Wheeling and Dealing Nik Huber Guitars

One year lead time horizon reached...

2007-05-21T04:01:00.000-07:00

Long phone call w/ Nik this morning re the status of some ideas / orders I had been toying around with.
The whole backlog has slowly been creeping up - despite the fact that no new dealers in the US have been added - and is now at 160 units ordered worldwide.
This amounts to over 1 year (@140 guitars/year) wait time.
It also coincidentally means that I dearly hope that I'll be able to see something "special", a 50th tribute, in time for some kind of june 2008 (hint hint, wink wink) deadline.

Fingers crossed - business is good for master Nik :-)

Huber Bigsby Junior

2007-01-11T02:27:00.000-08:00

Huber Bigsby Junior
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

Fresh from the horse's mouth. A spanking new, minty cool Nik Huber Bigsby Junior. Figured mahogany body and neck, creme colored binding, rosewood fretboard, 22 frets 25.5" scale, Kluson tuners, Haeussel P90+ pickup.
I guess it don't get any cooler (or hotter?) than this.
Bo**dy hell!!

Nik Huber tribute from.... Hamer :-)

2006-12-22T04:40:00.000-08:00

Well.
Here is the news from the fine builders at Hamer USA (i.e. Kaman Group).
Since no really new models have surfaced since the launch of the Improv (4 yrs ago?), the hamerfolk have jumped on the Telly-mania that looks to have engulfed the world since about 1 year (strats are out, teleplanks are "in", dude!).

As per someone's comments in a US forum, there is something about it that looks huber-esque. If I were Nik, I'd be flattered!
In any case I like it - with the only exception of the "victory" inlays, which I'd really drop. I can understand the "support our men in the Gulf" thing, but unfortunately there isn't any victory to speak of, so...

Anyway - it'll be interesting to see the production pics and what people are going to spec as far as finishes, etc. The P90HB is wise (and trendy, I might add) as it allows to go for a full HB drop-in.

Nik Huber Redwood - a review by Guitar Player

2006-11-19T00:17:00.000-08:00

I coldn't have expressed anything mentioned below in a better manner.
Well done Nik, bravo Bob Willcutt and - thankyou, Guitar Player!!

Nik Huber Redwood

December 2006

The name Nik Huber might ring few bells in guitar circles here in the USA, but in his native Germany, Huber has achieved a reputation on par with the likes of Tom Anderson, Don Grosh, and John Suhr. Like these respected American makers, Huber lets his designs be informed by great instruments of the past, while striving for originality. Outwardly, the Redwood appears to be a reworked Les Paul. Dig beneath the surface, however, and you find notable Fender-inspired elements, such as a 252" scale. Probe deeper still, and you uncover more than enough originality of design to let you throw the old “Gibson-style” and “Fender-style” preconceptions out the window. Simply put, the Redwood aspires to being a supremely playable instrument that blends power, definition, warmth, and sustain.

Construction
As the name implies, the Redwood carries a highly figured carved redwood top—unusual, in that this is a softwood—atop a chambered mahogany body. Every piece of timber on this guitar exudes quality, from the finely grained mahogany of the neck and one-piece back to the rippling, broadly waved top. Even the switch tip, pickup mounting rings, and the trussrod and control cavity covers are made from wood—the former two of birdseye maple, and the latter of ebony. As much as the beauty of the woods grabs you, their weight makes an instant impression, as well. The mahogany used here is light and resonant. Add the considerable chambering in the body and the light redwood top, and you have a “solidbody” electric that tips the scales at a little under 7 lbs. To keep it all sounding and looking good, the Huber finishing process employs polyurethane base coats with a clear acrylicethane top coat. Nitrocellulose lacquer is available as an option.

The neck on this guitar is a real joy, with a shallow “D” profile tending toward “C” at the shoulders. It slides effortlessly through the hand, and the heavily sculpted heel provides easy middle-finger access right up to the 22nd fret. Despite the longer scale length, the Redwood’s wrapover bridge contributes to easy string bending. It’s a nifty piece of hardware in its own right, too. Made in-house by Huber, the bridge is carved from a solid block of aluminum. It features individual, intonation-adjustable saddles, and it’s designed for maximum coupling between the strings and body. (A Huber vibrato tailpiece is also available.)

Huber’s pickups are made by German winder Harry Häussel to the guitar maker’s specs. The Redwood’s pair are made in the image of the hallowed PAF, but with a view toward transmitting a little more clarity. To that end, the bridge ’bucker features alnico 3 magnets and has a DC resistance of approximately 7.9k ohms, while the neck unit is made with alnico 2 and reads around 6.8k ohms.

