Last Updated on February 22, 2023 by Chris
Left Handed Duesenberg Guitars
I’d never heard of Duesenberg guitars until around 2018, when I was watching some live videos of Dropkick Murphys on YouTube. I noticed that Ken Casey, their vocalist/bass player had a bass I didn’t recognize, so I searched online to find he was playing a Duesenberg Starplayer bass. Naturally, I checked online to see what left handed Duesenberg guitars were available.
Later I found that a number of artists I liked had been using Duesenberg guitars, such as Dave Stewart, Billy Gibbons, Paul McCartney, Slash, and Chris Cornell.
So, does Duesenberg make left handed guitars?
Yes they do! Let’s see what lefty Duesenberg guitars are in their current lineup.
Go straight to the guitars here
Who Are Duesenberg Guitars?
Duesenberg Guitars was founded by guitar designer Dieter Gölsdorf. Starting off with a one-man business selling guitars and parts in 1978, he gained experience and knowledge to build his own fantastic guitars.
By 1986, the Duesenberg electric guitar brand was born.
In 1995, Gölsdorf began work in his basement on a new guitar design; the Starplayer. It was the predecessor to what would become the company’s flagship guitar design; the Starplayer TV.
What Do I Think of Duesenberg Guitars?
After that initial online search after seeing Ken Casey playing one, I was struck by the eye-catching looks of Duesenberg guitars, looking like something out of the 1940s or ’50s.
I really love the way they look with their retro color schemes and Art Deco influences. The meticulous attention to detail and build quality, along with all the extra little stuff like the binding in the f-holes, the decorative pickup rings, and attractive pickguards come together to make a gorgeous guitar.
From an aesthetics point of view, they look amazing!
It’s also nice to find out that every Duesenberg guitar comes with a hard Custom Line case.
Every part of their guitars are designed and built in-house. From the pickups and electronics to the bridge/vibrato system and the super-smooth Z-Tuners. They even make their own custom strings!
Their guitars are known for being very comfortable to play and for their great warm and bright clean tones, and a really nice smooth sounding vibrato, based on the famous Bigsby tremolo.
All Duesenberg guitars are Plek processed. The Plek is a computer-controlled machine that sets up the fingerboard and guarantees perfectly leveled frets with a precision of 1/100 of a millimeter, eradicating all fret-buzz. The guitars are then sent for fret polishing and set up by hand, removing any rough edges, and guaranteeing a guitar that’s near-perfect to play.
Related reading – Check out the range of left handed Gretsch guitars!
Different Types of Duesenberg Guitars
There are several types of guitar made by Duesenberg, each with several different models.
Electric guitars:
- Artist Alliance – These are super high-end guitars are created in collaboration with some well-known artists from around the world, including among others Joe Walsh, Mike Campbell, and John Mayer.
- Semi-Hollow – Duesenberg produce around twenty semi-hollow guitar models, many of which are based on the Starplayer design. The classic semi-hollow construction design features bent sides with a top and back glued to them. Featuring a solid center block, these guitars combine the tone of a hollow-body guitar with the feedback resistance of a solid body.
- Chambered – There are seven chambered Duesenberg guitars in all. These are solid body guitars produced with big sound chambers for enhanced tone and weight reduction. Their tone somewhere between a solid and semi-hollow guitar.
- Solid-Body – The solid-body guitar is made from a single slab of wood, which delivers instant response, plenty of attack and sustain, with perfect feedback resistance. There are six solid-bodies on offer.
- Full Hollow – The full hollow constructed guitars allow for the movement of air, providing distinct tone and response. Great for clean and crunch use!
- Lapsteel – Duesenberg lapsteels are famous for their distinctive clear tones and are often used to play Blues, Country, and Bluegrass. Duesenberg produces three lapsteel models.
Bass guitars:
- Starplayer Bass – The Starplayer Bass was designed to complement the overall construction of our Starplayer TV model. It is a short scale semi-hollow bass delivering a rich and deep bottom end.
- Mowtown Bass – A combination of the best features of British and American sounding basses, making a warm-sounding semi-hollow bass.
- Triton Bass – Designed as a workhorse bass guitar; versatile and consistent. Everything a professional bass player might need!
Left Handed Duesenberg Electric Guitars
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Out of nearly thirty different right handed guitar models that Duesenberg offers, four are produced in a left handed configuration at the time of writing.
