Rasmus Guthrie Govan

[Sifu Ben]

http://www.musicradar.com/gear/all/guitars/electric/6-string-solid-body/guthrie-govan-530530/review
First up, stunning looking guitar, and looks like it plays pretty well
However, no set neck, no blower switch, and no tremol-no.
Oh, and £1300 for a Chinese made guitar!!!!!
I defended the M and S Rasmus models because I felt they probably would represent reasonable value for money once the usual discounts were applied, but this is way too far. If nothing else this guitar should be cheaper to make than the M200, so unless Guthrie is getting £300 per guitar, this is nuts.
We're talking ESP or Fender Deluxe money (or indeed used PRS) here.

[Alex]

I read the review in Guitarist and they liked it a lot, but I totally agree with you: the price is way too high for a chinese-made guitar. For that money you can already get guitars made by European luthiers (simple versions, but still).

[Mr. Air]

I'm not that into guitar prices, but 1300£ for a chinese and factorymade guitar is pushing the limit. I'm sure there's way better options on the market for the same price.

[richard]

Haven't tried the Guthrie Govan but a friend of mine came round with the original Rasmus H/S/S and I thought it was a terrific guitar. He paid about £900 for it and I thought it was worth every penny. Played and sounded great.

[Philly Q]

It's a tough one.... hardware and (presumably) timbers are top-notch, it has US pickups and the final setup is done in the USA.  So the actual quality should be close to the US models, the only real difference is who does the labour and what that labour costs.

But yes, it does seem overpriced for a Chinese made guitar.  Wonder how the profit margins compare?

[FernandoDuarte]

Well, the price is high because they are setup'ed in USA, what makes no sense in the end... You want to make a cheap guitar and go to china, but them you don't trust the QC of them and ship to USA, setup for US$ paid employers and them ship to the destiny???? pffft...

[Sifu Ben]

A) You don't pay £600 for a setup
B) the other Rasmus instruments are £300+ cheaper
C) Some of the better brands selling £300-600 guitars set them up in the UK or US (OK, probably not as nicely)

[Sifu Ben]

It's a tough one.... hardware and (presumably) timbers are top-notch, it has US pickups and the final setup is done in the USA.  So the actual quality should be close to the US models, the only real difference is who does the labour and what that labour costs.

But yes, it does seem overpriced for a Chinese made guitar.  Wonder how the profit margins compare?

This is exactly it, this guitar is made by Chinese factory workers who typically make less than $1 per hour. Couple this with the fact that this is almost exactly the same as the M200 but with no paint and a satin finish, and you have to wonder wear the extra expense is coming from?

[Frank]

So the guitars are shipped from China to the US then to Europe? That's a hell of a round trip, got to bump the price up with all that international shipping.

If I was going to spend that amount of money on a guitar then I'd be looking at a UK luthier to knock me up a custom instrument to my own specifications.

[hunter]

The fact that it goes to the US prior to the UK is pretty significant in terms of cost (shipping, taxes, customs). In the end price is there to create an equilibrium between supply and demand. If nobody asks for the guitar at that price, either they will lower the price to increase demand, or they will shorten/stop the supply. Easy, isnt it? :)

[nfe]

That headstock logo...

It looks like a £100 Christmas special. It's amazing how the Suhr version looks really classy but with some very minor (aesthetic) tone changes it looks like cheap junk.

[Telerocker]

I would save a little longer and steal a (used) Suhr.