Tones
After traveling from Germany to Kentucky, Kentucky to California, and, finally, from California to a rather damp New England, the Redwood needed a tweak of the trussrod to achieve a little relief in the neck, and lift the strings out of the buzz zone. Once adjusted, it still retained a low, fast action, and virtually effortless playability. With its carved-top, single-cutaway looks, and easy bending, it’s easy to forget that the Redwood has a 25 1/2" scale. Plug it in, though (in this case through a Dr. Z Z-28, a TopHat Club Royale, and a Marshall DSL60), and the characteristics of that longer scale ring through. The guitar has a snappy, tight attack with a harmonic sparkle that 2434"-scale guitars struggle to achieve, along with impressive clarity—courtesy of the well-conceived

Häussel pickups. Along with the crispness and shimmer, however, there’s a warmth and girth that lends real muscle to the tone. Played clean, the Redwood excels at anything from round, jazzy tones—particularly when set to the neck humbucker—to twangy, cutting country with the coil split engaged and the pickup selector on the bridge or combined settings. Jacked through the class-A TopHat or the Marshall on crunchier settings, the Redwood performs some impressive Les Paul-like tricks, oozing all the grind and sustain a rock lead player could hope for.

One of the Redwood’s biggest surprises, though, is the wiry, stinging blues tones it conjures when set to the neck pickup with the coil split. Close your eyes, and you can almost picture a battered ’57 Strat. The Redwood is probably not aggressive enough for metal, but it does just about anything else extremely well, and it quickly reminds you how addictive superb playability and tone can become. Now, if only my bank account could support a Huber habit . . .

Specs
• 1 11/6" nut width
• One-piece mahogany neck with hybrid “D-into-C” profile
• 25 sup>1/2" "-scale bound ebony fretboard with abalone dots
• Chambered mahogany body with carved curly redwood top
• Two H. Häussel humbucking pickups with gold-plated
covers and birdseye-maple mounting rings
• Master Volume and Tone controls with push/push switch on the Tone knob for coil splitting
• 3-way pickup selector
• Gold-plated aluminum Huber wrapover bridge with individually adjustable saddles
• 22 Dunlop 6150 (medium-jumbo) frets
• Gold-plated Schaller M6 locking mini tuners with ebony buttons
• Factory strings: D’Addario .010-.046 set
• 6.8 lbs

Instant Gratification
Nik Huber Redwood

Who’s It For?:
Discerning players seeking superlative
tone and playability in a hand-built guitar.
Kudos:
A breeze to play. Easy on the back. Surprisingly broad range of out-standing sounds.
Concerns:
None.
Price:
$5,025 street price
Contact:
U.S. distribution by Willcutt Guitars, (859) 276-0675;
www.nikhuber-guitars.com

Slow Summer? Hot Autumn :-)

2006-10-29T00:12:00.000-07:00

I've been missing from these pages for some time. But all is not quiet, and all is not dead :-)

Updates:
Getting 3 Orcas prepped for northern Italy - 1 korina plaintop, 1 quilt, 1 flametop.
At the SHG Guitar show (nov 12th, 2006) we're delivering a BRW neck dolphin that will feature an exceptional quilt top, a "peacock blue" top, BRW pickup rings and p.up tops.
Definitely excited, is the least I / we can say, LOL

Coming up... Nik is chipping away on the "50th Anniversary Goldtop" which will be done in collaboration w/ the fine guys over the Atlantic at RS Guitarworks. Will feature aged hardware and finish (slight crackle on the goldtop, a little nick here and there), a naked fingerboard, 12th fret 56-06 inlay, locking Kluson /TP tuners, TOM bridge.

Getting ready to receive Flying Dolphin #11 - one of the very last of the 25 originally planned. It's going to be a fixed bridge job, w/ BRW pickup rings, covers, gold hardware, inlayed fretboard.

Coming up for 2007:
*Apparently Nik won't be producing any Orcas anymore - if so it will be exclusively on a custom basis (price to be negotiated at each build).
The Orca will be replaced by a 25" scale Dolphin w/ LP styled controls, switch on upper bout, bridge to be determined (TOM or wraparound).
In this vein I'm ordering a 25" Redwood w/ korina body and neck, naked ebony 'board, P90HB p.ups... 3 control layout (V-V-T) and switch in the upper bout. From this prototype we might even see a new production model :-)

Other things I'm considering are a Swamp Ash dolphin, 25.5" scale flame maple neck + 'board, 4+2 headstock, 3 control layout. Pickups: Telecaster "harrybarden" in the bridge position and a P90 soapbar in the neck. Finish will be a classic '57 like 2-tone sunburst on body and headstock face. Hopefully Nik will let me have binding on bottom and top of the body.... ;-)

Plenty of meat cooking over here, as you can see :-) !!

