I bought a G&L 25th AnniversaryASAT new in 2007 and have been using it regularly every since. This guitar falls within the CNC era but prior to the introduction of the PLEK at G&L.
It's a very simple guitar: mahogany body and neck, rosewood fretboard, a couple of hummers, and minimal controls. All the materials are top-notch; check out the wood in my guitar's neck:
The special feature of this guitar is the really chunky neck. If you're a connoisseur of fat necks then this one is for you. It's not in baseball bat territory but definitely fits the description of a big U.
The MFD humbuckers are fat and punchy. The tone is very warm and refined but with some harmonic complexity at the top, i.e, there is an edge to it when desired. They're a bit hotter than, say, a vintage PAF style pickup.
The action is superb and the 12" fretboard radius means playability is, as always, effortless.
The price is right and there are always a couple on the market seems like. The 25A's relative lack of collector status means you can get one for a good price and use the hell out of it without worrying about preserving some future value. Again, these guitars are not collectable nor did they sell like hotcakes (nearly six years after they were released there is, as of September 2011, still a new one for sale on Ebay from a dealer).
Could this guitar have been better? I think so: the pickups should split and the fretwork is not as good as those now receiving the PLEK process. But, overall, the 25A is a killer guitar for those looking for a Tele-style instrument with more girth and grit and a thick midrange tone.
From a desirability standpoint G&L probably should have limited their production run to 100 or fewer pieces and gone the extra mile with something like neck binding or some other special touch. Oh well, all the better for players and modders I suppose.
Overall, the 25th is a fine guitar that I use frequently. It's also a good platform for installing a Roland GK pickup. One of these days I'll have the guitar re-fretted with stainless medium jumbos and have a push-pull knob installed for coil splitting. But for now I'm really happy with the playability and sound as it is.
One note: the factory specs indicate Sperzel tuners but mine came with G&L branded units.
It's a very simple guitar: mahogany body and neck, rosewood fretboard, a couple of hummers, and minimal controls. All the materials are top-notch; check out the wood in my guitar's neck:
The special feature of this guitar is the really chunky neck. If you're a connoisseur of fat necks then this one is for you. It's not in baseball bat territory but definitely fits the description of a big U.
The MFD humbuckers are fat and punchy. The tone is very warm and refined but with some harmonic complexity at the top, i.e, there is an edge to it when desired. They're a bit hotter than, say, a vintage PAF style pickup.
The action is superb and the 12" fretboard radius means playability is, as always, effortless.
The price is right and there are always a couple on the market seems like. The 25A's relative lack of collector status means you can get one for a good price and use the hell out of it without worrying about preserving some future value. Again, these guitars are not collectable nor did they sell like hotcakes (nearly six years after they were released there is, as of September 2011, still a new one for sale on Ebay from a dealer).
Could this guitar have been better? I think so: the pickups should split and the fretwork is not as good as those now receiving the PLEK process. But, overall, the 25A is a killer guitar for those looking for a Tele-style instrument with more girth and grit and a thick midrange tone.
From a desirability standpoint G&L probably should have limited their production run to 100 or fewer pieces and gone the extra mile with something like neck binding or some other special touch. Oh well, all the better for players and modders I suppose.
Overall, the 25th is a fine guitar that I use frequently. It's also a good platform for installing a Roland GK pickup. One of these days I'll have the guitar re-fretted with stainless medium jumbos and have a push-pull knob installed for coil splitting. But for now I'm really happy with the playability and sound as it is.
One note: the factory specs indicate Sperzel tuners but mine came with G&L branded units.