The Vox Phantom Guitar and Bass

In 1962 the Vox Musical Instrument Company introduced a pentagonal guitar they called the Vox Phantom. Tom Jennings and Dick Denney, the owner and designer of Vox amplifiers were enjoying success with the Vox AC15 and Vox AC30 amplifiers.

To compete with other guitar/amp companies such as Fender, they decided to add guitars to their offerings. These instruments were initially built by a cabinet making firm in Shoeburyness, Essex. The first instruments featured solid bodies and resembled Fender's popular guitars.

Jennings and Denney wanted a guitar that did not resemble any existing instruments; a guitar that would stand out.

They enlisted help from the London Design Center. The shape that was suggested we now know as the Vox Phantom

Although the guitar's shape looked nothing like anything else, the features resembled a Fender Stratocaster with the three single coil pickups and a tremolo.

The tremolo was based on the Bigsby B5. The bridge/saddle was much like a tune-o-matic unit.

The natural finished headstock was initially a six on a side unit that was a different shape than a Strat. The neck was maple. The fretboard was made of rosewood. The pickup covers were rectangular and were all parallel to each other. The tremolo was more like a Bigbsy unit than a Strat unit.

The pentagonal body was assymetrical with the lower portion having wider angles than the upper portion and the bottom was cut at an angle which was deeper on the lower side.

The control knobs were lined up along the lower bout.  The guitar had one volume knob and two tone controls, very similar to a Stratocaster. In the middle on the lower bout was a 3 position potentiometer with sort of a gear shift style lever to control which pickup was engaged.

Interestingly, the earlier model guitars was not designated with a Vox logo. The word, “Phantom” was applied to the headstock. Later models had the word “Vox” on the headstock, with “Vox Phantom” silk-screened on the body.

Production did not stay in the U.K. for very long and was moved to Italy where it was subcontracted to EKO. The EKO produced guitars had a higher retail price than the U.K. versions.


It appears the English made Vox guitars had a metal truss rod cover and no back pad.  The Italian versions featured a back pad, similar to those on Gretsch guitars and the truss rod adjustment was at the necks bottom.  So there was no need for a headstock plate.

The models were available either as a guitar or bass and offered with a white or black body. The body color did not make much difference since most of it was not visible due to the white pickguard that almost covered the guitars top.

A bass model was also produced. This came with two single coil pickups. One pickup was placed right at the heel of the neck and the other pickup close to the bridge.

The neck was similar to the guitar, maple with a rosewood fretboard. The tuners were four on a side. The headstock was painted to match the body.

The bass model was known as the Phantom IV.

The bass player for Paul Revere and the Raiders was Phil Volk aka Fang. He became known for exclusively playing a Vox Phantom bass. He uses black electrical tape on the back of his Vox Phantom bass to spell out his nickname.

The Phantom XII (twelve string) came in two versions.  One was a normal guitar and the other was a stereo guitar.

Tony Hicks of the Hollies was a Vox endorser and played a Vox Phantom XII on some of the bands songs.

Besides building the popular Vox AC30 and AC15 amplifiers, Vox's other well known and highly successful item was the Vox Continental Organ. It would make sense that Vox would offer a combo organ. Vox originally started out as The Jennings Organ Company.


The popular keyboard with the bright reddish-orange top and the harpsichord style key pattern (black keys with white keys on the top) was an instant hit.

Dick Denney determined in 1966 that Vox could build a phantom guitar with a built-in Vox organ. The Vox Phantom Organ was a very complex instrument.

The frets became electric contacts that not just changed the string length to create the guitars notes, but acted to change the transistors and create the organ notes. A row of buttons on the guitar's face created chords, much like a chord organ. The guitar was sold with a multi-pronged cable that connected to a generator unit.  Using 1966 technology, the Guitar/Organ was way ahead of its time and possibly the precursor to the Guitar/Synthesizer.
©UniqueGuitar Publications (text only)

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The Gibson Firebird and The Gibson Thunderbird

A couple of nights ago I watched a television show that recounted the history of The Packard Automobile Company. Packard’s were still around when I was a kid. Many models, especially the early ones, were big, luxury sedans with V-12 engines, competing with Cadillac and Lincoln.

One of the designers from Packard was a fellow named Ray Dietrich. He also designed automobiles for Chrysler.  In the early 1960’s Gibson Musical Instruments hired him to design a guitar. The 1960’s was a decade of innovation.

This was an era when several countries around the world were competing to be the first to put a man into outer space. The news of the day was about rockets, satellites, and jet airplane development.

Many products reflected this cultural focus of modern flight. Manufactured decked out automobiles with tail fins, as if they could fly. Marketing of all products was ensued with space-age names, and guitars were no exception.