Gary Moore / Peter Green Orca review...

2006-07-23T23:49:00.000-07:00

You may remember the PG Orca which we had delivered some months ago (see 3 posts ago).
The owner could not keep it and found a willing buyer in another player - collector who has access to some real 50s Les pauls and who owns a 52->57 "Conversion" LP.
her is what the new owner has to say (names withheld for privacy reasons):

Hey Paul,
I bought the PG Orca on Friday, and the below is what I told J.E.:

O.K. Here's my first impression of it so far...

It is perhaps the best "playing" guitar I've ever held in my hands.
Initially when I first picked it up when I met you, it felt little "foreign" to me especially considering I just came from playing '50s les pauls for about 2 hours straight (and little bit of '50s strats).
But, after raising the action little bit (probably should raise it a bit more), I had no problem "locking in" with it. The string tension feels pretty much the way I want it, not too tight and not too loose. It has what I call "rich sweetness" at the fingertips when I play it unplugged that I look for in every guitar.
Those that have that, I can just play unplugged all day long.
Great resonance, no dead spots on the neck, very comfortable access to the high frets beyond the 15th fret. Very easy to play, and my right hand also likes the lower angle from the bridge to the headstock,
which is what I'm used to with my conversion.
It's a new guitar, but does not feel stiff, cold, plastic, and well... "new" like many new guitars feel to me, hence my general aversion to most of them.
This one feels more "old-ish" and warm instead.

As to the comparisons to other guitars I'm familiar with... it's like a very good '50s les paul with some sprinkles of '50s fender chime and sweetness on it.
My conversion sounds bigger and has more woodiness and hollowness to its tone (but then, it is like that compared to a few '50s bursts and GTs I have access to also), but it also has more "woofyness" and "compression" to
its sound (in les pauls in general) that I sometimes would like to dial out when playing with my bands.
The Orca doesn't have that woofyness and sounds more open, not as compressed as the les pauls.
It just sounds really sweet when doing the OD/crunch tone and sounds really pretty when played clean.
The notes have long sustain and "pop" to them, which is fantastic.

I could probably say more, but I'll stop here for now since the honeymoon could be over next wee! ;-) Thus far though, Nik Huber has achieved for me what PRS (and others so far) has failed to do...

Pretty Damn Good, I'd say.
And comes right on the hell of a very favourable review of one of Bob Willcutt's Orca guitars in Vintage Guitars.
It can't get better than this, right?

BTW - his "honeymoon" ain't over yet...here is the last mail I received from him:

Thanks Paul.
Yeah, I'm having a blast with the Orca. It is without a doubt the best new
guitar I've ever played. Last week or so, I've been a/b'ing it with my
52/27 conversion every chance I get and shake my head in disbelief how good
the Orca sounds in comparison...

D.

-----Original Message-----
From: P.]
Sent: Monday, July 17, 2006 8:28 AM
To: D.
Subject: Re: Peter Green Orca on TGP

Hiya Don...
Yup - 095s are the way Nik strings 'em!
Glad to see the PG is holding up to your expectations to the point of
breaking its strings!! :-)

D. wrote:
> > Paul,
> >
> > Do you know which strings Nik used on the PG Orca? I broke the high E and
> > put an Ernie Ball Regular Slinky 10 on it, and it feels stiffer and thicker
> > than what was on there.
> > The 9.5s, maybe?
> > Thanks.
> >
> > D

Dolphin Controversy

2006-06-26T03:16:00.000-07:00

Apparently (I am not privy to all details) an american (texan, actually) guitar manufacturer has sent a letter to Nik Huber, forbidding him to use any "dolphin" inlays on his guitars - be it in the fretboard or on the headstock.

Nik Huber had prepped some very fine instruments for the Summer NAMM show in Austin, TX (same state as the aforementioned manufacturer) and now of course he needs to radically alter his plans.
Last year, of about 50 instruments with Dolphin inlays that were produced, about half ended in the US; many of these were moreover built on specific customer order basis (the customer can actually order whatever inlay he likes, beside cetaceans).
So it isn' t a question of an aggressive market practice on part of Nik Huber, as both builders are light-years away from having "saturated" any given "market" in electric guitars - which is suffering anyway from a glut of overproduction by the hands of the traditional heavyweights: Fender, Gibson, PRS.

