I have played a lot of guitars over the years, but I’m always astounded when a Music Man lands itself in my hands. Their guitars are built with such finesse, from the obvious things like fretwork, binding and figured tops, down to the cleanest looking bridge cavities and inlays that I’ve seen on a production model guitar. The Monarchy that came across my desk this month featured a beautiful Royal Red finish with chrome hardware. A regal finish for a majestic guitar.
Petrucci is renowned for being a very dynamic player that goes anywhere from glistening clean passages to the highest of high gain riffs and solos, so naturally the Majesty is a guitar built for accommodating a wide array of tones and sounds. The DiMarzio Sonic Ecstasy pickups sound incredibly clean and articulate. One of the coolest features is that the middle position on the pickup selector gives you an amazing Strat-like, out of phase sound. The Majesty also features a piezo system and a gain boost circuit, and whilst I probably wouldn’t have much need for these features myself, it just goes to show that Music Man and Petrucci have made it their mission to make an astonishingly versatile guitar that is suited for any player.
I was really blown away by the size of the guitar’s body and how light it was. My history with mahogany body guitars has been that they weigh a tonne, but surprisingly the Majesty is super lightweight. What was unsurprising was how rich the guitar sounded and how easily it played straight out of the box. It’s certainly what you’d expect from a guitar with such a hefty price tag attached.
I’ve never been a huge fan of locking tremolos as they’re just so finicky and temperamental. Music Man’s custom floating trem system is an absolute winner. It’s sleek, comfy, and easy to adjust. The Schaller locking tuners do a great job of keeping the guitar in tune, even after a relentless attack of divebombs.
Whilst the price of the Majesty Monarchy might seem intimidating, it is priced that way for good reason. This is without a doubt a “forever” guitar. The build quality is impeccable down to the finest detail, it has nothing but the best specs and hardware on the market, and its finish is a work of art. On top of all that, it’s lightweight, comfortable, a dream to play and sounds insane. The price tag is completely and utterly warranted.
