DAngelico Deluxe Bedford SH Desert Gold

DAngelico Deluxe Bedford SH Desert Gold review

The DAngelico Deluxe Bedford SH Desert Gold makes a strong first impression through its shape and finish, then keeps its character when you plug in. Its offset semi-solid body, contoured F-hole, and gold color give it a distinctive look, while the pickup layout offers familiar single-coil and humbucker options in a less predictable combination. At a listed price of 945, it also includes a hard case.

This is not best understood as a conventional hardtail Strat-style guitar with an HSS pickup arrangement. The Bedford SH has its own proportions, hardware, and voice. In field use, the fit and finish felt notably good for the price, and the neck was comfortable and easy to adjust. The overall impression is of a carefully finished instrument with a clear design identity, rather than a guitar built to slot neatly into an established template.

Construction and playing feel

The body is alder on the top, back, and sides, with an offset semi-solid construction and a shaped F-hole. A seven-ply body binding and an F-hole-style pickguard with five-ply binding add detail to the Desert Gold finish. The body is paired with a three-piece maple, walnut, and maple neck and an ebony fingerboard. Split-block fingerboard inlays combine mother-of-pearl and abalone.

The 629 mm scale length and 43 mm nut width give the neck a familiar, manageable feel. It has 22 frets and a matte finish, while the back of the headstock is finished rather than left matte. The review sample's neck felt comfortable, and access to the upper frets was particularly good. The neck joint felt smooth in use, making it easier to reach higher positions without a pronounced obstacle.

One point deserves attention before buying: the instrument can feel headstock-heavy on a strap. The field report found that a wide, soft, grippy strap helped manage the imbalance, but did not erase it. The reviewed example weighed about 3.4 kg, so the issue was not simply a heavy body. The locking tuners do not prevent the neck from dipping for every player. If you usually play standing up, try the guitar with your own strap if possible.

Pickup sounds and controls

The pickup set consists of two Seymour Duncan STR52-1 nickel single coils in the neck and middle positions, plus a Seymour Duncan SM-1b nickel mini humbucker at the bridge. A five-way switch selects the combinations, with one volume and one tone control. This is an HSS layout on paper, but the pickup choices give it a different balance from many HSS guitars.

The two single coils have a fuller character than the bright, thin sound often associated with Strat-style middle and neck pickups. The bridge mini humbucker is comparatively lean, helping it sit closer in level and character to the single coils than a higher-output full-size humbucker might. In the field report, the neck, middle, and bridge positions each had a broad, usable voice. The in-between settings were less convincing as a source of classic Strat-style "quack," with less of the expected snap and twang.

The bridge mini humbucker handled clean tones and heavier distortion well in the reviewer's experience. Its focused sound gives the guitar range without making the bridge position feel disconnected from the rest of the pickup set. The five-way selector provides familiar switching options, but the Bedford's appeal is more about its own combination of sounds than recreating a standard Strat palette.

Hardware and value

Hardware includes a gold Tune-O-Matic bridge, a D'Angelico stopbar tailpiece, Grover Super Rotomatic locking tuners, chrome-finished fittings, and an EG2P Switch Craft mono output jack. There is no tremolo. The included case is a practical part of the package, while a gig bag is not included.

The reported build quality and fretwork were strong, and the neck was described as easy to set up. Those impressions, along with the included case and Seymour Duncan pickups, help the asking price make sense. The field report also identified South Korea as the place of manufacture for its sample, though country of origin is not part of the supplied product specifications.

Verdict

The DAngelico Deluxe Bedford SH Desert Gold is a distinctive offset guitar with a well-executed finish, comfortable neck, and pickup combination that rewards experimentation. Its single coils provide a fuller voice than the usual bright expectation, while the mini humbucker offers a controlled bridge sound from clean playing through heavier gain. Players seeking classic in-between Strat tones may find the missing twang a drawback. The more significant practical concern is neck dive, which is worth checking in person. For players drawn to its design and independent voice, the strong fit and finish and included case make it a compelling option at its listed price.