The snazzy D’Angelico Deluxe Brighton LE Sage looks as sharp as a tux and slices with cutting tone, thanks to its Seymour Duncan P-90s.
Pros
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Excellent pickup choices.
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Top build with quality hardware.
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Slim neck carve.
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Limited edition, and yet reasonably priced.
Cons
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Might be hard to find one.
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Check out any late-night talk or weekday morning show that features musical guests, and chances are you’ll see one of the musicians playing a D’Angelico.
Since the historic company roared back into the public eye more than a decade ago, D’Angelico has made great strides in reimagining its line of heritage archtops and contemporary semi-hollow and solid body designs, as well as putting their instruments in the hands of established and up-and-coming artists.
Frankly, who could have predicted that these guitars – with their Art Deco-inspired appointments and jazzy signature headstocks – would become so prominent? Building upon their broad line of guitars, D’Angelico has been releasing a dedicated variety of Limited Edition models that display arresting finishes along with premium pickups and updated specs that promote these instruments from the rank and file.
If there ever was a guitar that advances class and elegance, look no further than the striking D’Angelico Deluxe Brighton LE in a fetching Sage finish that’s limited to 50 pieces worldwide.
Features
The best way to spot the difference between the three Deluxe Brighton LE guitars is by their colorways and pickups, and as mentioned above, only 50 of each will be available worldwide.
The Sage and Sapphire models boast overwound Seymour Duncan Stack P90 noiseless pickups, while the Rust model sports Seymour Duncan Antiquity Retrospec humbuckers with coil-splitting push/pull tone knobs. The double cutaway Deluxe Brighton LE consists of a gloss-finished, solid alder body with a bounteous belly cut for comfort and a set-thru neck that joins the body at the 22nd fret.
(Image credit: D’Angelico Guitars)
Speaking of which, the three-piece neck is satin-finished with a slim C-profile, a rosewood fingerboard with mother-of-pearl and abalone split block inlays on a flat 14–inch radius, Tusq nut, 24.75-inch scale length and 22 Jescar medium/jumbo silver nickel frets.
From head to toe, fancy D’Angelico ornamentations prevail, including 7-ply body binding, 3-ply neck and headstock binding, cupola headpin, mother-of-pearl “D'Angelico New York” headstock logo, mother-of-pearl “Deluxe” shield headstock inlay, “Aluminum Skyscraper” truss rod cover, 5-ply “F-Hole Style” cream pearl pickguard and ebony volume and tone knobs and 3-way pickup selector.
Finally, satin nickel hardware is the scheme for the Grover 509 Super Rotomatic locking tuners, Tune-O-Matic bridge and tailpiece and locking strap buttons.
Performance
Based on its posh appearance, I feel guilty not pairing the Deluxe Brighton LE with a fine wine or donning a velvet dinner jacket when I play it. But all etiquette and sartorial jokes aside, the Deluxe Brighton LE looks absolutely magnetic with its muted Sage green finish and really does offer a heightened playing experience for anyone who favors a stylish double-cut electric guitar with an elongated neck design.
Based on its posh appearance, I feel guilty not pairing the Deluxe Brighton LE with a fine wine or donning a velvet dinner jacket when I play it
And even though some might say the neck outwardly protrudes from the body, the guitar is only slightly neck-heavy, and if anything, you’ll appreciate (like me) the invitingly slim neck carve and unimpeded access toward higher fret registers. In other words, you can comfortably play the pentatonic box from the 19th fret to the 22nd without a hitch.
There will always be players who favor humbuckers, and for that, the Deluxe Brighton LE Rust will more than satisfy, but for me, I do love this streamlined P90 version of the guitar, which reminds me of vintage Junior-style set-neck guitars.
The noiseless stacked Seymour Duncan P-90s offer a hotter single-coil bite with the bridge having a mid-heavy, high output that blankets chords and single notes with a honkin’ snarl.
Switching over to the middle toggle position smooths out both pickups for a brighter jangle, and flicking over to the neck P-90 provides warm and beefier textures for plucky solos.
Paul Riario has been the tech/gear editor and online video presence for Guitar World for over 25 years. Paul is one of the few gear editors who has actually played and owned nearly all the original gear that most guitarists wax poetically about, and has survived this long by knowing every useless musical tidbit of classic rock, new wave, hair metal, grunge, and alternative genres. When Paul is not riding his road bike at any given moment, he remains a working musician, playing in two bands called SuperTrans Am and Radio Nashville.
