NAMM 2023: Rapier introduces the 44 – a four-pickup ‘what if?’ experiment in vintage British guitar design

NAMM 2023: British brand Rapier has unveiled a new four-pickup electric guitar design, dubbed the Rapier 44.

The original Rapier was produced by UK firm Watkins Electric Music (aka WEM, producers of the iconic CopiCat echo) in the 1960s before being discontinued. The design was then reprised by UK designer Alan Entwistle under the newly-formed Rapier brand in late 2021, as the Rapier 33.

The firm’s latest model, the Rapier 44, takes its flagship design and adds a fourth Entwistle EWR64 mini-humbucker. These are foil-covered, dual-blade humbucking pickups and unlike the 33, which featured a slanted center pickup, they are all positioned in a straight formation.

The 44 maintains the wealth of tonal controls found on the Rapier 33, including the two slide switches, a toggle switch and the two-volume, one-tone pot setup.

Guitarist noted in its (otherwise very positive) Rapier 33 review that the wealth of switching options required an instruction manual, so it’s probably for the best that Rapier has opted against adding any further switches. That said, the builder is promising a total of 15 “sonic permutations” available on the 44.

Elsewhere, you’ve got an African Okoume body, Canadian hard rock maple neck (in soft ‘C’ profile) and 23-fret fingerboard, including an oft-controversial but vintage-correct zero fret. There’s also a 43mm GraphTech Nubone nut, a HI-LO vibrato with roller bridge and Wilkinson WJ55 E-Z Lok tuners.

The Rapier 44 will retail for £499 (approx. $620).

In addition to the Rapier 44, the brand has also announced a new four-string, the Rapier Saffire Bass. The new bass guitar features a basswood body, Canadian hard rock maple beck and a 25-fret, double-octave fingerboard (again, with a zero fret).

It’s loaded with two Entwistle EWR64B pickups, a three-way pickup selector and an interesting control setup that includes volume, tone and mid-boost pots. That one’s available in Fiesta Red, Arctic White and Daphne Blue and carries a price of £479 (approx. $595).

As with the rest of the range, both of the new instruments are produced in China to keep costs low, but the Rapier 33 build certainly seems to have outperformed the price tag. Given the quirky retro designs and price points, perhaps Rapier is best considered as a British Danelectro equivalent.

If you want to get more of a sense of the brand’s builds, you can read Guitarist’s full Rapier 33 review.

For more information on the Rapier 44 and other models, head to distributor, John Hornby Skewes.