Baritone guitars are very interesting instruments because they offer a unique sound and can be used in different music genres.
They became trendy in metal music because the tone becomes very heavy when you add distortion. Also, it’s great for low guitar tunings which makes it an excellent guitar for metal.
Also, baritone guitars are really good for recording and they can add a unique flavor to the song, even if it’s not used as the main guitar.
And if you are searching for the best baritone guitars you came to the right place because I have a list for you.
What’s The Best Baritone Guitar?
There are hundreds of great baritone guitars on the market and many guitar brands manufacture them. And today I created a list of the best baritone guitars I have tested myself.
1. LTD H3-1007
The best 7-string baritone guitar for metal.
LTD H3 1007 is a 7-string baritone guitar from ESP that offers great sound and cool features. It’s an expensive guitar but it has everything a pro electric guitar should have like quality pickups, wood, playability, and more. This is one of the best baritone guitars for metal. I love its minimal controls and slick design with see-thru black sunburst color.
The guitar has a 27″ scale which gives you a unique baritone sound with other attributes such as wood and electronics. The construction is a set thru, the boy of the guitar is mahogany with a flamed maple top, and the neck consists of three pieces of maple. In addition to that, it has an ebony fretboard which is one of my favorite wood combinations for guitar necks.
Also, it has other great features such as locking tuners, a TOM bridge, a very thin and fas neck, and other features. But one of my favorite features is pickups – Seymour Duncan Sentient in the neck and Seymour Duncan Pegasus in the bridge position. Also, both pickups have a coil-split feature.
2. Reverend Descent W
Amazing sounding baritone guitar with great playability.
Reverend make great guitars and Descent W is a great baritone electric guitar from them. It has interesting features and options that create unique and cool sounds. It can be used for different styles and the humbucker pickup combination offers more power which is always great. If you love electric guitars with offset shapes then you will like them. Also, it has an amazing sound and is great for standard B tuning.
This baritone guitar from Reverend has an interesting wood combination with Korina in the body and roasted maple in the neck. You can choose between rosewood and roasted maple fingerboards which has a 12″ radius. Additionally, offers a Wilkinson tremolo bridge, 22 frets, 26 3/4″ scale length, and bass contour in addition to volume and tone knobs.
I know that it’s a bit pricey guitar but you get a high-quality instrument. The source of great sound comes from pickups. It uses Nuevo 90 in the bridge and Cleancut in the neck position which is amazing sounding humbuckers. You can play blues, rock, and even heavier music because it’s a versatile guitar. Other features of the Reverend Descent W area a dual-action truss rod, locking tuners, etc.
3. PRS SE 277
My favorite baritone electric guitar from PRS.
I love PRS guitars because they offer very high-quality instruments even if it’s more affordable guitars. PRS SE 277 is a cool baritone electric guitar from Paul Reed Smith with excellent sound and unlimited possibilities because you can use it for any genre of music. You might be a skeptic but don’t forget that PRS used by many guitar players in different genres and PRS was the go-to guitar for Nu Metal Artists. Yes, you can play metal with this guitar.
This baritone guitar from PRS offers some great features such as a mahogany body with a maple top, maple neck, and rosewood fingerboard with birds inlays. I love the style of the neck which is wide fat and makes playing very comfortable. It also features a PRS string through bridge which is one of the best guitar bridges you can have on an electric guitar.
Although it’s an amazing-looking and very comfortable guitar to play the main power of this guitar is the sound. And it comes from PRS pickups which are humbucker types. The sound is clean and rich and works with any style of music. You can play rhythm and lead guitar and you get amazing clean and creamy crunchy tones. Also, PRS SE 277 offers push/pull tone control, a three-way switch, a 27.7″ scale length, and 22 frets.
4. Guild BT-240E
One of the best acoustic-electric baritone guitars.
