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Guild Starfire IV Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar - Vintage Sunburst

Semi-hollowbody Electric Guitar with Maple Top, Back, and Sides, 3-pc Mahogany/Maple Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Vintage Sunburst
11 Write review Item ID: StarfireIVSTVS
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Guild Starfire IV Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar - Vintage Sunburst
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Thinline Playability with Insane Sustain and Stability

Guild's Starfire IV semi-hollowbody electric guitar brings you the graceful feel of the popular Starfire model from the '60s, with a thinline body style that's incredibly comfortable to play. You get a feel that's closer to a standard electric guitar, but with the organic, resonant tone you can only get from a semi-hollowbody. And the Starfire IV's tone is as distinct as its looks, with a pair of hum-canceling LB-1 "Little Bucker" pickups with their own tone and volume controls to fine-tune your sound. Call Sweetwater to add the undeniably sweet sound of the Guild Starfire IV to your collection today.

Related Videos: Starfire IV Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar - Vintage Sunburst

Based on a classic Guild hollowbody

Based on the Starfire from the '60s, this Guild Starfire IV semi-hollowbody packs all the mojo that made the original such a popular guitar during the rock revolution. Dual humbuckers and the thinline design make this guitar as ready for rock as it is for country or blues.

3-piece neck for long-lasting playability

Multi-piece necks are stronger and more rigid than single-piece necks, resisting twisting and warping over the years. Treat it well, and you'll get a lifetime of exceptional playability from the Guild Starfire IV semi-hollowbody.

Wide-ranging tone from a pair of humbucking pickups

The Guild Starfire IV is outfitted with a pair of smaller, hum-canceling LB-1 "Little Bucker" pickups. Originally designed in the 1960s, the Little Buckers were an alternative to single-coil pickups. The output sits somewhere between a single-coil and a vintage-style PAF humbucker, offering more jangle than a PAF, but a little more warmth than a traditional single-coil. Factor in the 3-way pickup selector, and you'll discover how good the Starfire IV can sound in just about any genre.

Guild Starfire IV Semi-hollowbody Electric Guitar Features:

  • Thinline semi-hollowbody based on the '60s Guild Starfire
  • Hum-canceling LB-1 pickups
  • Exceptional tone and looks from laminated maple back, sides, and top
  • 3-piece mahogany/maple/mahogany neck for long-term playability
  • Grover Sta-Tite tuners give you excellent tuning stability
  • Hard case included

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Additional Media

Electric Guitar Buying Guide

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Tech Specs

  • General
  • Number of Strings 6
  • Left-/Right-handed Right-handed
  • Body
  • Body Type Semi-hollowbody
  • Body Shape Doublecut
  • Body Material Maple
  • Top Material Maple
  • Body Finish Gloss Polyurethane
  • Color Vintage Sunburst
  • Neck
  • Neck Material Mahogany
  • Neck Shape Vintage Soft U
  • Neck Joint Set Neck
  • Radius 9.5"
  • Fingerboard Material Rosewood
  • Fingerboard Inlay Pearloid Dots
  • Number of Frets 22
  • Scale Length 24.75"
  • Nut Width 1.6875"
  • Nut Material Bone
  • Hardware
  • Bridge/Tailpiece Guild Tune-O-Matic bridge with Stopbar tailpiece
  • Tuners Grover Sta-Tite Die-Cast
  • Electronics
  • Neck Pickup LB-1 Little Bucker humbucker
  • Bridge Pickup LB-1 Little Bucker humbucker
  • Controls 2 x Volume, 2 x Tone
  • Switching 3-way pickup selector
  • Miscellaneous
  • Strings D'Addario EXL115 Nickel Wound, Medium/Blues-Jazz Rock (.011-.049)
  • Case/Gig Bag Hardshell Case
  • Manufacturer Part Number: 99-742-0140

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Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5

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Definitely a keeper

Smooth guitar in every way
by Lee from TN on

No it's Not The Guild you had in the 60's But it might be better.

I am impressed by the Starfire IV. I had a Guild Starfire V back in the 60's and it was a great guitar. I've always wanted to find another one. I took a chance on a new SF IV ready to be disappointed. But that was not the case. The guitars Guild is producing overseas are as good and maybe better than my old SFV back in the 60's. No it doesn't have all the mojo that a vintage instrument has but it might get that too someday. All I can say is this is a guitar with very impressive build. Right down to the smallest details. The weight is nice and light, it's a very comfortable guitar to play sitting or standing, it just feels good in your hands and up against your body. Acoustically it rings out but like a 335 it has the center block so feedback is not a problem. The only thing I might change are the pickups. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with the stock pickups and they sound fine but I'd like to experiment with some others to see the difference in sound. Because it's not a standard humbucking size this could be a challenge. But it's definitely NOT a deal breaker for me.
by Brooks Reid from HOBE SOUND, FL on

What a Beautiful Guitar

I played in bands in the 60's and my one friend played a Guild Starfire which he let me play and fell in love with the guitar. Since then I have play Gibson's customs and various other models. Last one was a Gibson 60's fiqured. Also have played Fender, Gretsch and various other makes. Today I received the Guild Starfire iv. This guitar is extremely well made. The sound and tone quality is what I look for in a guitar. Sure it needs a setup. But I know this will be my go to guitar for playing. I wish I would have bought one sooner. The money I have spent on guitars is way up there. This guitar I would put up against any other guitar I have played even a Gibson ES-335 Custom that I spent 5000.00 on. Sure you would say it is not a Gibson or USA made. But like I said why pay 5000.00 dollars on a guitar. When you can own this one and not break your bank account.
by John Hofmann from Corfu. NY on
Music background: Been playing ever since I have seen the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show.