Firstly, there’s one semi-hollow guitar; then there’s one of the chambered range of guitars available, and there’s also one solid-body model. Finally, one of the full hollow guitars is available too.
Shop for lefty Duesenberg guitars at:
Left Handed Semi-Hollow Duesenberg Guitars
Starplayer TV
The versatile Starplayer TV is a semi-hollow guitar known for its clean and clear tone. It has an arched spruce top and flamed maple arched back, featuring classically wound GrandVintage Humbucker at the bridge and a Duesenberg Domino P90 at the neck.
Specs:
- STRINGS: 6
- TOP: Laminated Spruce
- BACK/SIDES: Laminated flamed maple
- SCALE: 25.5″ (648 mm)
- NECK: Set-neck one-piece Maple
- NECK PROFILE: Medium D
- FINGERBOARD: Indian Rosewood with Cream Dot inlays
- FINGERBOARD RADIUS: 12″ (305 mm)
- NUT WIDTH: 1.67″ (42.5 mm)
- FRETS: 22 Jumbo
- HARDWARE COLOR: Nickel
- TUNERS: Duesenberg Z-Tuners
- BRIDGE: Duesenberg Steel Saddle Bridge with Diamond Deluxe Tremola
- NECK PICKUP: Duesenberg Domino P90
- BRIDGE PICKUP: Duesenberg GrandVintage Humbucker
- CONTROLS: 1x Volume, 1x Tone, 3-way Pickup Selector
- FINISH: Black
Check price/availability at:
C.C.
The C.C. is a large-bodied semi-hollow guitar, featuring a Spruce arched top and back with flamed maple sides.
For the cutting leads and heavy riffs, Duesenberg fit their classically wound GrandVintage humbucker at the bridge, paired with the Domino P90.
Specs:
- STRINGS: 6
- BODY: Solid American Alder with sound chambers
- TOP: Laminated Spruce
- SCALE: 25.5″ (648 mm)
- NECK: Set-neck one-piece Maple
- NECK PROFILE: Medium D
- FINGERBOARD: Indian Rosewood with Cream Dot inlays
- FINGERBOARD RADIUS: 12″ (305 mm)
- NUT WIDTH: 1.67″ (42.5 mm)
- FRETS: 22 Jumbo
- HARDWARE COLOR: Nickel
- TUNERS: Duesenberg Z-Tuners
- BRIDGE: Duesenberg Steel Saddle Bridge with Trapeze Tailpiece
- NECK PICKUP: Duesenberg Domino P90
- BRIDGE PICKUP: Duesenberg Domino P90
- CONTROLS: 1x Volume, 1x Tone, 3-way Pickup Selector
- FINISH: Trans-Orange
Check price/availability at:
Left Handed Chambered Duesenberg Guitars
Caribou
The gorgeous Caribou is a chambered guitar made from solid Alder with large sound chambers routed out of it. It has a flat maple top featuring a modern Cat Eye F-Hole.
The large sound chambers provide a sound somewhere between a solid body and a semi-hollow guitar, resulting in a unique tonal character.
Our right handed friends can also buy this as a 12-string.
Specs:
- STRINGS: 6
- BODY: Solid American Alder with sound chambers
- TOP: Flat
- SCALE: 25.5″ (648 mm)
- NECK: Set-neck one-piece Maple
- NECK PROFILE: Medium D
- FINGERBOARD: Indian Rosewood with Cream Dot inlays
- FINGERBOARD RADIUS: 12″ (305 mm)
- NUT WIDTH: 1.67″ (42.5 mm)
- FRETS: 22 Jumbo
- HARDWARE COLOR: Nickel
- TUNERS: Duesenberg Z-Tuners
- BRIDGE: Duesenberg Steel Saddle Bridge with Diamond Deluxe Tremola (short version)
- NECK PICKUP: Duesenberg Domino P90
- BRIDGE PICKUP: Duesenberg GrandVintage Humbucker
- CONTROLS: 1x Volume, 1x Tone, 3-way Pickup Selector
- FINISH: Narvik Blue
Check price/availability at:
Left Handed Solid-Body Duesenberg Guitars
Paloma
The Paloma is a versatile solid bodied electric guitar with an Alder body. It’s the Duesenberg guitar that’s somewhat akin to an ST style guitar with HSS pickup configuration.
These pickups feature the Grand VintageHumbucker and two matched Duesenberg Singlecoils, Pearlito and AlnicoBlade, which offer a wide variety of sounds for any situation.
