however, it has been a sitting in my mind for much longer than that.
I have been fascinated with unique musical instruments, weird sounds, and the pure energy that comes from
Rock musicians expressing themselves.
This guitar, which I first had the idea for as a highschool student, uses unique guitar modifications to
create weird noises and allow artists to express themselves both sonically and emotively.
The design process included sketching, model-making, and CAD.
Special thanks to Keith Medley, Joe Glaser, and Sustainiac
for making this possible.
The guitar features a hand-stitched and hand-dyed leather pickguard, as well as a hand-stitched and hand-dyed magnetically detatchable armrest complete with Tengwar etching to add to the instrument’s fantasy feel.
The Spellcaster is hand-aged, including some light carving on the back, to make the guitar feel battle-worn and familiar to the player.
Aesthetic choices were not done solely to make the guitar look nice. The guitar features a unique construction in which the addition of a flame maple topper allowed me to drill out weight relief, making this a perfectly balance guitar that is simultaneously lightweight and feels substantial.
What makes this guitar standout though, is its unique combination of guitar modifications.
The Sustainiac Stealth Pro neck pickup not only sounds bright yet warm, but when the switches located in the pickguard are activated, it allows for an infinite sustain loop with 3 different sustaining modes, including two harmonic modes.
These devices are not new, but they are rarely combined. Although they are traditionally pidgeon-holed into specific genres, when put together, they give the Spellcaster its magic, opening a world of sonic opportunity.
More information can be found at Frethaus.org
This project was featured during Auburn University SIGD’s first inaugural design exhibition Kaleidoscope.
This project was featured during Auburn University SIGD’s first inaugural design exhibition Kaleidoscope.