Anderson Guitarworks Drop Top Classic Guitar, Purple Surf
Player's Perspective
Music Store Live is proud to be an official Tom Anderson Guitarworks dealer and we just got in another gorgeous guitar from them with a stunningly beautiful flame maple top in a beautiful fade finish they call Purple Surf.
We had the crew over at Anderson give us a modern hot-rodded drop-top guitar but we wanted it to still be able to achieve some more classic and traditional sounds by splitting the bridge pickup and/or using the single-coil middle and neck pickups (in other words, you can get a strat or a tele 3rd position configuration) via the push/pull tone knob. The result is a very versatile axe that can handle just about anything from modern applications to vintage tones.
We went with the even-taper neck profile for this one. It's modern and thin while still giving you a solid piece of wood to hold onto. It's fast and slim without feeling like you're holding onto a toothpick. The pickup switching is intuitive and unique at the same time. The mini-toggle is a 3-way switch for splitting the bridge and the tone knob is push/pull to change the pickups you're using when in the 3rd position of the selector. You can either have the neck and bridge pickups together or you can use the middle pickup solo.
It's become a regular saying here at the shop, whenever we get an Anderson guitar in, that "Tom Anderson can do no wrong" and time and time again that sentiment is proven to be true. Here's another phenomenal example of the killer workmanship coming out of Mr. Anderson's factory.
Manufacturer's Description
Before the introduction of the magnificent Drop Top in 1990, the number of "S" style guitars that had a maple top that was “dropped” to create a comfortable forearm contour were exactly zero. As a result of this design, we've chosen a body top thickness of 3/16 of an inch, which actually enhances and enriches the sonic character of the instrument. The result is a guitar that not only plays effortlessly, is extremely comfortable, and sounds amazing but is so darn good looking that if you don't dress well it just may upstage you.
Alder Body
Dating back to the late 1950's, this is the wood found in more 3 single coil, double cut-away, 25 1/2" scale length guitars than any other. Due to its wide spread popularity it produces a very familiar tone, a "vintage tone." Its sound is primarily a thicker, midrange tone. It is very full in the low midrange yet produces enough upper midrange to be clear and articulate.
Pickups:
SC1: Slightly more than vintage level, single-coil sound, humcanceling (great for neck and middle application).
HF3: Extra saturation with creamy and more forceful output while still staying true to the vintage roots that the HF2 lays out.
Position 1: Neck Pickup
Position 2: Neck + Middle Pickups
Position 3: Middle Pickup
Position 3 (alternate): Neck + Bridge Pickups
Position 4: Middle + Bridge Pickups
Position 5: Bridge Pickup
Specifications
Body
- Model: Drop Top Classic HSS
- Color: Purple Surf
- Top: Quilt Maple
- Body: Alder
- Binding: Natural
- Pickguard: Pearloid
Neck
- Construction: Bolt-On
- Fretboard: Roasted Maple
- Neck: Roasted Maple - Satin
- Scale: 25.5"
- Radius: 12" - 14" Compound
- Nut Width: 1 11/16"
- Neck Profile: Even Taper - .810 at the first fret to .870 at the 12th
- Frets: 22, Heavy, Stainless Steel
Electronics
- Neck and Middle Pickups: SC1 Single-Coils
- Bridge Pickup: HF3 Humbucker
- Controls: Volume, Tone (push/pull for alternate 3rd position pickup configuration)
- Switches: 5-Way Blade Pickup Selector, Coil-Split Mini-Toggle
Hardware
- Bridge: Vintage Tremolo
- Tuners: Locking
Miscellaneous
- Case: Black Tolex Hardshell
- Serial #: 05-15-22P
- Instrument Weight: 7.6 lbs.
Overall Condition
Music Store Live is proud to be an authorized dealer for Tom Anderson Guitarworks. This Drop Top Classic is 100% brand new and is being sold with a full manufacturer's warranty. Photos are of the exact guitar you'll receive.
Our in-house guitar tech will inspect, test, set up, and clean all of our instruments on site prior to shipping. All of our instruments are guaranteed to be fully functional upon arrival.