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REVIEWS
Jewel tones: the Put the squeeze on:
jewelled arrow control the Penguin boasts
knobs lend the Penguin Gretsch’s paper-in-oil
an indulgent edge Squeezebox capacitors
Flight of fancy: the
guitar’s silver-sparkle
binding and four-ply
ŴƍŸƽĭōġ ŴŸŕƣĭāĈ ƪĈƇ
further extravagance
which appears to have been cut into the In addition, the Penguin’s pinned ebony base first thing you notice is the loss of lower-mid
Plexiglas scratchplate from the rear before ensures that a heavy right hand won’t send punch, the Penguin’s TV Classics having less
the metallic paint was applied. True, the bridge sliding across the top’s graceful of the aggression and immediacy that makes
this Penguin is a heavy old beast – more arch while you’re mid-performance. the Panther such a fabulous rock machine.
emperor than Humboldt, if you will – The Penguin also offers a slightly shorter
but it’s difficult not to feel like a million IN USE decay in high registers, but this has more to
dollars with it hanging around your neck, We’ve spent innumerable hours engaged do with construction than electronics.
and it balances superbly on a strap. in remote recording sessions recently, and That said, it’s not long before the Penguin’s
Upon close inspection, the Terada factory’s our G6137TCB Center-Block Panther charms reveal themselves. Instead of the
finishing isn’t flawless but the execution is has lived up to the final three letters of its Panther’s in-your-face snarl, you get a less
of a very high standard, and several model designation by taking care of business congested midrange, greater articulation and
magnitudes cleaner and sharper than it was in impressive fashion. As you’ll discover in a PAF-like treble extension that provides
in 1950s Brooklyn. Although this guitar the Filter’Tron shootout that begins on p102, an additional harmonic sheen. Much of this
doesn’t come with one of the labour-saving the Panther’s High Sensitive pickups may is down to the pickups but it’s likely that the
String-Thru Bigsby tailpieces found on not be the most vintage-authentic units out Penguin’s maple neck, ebony ’board, and
Gretsch Players Edition models, its combo there but they have a satisfying raunch and no-load tone control – which is effectively
of B3C and nickel-plated brass Rocking Bar perform well as part of a loud band mix. removed from the signal path when running
bridge is one of the smoothest and most The move from our guitar menagerie’s wide open – are making their presence felt
expressive in all of Whammyville. Panther to its Penguin is interesting. The in the trebles too.
GUITAR MAGAZINE 29
