Charvel has expanded its Artist Signature Series for 2022, introducing new signature guitars for Slipknot's Jim Root, James LaBrie collaborator/Icefish lead man Marco Sfogli, and Anthrax bassist Frank Bello.
The long-teased Strat-style Jim Root Signature Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HH FR arrives alongside Root's existing Fender signature models – a Stratocaster, Telecaster and two Jazzmasters – while the drop marks both Sfogli and Bello's first Charvel signature models.
There's plenty of specs to digest, so let's dive in below.
Charvel Jim Root Signature Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HH FR
First up, Jim Root's new signature guitar is based on Charvel's Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 blueprint, and features a mahogany body – contoured and with a scalloped lower back bout comfortable upper-fret access – and a bolt-on maple neck with graphite reinforcement designed to withstand “extreme climate changes”. Perfect for a guitarist who routinely stands close to pyrotechnics onstage.
The guitar also sports a 12"-16" compound-radius fingerboard with rolled edges and 22 jumbo frets, as well as a heel-mount truss rod adjustment wheel for “pain-free neck relief tweaks on the fly”. Elsewhere, Luminlay side dots provide fingerboard guidance in low-light settings.
In terms of electronics, the guitar is loaded with a pair of Root's signature EMG Daemonum humbuckers – which aim to combine the power of active pickups with the sensitive touch of passives – with a streamlined control layout consisting of a three-way blade switch and a singular skirted Strat-style volume knob.
Other features include a Floyd Rose 1500 Series double-locking tremolo, Charvel-designed locking tuners and black hardware.
Two aesthetics are available: one finished in Satin Black with a maple fingerboard and one in Satin White with an ebony fingerboard. Both come with a Charvel multi-fit hardshell gig bag.
The Jim Root Signature Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HH FR is priced at $1,499.
Charvel Marco Sfogli Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HSS FR CM QM
Icefish guitarist and James LaBrie's six-string sidekick gets a new signature in the form of a stylishly appointed Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 model.
It features a resonant alder body with a rippling quilted maple top, with a scalloped lower back bout and sculpted shredder's cut heel for “comfortable and unencumbered upper-fret access”. It also sports a bolt-on caramelized maple neck and fingerboard with, like Jim Root's new signature, graphite reinforcement.
In terms of electronics, the model is fitted with a versatile pickup configuration, with a EMG 89 active humbucker in the bridge position and a pair of EMG SA single coils in the middle and neck positions, the latter offering Strat-style tones, too.
The pickup layout, Charvel explains, reflects Sfogli's “propensity to cut across genres ranging from progressive metal to jazz”.
Controls include a five-way blade pickup selector switch, and single skirted Strat-style volume and tone knobs with push/pull functionality for coil splitting the bridge pickup.
Other features include rolled fingerboard edges, 22 jumbo frets, Luminlay side dots, a heel-mount truss rod adjustment wheel, Floyd Rose 1000 Series double-locking tremolo bridge, black pickguard and chrome hardware.
Available in a Transparent Purple Burst finish, the Marco Sfogli Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 HSS FR CM QM is priced at $1,599.
Charvel Frank Bello Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Bass PJ IV
And last but by no means last, Anthrax bass player Frank Bello has expanded his signature arsenal with a Pro-Mod So-Cal Bass PJ IV model.
Featuring a poplar body paired with a bolt-on maple neck – with graphite reinforcement for withstanding “extreme climate changes” – the Frank Bello Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Bass PJ IV is “primed to thrash”.
Engineered for “unrivaled playability”, the bass also sports a 12"-16" compound-radius fingerboard with rolled edges, 20 jumbo frets and black block inlays.
It's also loaded with a set of Bello's signature EMG P/J pickups – which serve “warmth and low-end punch, along with tight mids and dynamic high end”. These are controlled by singular volume knobs for each pickup.
Other features include a Charvel HiMass bridge, Graph Tech TUSQ XL nut, open-gear tuners, a Gloss Black finish, mirror pickguard and chrome hardware.
The Frank Bello Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Bass PJ IV is available for $1,299.
For more information on any of the new Artist Signature Series models, head to Charvel.
