Italia never stops surprising us on the test bench. With a strong personality in their designs and finishes that can be deceiving, Italia guitars carve out a place among the competition thanks to their generally exceptional results in terms of sound.
Let me qualify the previous remark so as not to be vague. In my opinion, the look of Italia guitars has a retro air that can make you think at first glance that they are "old" or odd guitars. Bordering on the vintage concept, they display an aesthetic personality that differs quite a bit from the "usual." Almost every time I have opened a case or box containing a guitar from this company, my first visual impression has left me stunned. Surprise: what is this?
Afterward, on every occasion, I have plugged the instrument in and the guitar has won me over, displaying quite professional qualities in terms of sound and tuning.
Mondial WoodTop
In today's case, the test was no different. A feeling of strangeness came over me when I took the guitar out of the case. Quite peculiar body cuts and, on this occasion, an unusual electronics combination: humbucker magnetic pickups in the body and a piezo on the bridge.
A look in the purest Beatles style, with vintage knobs and a surprising three-band EQ on the upper part of the body. Besides the fact that finding an EQ on a guitar is unusual, its finish and layout have that particular air we can see almost exclusively on Italian guitars.
To round off the aesthetic or first-sight impressions, I should say that I was strongly struck by this mix of elements fusing acoustic and electric roots in a semi-electric archtop concept.
Concept and construction
It is clear that the design of the Mondial WoodTop followed very specific guidelines. On the one hand, the guitar aims (and manages) to combine the characteristics of an archtop with the lightness and small body size of a conventional electric. So we find a narrow, easy-to-handle body with a carved top. Logically, the body is not solid, which allows for acoustic resonance.
The finish is good. As with all the Italia guitars I have tested so far, it feels solid. Sturdy, well-made instruments with careful finishing. When it comes to construction materials, we are talking quality: mahogany body, maple neck, rosewood fingerboard and maple top. As is well known by now, the use of these woods makes for a reliable, durable, good-sounding instrument.
Electronics
The body concept is already striking, but the result is complemented by especially unusual electronics: two Wilkinson WVC magnetic pickups, thick-sounding and powerful (if that's what we're after), combined with a piezo that picks up the "acoustic" vibrations of the strings. I have seen this combination before, for example on some Peavey guitars. We will discuss the result in the section on sound.
It seems sensible to think that a good electronic arsenal, two pickup systems in this case, requires a good assortment of controls to combine and handle the audio sources as we please. Three round knobs located conventionally on the lower part of the body take care of the electronic control. As I mentioned a little above, a three-band EQ is added to the circuit's sound control elements. This gives us room to maneuver over the tone and volume of the humbuckers, while the controls also let us adjust the volume and frequencies of the piezo pickup. I haven't forgotten the three-way pickup selector, though there isn't much more to add about it.
Available colors (top/back)
- Italia Black / Italia Black
- Tobacco Burst / Transparent Tobacco
- Cherry Burst / Transparent Cherry
- Honey Burst / Transparent Honey
The sound
I would sum it up as "surprising." Within very acceptable quality parameters, we find great versatility. The guitar sounds good: solid, punchy, with body and personality. In both the lows and the highs, the instrument's competence is worth mentioning.The tonal range the Mondial WoodTop gives us access to is wide. We can roll back the piezo and go for aggressive meat with the humbuckers, reduce the "magnetic" doses and emphasize the acoustic results, or, third, play with numerous combinations of the two pickup types. Consequently, the instrument's sonic results are varied and adapt well to very diverse styles of music. Leaving all these combinations aside, I think the essential part is quality. In other words, I prefer one good sound to a thousand mediocre ones. In this case we can say that we have a well-made guitar that sounds good across its various registers.
Hardware and feel
Chrome hardware completes that vintage touch, along with the inlay on the headstock (a raised chrome Italia logo). As for the remaining elements, I should mention the fixed wooden bridge on which the piezo is installed, the chrome tailpiece plate that anchors the strings and doubles as another decorative element, and finally its Grover tuners, a brand everyone knows by now.Conclusions
It is a hard guitar to categorize. Hard because it is unusual. Putting my thoughts in order, I could conclude, first, that it has a particular look subject to each person's taste. Second, that it is well made, its sounds are powerful and it delivers quality results. Third, that it is a versatile instrument covering acoustic and electric pickup sounds, providing more sonic tools than a conventional guitar. Fourth, that its construction materials are first-rate. And fifth, that the price is eminently sensible. An odd, special guitar, but one that is worth more than it costs.
