Guitar World Verdict
You really can’t fault anything. From its conception to the final execution, everything is unimpeachable. The build quality is supreme, playability hard to match, and the set of sounds on offer will satisfy even the meanest of ears. Yes, the price looks pretty painful, but this kind of quality really can’t be acquired on the cheap.
Reasons to buy
- +
A guitar that excels on every level.
- +
Build quality, fit and finish.
- +
Playability and sound.
- +
It will deliver in almost any musical situation.
Reasons to avoid
- -
We debated whether the hefty price should drop the Oz a point, but then builders like PJE price their instruments in order to cover costs and make a fair living – so the rating stays.
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What is it?
The previous guitar from Patrick James Eggle that passed through Guitarist’s portals was a stunning single-pickup Cabronita-style Oz model.
And while that was in traditional tobacco sunburst on swamp ash with a single humbucker at the bridge, today’s instrument – which obviously shares the same basic DNA – has a different personality altogether. And if you’ve ever wondered where the name ‘Oz’ comes from, it’s simple, as Mr Eggle himself reveals: “The name Oz refers to Oswestry, the home of Patrick James Eggle guitars.”
Our particular Oz sports a pair of Mojo’s twin Wide Range pickups on a carved mahogany body with just one f-hole. Its milky grey ‘grained mahogany’ finish provides a more contemporary look and takes us somewhere else entirely.
Look closely and the wood’s ‘strawberry pip’ grain is clearly visible through the thin nitrocellulose finish. This monochrome look is rather smart, and it’s always great to see something less run-of-the-mill.
“We try to keep things tasteful but away from the norm, where possible,” explains Patrick. “And this one’s not too outlandish. We took it to a few shows and a lot of people were commenting on the finish.”
But even with this unique look and twin humbucking pickups, in sheer hardware and electronics terms it’s still a pretty straightforward guitar.
As usual with Eggle instruments, pulling it from its super-quality branded gigbag and looking it over from the end-pin to the tip of its roasted maple headstock reveals a flawless build. The neck joint is perfectly hewn and paired, and each cavity cover rout exquisitely done. Not to mention the sheer pleasure of holding in your hands something that’s clearly a cut above.
Patrick tends to use AAA figured maple on most of his necks, and the roasted birdseye construction you see here is no exception. The roasting, or torrefaction, lends a deliciously nutty hue to the wood, as well as greater stability. And while it doesn’t look ‘vintage’ per se, it does remove the often anaemic glare that pure naked maple can exude.
Our Oz’s ’board is dark, reddish rosewood and boasts the only outwardly ‘flash’ element here: large pearl block position markers. If you think simpler dots might work better, these can of course be specified. As it is, we rather like it this way.
You’d be hard pressed to find anywhere near this level of care on a production line instrument
Speaking of that fingerboard and the 22 Jescar jumbo frets that adorn its 648mm (25.5-inch) extent, we can honestly say we’ve never seen it done better. The rolled edges and elegantly dressed and rounded fret ends are a thing for any guitar lover to behold and enjoy. This is what a true custom maker has the time and indeed the expertise to do, and you’d be hard pressed to find anywhere near this level of care on a production line instrument.
Creating a semi-solid guitar body can be done in a number of ways, but Eggle prefers to carve out the mahogany blank’s innards before glueing the top on afterwards. This allows Patrick to leave the solid centre section intact. In theory, of course, this means the top could be maple, koa or any other timber that will suit the base timber or perhaps a later colour choice.
“Actually, both back and top are routed from the inside before glue-up,” Patrick clarifies. “The top is carved from the inside to leave a thickness of approximately 5mm, and the back is chambered and carved in the area of the belly cut to match the outside. And yes, the centre section is solid.”
Hardware-wise, we find a Gotoh Chopped T bridge with three compensated brass barrel saddles, vintage-style but rear-locking Gotoh tuners, cream control and toggle switch covers, plus a recessed neckplate whose outline follows the contour of the beautifully sculpted body heel.
For the electrics we’re treated to a setup of twin Mojo Wide range ‘CuNiFe’ pickups (a style originally designed by Seth Lover of Gibson humbucker fame, and here with outputs of 7.3k for the neck and 10.0k powering the bridge). Single volume and tone controls with a coil-tap on the tone pot, plus a shoulder-mounted three-way pickup selector switch, complete the operational picture.
