Minelli Magazine - Wood Manufacturing

The characteristics of the best electric guitar manufacturers

Written by Edoardo Cavagnetto | August 11 2022

Many people believe that the best electric guitar manufacturers are just those that can create complicated shapes and designs, but while this is important, other factors need to be considered when choosing your supplier.

Would you like to discover them? Keep on reading the following article!

Choosing the best electric guitar manufacturers: some things you didn’t consider

One of the 10 principles of good design, also known as the 10 commandments, by Dieter Rams says:

Good design is aesthetic. The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products we use every day affect our person and our well-being. But only well-executed objects can be beautiful.

The aesthetics of an electric guitar are extremely important for players. For many of them, in fact, the guitar is not just an object: it is something that represents themselves, their style, and their way of life, so it must adapt perfectly to their requirements.

Appearance is part of the utility of the instrument, and it must be in line with the specific image players want to convey. 

 

It means that the ability of the manufacturer of creating unique designs, customizing them according to clients’ requirements is crucial. Have a look at the video below:

The best electric guitar manufacturer is a real partner that is ready to cooperate with clients to find the solution that is best for them.

Each person has his or her own criteria in deciding what is beautiful to them, and the supplier should be able to find out what these really are.

The most useful way is to create a dialogue with the buyer, give advice, and go through some standard specifications and features, but the challenge is to discuss what the client may not be consciously aware of.

What does “best electric guitar manufacturers” mean?

The term best can mean something different for different clients according to what they are looking for. For many of them, it could identify a wood maker that is able to create complicated designs and shapes; for others, it means a supplier that can provide the most innovative finishes, paintings, and decorations.

These aspects are certainly important, and we believe that a competent supplier must be able to create unique designs and customize them with cutting-edge finishes and techniques. It means also being able to select and prepare wood properly with the right degree of moisture and percentage of humidity and having the right technologies to manage it properly.

Wood differs in aesthetic, physical, and sonic characteristics. A reliable manufacturer should be able to advise about the best wood to use depending on the tactile experience players want to achieve as well as the tone they want to evoke from the guitar.

Another important factor to evaluate, however, and which is often undervalued is the ability of the supplier to deliver the order as scheduled, avoiding delays.

Receiving electric guitar components late could cause significant problems for your business as well as customer complaints and dissatisfaction.

With the pandemic emergency, many companies—especially those that relied mostly on Asian manufacturers—are now suffering debilitating supply chain shortages with negative and unexpected consequences for their businesses. Rising prices is just one of them.

Relying on a manufacturer located in your own country—whether in Europe or the U.S.—is safer in this sense, as you won’t have the problem of distance, which can make it hard to coordinate with the time difference, resulting in communication difficulties and possible delays.

Moreover, consider that U.S. or European manufacturers are often multinational companies that have deep experience in woodworking and invest a lot of time and money in the latest machinery and tools to create premium custom-made electric guitar bodies and necks.

Wood requires special skills and tools to be managed properly. The most advanced companies employs digital and fully automated wood manufacturing systems that make the entire process more accurate and efficient.

This is particularly important when producing large lots of wooden electric guitar bodies and necks to ensure the same precision and quality for each single item.

Managing wood in not like plastic. Being a natural material, wood moves constantly and has specific tolerances that can have a significant effect on the precision and functionality of the final product.

Finding the best electric guitar manufacturers to help you satisfy your clients’ needs is not easy. You should evaluate a manufacturer’s competency and previous projects and collaborations as well as the processes and machinery it can employ to understand if it can meet your and your clients’ expectations.

Since 1937, Minelli S.p.A. has ensured perfection in the quality and design of each product manufactured, relying on the experience of our employees, the most innovative tools, and consolidated wood manufacturing processes.

We use only the latest generation of customized and made-for-purpose CNC machines that provide consistent dimensional and finishing results even at a very high production volume.

Many of our machines are unique and custom made.

We have production plants in both Europe and the U.S., and we can provide customizable private stocking solutions to guarantee just in time delivery.

Moreover, our internal R&D department constantly observes the market to develop innovative finishing options according to market trends and customers’ preferences.

If you have a project in mind, contact us now!