Farida CT-32 review

The Farida CT is available in washed-out Olympic White or black, and looks and feels like an instrument that has been pared down at design level to the bare essentials.

With its solid alder body, it's reassuringly chunky - if not quite the load of its dual- humbucker'd mahogany sibling, the CT-36. A slimline satin-smooth maple neck is bolted to said body.

If its clunky heel suggests that the 17th and 22nd frets are for special occasions only, the neck reassures you that the fleet-fingered player is going to be rewarded with a comfortable ride, and its dual P-90 pickups promise earthy but bright and punchy definition to the tone.

Just as Farida subverts our expectations as to what to expect from its guitars - originality, imaginative spec, cool design, and so forth - the CT-32 has an extra- dimensional vibe to it. Once you plug in and play, it feels Fender-esque, but that P-90 combination lends it a different voice.

The CT-32 has a distinctive timbre that's sharp and full of attitude in the bridge pickup, rounded and refined with both bridge and neck selected, timber-centric in the neck.

Through an overdriven valve amp, the bridge pickup has trebly bite and midrange gut, while the neck pickup excels in articulating clean tones for intricate jazz.

An untidy nut is the only noteworthy flaw in the finish, but as with the CT-36, a set of nickel Kluson tuners keeps the tuning stable.