So what gives?

Is it just a struggling competitor trying to stay afloat in a very competitive environment and therefore resorting to desperate techniques to do so?
It seems unlikely, as this texan niche builder does indeed have his own loyal -albeit small - following.
But Nik Huber has been featured on Vintage Guitar, Musicians Hotline and is bound for a nice article on Tonequest come July - something other manufacturers can only dream of.
Nik Huber is also being carried and sponsored by such heavyweights as Willcutt Guitars and Synergy Guitars - who out of free choice and not on the basis of any comparative factor based on dolphin inlays (!), decided they'd carry Nik's products.
Nik Huber's guitars are being sought by professionals and collectors alike for their inherent quality, in looks and tone; the looks of the guitar go way beyond the details of the fretboard (matter of fact some of Nik's most stunning guitars have no fretboard decoration at all).
Just by preventing Nik Huber from utilizing Dolphin inlays, the texan competitor will not achieve what it expects - i.e. higher sales volumes, revenues, profit margins. These will only derive from improvements in the production methods, distribution, commercial agreements with dealers / distributors, visibility, overall workmanship (if necessary), overall tone (if it be the case).

Ok - So what is the basis of this mess?

We're discussing the whole notion whereby the concept of putting "dolphin inlays" can be trademark (apparently it was thus done), therefore preventing anyone else from doing the same.The use of the "dolphin" name associated with a guitar is also a no-no; Nik calls his main guitar "Dolphin", the competitor however calls it an A****n (the model) Dolphin (further characterization).
Ironically the german bass manufacturer, Warwick, also produces and sitributes worldwide a Dolphin bass, complete with dolphin fretboard inlays.
As of today, said manufacturer (bigger than both guitar builders mentioned in this article) has never even cared about any dolphin-originated-conflict. Probably the same manufacturer will neverr receive any letters from any texan attorney, being that it is sufficiently big to be able to stave-off any form of legal aggression stemming from a much smaller opponent.

The "texan dolphins" themselves look quite different, and the manner in which they're inlayed in the fretboard is also quite dissimilar (no "smoke-filled-room" thesis will ever stand in this specific case IMHO).
To the texan, apparently even Orca inlays would not be acceptable - the other builder went as far as trademarking (conceptually) any sort of fish, whale, seal, sea lion inlay.
Thus it is legally acceptable for me to be the first to say something like "my trademark are pea-green guitars", thus preventing anyone from building any guitar which is pea green in colour (or variations on the theme - which may cause "confusion" in the eyes of the general public), or even naming their guitars "Pea model" or "Green model".

We're clearly at the very edge of outright controversy - while it is true that *inventions* and *intellectual property* must be defended vigorously when there is an actual invention, be it a finished product or a full fledged innovative concept, I strongly believe that allowing for the trademarking of even the most tenuous and generic idea or concept prevents innovation from taking place.
This allows companies and/or individuals to effortlessly manipulate and sidetrack competition and evolution for the better, and even to passively extract some sort of undeserved economic advantage ("passive yield") - as they can milk the competitor's real efforts and success.
By the same token, the family of George Beauchamp - the inventor of the amplified guitar that carries his name (patent 2,089,171, registered in 1937) - could at this point sue any and all manufacturers of electric guitars. A quite laughable idea by today's standards - yet, given the right amount of time and money, and the overall framework, they could attempt to pull it off and prevent *any* other companies from building electric / amplified steel stringed guitars.

Specific Links Of Interest

US Trademark and Patent Office

Controversial Dolphin Inlay Registration

THIS is an Innovation!..

...Purdy...but not innovative...

More Dolphins

Caveat: the above article is the copyright of Paul C. Weber (2006), all the opinions expressed are his own. The article is being published in it's present form without any prior approval or help by Nik Huber or Nik Huber Guitars. Some data is necessarily implied by the writer as the writer does not have direct access to certain specific documents.

Keywords. Robin Guitars, Robin Avalon Dolphin Model, Dolphin Inlays, Nik Huber Dolphin, Warwick Dolphin Bass

Big Bad Orca

2006-06-18T07:51:00.000-07:00

Heading south to northern Italy, this Orca sports some slight variations

on the theme:

* no fake binding
* plain sunburst headstock (vs. ebony face)
* Kluson tuners
* VIN / VIN+ open bobbins (vs. regular "Classic" PAF covered p.ups).