In 1963, Mr. Dietrich designed the Gibson Firebird models with their reversed, zigzag body and upside-down headstock to resemble the automobile tail fins of the day.

It was a toned-down version of the Gibson Explorer, but the Firebird and subsequent Thunderbird were unique instruments. Gibson’s aim in designing the Firebird was to come up with a radical looking instrument that would have consumer appeal.

The company’s first attempt with the Explorer and Flying V looked great, but did not sell. Ironically, it was Ted McCarty, who designed the V and Explorer.  McCarty was the one who hired Ray Dietrich.

The original models are known as reverse Firebirds, since the body’s treble horn is longer than the bass horn. Dietrich used the Explorer as a basis, but rounded the guitars edges into a more appealing shape.

Perhaps the most radical part of the design was the neck, which ran the length of the body. In looking at the instrument, the neck appears to be built like a boat paddle with wings added on to each side.

The neck was manufactured with nine plies of wood. Mahogany and walnut were interspersed to give the neck the strength it needed since the neck was longer than other solid body guitars.

To accommodate tuning the guitar, Gibson decided to use banjo tuners instead of guitar keys.

The headstock loosely resembled an elongated Fender, 6 on a side, headstock, except the Firebird headstock was upside-down. The headstock and body design caused friction between Fender and Gibson.

Fender saw the Firebird as an upside-down Jaguar/Jazzmaster. Fender filed a patent infringement lawsuit.

The Firebird models were distinguished by Roman numerals:
Firebird I – one bridge pickup – stud/bridge tailpiece = chrome hardware – dot neck without binding.
Firebird III – two pickups – stud/bridge tailpiece and Gibson Vibrola tremolo bar – chrome hardware dot neck with neck binding.
Firebird V – two pickups – tune o matic bridge with Maestro Lyre Vibrola bar – chrome hardware – trapezoidal position markers with neck binding.
Firebird VII – three pickups – tune o matic bridge with Maestro Lyre Vibrola bar – gold plated hardware – block position markers with neck binding.

The original Firebirds utilized mini-humbucking pickups with non-exposed pole pieces.

In 1965, Gibson not only did not see the sales they wanted from the Firebird, plus their competitor was suing them. This resulted in Gibson implementing a design change.

Essentially, they turned the body upside-down, and made a few modification, creating the Non-Reverse Firebird. Gone was the neck-through construction. It was replaced with a glued in neck. The body’s horns were not as pronounced.

'65 Non Reverse Firebird

The upper horn was now longer than the treble horn. The headstock was now right side up with traditional Gibson tuners. Pickup configurations experienced a slight change. Models V and VII remained the same, however models I and III now had two or three P-90 pickups instead of mini-humbuckers and both were equiped with standard vibratos.

Gibson discontinued manufacturing the non-reverse Firebird in 1969. In 1972, the Reverse model was revived and manufactured until 1979.

2002 Gibson Firebird

Since 2002, the Firebird has been manufactured by Gibson’s Custom Shop and under their Epiphone brand. The pickups on both models have since been modified.

1964 Thunderbird Bass

During the same era the Firebird models came into being, Gibson produced a similarly shaped bass guitar called the Thunderbird. There were two different models produced.

Unlike prior Gibson bass guitars, both Thunderbirds sported a 34” long scale neck similar to Fender basses. The Reverse model existed until 1966. At that time Gibson created the Non-reverse models for the same reason, they switched their design of the Firebird.

The Thunderbird production ended in 1969. In 1976, it was revived as the Bicentennial model and was produced through 1979. Production was started up again in 1987 and has been available under the Gibson or Epiphone logos ever since.

Thunderbird II – one bridge pickup – chrome bridge – chrome string stop – unbound dot neck – volume and tone control.

Thunderbird IV – two pickups with one at the body’s center and one close to the bridge. Both pickups were covered by chrome hand rests – unbound dot neck –two control knobs – later version had two volume knobs and a single tone knob.

Although the bass’s headstock was reversed, however the four tuning keys were mounted on the top of the headstock.

Here is an interesting note about the Reverse Thunderbird. John Entwistle, of the Who, loved the Thunderbird design but hated the neck.




Due to the length of both the guitar and especially the bass, considering both had an extended headstock, if the instrument fell off a stand, the headstock broke off.

Entwistle solved this problem by creating what he called Fenderbirds. He had luthiers design a body similar to the Gibson Non Reverse Thunderbird, but it contained a pocket in the section where the neck joins the body that was fitted with a Fender Precision bass neck.

Entwistle was known to play both Reverse and Non-Reverse model Gibsons.

© UniqueGuitar Publications (text only)

 

The Fender Cyclone

The Fender Cyclone could be considered Variations on a Theme by Leo.

