NAMM 2023: Hagstrom overhauls its flagship Swede and Super Swede guitars with “special recipe” pickups

NAMM 2023: Hagstrom has revamped its flagship Swede and Super Swede electric guitar designs for 2023, with a raft of tweaks to the builds, new components and Lundgren Design pickups.

The single-cut construction of the Swedes is obviously heavily influenced by the Gibson Les Paul, but the Scandinavian builder has always offered enough of its own distinctive flair to avoid being dismissed as a copy cat. The prices are usually far more competitive than the US brand, too – and there’s a lot more going on with Hagstrom builds than first meets the eye.

Firstly, let’s tick off the expected LP-style specs. Both builds have set necks, plus a mahogany body with a Canadian hard maple cap and a flame maple veneer. Electronics-wise, there’s an HH pickup configuration, three-way pickup selector toggle switch and two pairs of volume and tone pots. 

However, there’s a raft of Hagstrom’s own tweaks to be found in these designs. If you’re wondering about the difference between the Swede and Super Swede, for instance, the former offers a Gibson-like 24 ¾” scale length, while the Super has a more Fender-like 25 ½”.

The angled headstocks on the 2023 designs have been reinforced and use a new volute joint to add extra strength. Meanwhile, the neck/body joint is a nape-tenon, which, unlike a Les Paul, is sculpted into a recess on the rear to allow better upper-fret access.

Then there’s new Lundgren Design humbuckers – an Alnico No. 2 (7.3K) humbucker at the neck (on both models), then an Alnico No. 2 (8.3K) or Alnico No. 5 (13.2K) humbucker at the bridge, for the Swede and Super Swede, respectively. 

Their designer, Johan Lundgren, is an independent pickup producer based in Sweden, who counts everyone from Thin Lizzy’s Scott Gorham to Messhuggah among his customers. 

The firm says the new ‘buckers are “a special recipe that adds an extra dose of ‘Swedish Zing’ to the instrument’s natural tone, making it sing and resonate like never before.” They’re also said to be highly versatile.     

Then there’s a wealth of hardware: including Hagstrom’s new 19:1 locking tuners, GraphTechTM Black Tusq XL nuts, dual-mounting strap buttons and the firm’s distinctive stop-tail bridge, which terminates with individually mounted sustain blocks for better transition and definition between strings.

There’s a variety of finishes available across the two models, including several bursts and while we have no word on final US prices yet, both the Swede and Super Swede will retail in the UK for £1,375 (approx. $1,700).

Total Guitar raved about the more affordable Hagstrom Ultra Max, which arrived from the Swedish builder in 2020, so it will be interesting to see how these high-end builds stack-up.

Head to Hagstrom Guitars for more information.