Somebody is goign to be treating himself to a nice rock'n'roll power tool!
;-)

Online reviews

2006-05-20T23:14:00.000-07:00

Musicians Hotline has dedicated a nice article / interview to Nik.
It can be read at the following link:

http://www.musicianshotline.com

Word of mouth has it that Tonequest is preparing something for late summer... stay tuned!!

The Peter Green myth lives on...

2006-04-24T23:42:00.000-07:00

In this gorgeous Nik Huber Orca, custom built for a good us client (J.E. - you know who you are!!!).

The guitar features a Harry Häussel "Classic" set, with the neck pickups inverted and magnetically out of phase.
The rest of the build features a "fatback" body (1/2" thicker than the regular specs), '59 neck profile, braz rosewood board, nitro finish, Tonepro hardware incl. locking klusons, coil split via tone push-push potentometer.

Special thanks to Bob Willcutt for having arranged the deal! Check out his stuff on www.willcuttguitars.com!

Online with my on 'Bay Store

2006-04-16T12:28:00.000-07:00

Visit My eBay Store: Uncle GroOve

This is the first step.
Still ramping up my programming skills in order to get a proper online store (non eBay) up and running.
But until I achieve critical mass, this is the way forward.
See ya' - thank you for looking!!

New Boyz - New Toyz

2006-04-01T23:03:00.000-08:00

Musictoyz have joined the fray of the Nik Huber brotherhood, pouncing on this killer platinum-finish Orca.
Whoa....!
I can only say that the Orca is the way to go for some serious rock tones.
Matthias - the assistant of Adolf Koch of Koch amps - has one he uses at the demos and the tones he gets form it are just ridiculously good. At the MusikMesse I saw more than one pro grinning in disbelief when he'd personally take it for a spin.
Can't wait for my personal korina build (see previous posts)!!!!!!!

Junior!!!

2006-02-28T12:37:00.000-08:00

OK.
It's been three days I've had my Dolphin Junior (prototype #5).
I'm stoked is all I can say. It's a korina body / neck guitar, BRW 'board, finished in a dark tobacco sunburst, new Tonepros wraparound.
And then ther's the secret weapon ;-)

Must have been late last year I was discussing the Junior concept with Nik. He had some qualms about a "one-trick-pony" kind of guitar. After all, one pickup = one sound, right?
The solution I though of (serendipitous, really) was just a P90 with an added extra winding (tap) that could be selected via a push-push tone control.

so how does the secret weapon sound?

Damn monster thang, yessir.

You get the cool vibe / spank / chime of the regular P90 PLUS an extra kick in the low-mid frequency when you activate the extra wind.

You've never seen a happier camper.

Wanna know what's the next one? :-D
mahogany body / neck
BRW 'board
P90Plus (of course)
Tremolo (!)
Goldtop (!!) and matching headstock (!!!)
Kluson tuners

The Boss says he likes the idea. One of these days it'll show up at my door. Now I just have to be patient (aaaargh!)...

Nik Huber @ Namm - All Sold Out...

2006-01-21T13:57:00.000-08:00

Nik worked his ass off for the curent NAMM Los Angeles show. It paid off (it always does anway) big time.
All the stufff sold out on day 1 (ok...part of it were preorders).
Big pile of fresh orders.
Plus
Big pile of regular monthly basis jobs.
Top shops are elbowing to have his stuff... delivery times are gonna creep up to 6 moths.
If you were waiting for the "right moment" to order a Huber, well, "now" is probably too late :-)

2006-01-16T12:19:00.000-08:00

Nice piece of wood, courtesy of Nik's capable hands, Greg Gianakis (US agent) and an LA pro who has slowly become THE Huber-hog ;-)

He owns something like 6 Nik Huber Dolphin guitars now - and they're not decorating walls, mind you.
His last big gig was playing at the Emmy awards.
In his own words "Nik's guitars have so much mojo, I just have no other words to describe this".

Rock on...!!

Sometimes they return....

2006-01-11T22:24:00.000-08:00

A very good acquaintance had purchased for me last summer ('05) a beautiful quilt top Dolphin, with trem, 4+2 headstock, set neck, IRW fretboard.
It is truly a stunning guitar, but in a very subdued manner, and he had purchased "sound unheard" so to speak.
He added it to his modest group if Fenders and Gibsons, he took it to stores to show it off with pride and joy (and I am very grateful to him for this).
But the guitar to him was a pain in the ass.
Why?
Because it gave him "too much freedom of movement" and it didn't "impose" it's own sound / limitation, like any "normal" guitar would do.
It could do the Telecaster, the LP, the Strat, the jazzy run, the metal scream, the alt-rock grind. To my friend this was just too much.
He gave it back, telling me "it's gonna drive me crazy".
I played her for about one hour last night.
My friend is right.
A guitar with so many sonic facets can drive you crazy... it reveals all the shades of your playing style, it bares your soul to everybody .... but especially to yourself.
IMHO this is what a superior class instrument should be all about.

