Guitar of the week #47 - B.C. Rich Villain

When you dig around a little, you'll find B.C. Rich actually makes some pretty good stuff.

B.C. Rich is a guitar brand I don't mention too often because in all honesty, they don't have much I consider genuinely good - but the B.C. Rich Villain is an exception.

From that link you will see the Villain has mid-tier to upper-tier pricing, depending on model.

I characterize this guitar as your typical "shredder" axe. I think shredding totally sucks, but if that's your thing, the Villain is the guitar for it, given its super-flat 16-inch radius fingerboard on a bolt-on maple neck.

If you've played a Schecter Hellraiser C-1 but thought, "I really wish this guitar had a Floyd-Rose on it," you want the Villain. Similar price, similar look, nice feel, good tone (for what it is.)

You might be saying now, "What about the Schecter Hellraiser with Floyd?" Good option, but it's over $900. You can get a Villain for way less than that and still get your Floyd system. Schecters typically remain in the affordable range until you attach a Floyd, and then the price just spikes out of control.

In the end, the Villain is good for its price (at least for mid-tier models,) beats out the competition and you get a lot of guitar for the money. And I admit I do like the shapes. The body has a very modern look as does the headstock. I can assure you that the guitar looks just as good in person as it does in photos.

Published 2016 Mar 2