The Steel Guitar Forum

hi , iv’e decided to buy a brand new steel and i’m gonna be ordering it next week . Iv’e only ever played a Carter D-10 .. So far i’m looking and reading about the Mullen G2 , MSA Legend XL or maybe a Show Pro .. i want lots of sustain and warm mids .. and recommendations? would MSA wood neck be warmer tone then Mullen .. just looking for opnions on either guitars .. thank you

I ordered a new Mullen ..lacquer with a wood neck... on 11/26/18 and received it on 2/19/19. I can't say enough good things about the company, service and the guitar! All fabulous!!
I'm sure MSA makes a great guitar as well, but a friend of mine ordered one about 18 months ago and is still waiting.. so check lead times when you decide..
There's been a lot of discussion about wood vs metal necks over the years. I have both, and as you might imagine, they all sound different and they all sound great! I love the look of a wood neck on a lacquer guitar, and since this was my first and probably only NEW guitar, I went for it and I couldn't be happier with the result!
Good luck, and I'm sure you'd be happy with either one!

Hey Pierre. It's difficult to know what another person's definition of warm mids means to them. Same for overall tone and playability.

Brand wise, I cannot compare as I've only limited experience with the new MSA.

I suppose MSA owners are likely going to nudge you their way while Mullen G2 players will recommend them.

I don't think there's really a way for you to know what's best for you without sitting both of them. If there is any way you can attend a convention such as Dallas or Phoenix where both brands are on display and can be evaluated by you in person, that's my recommendation.

I can say that in 40 years and over a dozen different guitars that I've never owned or played any guitars that have a richer, fuller sound than Mullen guitars with the stock single coil pickups. It's difficult to put into words how powerful and responsive these guitars really are.

I don't know if MSA offers wood necks, but I do know that Mullen does. [Edit: I see the MSA Legend XL model is wood necks.] I would defer to both manufacturers for a description of the tonal differences between wood and metal necks.

Good luck. I think you would be happy with either of these quality guitars. It's impossible for me to say, which one will suit your needs best.

Since this will be a big investment in your time and money your best bet is to take your time and try a few things out in person if possible. Many people love what they have and are quick to reccomend but their ears are no substitution for yours.

Also if your happy with the sound of your carter I would keep it at least until you have your new guitar to compare it to. There's nothing worse (in my own experience) than buying a new guitar and selling one that was actually something I preferred before I got the new one. You don't know what you got till its gone I suppose.

i agree, everybody has different ears .. my problem in canada is there is no place or steel guitar convention where i can see or try different guitars .. thank you everyone

One day i would love to go to a steel convention

I got a G5, SD-10 with 5&5 a couple of years ago.
Very easy light touch pedal and knee action. Best I ever played.
Also very good placement of the knees to the pedal relationship.
Those new MSA's look terrific too, but I've never sat at one so can't compare.
Good luck.

Give Mike Mantey a call at Mullen. I'm sure he would talk with you and build whatever you want.
Cant go wrong with a Mullen.

You could watch Al Brisco's inventory, see if anything especially interesting for the looong drive that would be

http://www.steelguitarscanada.com/onlin ... -in-stock/

Don’t for get the Rittenbery Prestige steels built by Gary Rittenbery in Cookville Tn.
I have owned two sd 10 Rittenbery prestige steels just really nice pedal steels.

As johnie states I would have to consider the Rittenberry as well.

But directly between msa vs others I think I would be looking at the fact that the new msa is a truly feature rich instrument. That’s not saying anything against Mullen or any others. They are all fine instruments.

For my money, at this point in time, I would and am specifically leaning toward msa. Some of this maybe for me because I live near Dallas, I was taught my first lessons by Reece and have always had a bit of loyalty in my heart for msa. When Reece And Kyle started building again I wanted one really bad.

Now days that most high end pedal steels are commanding from $5k up,? When I think about that much money for a new guitar, I’m going to want the best bang for the buck.

To me, the features and craftsmanship of all the builders are just phenomenal. Personally I think msa is just the most fantastic looking modern guitar I’ve ever seen. Add to that level of options and features that come stock on it, and for me the location of the factory and the endorsements of guys like jr knight, David Wright, Mitchell smithey, Mickey Adams among many others, that’s some Giants in the business playing msa. Admittedly David and jr both were very close to Reece, but many of us around Dallas were close to Reece. So one cannot deny that personal feelings toward Reece and how much he influenced us all around Dallas area is too a factor. Putting those things aside though, the msa is still a top shelf item. I guess it’s like “thinking about buying a rolls Royce or a Bentley” kind of...

