Disclaimer: I write this with all my honesty in hope that some people will

change their mind about Blackmachine Guitars and won't care anymore about
what they read off random FB comments.
Blackmachine Guitars is not a company, not a factory, not a big brand or
business at all. It's the culmination of one guy's artistic expression and
innovation applied in luthiery. From the idea, to the aesthetics, design and
sound he has in his head.
This guy is Douglas Campbell: since being very young, he's been interested in
building and making things like radios and other stuff. He then got interested
in guitars/basses and what came to his mind was "hey that's cool!........how
can I make it better?".
From then, crafting instruments has been his main passion and focus at a
level so deep that is hard to understand.
The main concept is building something that while classic in its roots, screams
innovation and personality. Something that is very lightweight, with extreme
playability and ergonomics but that doesn't sacrice tone or resonance at all.
Actually, design or aesthetics is not the priority, tone always is.
During the years hes been perfecting these concepts to the smallest details,
building better and better guitars as time passes.
There are many aspects that I nd unique and beyond excellent about his
creations, but rst Id like to address some of the most common critics that I
often read about Blackmachine:
1) The headstock is copied from Parker Guitars
The main inspiration behind the Blackmachine headstock is B.C. Rich (source
- Doug). Take a look here: http://farm4.static.ickr.com/
3521/5750017818_db691d09a0.jpg
Of course it has been reshaped and redesigned, but the resemblance is pretty
apparent.
2) Doug is a genius marketer that creates hype about his guitars to then sell
them at absurdly high prices
Never in his life Doug has advertised his product publicly, the only showcase
being his modest website with very short info and pictures available, and
bringing his guitars to other peoples fair booths. He doesnt have Facebook,
doesnt run Blackmachines Facebook page. He doesnt even answer all the
emails since he just focuses on the craft. Thats because its not a company,
its just one man doing what he loves more. Doug builds guitars. Other people
create hype.
3) Blackmachines are just bare bones Ibanez RGs
Highly debatable. I could also say that RGs are like Stratocasters but with
sharper edges. While to some extent I can agree that the shape is not that
revolutionary (like Strandberg for example), at the same time it is VERY
recognizable, which is the most important thing.
He was brave enough to experiment with incredibly thin bodies and that
headstock design when everyone was convinced it wouldnt work, but he
made it work. Other unique traits of his guitars to be discussed later.
4) I would never pay that much for that overpriced thing
Have you ever tried one? No? Then shut your mouth. Have you actually tried
one? Didnt like it? Then why bother in the rst place? Move on with your life
and spend in something you think is worth your money.
Never in my life Ive heard somebody say F**k Ferrari/Porsche/Rolls Royce/
etc, they should lower their prices so I can buy one, these cars are not worth
their tag etc. People simply say I cant afford it, its not for me, I buy
something else. Thats because these cars are not built nor meant for
everybody.
If I were a professional driver, Id like my car to be top of the top perfect in
performance, aesthetics, accessories etc. because my job would benet from
that.
I try to make guitar my profession, therefore I like to have the best possible
tools to help me do my job the best I can.
Blackmachine, again, is not a company. Doug doesnt build many guitars at
all, and that by itself means that they are unfortunately not available for
everybody.
Yes, his guitars cost a lot and used to cost less. If their prices are fair or
overkill, its up to the individual and his priorities, but for sure nobody is
pointing a gun at you to buy them. I personally think their tag is justiable
because of many factors that go behind their craft.
Also theres plenty of other guitar luthiers/companies with far higher prices.
5) I cannot even choose my own specs
Again, its not a company. Not a common one, at least. Doug has the tone in
his head and builds the guitar accordingly, matching woods that he thinks go
along the best, and then tries all possible pickup combinations until hes happy
with the nal result. You may or may not agree, if you dont then its plenty of
other luthiers that can accomodate your requests. If you enjoy his vision, then
good for you.
Heres why I think Blackmachine Guitars are not only unique and beyond
excellent, but the very best guitars Ive ever played:
1) Im not taking price, aesthetics, design, comfort or playability into
consideration. They are, for my tastes, THE best sounding electric guitars. Its
something I cannot describe, you have to play them yourself.
I can try though: they have an enormous amount of sonic character,
something that you cant associate with pickups or amp/gear used. They add
so much to the nal tone, something very musical, mature, expressive, rich.
They sound alien.
The fact theyre all completely oiled makes for maximum resonance and the
purest tone.
The rst time I played one I couldnt believe how huge, resonant and clear it
was despite the light weight. Still happens when I pick it up :)
With some other guitars, I cannot feel this personality in the sound, I can just
hear the pickups and a transparent vehicle around them.