Have you ever wanted to have a baritone acoustic guitar? Well, Guild BT-240E is the guitar you are looking for because it is one of the best-sounding acoustic guitars in the baritone category I have ever played. Very classic-looking jumbo-shaped acoustic with great sound, playability, quality, and stability.
And one of the best things about this acoustic-electric guitar is the price. It’s a very affordable guitar for the feature and quality it offers. It uses a spruce top and mahogany back and sides which creates natural and high-quality sound. The neck is also made from maple and it uses Pau Ferro for the fingerboard. And another great feature is that it’s an electric acoustic guitar.
Guild baritone acoustic guitar has a built-in Fishman Electronics that offers an awesome acoustic guitar tone. It’s a very straightforward and easy-to-use acoustic-electric guitar. You just plug it in the amp and that’s it – you get a high-quality sound. Other features Guild BT-240E offers are 20 frets, 27″ scale length, bone nut and saddle, and more.
5. Danelectro Baritone
Unique-sounding baritone guitar for modern rock.
Danelectro Baritone is another unique electric guitar with great sound and amazing looks. Danelectro is known for its exceptional sound because the lipstick pickups and baritone style adds another layer of uniqueness. Also, the price is very affordable despite the features and quality. I love Danelectro guitars and they are great guitars for recording too.
This Danelectro baritone guitar offers a chambered spruce body, hardboard top and back, and maple neck and it uses Pau Ferro for the fingerboard. This unique wood combination works perfectly with lipstick pickups which creates an amazing sound. Also, it’s a very simple guitar with volume and tone knobs and a three-way switch.
But the main sound comes from the lipstick single-coil pickups Danelectro guitars are known for. It makes a great guitar to record tracks and adds an interesting flavor to your songs. You can use electric guitar strings with a .013 gauge and it will work perfectly with low guitar tunings.
6. Squier Paranormal Baritone
One of the best baritone guitars with soap bar pickups.
Lastly, one of the best baritone guitars I can recommend is Squier Paranormal which is a superior electric guitar with amazing features, great sound, and a very affordable price tag. It’s a Cabronita Telecaster with a classic shape, great design, simplicity, and playability.
This Fender baritone guitar has a 27″ scale length, string-through bridge, poplar body, maple neck, and more. If you love the Telecaster shape then this might be the best baritone guitar for you because it will be very familiar to you. And with a volume, tone, and three-way toggle switch, it’s a simple-to-use guitar.
But my favorite thing about this guitar which is also very unique is the type of pickup which are soap bar pickup. That’s where a unique sound comes from. These are Fender single-coil soap bar pickups that allow you to create unique sounds which work with clean and dirty tones. You can use heavy string gauges such as .014.
7. D’Angelico Deluxe SS Baritone
Perhaps the best semi-hollow body baritone guitar.
D’Angelico Deluxe SS is a semi-hollow body baritone guitar with awesome sound and beautiful shape. This electric guitar offers features that make it an amazing guitar for various styles. Wood materials, pickup choices, various configurations, and other options are just perfectly combined.
It has a laminated mahogany body with a satin finish. The neck of the guitar is made from maple and walnut, has a 16″ radius, the fingerboard is made from ebony and it has a see-through neck joint. Deluxe SS guitar features 22 Jescar frets, a Tune-O-Matic bridge with a tailpiece, and Grover locking tuning pegs. It’s very comfortable to play.
But the best thing in this baritone guitar is the sound and the source of the sound are two Seymour Duncan P90 single coil pickups. As you know, I love guitars with P90 pickups and this guitar is no exception. It can produce amazing and beautiful clean tones and modern or classic rock tones. You have a three-way toggle switch with volume and tone knobs for sound options.
Conclusion
A baritone guitar is a great instrument to make unique-sounding guitar tones and make your song more interesting. They are great for recording and perfect if you use low guitar tunings. I love them and that’s why I have created this list of the best baritone guitars. They have amazing sound, work with different styles of music, and are amazing to record with.
Every recording studio should have at least one baritone electric guitar especially if the studio records various genres of music.