Guild had a lot going for them in the 1970’s, as they were still built in Westerly, Rhode Island and were competing against Martin and Gibson in what many people consider to be the worst era for both powerhouse companies. As a result, many people turned to the still-considered-an-intermediate-level brand Guild, with their indestructible build quality and their all-American brand, and they soareded in popularity from everything from flat top acoustics to solid body electrics. Perhaps most notable, though, was the continued manufacturing of the hollowbody jazz guitars, including the X-175, the nearly top of the line full sized, 17” archtops, that, like their Gibson competitors, featured solid spruce tops along with their laminate maple back and sides for a much more “working man’s” price.

The mahogany neck, with its maple center strip, features quite a nice a rosewood fingerboard, and block MOP inlays, along with the original frets that are still quite playable for jazz players. Maybe not bend city, but plenty of fret left.

This old guitar is warm, mellow, yet simultaneously bright and articulate like much more expensive jazzboxes of the era, thanks to the original HB-1 Guild Humbuckers.

Quite clean. Only a few marks on a 50 year old guitar, remarkably. Comes with the original case.