Review of the Nu Meteor from "Sounds" 1980, showing that not everyone likes Shergolds' quirky image...

SHERGOLD NU METEOR
Reviewer unknown.
RRP £234.86 inc VAT (case extra)

It may come as a shock to regular readers to hear that the guitars shunted in my direction this time round, had me grovelling for words - and the valium! The Nu Meteor was one of three headaches.

A seven-laminate body - obeche, maple and mahogany (I think) - is technically 'sunburst'. Cloudburst might be a better description for the ghastly, coffee table beige which blights this guitar's appearance. Unfortunate, as the double cutaway, juggernaut sized styling is comfortable and well balanced. They've also put an excellent finish over the nasty brown stain!

Three single coil pick-ups, one volume, two tone controls and a five way selector switch are mounted from the front - à la Strat. At a distance the instrument looks pleasingly nostalgic, something that could have been around when TV was invented for instance. Close inspection shows where the price cuts have been made.

Control knobs are sub-bargain-bin types, more suited for cheap radios. The scratchplate's been made from the notorious 'brittle' laminate - prone to chipping and cracks. A rather crude (and very thin) metal tailpiece can't do much for sustain. Fender type string saddles move around on their supports, the bottom E string having particular problems in this area.

The maple neck, supporting a bound rosewood fingerboard, highly accurate fretting and Schaller machines, is another slim Shergold masterpiece. This excellence merely highlights the other problems.

So to the sound - always difficult to describe - but if a Telecaster and a Rickenbacker had a 'relationship', the offspring could well be incarnate in the 'Meteor'. Those pick-ups punch out a healthy racket, though the tonal range isn't all you'd expect. Neither is the sustain, and as in the Activator - investigated not so long ago - I'm still suspicious of Obeche being the major body wood.

Shergold is an established manufacturer and I've been hyper-critical. I hate slamming firms, but surely a few more quid on the price tag is worth the risk when reputations are at stake.