Guild X-175

The X-175 “Manhattan” was one of Guild’s earliest instruments.

A companion to the one-pickup X-150 “Savoy”, the Manhattan had a spruce top, with maple back and sides, and was initially fitted with two single-coil transducers. These were later replaced with humbuckers.

The guitar was aimed principally at the jazz musicians who were Guild’s earliest supporters.

In it’s original form, the guitar had some similarities to 1940s and 1950s Epiphones, and many Guild employees had worked for that company. It was designed to provide “professional tone quality [and] distortion free performance”, but it can also supply a rich, fruity timbre ideal for rock and blues.

This X-175 was made in the early 1980s. The wooden bridge is adjustable for height, but, unlike more sophisticated units, has only preset positions for individual string intonation.