Nik Huber - Orca - headstock

2006-01-08T01:48:00.000-08:00

Nik Huber - Orca - headstock
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

Specs:
korina body and neck, one piece eastern flame maple top.
Brazilian rosewood (CITES certified) fretboard, 22 frets, abalone dot inlays, flame maple fingerboard binding and pickup rings, flame maple headstock overlay color-matched, bone nut, chrome Tonepros hardware, Harry Häussel pickups (splittable via push-push tone control). Nitro finish (satin finish on neck).
Owner: Greg Gianakis, Las Vegas.
Want to see more pics?...
www.flickr.com/people/uncle_groove/

Meet and Greet Nik Huber!!

2006-01-06T02:33:00.000-08:00

At the NAMM show in Los Angeles, Hall C, booth 4143.

Be prepared to see some pretty amazing stuff and to play the guitar that will change your perception of how a guitar Should Really Sound.

Word!

New Year's Resolution

2005-12-23T00:57:00.000-08:00

So.
After having "inadvertently inspired" some dealer's imagination with one of the previous posts I have decided to kick off 2006 in STYLE.

Orca w/ fatback korina body
Solid "vintage" rosewood neck and fretboard, one 12th fret inlay
Extraordinary tubular quilt top (pictured above)
Finish... either a) Dark Chocolate Burst or b) Dark Fire Burst, scraped binding
Pickups: Häussel, wound to spec with a definite rock bias :-)
Wood p.up frames (ebony)
'Lectronics: one Vol, one Tone, 5 way superswitch (taa-daa!)
Special headstock inlay (hehe)
Special ebony tulip buttons
Hardware: leaning towards gold.

So much for outright Bling'n'Sing. Remember - you've read it HERE first. Oh yes... this baby is for ME and will not be for sale.

On the other hand... as a long time Jimmy Page fanatic I can't resist the temptation of a "JP" Orca. Specs?

Fatback mahogany body and mahogany neck. Both in currrrly mahogany (oh yes!!)
Easter curly maple top with large yet subdued flames
Maple fretboard binding
BRW fretboard with "classic" inlays (I know I'll have to cry, pray, beg, and kneel for this)
"Sunken-in" (i.e. extra thin) finish in historically-correct faded burst ;-)
Häussel pups: open coil VIN+ bridge (black), nickel plated neck Classic PAF
JP 'lectronics (push-pull pots for phase, series, parallel)
Kluson tuners, nickel hardware

I'll reserve some beautiful tops for like-minded JP / LP fans... please enquire within.

Have a great Christmas, dudes and dudettes - may all your six string dreams come true (sooner or later)!!

Meet the Boyz

2005-12-19T22:26:00.000-08:00

Paul & Nik Huber
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

OK. Here's the mugshots.
The Boss, Nik Huber, is standing on the left...yours truly is staring at him on the right.
In the foreground: dolphin redwood (standing), dolphin goldtop (reclining).
Taken last november in Milano, Italy at the Second Hand Guitar Show (SHG27 for short).

Working on plenty of stuff at the moment:
* Blue quilt top Orca
* Gretsch Orange quilt top Dolphin
* Tobacco sunburst Junior (1 P90 pickup)
* A hollowbody, no f-hole, spruce top jazzbox

Later on in 2006 I have an Orca Goldtop in the works, along with at lest one other trem Dolphin, a couple of classic Orcas (a "Jimmy Page" and a "Peter Green"), a super quilt, rosewood neck killer Orca.
Goodies galore.... My passion is bound to be my poison!!!!

Orders, orders, orders....

2005-12-06T07:22:00.000-08:00

So Nik writes and asks me to program my stuff for 2006.
Hmm...
Ok, so my friend Alberto wants some stuff, a good store in Milano is churning away with gleeful abandon, I have a couple of dream guitties for myself, and I need to keep some stock.
At the end of the day my list looks like this:
* Jazz Dolphin (semihollow, body TBD, spruce top, rosewood or ebony fretboard, curly maple neck)
* Orca Goldtop "56-06 Anniversary"
* Dolphin bolt-on, maple neck
* Dolphin with extraordinary quilt-top in Gretsch Orange (new order)
* Dolphin Junior (korina body and neck, BRW fretboard, 1 P90)
* Dolphin Jazz
* Dolphin w/ tremolo
* Orca, eastern maple top, Peter Green neck pickup
* Orca, tube quilt top over a solid korina body, rosewood neck, one inlay at the 12th fret.

