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SKU ANDRSN-DROPTOP-TPURPABALONE

Anderson Guitarworks Drop Top Guitar, Abalone to Trans Purple Burst, Quilt Maple Top, Roasted Maple, 7.2 lbs.

$3,999.00
Free 2-Day Shipping
  • Tom Anderson Guitarworks Drop Top
  • Abalone to Trans Purple Burst - Natural Binding - Natural Back
  • Quilt Maple Top
  • Alder Body
  • Caramel (roasted) Maple Neck and Fretboard (satin finish)
  • 25.5" Scale Length
  • 1 11/16" Nut
  • Jumbo Stainless Steel Frets
  • Even-Taper Neck Shape
  • Buzz Feiten Tuning System
  • Anderson SC1 (neck + middle) and HC3 (bridge) Pickups
  • 5-Way Pickup Selector + Vol + Push/Pull Tone (adds bridge) + Mini-Toggle Splitter
  • Chrome Hardware
  • Vintage Tremolo
  • Locking Tuners
  • G&G Deluxe Tolex Hardshell Case
  • Serial #: 03-11-19A
  • Instrument Weight: 7.2 lbs

Player's Perspective

Music Store Live is proud to offer up this Anderson Drop Top. We've come across a lot of gorgeous Anderson guitars in our time as a dealer, but this one probably sits at the top of our favorites list.

We were left scraping our jaws off the floor as soon as we opened the case to this one. The quilt maple top has an almost holographic look to it that changes depending on the angle you're looking at it. That combined with the abalone and trans purple finishes that are perfectly mixed over the highly figured quilt maple top, the coffee dip pickup covers just for contrast, and the roasted maple fretboard, you've really got a lot to look at on this guitar without it being gaudy or too over the top. We were initially going to have the back painted in trans purple as well but when the folks at Anderson showed us the piece of alder they had selected for this guitar, it was so beautiful and unifmorly grained that we actually made a last minute decision for them to keep it natural. We couldn't be happier with how this design came out!

The SC1 and HC3 pickup combo is definitely designed for the guitarist who isn't afraid of a modern tone. The humbucker in the bridge has some good bite to it and the pickups can all hit your pedals and the front end of your amp with some solid power. The SC1 is designed to sound like your favorite vintage-leaning single-coil pickups and they have that hand-made quality to them that is hard to find these days. The HC3 retains some vintage characteristic while still having a slightly hotter output so it can handle some modern applications a bit more easily. It's really a perfect mix of a humbucker that can sound vintage but also can hit your pedals and your amp hard when you need it to. The articulation and definition is incredible and every note is clear and distinct as you shred away on the slim and perfectly constructed roasted satin maple neck.

The neck and middle pickups are silent single coils so you don't have to worry about that pesky hum when you solo just one of them. They're perfect for the modern guitarist that still needs to play some classic rock and old school blues. Dial back the volume and you can mellow it out without losing any of the top end. The neck pickup is rich, creamy, and beautiful for soaring lead lines. The bridge pickup slices like a samurai sword and can get as evil as you want it to. The clean tones that you can get out of this are just as impressive as the way this guitar can handle distortion. Anything from warm, round, and creamy to searing, cutting, and piercing can easily be achieved. You've also got a couple of pickup combinations you can't find on typical hot-rodded HSS S-style axes with the ability to dial in the bridge pickup in positions that don't normally include it (check out the details below for a break down on all of the options packed under the hood of this beauty).

Between the pickups and the switching options included on this guitar, there's little that you won't be able to accomplish with it. Show up ready to rock, but also look impressive while doing it. Another home run from one of our favorite guitar builders on the planet!

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 Back 
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 widespread 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:
SC 1:
Slightly more than vintage level, single coil sound, humcanceling (great for neck and middle application).
HC 3:
The HC Series solution to hot output, with vintage character still nicely intact. Just pushes the front of the amp a touch more or when a bit more musical muscle is needed.

Add-bridge Push/Pull + Switch: An optional small toggle between the volume and tone control, which functions as a Master Splitter switch

Here is how it all works:
Let’s call position 1 the neck position. Positions 1-4 of the 5-Way switch operate traditionally and the master-split toggle switch can be used on any of these settings to get either series or split out of each pickup.

Position 5 is full-power bridge humbucker all the time. This feature allows for soloing with one flick to position 5, no matter which other tone setting is in use. We affectionately call this feature the “Blower Switch.” On the B5 set-up the “Blower Switch” is the 5th position of the 5-Way.

The push/pull of the tone control allows for the addition of the bridge pickup to positions 1 & 2 only. This gives the added pickup combinations of neck + bridge to position 1 and neck + middle + bridge pickups for position 2. The add-bridge switch only functions on positions 1 & 2 so there are no redundant switching positions.

To sum it up:
Position 1: Neck Pickup (series or split with toggle selection)
Position 1 alt: (with push/pull in up position) Neck + Bridge Pickups (series or split with toggle selection)
Position 2: Neck + Middle Pickups (series or split with toggle selection)
Position 2 alt: (with push/pull switch in up position) Neck + Middle + Bridge Pickups (series or split with toggle selection)
Position 3: Middle Pickup (series or split with toggle selection)
Position 4: Middle + Bridge Pickups (series or split with toggle selection)
Position 5: Bridge Pickup (series always)

Overall Condition

Music Store Live is proud to be an authorized dealer for Tom Anderson Guitarworks. This Drop Top 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.