Specs
- PRICE: £4,920 (approx $6,599) with posh grey padded gigbag
- ORIGIN: Oswestry, UK
- TYPE: Single-cut, T-style thinline electric semi
- BODY: Semi-solid mahogany, carved top with f-hole
- NECK: 1-piece roasted, AAA birdseye maple, shallow C profile
- SCALE LENGTH: 648mm (25.5”)
- NUT/WIDTH: Bone/43mm
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, 254-406.4mm (10-16”) with pearl block inlays
- FRETS: 22 Jescar 57110, jumbo
- HARDWARE: Chopped-T bridge, rim mounted jack socket; aluminium strap buttons; knurled nickel knobs, lightly aged
- TUNERS: Gotoh SD-91 vintage, rear locking
- STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 54mm
- ELECTRICS: 2x Mojo Wide Range CuNiFe humbuckers, volume, tone with coil-tap, 3-way selector switch
- WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.1/.6.8
- OPTIONS: A broad range of pickup, timber and hardware is available
- RANGE OPTIONS: Oz (from £3,000), PJE’s take on the classic model; Oz Cabronita (£3,200), thinline swamp ash, single pickup; Oz Drop Top (from £,3700), with figured maple cap ‘dropped’ over the forearm chamfer and twin humbuckers
- LEFT-HANDERS: On request
- FINISH: High-gloss Grained Mahogany (as reviewed), Faded Gold Burst, Island Blue Burst, Denim Burst, Tea Burst, Tobacco Burst, Gold Top, plus many others available
- CONTACT: Patrick James Eggle
Build quality, usability and sounds
The psychology of neck shapes is interesting. While our Oz’s nut is a traditional 43mm, its profile is a shallow C. This gives the impression of being wider than it actually is. But whatever its dimensions, the Oz’s neck is a dream to play. It feels smooth and refined, with the most perfect action we’ve played in a while.
The fat frets, which are smooth as silk under string bends, supply all those facilities we regularly speak of, like easy bending and strong, fluent vibrato.
All this no doubt aided by the fingerboard’s 254mm to 406.4mm (10- to 16-inch) radius. It’s clear just how much Eggle has laboured over the crowning, levelling and polishing, and we’d dare anyone to say it’s not one of the finest necks they’ve played.
The guitar is light in weight, too – at 3.1kg, just under 7lb – and with its generous belly cut is great to play standing up.
Plugging into our Tone King Imperial valve pedal amp, with added Fulltone OCD overdrive and Strymon Brig delay, we’re expecting good things. Wide Range humbuckers (CuNiFe magnets comprise copper, nickel and ferrous elements) tend to sound brighter than their Gibson-style counterparts. And the Oz’s semi-solid construction is sure to add to that clarity and articulation.
Sure enough, with everything set clean but with a dribble of delay, the openness and dynamics are palpable, the guitar responding to every playing nuance. The neck humbucker is bright, clear and yet somehow mellow, while the beefier bridge is sharper, more strident and forceful. Pull the tone switch and one coil is switched off to create a genuine single-coil experience (see accompanying interview that follows this review).
Due to the guitar’s construction, the Oz’s personality remains intact, just a tad more spanky and crisp – more Strat or Tele than ES-335 perhaps. The middle setting supplies that lovely scoop in the tone we love on ES-335s and Telecasters, so in fact why not think of the guitar’s middle tones as not a million miles away from these illustrious forebears?
Our Fulltone OCD pedal is set for a medium drive, which suits the Oz’s every pickup and switch selection. Clear, clean tones are usually a better platform for driven ones, since adding mush to mush is never a great sonic recipe. Hence the drive tones simply propel our already musical tones to fantastic levels of single-string expression.
In the final analysis this relatively simple guitar will cover any base, from classic blues and rock to country, fusion and even modern jazz. It’s also supremely easy and intuitive to use, and that’s a boon to any musical instrument’s desirability.
Verdict
Verdict: ★★★★★
Guitarist has reviewed a number of Patrick James Eggle’s guitars over the years and every one has received huge praise. The thought and care that goes into the design, build, fit and finish is extraordinary. And the team doesn’t do this just because a magazine is reviewing one; every customer’s guitar receives the exact same level of care.
As for this particular instrument, it’s a perfectly honed example of PJE’s craft. You really can’t fault anything. From its conception to the final execution, everything is unimpeachable. The build quality is supreme, playability hard to match, and the set of sounds on offer will satisfy even the meanest of ears. Yes, the price looks pretty painful, but this kind of quality really can’t be acquired on the cheap.
Above everything, the Oz Carved Top is a finely honed musical instrument that deserves an airing at every opportunity.
Guitar World verdict: In the words of our late colleague Dave Burrluck who pored over that previous Oz: “It’s no posh case queen; it would be criminal if this guitar didn’t hit a stage.” We can say no more, other than it’s another clean sweep for PJE!