Whoa!... talk about the "dream-team"...

Nik Huber Redwood Dolphin

2005-11-27T13:14:00.000-08:00

Nik Huber Redwood Dolphin
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

This one could have been for sale.
As a matter of fact, it was.
It lasted only sixty minutes from the beginning of the Milano (Italy) Second Hand Guitar Show (SHG27).
This timeframe includes at least 20 minutes of loving admiration by the new owner, so actually it's lifetime as a "free" guitar is even less.
Nik Huber had originally planned this one to be the guitar he'd send for a review that Guitar Player had planned for year end. They'll be getting something else. This one is joining an impressive collection and will be "sitting" (?) next to a very vintage original D'Angelico.
Man, am I proud of having sold this one - my only regret?
I didn't get one minute to try it out... :-(

Nik Huber rocks Milano (Italy)

2005-11-24T06:10:00.000-08:00

So...
Sunday November 20th was The Day for Nik's Italy baptism.
Wake up call at 6 o'clock (am), fast coffee.
Off to Como (Italy) to pick up an amp a Goldtop and some other stuff... it's 7:15 a.m.
8:07 a.m. we're in front of the venue - still closed despite pleas of the organizatione to be there at the opening (they were still setting tables up, the dorks - and it's freezing)
9-ish - grab the passes and go to the table... Where are the bloody guitar stands... uh oh...Oh No!
Let's just prop up the guitars in the cases lying. Not bad. A couple of brochures, even better...
9:30 Official photog comes up to our table - "Hey! I saw that guitar from the entrance" (80 feet away)... He starts congratulating me but I point him over to Nik - "you need to congatulate him, you know...". "YOU MEAN HE IS NIK HUBER?!? Ohmygod...!" Nik is almost embarrassed. It's going to be the first of many such encounters...
10:30 - A guy strolls up and enquires about the Blue Orca - he is the new buyer, coming up to scope his goods "Hey - keep it under lock & key, ok??" - Beams like crazy...he's a happy chappy :)
11:30 - A distinguished man walks up to the table and starts inspecting the goodies. Asks about the Redwood (*story above). Walks away and then comes back, again and again. Talks to Nik, plays the guitar. After a while he comes back, hands me his business card and just tells me "Tell my guy to put it on the side for me". sold...

From there it's just smooth gliding all along, despite a very noisy neighbour (Jacques Guitar Pedals), who blasts away with glee, despite the risk of being linched by most of the other participants, including myself...
Fabio Molinelli, a luthier from Milano, shows off one of his guitts that sports Harry's new blade puppies... He's grinning, giving me the thumbs up. The Harrybardens sound GREAT (even though they're NOT a barden - pretty close and excellent sounding, but not identical).
6:30 p.m. the dealer who has purchased the Orca and the Redwood passes by, smiling. Cool. Picks up the goods, grinning, cash changes hands...
By 9 o'clock I'm back home, ears buzzing and slightly worn from a long stand-up show.
The day after... more enquiries for Häussels and for a trem dolphin with an extraordinary quilt top.
Life feels good, indeed!

*
http://www.nikhuber-guitars.com/pics/redwoodonepiece2005.jpg

Good Stuff Happening

2005-11-18T13:27:00.000-08:00

A friend took over his Dolphin and the Blue Orca to a relatively famous shop in northern Italy just so they could appraise them as I still hadn't found time to meet with the owners.
They deal Tyler, PRS, Gibson, Fender CS and nice amps - Roccaforte, Mesa, Koch, Fuchs...
Four of Italy's leading session / live players stopped by coincidentally all the same day.
Needless to say, the Hubers were centerstage for a few minutes, then several minutes, then several hours.
The shop owners were amazed, the pros positively surprised.
In one fell swoop I managed to sell the Blue Orca and to get the Atlantic Blue Dolphin in the main store window.
Things don't get any better than this, really.
I'm a happy man :-)

Master @ work!!!!

2005-11-15T12:07:00.000-08:00

Master @ work!!!!
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

Master Huber is preparing a batch of singlecut guitars. The observant eye will have noticed that the tops are all hand sculpted. Premium price work for premium price guitars.....
Mahogany or Korina are used for the body woods, while the tops usually are flame maple. Quilted and exceptional tops are available too, as well as some stunning flamed redwood pieces.