No better guitar for under $

This is really a great instrument. Guild is a master at making true "tools" for making music. You won't get any of the fancy shmancy nonsense you get with Gibson, but if you want a guitar that is simply a well built, quality tool for making music and nothing more, this and anything by Guild is the way to go. Sure, it's made in Korea, and yeah, it's a Poly finish which generally are two things I avoid, however, Guild did it right and when you play this guitar it doesn't feel like either. I was in the market for a 335 and money was no issue, however, there was something about this guitar through a Twin Reverb that kept me coming back. As much as I wanted to have the Gibson name on the headstock, the 335 didn't give me near as much joy to play as this did. It's a bare bones, semi hollow guitar that when you play it, there are no distractions, no pretentiousness, no nonsense. Just a great instrument, with great electronics, a great neck, frets and it stays in tune well. There's definitely not a $ difference between this and a 335. I bought the Starfire and not a day goes by that I don't think of how silly it is to spend $ on a 335 when you can get this for almost 1/4 of the price. This and my D20 are all I need to be happy. Believe me, if you need a great Semi hollow, no matter your budget, this is a great option and it blows anything else out of the water. Thank you Guild, for never going the pretentious, overpriced route that Gibson took. You make tools for making music and nothing more, and I love you for that. Cordoba really brought Guild back from the garbage Fender turned it into years ago. Cordoba makes Guild the way Guild should be made. This is wonderful.
by Brian on

Extremely Well Made Instrument; Extremely Pleased Player!

During a recent vacation in Nashville, I had the privilege to hear two excellent guitarists play semi-hollow bodied guitars and the experience cemented my resolve to get one. Didn't hurt that my wife loves the sound of a semi-hollow, too! Times being what they are coupled with a new (older) home that needed some serious work, the budget was somewhat limited.
I'd heard so much about the great quality of guitars coming out of Korea that I thought I'd give it a go. This Guild is a beautiful instrument and fit into the budget. I had tried a couple of other brands similar in price range and for one reason or another, they left me flat.

From the minute I opened the Starfire IV ST, I was blown away. Binding on the body as well as on the neck was fit perfectly; no ridges or misalignment in the slightest. The woods chosen displayed some grain figuring and a smattering of 'birdseye' features to boot. Not as much as you'd get with a much more expensive instrument, but impressive nonetheless. Excellent fit and finish...

The frets are nicely done- no machining marks, nicely polished and no high frets. No choking or fretting out anywhere on the board. The fret ends are more than acceptable- not sharp and BETTER than recent Gibson Les Pauls I own (Classic and Studio), BETTER than my recent Fender Strat and Tele!

But what really floored me- I dialed in a nice low action (slightly less than 4/64ths) and the intonation was, using a Sonic Research strobe tuner, DEAD ON. I have NEVER owned a guitar that was spot on, right off the shelf. More evidence that Guild's Korean builders have got their stuff together!

There was one minute finish flaw on the headstock 'North' of the "G" tuning peg. Thats all.

I play with a fairly flat radius and the truss rod moved smoothly and allowed between .007 / .008 relief with little effort.

I like the LB1 pickups. they are different than what I'm used to (Gibson and Seymour Duncan full size humbuckers) but the neck produces a smooth, full tone with decent articulation; the bridge pickup is well balanced- spanky but not shrill in the least. Good rock and jazz tones easily dialed in! Don't be put off by the relatively low resistance ratings on these pups- further proof that OHMs don't necessarily equate to power, articulation or tone.

The volume and tone pots are full size- although I don't know what 'make' they are; they are NOT the typical small diameter pots often used on overseas made instruments.VERY usable sweep. The pickup selector switch functions well- has slightly more side-to-side play that my similarly equipped guitars, but no cutting out, crackles or noises.

The wonderfully finished frets are described as 'Tall Jumbo' (??) they are narrower than the jumbo frets on my Les Paul- but again are finished well and suit the radius of the guitar well. Speaking of which, it is unusual (to me) to have a 9.5" radius on a guitar of this style. But chording and lead lines play with very little effort- there won't be much of a curve getting used to these (my Fender Strat has a compound radius, my Les Paul 12" and my Tele 10") so I'm used to switching around somewhat.

This is a GREAT guitar for me- VERY excited to own it and I am confident it will become a permanent part of the family.

Finally, sales rep Ed Nystrom and his associate Stephanie are terrific people to buy from; QUICK to respond and genuinely concerned about my satisfaction, even though I'm not a 'famous' or well heeled customer! Ed's been my rep for many years and I hope, will be associated with him for many more!
by Brian Mentzer from Pennsburg, PA on
Music background: 50 + year player- former semi professional (sometimes I got paid to play LOL)

When customers come to Sweetwater looking for great, affordable acoustic guitars, we're always quick to tell them about Guild. At the same time, Guild has brought us some real beauties over the years, ranging from top-end acoustic guitars to timeless jazz boxes, and we're happy to say our most seasoned players agree that these instruments are second to none. As one of the prime Guild dealers, we know that when we sell one of these instruments, whoever gets it is going to love it and play it a lot, especially after we put it through our 55-point Evaluation to ensure it leaves our climate-controlled warehouse in perfect condition. Whether you're looking for your first acoustic guitar or your next archtop, ask your Sales Engineer about Guild.

See also: semi hollowbody guitars, Guild, Guild Semi-hollowbody Guitars
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