“It is easier to make a good instrument rather than explaining why it is a good instrument.”
Roberto Upazzoli – CEO Phaselus S.A.
I was often asked how we got to the idea of making guitars in an already over saturated market, and especially why we entered the manufacturing business of instruments whose innovation seems to have reached its peak a long time ago.
The answer was surprisingly simple: musicians’ demand.
Even if the market is inflated by instruments of any kind, most of them are religiously attached to the “philosophy” of the two most famous brands: guitars equipped either with two humbuckers or with three single coils.
our passion
Being in close contact with many professional guitarists and hearing their frequent complaints about the necessity of carrying multiple instruments with them all the time, made me realize that the market was lacking a more universal product: a guitar able to perform on stage with maximum flexibility, shifting from typically hambucker sounds to single coil sounds. The market can only offer guitar synths or sampling instruments that replicate vintage guitars sounds, but being a synthetic clone is also a big limit.
Not only the sound isn’t natural and realistic, but these instruments also lack a personality of their own. Lengardo, a guitar based on flexibility, was inspired by the constant demand of many professional musicians for a universal product.
The goal was achieved by using three pick-ups in most models: two split hambuckers with a central single coil, or even a piezoelectric on the bridge or a midi expansion as optional. The body is inspired to the most famous brands not to mimic the sound, but to let the musician avoid the struggle of adapting to new weights and proportions. Lengardo is not just “another copy” of a famous instrument, but an original universal product in a familiar shape.
our products
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MILANO SERIES
Lengardo GuitarsA Les Paul style guitar, with mahogany body and flamed maple top. The use of tonal chambers reduces the weight of the instrument, sparing musicians from annoying physical problems. The wiring is traditional, with a 3-position switch. Without compromising the instrument’s ergonomics or sound performance, the small sized mini Humbuckers allow the addition of a single in the center position, activated separately by a push-push switch, thus expanding the available sounds range. A 3 mini Hambucker setup is also available for those who like an even more intense output. The comfort is increased by a slightly wider neck, 1 3/4" wide at the nut. A sharp intonation and brilliant sound are granted by Schertler mechanics and an ebony fingerboard. This guitar is also available on request in solid body version, made of special woods or using custom electronics, depending on current availability.
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TORINO SERIES
Lengardo GuitarsA solid body guitar with bolt on neck, alder body and fingerboard in maple or rosewood. A small body, with no edges, that perfectly fits the musician’s physiognomy. The body-neck bevel makes the instrument comfortable even in the most difficult positions. Electronics choice is literally unlimited: traditional configurations with three single pickups or HSS, handcrafted Flametones for a vintage sound, JBE for a modern sound, another version with 2 P90 handmade by Van Zandt, or a mini single mini or HSH versions with JBE pickups. The latter, thanks to a superswitch and an autosplit system, try to interpret the idea of "the absolute guitar" that many musicians have in mind: the odd positions, in fact, offer a Les Paul style configuration, with full Humbuckers. The second and fourth positions are typically Strat style, with a split Humbuker in counterphase with the single. The best of two opposing guitars brought together in a single instrument. In the custom series the mechanics are self-locking Schaller, while the bridge can be a choice of Gotoh or the new Floyd Rose Rail Tail.
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VENEZIA SERIES
Lengardo GuitarsA semi-acoustic low-bass guitar dedicated to jazz and blues musicians, but also suitable for more powerful genres. The evolution of this model followed a more traditional concept. The pickup setup is made of two Humbuckers and a 3-position switch. Van Zandt developed these pickups exclusively for Lengardo, handcrafted with AlNiCo IV magnets. In alternative to the more versatile Van Zandt electronics, we also offer two Flametone setups: 59 Classic or Filterflame. The first one gives the guitar more rock, scratching and aggressive sounds, while the second, thanks to the special Filtertron style Pickups (in Full Humbucker format) developed by Alessandro from Flametone is perfect for fingerpicking, jazz, and classical rock. The sounds range has been expanded with two push-pull switches, that enable each of the two pickups to be individually split. Alternatively, a version with 2 P90s is also available, strictly Van Zandt of course. The neck is 1 3/4" wide at the nut and features an ebony fingerboard. Flamed maple top on the high gloss finish and choice of glossy or matt varnish. Tuning machines.
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BASS SERIES
Lengardo BassesThe idea of the Lengardo bass guitar comes from a collaboration with the German company ESH: after trying, testing and selling their instruments, we received extremely positive feedback on the construction, but less enthusiasm about the electronic components. The original ESH bass with EMG active electronics is usually appreciated more by the metal-oriented musicians, but less by most bassists used to more traditional sounds. We therefore decided to develop our bass ESH/LENGARDO collaboration: a reinterpretation of the traditional ESH Jazz Bass and Precision Bass configurations combined to JBE electronics for a modern sound and, on request, Van Zandt or Flametone for a more vintage sound. All this is always combined to a piezoelectric pickup on the bridge. The models we offer are: - The Stinger Jazz bass (neck thru), 4 or 5 strings, fretted or fretless - The Sovereign bass (bolt on) in Jazz version, with 4 or 5 strings, fretted or fretless and Precision bass version, with 4 strings only, fretted or fretless.
our vision
We put together a series of instruments meant for professional use, featuring top quality for components and assembly for a reasonable price. Our products may look expensive at first sight if compared to competitors’ standard series, but Lengardo’s performance should in fact be paralleled to a “custom” series, becoming from this point of view a very convenient option.
Our guitars are produced in small batches, allowing more time to check on every detail multiple times. We have two main sound options: a line featuring a more modern aggressive sound, mounting ceramic JBE pickups and a more vintage line that carries artisanal AINiCo pickups, mainly Flametone.
Every instrument comes in multiple setups, with different bridges, mechanics, wiring and so on, and each piece is, in fact, already unique. Our customers can further customize their guitars and order a full custom piece, made to measure according to his particular specifications, materials and components.
All our instruments are built in Czech Republic from woods of certified origin, finely selected by our luthiers. Our technicians double check and set-up each piece in our headquarters before delivering the product to the client. The inlays are purposely made of synthetic materials to avoid the restrictions set by the Washington Convention on animal and vegetal species preservation.