Specs:
- STRINGS: 6
- BODY: Alder
- SCALE: 25.5″ (648 mm)
- NECK: Set-neck one-piece Maple
- NECK PROFILE: Medium D
- FINGERBOARD: Indian Rosewood with Pearloid Diamond inlays
- FINGERBOARD RADIUS: 12″ (305 mm)
- NUT WIDTH: 1.67″ (42.5 mm)
- FRETS: 22 Jumbo
- HARDWARE COLOR: Nickel
- TUNERS: Duesenberg Z-Tuners
- BRIDGE: Duesenberg Steel Saddle Bridge with Diamond Deluxe Tremola (short version)
- NECK PICKUP: Duesenberg Alnico Blade Singlecoil
- MIDDLE PICKUP: Duesenberg Pearlito Singlecoil
- BRIDGE PICKUP: Duesenberg GrandVintage Humbucker
- CONTROLS: 1x Volume, 1x Tone, 4-way Rotary Switch
- FINISH: RedSparkle, Narvik Blue
Check price/availability at:
Left Handed Duesenberg Basses
Although there have been left handed Duesenberg bass guitars available in the past, at the time of writing, there aren’t any models available.
Final Thoughts
So there you have it; four different left handed Duesenberg guitars are available at the time of writing, one of which is available in two different colored finishes.
It’s a bit of a shame that there aren’t any more models available to us lefties. They ones that are available are lovely guitars, but I can’t help but be a little disappointed in the lack of other left handed Duesenberg guitars being offered.
Stand out models for me, such as the Julia or Fullerton are beautiful guitars and it’s a shame they aren’t part of Duesenberg’s current lineup of lefty guitars. Also, I’d really love a left handed Starplayer TV Phonic! Hopefully, these, and others will be available in the future.
Having said this though, at least lefties are actually catered for. It’s better than having just one left handed model available, as many guitar companies do. Some don’t even have any lefty models at all!
It’s nice to know that a premium guitar company like Duesenberg does actually value the left handed guitar-playing community!
What are your thoughts on Duesenberg Guitars? Comment below!
Image credits: duesenberg.de & duesenbergusa.com
I have a lefty Starplayer TV in creamy pearl. It’s quite a head-turner and is definitely a unique guitar in my collection. The tremolo is an inspired design and is probably the best part of the guitar…somewhere in between a Bigsby and a Jazzmaster. I love the bridge humbucker and the P90 is okay, but the in-between position doesn’t do much for me. Overall it’s a nice guitar that does a lot of things well. 8/10.
Very nice guitar! The Creamy Pearl finish certainly looks good! It’s a shame they’re not available in that finish now.
The Duesenberg tremolo system gets plenty of praise too; I’d love a Starplayer TV. I do like the sound of an overdriven P90…
Thanks for commenting JJ!
Thanks for this article, great to read about the left models. Having emailed these guys about their left range many times and having no response I was left a bit deflated… still nothing in AU and seeing I can’t get hold of them I landed on the Airline 59’ from Eastwood who have made some great left models!
Thanks for reading and for your comment.
Eastwood guitars are pretty cool and they make quite a few guitars for us lefties! I’m planning on writing about their left handed range in the future.
With regards to getting a Duesenberg to Australia, I did a bit of a search and this is what I’ve found so far:
1 – Thomann will take your order but on checkout, it says they cannot guarantee they can ship to Australia. You can order from them as usual, then someone from their team will contact you regarding shipping. I’ve seen that some members on guitar forums have managed to get guitars sent to them from Thomann, but those forum posts were from a number of years ago. It could be worth getting in contact with Thomann prior to ordering.
2 – You could try leihinstrumente.com who as far as I’m aware, do ship to Australia, but have only one lefty Duesenberg, the Starplayer TV, and it’s about 11 weeks until they get more in stock (at the time of writing).
3 – Try looking on Reverb.com. Some sellers on there are in or will ship to Australia.
4 – Also try eBay, if none are available in Australia, some sellers may be willing to ship internationally. You can even message sellers to ask if they will ship internationally even if the listing doesn’t say so.
5 – You could try a package forwarder to send items to you in Australia. I’d need to do more research on this before recommending a particular company, but the basic process is that you order from a store and get them to ship it to your package forwarding company, and then they forward the package to you. I may do a feature on this soon as well.
Hope that helps!