Last week, Manson Guitar Works, the brand played and now co-owned by Muse frontman Matthew Bellamy teased a trailer video for a brand new replica of Bellamy's Delorean guitar, the DL-0R. Now, following the guitar's official unveiling in two formats this week, the limited-run DL-0R has already sold out with the six relic models getting snapped-up within 60 seconds of being unveiled. The remaining guitars were all sold in the first hour .
Produced as a combined run of 30 instruments, the DL-0R Relic Edition (6 guitars worldwide), alongside the DL-0R Limited Edition (24 guitars), feature an eye-watering price tag of either £12,999 or £9999 each, the DL-0R is Manson's closest replication of the Delorean - the aluminium-clad, Hugh Manson/Ron Joyce-built guitar made famous by Bellamy during muse's Origin of Symmetry era.
Manson Guitar Works says the aim of the DL-0R was to "produce a modern version of the DL as if Matt was ordering it today, but with a serious look to the guitar's historic past".
Fans of both Bellamy and the Manson brand will know that this includes an alder body cut to the distinctive Manson outline, here finished in either a raw or relic'd aluminium cladding. There's premium appointments abound, with a birds eye maple neck carved to a soft V profile, 25.5" rosewood fingerboard and Gotoh hardware throughout.
The pickups in the DL-0R are updated Manson in-house designs by Manson's Simon Thorn, featuring a Deci-Bel 90 high-output P-90 in the neck position, plus a multi-rail Mother Superior in the bridge position, fitted with a push/pull coil system.
Of course, this being based on Bellamy's Delorean there's a host of electronics going on, with a Graph Tech Ghost Resomax piezo bridge, toggle kill switch and, of course, body-mounted MXR Phase 90 and ZVEX Fuzz Factory circuits and controls built-in too.
The latter created a fateful situation whereby ZVEX - attempting to source transistors in the same gain range as the circuit used in Matt's original guitar - stumbled upon not only the correct components, but NOS versions from the early-noughties build thanks to long-serving employee, Shoua Thao.
ZVEX explains on the Manson Guitar Works website, "Zack asked our tech Shoua how we still managed to have any of those germanium transistors after so many years. Shoua said Zack instructed him specifically to keep those last remaining transistors separate… for just this possibility. Ironically Zack had no memory of giving those instructions.
We have the correct transistors to make perfect replicas. Hand soldered by the same person, on the same bread board used to build the original DeLorean circuit”
Adrian Ashton, Managing Director of Manson's Guitar Works told us, "Matt and I are extremely proud of my whole team that managed to bring this project together and make it a success; film-makers, luthiers, electronics specialists, marketing and of course our loyal customers around the world have made this an incredible achievement."
With a £3000 holding deposit and that hefty price tags, the fact that these are already sold out is almost a moot point for most. Here's hoping for a more affordable, and more widely available version in the near future!
