Built from humble backyard roots, PJD guitars have rapidly grown to become one of the largest guitar manufacturers in Britain.
PJD’s founder Leigh Dovey began the operation from his small home workshop, naming the company after his late father, who was a prop maker at London’s Royal Opera House.
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PJD’s custom shop instruments have gained particular acclaim, finding their way into a number of heavy-hitting artists from an array of genres. Bring Me the Horizon, Blur, Katie Melua and McFly are just some of the names that have brandished PJD Guitars in recent years.
2026 marks yet another milestone in PJD’s growing list of accolades, with the brand introducing its new Origin Series to the Australian market via distribution through the prestigious F. Payton & Son. This signals the first time that PJD guitars have been available on our shores, with the new line already garnering much attention after winning Best In Show at the Sydney Guitar Show back in March.
The Origin Series strives to bring PJD’s acclaimed designs to a broader market, offering an import line that will run at a significantly lower price than what it would cost to commission a build from PJD’s Custom shop. This gets PJD guitars into the hands of even more working musicians who would otherwise not be able to buy into this blossoming brand.
The Origin Series is essentially split into 3 distinct tiers: Apprentice, Standard, and Pro. These lines work to offer the perfect instrument to any player and any budget, with a variety of body styles available within each tier.
Regardless of what you require from your instrument, the new PJD Guitars Origin Series will have something that is right up your alley.
Apprentice
The Apprentice serves as the entry point in the Origin Series, offering a stripped-down feature set without compromising on quality, playability or sound. Most notably, the Apprentice boasts an open-grain satin polyurethane finish that will provide a different feel to a more traditional gloss poly finish.
The Apprentice also utilises a single Alnico V humbucker pickup, making it the ideal choice for players who prefer a simpler electronics setup. If you just want to get straight to rocking with no fuss, the Apprentice is your one-way ticket to riff heaven.
Mahogany bodies paired with Maple necks and Rosewood fretboards mean that the Apprentice series is packed with familiar tonewoods that will provide warmth and punch for days. A 10″ fretboard radius makes for a comfortable playing experience, with 22 medium frets providing the perfect balance between classic and contemporary feel.
The Apprentice line comes in two distinct body shapes, the St John, which will be familiar to fans of traditional Offset shapes. Alternatively, the Carey offers up something for fans of Single-Cut Designs.
Standard
The Standard serves as the middle ground of the Origin Series, and the Carey and St John body styles both make a strong appearance here. The St John carries its offset-influenced silhouette into the Standard tier, where it gains the same pickup upgrade as the Carey. Both models feature P-90 pickups in the neck position paired with PJD’s own Alnico V humbucker in the bridge – a combination that broadens the tonal range considerably compared to the Apprentice tier and opens the door to a wider variety of playing styles and genres.
The Standard line also introduces two additional body styles for players with more specific needs. The Woodford adds a 6-point vibrato system and an HSS pickup configuration for those who need a tremolo unit and maximum versatility, while the York covers classic hard-tailed single coil territory with an emphasis on that quintessential Texas twang.
All Standard models feature mahogany bodies, maple necks and Indian rosewood fingerboards, finished in a gloss polyester that’s built to handle years of stage use.
Pro
The Pro line represents the top of the Origin Series, with PJD packing in a range of prestige-level features looking to appeal to the working professional.
Roasted maple necks are a boutique touch, giving the Pro line an immediately noticeable difference in feel. These guitars feel much more expensive than they actually are, and the flame maple veneers that adorn both models back up this high-end feel with an aesthetic that oozes sophisticated class, without going overboard.
The Pro line is rounded out with both the St. John and Carey body styles, offering enough variety for even the most discerning player. The open-pore satin finishes that adorn both models do much in promoting resonance and sustain, whilst providing a comfortable playing surface that will age naturally over time.
The electronics package on both Pro Series guitars features two signature PJD Alnico V humbuckers with master volume and tone controls. For players who want the PJD experience at its most complete, the Pro line is the place to start.
Head to pjdguitars.com.au for more.