This guitar design was based on a Mustang-like alder body that was slightly deeper and offset. The neck was longer than the short scale Mustang neck. 

It made of maple with a 24 3/4" scale and came with 22 frets on its rosewood fretboard. The pickups and pickup configurations and vibrato/bridge were much different that what was found on a Fender Mustang.

The pickup arrangement was similar to an old Fender student guitar known as the Duo-Sonic.

In 2000, the Fender Cyclone debuted for sale as a USA-made guitar, although it was originally featured two years earlier at the Summer NAMM convention.

The Cyclone featured two single coil noiseless pickups with white covers and exposed pole-pieces, a two-point stainless steel vibrato with steel bridge saddles.

The vibrato unit was similar to a Stratocaster unit and the springs were in a cavity in the guitars back. There was a three-way switch, similar to those Gibson used that was place on the lower horn.

The upgraded model was named the Custom Cyclone had the same accouterments, but had Gold Lace sensor pickups with black covers. The Cyclones had one tone and one volume control. Both potentiometers were housed on a stainless steel plate, much like that of a Jaguar. Both guitars were produced for only one year.

In 2002 Fender introduced the Cyclone II. The Mustang shape remained, but the pickup configuration was entirely different. This guitar came with three Jaguar style single coil pickups all of which were slanted on an angle similar to the bridge pickup of a Stratocaster.

Fender Cyclone

The vibrato/bridge unit remained the same, as did the neck length. The bridge saddles were also vintage nickel models instead of stainless steel.

Note the tiny Cyclone on the guitars headstock

The headstock was modified to resemble the larger style that is found on 1970's Strats.

The deluxe tuners were replaced with vintage style Fender tuners made by Ping.

The pickups were controlled by three slider switches that were covered by a stainless steel cover, which was much like the switches on a Jaguar. This was an advantage as you could have the choice of any of the three pickups on or off. Fender offered only two colour schemes, Daphne Blue or Candy Apple Red. Both colours came with racing stripes on the bottom bout.

In 2003, Fender introduced the Cyclone HH. This guitar was similar to the previous Cyclone instruments; however, it came with twin humbucking pickups. The neck pickup was a Fender Santa Ana model for a sweet tone and the bridge pickup was a Fender Atomic model offering a more dirty gristly tone.


The pickups were controlled by a three-way toggle switch.

The Cyclone HH was available in Black, Pewter, Orange, and Daphne Blue. The racing stripe was not offered on this model.

Both the Cyclone II and Cyclone HH were manufacture at Fender's facility in Mexico.

1998 Fender Cyclone

Despite being offered in Fender's line-up for nearly eight years, the Cyclone never caught on and the entire line was discontinued in 2007.

The Fender Katana

Possibly the oddest guitar to come from Fender is the Katana. It was manufactured in 1985, which was one of the years that Fender had no domestic production.

Note truss rod cover

This guitar was designed by the marketing director of that era, Dan Smith, and built at the Fender Japan factory.

The 1980’s were the era of “hair-bands” and shredders. Jackson, Dean and Kramer guitars were selling modified super-strats and super-vees, such as the Jackson Randy Rhodes model.

Fender dealers were looking for Fender to come up with something comparable to these popular sellers. It would just figure that a marketing director would come up with the Katana design.

Fender’s Katana had a triangular shaped body with a 24.75” glued-in maple neck. The fretboard was bound and made of rosewood, featuring 22 frets. The position markers were unique triangle placed on the lower side of the fretboard.

The painted headstock was similar to the arrow-head shape of the Fender Performer. The headstock’s colour matched the body.

The tuners were deluxe. The headstock also featured a truss rod cover, which is quite unusual on any Fender guitar.

The body featured twin coverless humbucking pickups and came with one volume control and one tone control, both of which were speed-knobs.

A 3-way switch to control the pickups was placed below the volume and tone controls. The tone control was similar to the the one on the Performer and featured twin capacitors, 250k and 50k with a center dentent. There was no scratch plate. The vibrato/bridge sat on twin pivots. The string clamp behind the nut helped to maintain tonality. The input jack was placed on the guitars side.

The Katana lasted only one year. Production started in 1985 and stopped in 1986.

A cheaper version was produced under the Squier brand. This time production was in Korea. The Squier Katana featured a 21 fret bolt-on unbound maple neck with a rosewood fretboard. The volume and tone controls were standard. Most Squier Katana guitars featured only one pickup, near the bridge and a volume control.

Fender Squier also produced a Katana bass. Much like the guitar, the 21 fret maple neck was bolt-on with a rosewood fretboard and pointy headstock with four on a side tuners. The was one P-bass style pickup and a volume and tone control on the body. The input jack was side mounted.

Despite the looks, the Katana was a a pretty good player.