Godin Montreal Premiere Supreme

Godin guitars have a tendency to blend traditional and
modern concepts, and this Montreal Premiere Supreme is no exception. At first
glance it looks very familiar – an electric semi-hollow, with two pickups, and
a ‘burst finish. But on closer inspection, we see Godin’s willingness to
experiment, always with a view to improving quality.

The fingerboard is made of Richlite. We were sceptical about
this, although we know that this material has been with us for decades and that
its properties are well known, so manufacturers should be able to tell whether
it works as a fingerboard. In our view, it is a very good fingerboard material.
It is stable, smooth under the fingers, durable and despite the lack of grain
it looks fine. We are converted, but if you have doubts all we can suggest is
that you try a Richlite-equipped guitar.

The controls appear sparse – other instruments in this style
often carry four rotary controls (tone and volume for each pickup), but this
guitar has a single volume and a single tone control. In our view, this does
not matter – these two controls, with the 3-way pickup selector, give you
everything from plummy jazz to emotive blues/rock. That is what this style of
guitar is for, and this guitar demonstrates that an instrument does not need
four controls when two will do. Please note that some models also carry Godins
HDR tone circuitry, this is one without HDR.

The tuners are ‘Ratio’ tuners, where each tuner is numbered
to denote which string it is designed for with a ratio to suit. They feel
great, and allow for very precise tuning.

The Resomax bridge is one of the smoothest we have used.
Adjusting intonation and height is easy, positive and reassuring. The trapeze tailpiece
behind the bridge is simple and perfectly functional. The undersurface is
padded, so players won’t damage the guitar body if they smack the trapeze.

We have been able to set up the guitar with a very comfortable
action. The included trussrod wrench works the truss rod with precision.

Even the case is an innovative TRIC case. The guitar fits
perfectly and is protected by tough outer fabric, a thick middle layer of polystyrene,
and soft internal padding. The case looks large, but is very light, and has
handles and straps for ease of carriage.

This example is in excellent condition with a few very light plectrum parks on the pickguard but no other obvious signs of use. New ones are retailing at about £1800, so this example represents excellent value on what is a very versatile guitar.

If you are looking for a semi-hollow guitar that breaks many
moulds while still exuding reassuring familiarity, you should try one of these.