sure to have seen something like this before...
The body, meanwhile, is American alder, the neck maple, with a 10" radius maple 'board and 22 medium frets.
Vintage 25th Anniversary Series 6H-SVB
The 6H-SVB has an alder body and bolt-on maple neck, too. It has a rosewood fingerboard that has a slightly flatter radius measuring approximately 12".
We've got an HSS configuration here and like Fender's American Professional equivalent the inner-coil of the bridge humbucker is black so from a distance you've got that SSS look. That becomes a reality via a coil-tap, which sits nested among a typical master volume, two tone and 3-way blade selector switch.
Again, we've got E-Z-Lok tuners and the Graph Tech nut. A Wilkinson WVC vibrato is offers some wobble should you need it.
Vintage 25th Anniversary Series V100-SVB
We are more accustomed to seeing that Silverburst finish on singlecut electrics like this. No prizes for guessing what's under the paint; Vintage has plumped for a plump piece of mahogany and capped it with maple. It's a winning tonewood cocktail that's completed by a mahogany neck that's glued to the body, with a very familiar 12" fretboard radius.
The fingerboard is bound rosewood with crown-style inlays and 22 medium frets.
Elsewhere, we have got a Wilkinson tune-o-matic bridge and stud tailpiece, plus chrome/ nickel plated Grover 102C Original Rotomatic tuners with Graph Tech once again on nut duty.
There are two WOCHB hot ceramic humbuckers, a 3-way toggle switch and a pair of volume and tone controls, one for each pickup. Again, very familiar.
Performance and verdict
The first thing that strikes us about the 25th Anniversary models is the attention to detail on the build. As noted above, there's a solidity to the builds that's typified by the hardware, and this solid feel translates when you pick the guitars up.
Unsurprisingly, the V100-SVB is the heftiest here, weighing north of 8.5lbs. That substantial feel, in this context, somehow speaks to a sense of luxury. Vintage has a reputation for playing above the price tag, but it really feels apparent on this limited edition V100.
Its neck is a little more meaty than the others in the series. Comfortably in 1950s dimensions, it is very comfortable indeed.
• Fender Player Telecaster
Fender's long-serving workhorse has never been more playable. A no-brainer.
• Fender Player Stratocaster
Fender's Player Series has been a resounding success and this Strat is quite possibly the best they have ever put together for the price. Looking for a mid-price Strat? This is a good deal.
• Epiphone Les Paul Tribute ‘Prizm’ Plus
One of the smartest Les Pauls Epiphone has produced, offering plenty of Gibson flavour for a considerably lower price tag - and other finishes are available!
The "hot ceramic" designation makes us think this will front up with a hot LP Classic style tone and that's largely what you get. There's a lot of heat in the bridge humbucker, plenty of firepower for rock lead work, and a nice, wide voice on that neck humbucker. It's deep.
While it might not be as touch-sensitive as its contemporaries sporting PAF-alike humbuckers, once gain, the V100-SVB presents itself as a great candidate for modding. The fundamentals are right there, and an aftermarket pickup upgrade could forestall your next guitar purchase.
The V75-SVB benefits from a vintage yellow tint on the neck and fretboard. In certain a certain like, it almost looks baked. Either that or it has a standing order with Benson & Hedges.
Looks only take you so far, however, the tones are persuasive enough to pass a blindfolded taste test. There's no question as to what type of guitar you are playing. Indeed, that might be betrayed by how it feels.
After all, that neck is old-school Fender, with ample shoulders offering something to hold onto. That gloss finish does get in a way a little – you could imagine it gumming up in summer – but the superb factory setup showcases the V75-SVB's potential as a player's guitar.
With its rosewood fingerboard and more slope-shouldered neck profile, the V6H-SVB is the slinkiest of the three anniversary models. It, too, has an impressive factory setup.
On occasion, the HSS format can see the humbucker dominate the single-coil voicings, but this is not the case here. There's no shortage of punch and attitude in those single coils, and no lack of authenticity in their tones either. This is definitely an S-style.
