Godin xtSA

88 Guitarist November 2008
GODIN SUMMIT CT, VELOCITY HDR, TRIUMPH & XTSA
£541-£1,044
ELECTRICS
However, the slim neck and the
305mm radius of the maple
fretboard combine to make it a
nice player. With the Velocity’s
overall look you might expect it to
be equipped with a locking
vibrato, but what you get is a Strat-
style vintage tremolo that,
although user adjustable, comes
set-up flush to the body for
downward bends and waggles
rather than any pitch raising:
pretty sensible. It does its job well
and there are no apparent issues
with the strings returning to
pitch. Unlike the Summit CT,
where battery access is via the
control’s cover plate, the Velocity
has a quick access battery
compartment with a clip catch.
Sounds
The particular pickup
configuration on offer here yields
plenty of choices with the pure
single-coil tones of the neck and
middle pickup contrasting with
the extra power and aggressive
crunch that comes courtesy of the
bridge humbucker. As with the
Summit CT, the HDR system adds
to the versatility by putting more
width of tone at your fingertips –
so you get two guitars in one with
all the extra clout that that entails.
One for the journeyman…
xtSA
If the HDR-equipped guitars are
versatile, they’re nothing
compared to the xtSA. It really is a
do-everything guitar. As well as
the standard H/S/H electric
guitar configuration, it offers
acoustic guitar sounds via RMC
bridge transducers and also
functions as a synth controller
courtesy of a built-in 13-pin
connection. With all the controls
needed for the three voices there
is the potential for confusion, but
Godin is well practised and has
created a user interface that is
uncluttered and easy-to-use with
a combination of 13-pin output
plus two jacks that allow either
mixing or separation of electric
and acoustic sounds.
Electric guitar sounds are
governed by volume and tone
knobs, plus a pickup selector,
while four small sliders (volume,
bass, middle and treble) control
the acoustic part of the sound.
For the 13-pin output there’s a
three-way toggle switch that
selects synth only, audio only or a
blend of the two, with the volume
of synth sound in the mix being
controlled by an adjacent knob. A
non-latching toggle switch is used
to step through the patches on any
connected synth unit.
Sounds
This guitar is all about versatility
with the electric pickups
providing the full range of Gibson
and Fender-like tones that might
be expected from a H/S/H
combination. The acoustic-like
tone is both jangly and full with
plenty of available tonal variety
and does a convincing enough
emulation of a modern, bright
acoustic for onstage use. As for the
13-pin output, the tracking is
Four distinctly different guitars
and quite likely a range of rivals
for each, but we have to be brief
so… there are not many ‘three-
voice’ guitars around but you
may wish to check out Brian
Moore’s iGuitar range and
Carvin’s SH575 (£1,234). If the
cool look of the Triumph appeals
then a Duesenberg, Eastwood
or Italia might float your boat.
The Velocity has a cheaper
counterpart in the Ibanez
SA260 (circa £250 street price)
while the Yamaha ES820 (circa
£420 street price) might offer
an alternative to the Summit’s
mix of humbucker and single-
coil sounds.
The Rivals
The Triumph has three retro-style Godin single-coil pickups offering a hint of P-90 tone Godin’s own pickups in the Velocity HDR
scale length gives the guitar a
different feel from the more
Gibson-like Summit and
Triumph, with a little extra
resistance from the strings.
GIT309.rev_godin 88 8/10/08 3:49:27 pm