There are a variety of options for the Retromatic. The laminated maple archtop single cutaway contoured body has a mahogany sustain block and a single “F” hole. The neck has black binding and Mother of Pearl inlays. The 22 fret maple guitar neck has a 628mm (24.72 inches) scale with a rosewood fret board. A couple months later I got my hands on their new Retromatic P2, in candy apple red color.Ĭompared to the other guitars in the Peerless lineup, the Retromatic is a smaller body, thinline style electric. When I saw that Peerless was at NAMM 2013 showing off their brand new electric guitar model called the Retromatic, I knew I’d have to get a hold of one to do a review. The Peerless guitars also appeared to be extremely popular amongst jazz guitar players, many who have been aware of the brand and reputation for a long time.

Some web searching led me to many forum threads where people were showing off either their Peerless labeled guitars or their prized Peerless built Epiphones (some beautiful Casinos, etc…) and raving about the quality. I’ll admit that until recently I did not know much about the Peerless branded guitars.

It really is a “soup to nuts” operation, where they handle all aspects of the guitar building process, leading to some quality guitars. The company purchases raw materials and lumber and does all the building, assembly and finish work in their own facility. In 2007 Peerless began releasing carved archtop guitars under its own name. Since 1970 Peerless, headquartered in Korea, has been producing very high quality guitars for manufacturers including Epiphone and Gretsch. Peerless Guitars may be a name that isn’t as recognizable in the United States as some other big brands, but you are likely already very familiar with their work.

Where are peerless guitars made