A surprise from AXL Guitars: the Wavepoint Mahogany
(John Gorbe | Posted 2011-02-03)
I reviewed an AXL Badwater El Dorado in January 2011 and found it to be a good beginner’s guitar with an interesting distressed finish that made it stand out a little from the pack. This month I’m previewing a model from their Wavepoint line, dubbed the “Mahogany Wavepoint.” The guitar offers promise at this price point and appears to seek attention from potential customers looking for something a little nicer for little money.
The first thing you’ll notice about this guitar is the shape. It reminds me a lot of the flair that B.C. Rich adds to their designs. Regarding design, I think that AXL did a good job on the flow of the body design and the complimentary headstock, which echoes the body’s shape. The satin finish gives the guitar class and makes it appear to be a slightly more expensive AXE … I couldn’t resist the play on words.
The Mahogany Wavepoint features a solid mahogany body, gold-plated hardware, 2 EMG-designed alnico humbuckers, Tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece, Talisman fingerboard inlay, ultra thin mahogany neck and a rosewood fingerboard.
With most low-end imports I always stress the importance of looking over the instrument very carefully. I have played AXLs in the past with smooth fingerboard edges and I’ve played others that were rough and sharp due to poor fret dressings on the side. AXL likes to use EMG-designed pickups, which use lower grade materials and a slightly different design than Standard EMG pickups. These pickups are adequate, though and with the humbucker design you’ll get more output than with their single coils.
The Mahogany Wavepoint is nicely designed overall for a guitar just under $300. If you are looking at an AXL for your first electric or perhaps as a second guitar with a unique design, you might want to check into this Wavepoint series. This is also an upgrade over the Badwater El Dorado model I previously reviewed so I would certainly encourage anyone to go to a local dealer and check them out. AXL is producing some interesting looking guitars that will only get better as they continue to compete in their segment.