Nik Huber - Dec.'04 Guit. Player Dolphin

2005-11-14T09:17:00.000-08:00

Nik Huber - Dec.'04 Guit. Player Dolphin
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

A truly stunning Dolphin. The top is Private Stock quality. The guitar is extremely light and resonant with an enormous woody yet defined tone. Italian jazz guitarist notable Gigi Cifarelli (Heritage endorsee) took it to stages all over italy during most of 2005.

Nik Huber Dolphin Twins

2005-10-25T13:32:00.000-07:00

Huber Twins
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

A duo of very fine Nik Huber Dolphins.
On the left the December '04 Guitar Player review guitar with a stunning
"Private Stock" flame maple top in tigerye finish.
On the right a hollow korina body and redwood topped Dolphin that has a
P90 in humbucker format in the neck and an ebony fretboard...
Where the GP Dolphin is chunky and woody sounding, the redwood is airy, lightweight and snappy. The P90 in the neck *does* make the difference, ;-)

Nik Huber Dolphin in doublestain blue

2005-10-23T01:29:00.000-07:00

Dolphin in Atlantic Blue
Originally uploaded by Uncle GroOve.

Overkill ultraquilt doublestain Private Stock quality top on solid mahogany back & neck. WHOA!
Neck features a 4+2 heastock finished in a rare natural mahogany finish.
Please write for price. Dealer enquiries more than welcome!!

Picture of the Blue Orca (Nik Huber Content)

2005-10-21T15:08:00.000-07:00

Who-hoo!!!
Double stained blue Orca here!!
This one features a Private Stock quality top (I'm not kidding - Nik Huber knows where to source the extra good stuff) and a mid-light weight mahogany body.
The black p.up rings are actually ebony, so is the TRC and the control cavity cover.
this guitar possesses a ridiculous amount of dynamics, punch and subtlety - the trademarks of great luthiery technique (seriously).
Issues?
The guitar was scarred on the back by an idiot at the 05 MusikMesse in Frankfurt. This person scratched the back (just the finish - the wood wasn't even "impressed")with a key or something - probably hoping to carry the guitar away at a good price (he didn't).
The guitar was used for some demos in Italy where it received rave reviews - but the blue doublestain is just too much for Italian tastes.
The new price of this beauty would have been 4390 euros (times 1.21 for US Dollars). Worth every penny!

Was Lost But I'm Back Now Kinda Thing

2005-10-21T14:16:00.000-07:00

Blogging is nice...but you have to remember all your passwords, buzzzwords, codewords, etc.
It can be a bitch.
And you can get lost.
SO
What happened after Sept 23rd?...Hmmm.
Good stuff... Hooked a very nice order in the US for a Nik Huber Orca which will feature a very nice eastern maple top in a beautiful "classy" and vintagey nitro finish.
Getting primed for the Milano guitar show (Second Hand Guitar, or SHG27 for short). Nik will be there in person...yee-haw!
Received a bautiful duo of sexy Dolphins... one is a tobacco sunburst, for a local buyer here in Switzerland who decided he wanted to be paid "in kind" (mine) for services rendered.
The other one has an extraordinary quilt top in double stain blue, a 4+2 headstock in natural mahogany.
This thing screams and sounds woody at the same time - unreal!!!

I keep on fantasizing about my own, personal, super-custom, agent order. I'm getting an IRW neck for free but I just can't decide how to use it, LOL.
Fantasy #1 is a chambered Dolphin in korina, with an extra long tenon neck (down to the bridge p.up), 3+3 headstock, and 2 Haeussel P90HB pickups. I'd have Harry wind these with a 15% tapped overwind so I could switch between regular and "power" settings.
Fantasy #2 - Orca Goldtop, solid korina body / IRW neck, oxblood body back, 2 soapbar Haeussels w/ same overwind as above
Fantasy #3 - same as #1 but with a eastern curly maple top and back in tobacco sunburst.

Dammn! Too many choices!!!!!

To top everything off - Harry is ready with the secret weapon. We'll re-unleash the mystical/magical tone and vibe of the Joe Barden pickups on to the world, tee-hee-hee.... Can't wait!!!

Next time... what about some pics?
I'll head off to tweak the settings of the site for a while.

First Post

2005-09-23T06:24:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I've never done this before.
So here I am - ready to share my thoughts on this crazy six stringed adventure.
My other page is www.ugroove.biz
Check me out!!