Verona • Nebula

Manson Guitar Works are pleased to announce the production version of the Manson Verona Classic model, based on the detailed specification of Matthew Bellamy’s stage guitar used during the Will Of The People Tour and now a firm part of the Muse frontman’s touring rig but with some small changes to nod to times gone but never forgotten.

Named the Verona following the Muse titled track of the same name, the Devonshire based factory had to push the boundaries further to go beyond a simple recreation of a vintage classic with high-spec parts. Knowing the guitar would be tour-tested for months on end and need to sit alongside the artist’s extensive Manson Guitars tour rack, a distinct tone and ergonomics all came to the forefront at the design process. 

The Classic range of this new model leans heavier on the past for its aesthetic without losing it's own identity as some limited finishes such as the Nebular satin here will demonstrate. 

“Tonally, the neck pickup was everything,” says Matt Bellamy. “It had to capture that vintage clarity—the clean, expressive tone that lives in Ry Cooder’s slide work. I was chasing the emotional voice you hear in the road movies ‘Paris, Texas’ and ‘Crossroads’, that haunting, human sound that feels like it’s echoing across an empty desert highway.”

“The neck pickup on the Verona model is the soul of the guitar. It needed to deliver purity and presence, without ever feeling overdriven or artificial. It had to feel honest and epic, like one of my favourite films of all time ‘Thelma and Louise’ when the horizon opens up and the sky just swallows the road. But also a tone that can live alongside my other more modern sounding guitars”

Having built pickups in house at Manson Guitar Works for over a decade, the team was able to design and test dozens of possible pickup specifications to deliver the sound Matt was looking for. Standard and aftermarket equipped vintage guitars were on hand during the entire time to make sure the exact amount of clarity, warmth and vintage tone could be dialled in. 

Another notable difference on this Verona Classic is it's PF-3 Humbucker bridge pickup. Here again the focus is on clarity and presence with a rich yet distinct tone to compliment the artists desire for a 'human sound'

Further vintage features come from the hand selected alder in the body, a master volume and two tone controls with an Oak Grigsby 5-way selector layout and a rosewood fingerboard.