2) The wood choice is superior, in most cases PRS Private Stock like. The
mahogany he uses is 50-100 years old, the other woods involved are
excellent cuts with incredible stability.
You could think that, since theyre oiled, theyre more subsceptible to weather
change: I never ever had to touch my BMs trussrod even after years of use.
I remember talking with Nolly about Periphery 2s recordings, he mentioned
the room in which they tracked was so humid they had to change instruments
setups every day, despite this the two Blackmachines they had (Mishas B2
and now Reidars B2) were very stable and sounded so good that among all
the choice of guitars they had, they chose those two to track the 6 string
tunes.
Even the more common B6 model, although bare bones looking, is made by
very very high quality ash coupled with woods that blend fantastically with it.
Im generally not a fan of ash, but with indian rosewood and maple, its a tried
and true combination that produces an aggressive, huge, pissed off, clear and
metal as fuck tone. Less rich and expressive than B2/B7/F8 etc, but sounds
amazing nonetheless.
3) The neck. Its something very difcult to describe since it progressively
changes shape, starts rounder and then gets atter as you reach the higher
frets. Its very well thought out, with more meat than a wizard but very easy to
play with.
The B6 neck is more of a thin C shape that is also very comfortable, actually
so much that all friends or students that try my BMs prefer the B6.
4) They look FUUUAAAAAARRRRRKKKKKSE RT%!&$/%&%$/%%!%
%$$VVHFDHCEY$%Y$HRDH WT $T T% $ $$Y$%C$
C!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
5) Well lets give a better explanation :) whenever I look at some other
builders guitars, they dont exactly have that ow that a Blackmachine has.
You can tell that everything has been calculated to the mm in order to look so
cohesive.
I nd the lack of headstock logo replaced with a metal backplate, the recessed
centered jack output, the fretboard wood that continues on headstock too,
matched hardware, the use of ivoroid binding that disappears with the light
bevel, all details that when coupled together are part of a perfectly oiled
machine (no pun intended). Everything is in its place, for a reason.
6) There actually is some kind of non-conventional method or thing he does,
but I dont tell them to anyone except my brother. From what I know, hes an
aircraft designer or something similar.
To my eyes, what I still cant gure out is the kind of oil nish he applies, its
something that gives wood a look that I havent seen anywhere else.
Also chambering: I dont know what criteria he uses to chamber but when I
have mahogany body and a top, I just have to!, the sonic difference is not
even that subtle but very apparent, expecially in my B7. Sounds monstrous.
Those secret methods dont exactly add to them being better guitars, but I
nd it cool nonetheless :)
7) Pickup position. I often see other guitars having the bridge pickup too close
to the bridge (like the Meshuggah signature). This is something that changes
the tone drastically, giving it less sustain, a thinner tone, tight yes but maybe
too much. Works for Meshuggah tone, but Im not a fan of it to be honest. The
bridge pickup in BM guitars is placed just in the right spot, with enough string
vibration and harmonics.
The neck pickup is as close to the neck as possible. Its so close that theres
contact with the neck and fretboard wood, which makes for even more tone
transmission.
Another thing is that the cavities are veeeeeery tight, which makes for even
more connection between woods and pickups.
8) They are entirely built by hand. Hes been offered numerous times to use
CNC even for little basic stuff, but refused. Not sure if its different now for the
B6 models but the B2/B7/F8 are 100% Doug made.
Some notes to be added:
- I recently received a 17k$ offer for my B2, which I admit I was very close to
accept. Then I played it, recorded some riffs and did the same exact thing with
all my other guitars. Same riffs, same tuning, same strings etc. The
comparison wasnt even funny, this guitar is unrivable and unreplaceable. I am
not rich by any means, actually Im broke now. But I still denied the offer, thats
how good this guitar is. Id prefer to sell all my other guitars and keep this one,
to be honest.
- I truly think his best guitars are the ones built within the last three/four years,
he gets better with time and that can only be a good thing.
- Hes never been 100% happy with 7/8 string pickups so hes now
experimenting by making his own pickups. Im stoked to see/hear what hes
up to.
- B6 models are now co-built by Jonathan Law of Feline Guitars and Doug,
and Im sure they are by all means on par with the previous B6s. Doug
wouldnt let anything less than top notch leave his shop, otherwise it gets
destroyed (seriously).
- While I love Doug and Blackmachine, I think Vik Kuletski is more or less at
the same (insane) level.
PS: If you took the time to read all this, thank you! Just dont take it too
seriously, its my opinion :)
Francesco Filigoi