All that said, I’m certain in my mind, if I decide to pull the trigger on a new guitar, fairly sure it will be a once in a lifetime custom made msa.

I’m certainly not the best player, I would say, I’m an average commercial player and have owned and worked on the bandstand over 25 years with a lot of different brands of guitars, including Mullen, Emmons, Carter, msa, mci, emci, dekley, gfi, shobud, zum all of which had things I liked and things I disliked.

My opinion fwiw, going forward with all that experience, considering NEW guitars, my money would be on MSA.

Bill

All the guitars mentioned and then some are all quality instruments, I wrestled with this very same question a year ago..MSA Legend XL with wood necks and 705 pickups was my choice. Good luck in whichever guitar you choose, the tone is in your hands but the mechanics and playability is in the machining!

I have played a Mullen G2. Have not played one if the new MSA legend XL steels. However the one MSA legend XL I heard in person sounded fantastic. The Mullen G2 is a great steel. The G2 is a damn good steel but the new MSA's are on another level when it comes to the Machining and finish. Being able to swap pickups in the MSA is great too. That being said I don't think you can go wrong with either one. I know the wait time for a MSA D-10 is 12 months right now. So that may be a factor for you.

The new Sierra is innovative in so many ways, yet classic. They dont go around boasting/marketing much since its a bit of a hobby business for the owners of the company. For instance, New changer design and the legs sockets are tapered so when they screw in, they are IN, rather than ON.

MSA, if its only a choice of two - not to take anything away from the others. They have been consistently excellent throughout the years and Ive never played a 'dog' MSA. You can still buy a 40 year old MSA and it plays as perfectly and sounds as sweet as if it was new. The brand new models have some cool innovations and they are a bit lighter than the old days.

I never played a Mullen, but was bout to order one, when an MSA came up on the forum .. that is really what I wanted, and I am so glad I waited and checked this forum everyday.. I would have bought a new one BUT just was not willing to wait 2 years, I know someone up there said one year, but they are wrong, call and ask for yourself.. anyway my wait came to about 5 months and I got a beautiful 2018 MSA .. and I have to say I haven’t had a better guitar!

The new MSA's have a lot of really unique and cool features.
I just bought another one a few days ago after looking at all the available guitar choices.

Here's a link to my previous MSA Legend with a lot of the features described in detail:

http://www.gregcutshaw.com/Msa/msa.html

When I recently tried out a Mullen it played very well - comparable feel on the pedals and knees as my Zum. I wasn't playing through my normal rig to comment on how it compared tone-wise to the Zum.

I just got my new Rittenberry. I have over 40 yrs exp.playing many of the brands listed here and all I can say , this new Rittenberry has no "Cabinet Drop", absolutely none. Both my Zum and GFI are excellent guitars, too, of course, Bruce doesn't build his Zums anymore

For Greg Cutshaw - What is going to happen to the Excel guitar now that you've gotten the MSA? Just curious......

Richard, the Excel will pry be sold after a few weeks! Not sure why but whenever I've owned two guitars, one always sits unused. The Excel would be a bit harder to let go because it's so perfect for a small studio and now with the Franklin pedal on it the D-10 has few advantages.

Dave Meis wrote:I ordered a new Mullen ..lacquer with a wood neck... on 11/26/18 and received it on 2/19/19. I can't say enough good things about the company, service and the guitar! All fabulous!!
I'm sure MSA makes a great guitar as well, but a friend of mine ordered one about 18 months ago and is still waiting.. so check lead times when you decide..

Great point. When I decided to buy new a couple years ago I'd narrowed it down to MSA or Mullen. When I learned the MSA lead time I knew there was NO WAY I could be that patient no matter how great an instrument it was so that took them out of the running. I called Mike at Mullen and went with a 12 string G2 and have never regretted my choice for a second.

I know everyone in this thread is likely to push whatever make/model they play and I'm no different, but I can objectively report my Mullen G2 checks all the boxes I care about. It's rock solid staying in tune for months at a time, is super easy to work on (changing copedents, adjusting the tension of the pedals/knees, etc), sounds great & plays very smooth!

I have a like new MSA legend D10 with 9&5. I’m about to list it for sale.

I’ve owned a G2 as well. It’s a fine guitar as well.

I have a like new MSA legend D10 with 9&5. I’m about to list it for sale.

I’ve owned a G2 as well. It’s a fine guitar as well.