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Brand New w/ Warranty. We are an authorized Fano Dealer.
Like what you see? All photos are of the exact instrument you will receive!
The Alt de Facto series is Fano’s top-of-the-line custom series. These are handbuilt in the USA by one luthier from start to finish so that every instrument tells a unique and cohesive story. Nitrocellulose lacquer body and neck of course. We are an Alt de Facto dealer, so if this isn’t exactly the guitar you are looking for, let us know what you want and we’ll get you the best price on your custom build.
What Does Josh Think?
This guitar is a force of nature! While looking a little more on the exotic side, Black Limba features the same tonal properties as its sibling White Limba (Korina). The guitar has exceptional resonance and sustain. It punches hard in the lower register and sings with syrupy sweetness up top.
The Lollar Imperial pickup set is very impactful in this build. The neck position is as warm as it is vibrant. The middle register makes a seamless transition between the growling low end and the snappy upper frequencies. Without sounding unnatural in any way, this position could be likened to the bifocals of guitar tone and puts loads of tonal options under your fingers as you traverse the neck and tweak your attack.
The bridge position delivers amazing sweet clean tones, but is just as ready to rip through a driven amp. It provides a swift attack, with each note is firm and grounded. This gives you the freedom to play anywhere on the neck without sounding thin or harsh. Yet the note clarity is exceptional. I wouldn’t do this on many guitars, but I found myself playing low 3rd and 4th intervals all the way down on the 5th and 6th strings in the G chord position.
In the middle pickup position, the balanced EQ of the bridge pickup surrenders to a slight scoop that serves to even further enhance the guitar’s transparency. The warm lows of the neck pickup seep in, and the highs garner a little more sparkle. Again, this proves to work well in an overdriven setup also. Play with your pick attack and the volume knob to conjure many shades of gain without loss of intelligibility.
And then… you’ve got individual push/pulls on the volume and tone knobs to coil split the neck and bridge pickups, respectively. This brings your total number of pickup combinations from three to seven. Some of the coolest tones are achieved by splitting the neck and leaving the bridge humbucking (think Tele tones in the middle position) and doing the opposite for a coil split bridge mixed with a humbucking neck (for some Strat-like quack).
Rarely do you find a Fano with black hardware. And almost as rare to find one in NOS finish. Nothing about this guitar is artificially aged. The clear nitro finish does exhibit some nice finish checking if you look closely, but this guitar is ready for you to do the wearing. The plastic still on the pickguard to make sure it doesn’t have any pick scratches on our watch.
How Does It Play?
The string action measuring barely a hair over 4/64” on the low E at the 12th fret, and right at 4/64” on the high E. This leaves plenty of room to dig in, keeps the fretbuzz away, and still plays fast and easy. The neck profile is a moderate C inspired by early ‘60s Fenders, with supportive shoulders. The contoured neck heel opens the upper fret access up nicely.
Weight: 8lb 11oz
The Fano deluxe padded gigbag pictured is included.
Specifications
Body: Black Limba
Neck: Black Limba (Bolt-on, 10 degree headstock pitch, vintage style truss rod)
Fingerboard: Rosewood
Fingerboard Radius: Compound 9.5-12"
Neck Shape: Early 60's "C" Shape (.830 - .920”)
Scale Length: 25.5"
Inlay: Dots/White Moto
Frets: 22 Jescar Nickel/Silver (6105 profile)
String Nut: 1.65" Graphtech Tusq XL
Tuning Keys: Gotoh Vintage Black
Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Body Color: Natural
Neck Color: Natural
Upper Headcap Color: Natural
Lower Headcap Color: Bull Black
Body Distress: NOS
Neck Distress: NOS
Hardware: Black
Neck Pickup: Lollar Imperial Humbucker
Bridge Pickup: Lollar Imperial Humbucker
Pickguard: 3-Ply Black
Controls: Volume (push/pull), Tone (push/pull) & 3-Way Toggle
Bridge: TonePros T.O.M. and Stoptail
Switch Tip Knob: Black
Knobs: Nickel Barrel
Strings: D'Addario "NYXL" .010 - .046
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