Headless electric guitars from brands like Strandberg, Kiesel, and Legator dominate the high-performance market. But they usually come with heavy price tags. Enter Chinese manufacturer Eart and its GW-2 model. Coming in well under $400, this budget axe proves you don't need big money to get a serious instrument – and better yet, there’s 20% off in Amazon’s Big Deal Days sale.
I’ll admit, I didn’t know anything about the brand until I reviewed the model for our sister site, MusicRadar. In my glowing 4.5-star review, I said, “The Eart GW-2 shows just what is possible when a budget-friendly brand focuses on the finishing of its instruments and not just cutting costs. For us, if you're in the market for a high-performance, headless metal guitar, then you'd be mad not to check out the Eart GW-2 before looking at the more mainstream names - we think you'll be pleasantly surprised.”
The Eart GW-2 has built its core around an exotic roasted Padauk body topped with a poplar burl veneer, and I must say, it looks rather tasty. Bolt-on construction connects the body to a 5-piece roasted Maple and Padauk neck with a satin natural finish.
The neck profile morphs from a narrow U-shape at the first fret to a wider C-shape up top. The rosewood fingerboard features a 9.5-inch to 14-inch compound radius across a standard 25.5-inch scale length. All told, it's a great guitar to play.
We also have nicely polished medium jumbo stainless steel frets which are perfectly smooth, well-dressed, and free of dead spots. A bone nut sits right next to a zero fret, and again, it's well installed.
For electronics, the GW-2 features Korean-made Eart Classic 57 Alnico V humbuckers, with a clean, simple setup of a 3-way pickup selector, one volume knob, and one tone knob.
Instead of traditional fine tuners, the fixed hardtail headless bridge uses a removable magnetic tuning tool that rests on the side of the bridge.
For me, the GW-2 feels lightweight, well-balanced, and easy to play whether I’m sitting or standing. Sonically, the pickups sound bright, articulate, and fairly versatile considering how the guitar looks. It can easily handle high-gain riffage and fusion styles, and it sounds just as good clean as it does with a healthy dose of distortion.
I know that if you are in the market for a high-performance headless guitar, you aren't exactly short on options. But while prices from brands like Strandberg, Kiesel, and Legato keep climbing, Eart offers a fairly impressive range of specs for not much cash, proving they can hang with the big guns.
If you are looking for more guitar deals, keep your eyes on our dedicated Big Deal Days hub for the best offers from Amazon and beyond.