The bridge humbucker makes a fine candidate for rock and metal rhythm and lead work. It's very much an Iron Maiden setup, the HSS, and while it's not the fire-breathing 'bucker you'd expect on a contemporary metal guitar, fire up a JCM800 and it's got that midrange crunch down pat.
This is a handsome looking mini-series, and at 100 units they will surely sell out in good time. As stock guitars, they offer some very convincing tones and fine playability, both qualities that could be enhanced by some carefully chosen mods.
That, in essence, is part of the Vintage appeal too. The fit and finish are solid. The hardware is excellent, but there's always something you can do to them to bring something else out in their sound, and at this price, it makes for a fun project for the intermediate player to get on with before turning their attentions to a pro-quality US guitar in the future.
Twenty-five years in this business is well-worth celebrating, and this is a trio that will have no trouble blowing the candles out on the cake.
MusicRadar verdict: Dressed in a very fashionable Silverburst finish, the 25th Anniversary models pay tribute to some classic electric guitar designs and offer some flourishes of their own.
Hands-on demos
Vintage
Specifications
- VINTAGE 25TH ANNIVERSARY SERIES V75-SVB
- PRICE: £419 (inc gigbag)
- ORIGIN: China
- TYPE: Limited-edition single-cutaway solidbody electric
- BODY: 2-piece American alder
- NECK: Maple, bolt-on
- SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”)
- NUT/WIDTH: Graph Tech NuBone/ 42.46mm
- FINGERBOARD: Maple, approx. 254mm (10”) measured radius
- FRETS: 22, medium
- HARDWARE: Wilkinson WTB with 3 compensated brass saddles, Wilkinson WJ55 tuners, chrome/nickel plated
- STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 53.5mm
- ELECTRICS: Wilkinson WVTB (bridge) and WVTN (neck) single coils, 3-way lever pickup selector, master volume and master tone
- WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.6/7.92
- OPTIONS: None
- LEFT-HANDERS: Not in this 25th Anniversary guise but the V52 Reissued lefty costs £389
- FINISHES: Silverburst only
- VINTAGE 25TH ANNIVERSARY SERIES V6H-SVB
- PRICE: £419 (inc gigbag)
- ORIGIN: China
- TYPE: Limited edition double-cutaway solidbody electric
- BODY: 2-piece American alder
- NECK: Maple, bolt-on
- SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”)
- NUT/WIDTH: Graph Tech NuBone/ 42.92mm
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, dot inlays, approx. 305mm (10”) measured radius
- FRETS: 22, medium
- HARDWARE: Wilkinson WVC vibrato, Wilkinson WJ55 E-Z-Lok tuners, chrome/nickel plated
- STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54mm
- ELECTRICS: Wilkinson WOHZBb humbucker (bridge) and WOVaS single coils (middle and neck) single coils, 3-way lever pickup selector, master volume, tone 1 (neck and middle) tone 2 (bridge) w/ pull switch coil-split
- WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.68/8.1
- OPTIONS: None
- LEFT-HANDERS: Not in this 25th Anniversary guise but there are two V6 lefty options at £379
- FINISHES: Silverburst
- VINTAGE 25TH ANNIVERSARY SERIES V100-SVB
- PRICE: £419 (inc gigbag)
- ORIGIN: China
- TYPE: Limited-edition single-cutaway solidbody electric
- BODY: Mahogany back w/ maple cap
- NECK: Mahogany, glued-in
- SCALE LENGTH: 629mm (24.75”)
- NUT/WIDTH: Graph Tech NuBone/ 42.79mm
- FINGERBOARD: Bound rosewood, crown-style inlays, approx. 305mm (12”) measured radius
- FRETS: 22, medium
- HARDWARE: Wilkinson tune-o-matic bridge and stud tailpiece, Grover 102C Original Rotomatic tuners, chrome/ nickel plated
- STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 51mm
- ELECTRICS: 2x Wilkinson WOCHB hot ceramic humbuckers, 3-way toggle pickup selector, individual pickup volume and tone controls
- WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.95/8.69
- OPTIONS: None
- LEFT-HANDERS: Not in this 25th Anniversary guise but three lefties to choose from starting at £419
- FINISHES: Silverburst
- CONTACT: John Hornby Skewes
