B.C. Rich Bronze Series Warlock - Single Humbucker Reviews 5

Guitar Center Phoenix, AZ B.C. Rich Bronze Series Warlock (single humbucker) $99 + tax Skull Knobs $11.95 ea. + tax

Amazing things happen rarely in this world, and this guitar is one of those events. A guitar player for more than 20 years, I bought this guitar to serve as a wallflower in homage to my metal days of the 80's. What I didn't expect was to get home, change the strings to a heavier gauge, and finding myself playing the plank all night long. I've got a PRS Standard 24, an American Standard Strat Deluxe, and an American Standard Tele and I never EVER thought that a $99 Bronze Series Warlock would ever play or look as nice. I've picked up Squires, Epiphones, and a slew of other "low-end" guitars and I can tell you without hesitating that nothing compares to the playability or construction of this guitar. The fretwork is clean and smooth, especially along the side of the fretboard. The neck, although a bolt-on, looks as clean as my PRS. The pickup is actually rather quiet and has more than enough "chunk" for the aspiring metal player.

At first, the neck had too much play in it. Once the new strings were in place (.011's replacing the "shipped-with" .009's), the tension was brought to a perfect level. Usually grabbing the top horn of the guitar and the neck and pushing or pulling on the neck makes the guitar go flat or sharp (like when using a tremelo), but this guitar had too much play in it. The slightest forward or back pressure on the neck would send the strings a floppin' ... but, like I said, the new strings fixed this issue 100%.

The construction is amazing. VERY clean fretwork. Nice finish. Very clean overall. The "tune-0-matic" bridge is actually constructed rather well. Guitar came in perfect intonation. The guitar is a little on the lighter side (probably due to the use of cheaper wood, I'm sure) but very solid nonetheless.

The bottom line is that you cannot beat any other deal out there on any other guitar. I would put the craftsmanship and playability of this guitar up against any mid-range axe without hesitation. It sounds great. It plays great. And the looks? What can I say? I added a pair of "skull" knobs in place of the stock speed knobs and this guitar is 100% rock ... too much for both my hands!!

20 20 20 20 rated this unit 5 on 2003-01-15.

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