DEVILLAIN - Founded by airline pilot Fredrik Johansson. Wait a minute... Airline pilot? Yes – airline pilot! Fredrik got an idea based on a problem he was experiencing. It was hard to bring his guitar on flights. He tried different travel guitars, but was always disappointed. Whenever visiting a music store he would ask about folding guitars, but they usually laughed and said –That’s impossible! Nothing is impossible, Fredrik thought. A few years later he held the first prototype of a folding guitar in his hands.

That captures the attitude of DeVillain Guitar Co. We’re not afraid of the impossible. Solving problems and making things better is what we live for.

We are based in Skellefteå, Sweden and our guitars are hand crafted by one of Sweden’s finest luthiers. DeVillain guitars are built to last a lifetime. We use selected tone woods and high quality components from DiMarzio, Grover and TonePros. Every guitar is tested and tried numerous times before they leave the factory. Our staff is a mix of woodworkers, computer nerds, pro musicians, luthiers, problem solvers, marketing people and design freaks with a common love for music. We try to have fun and stay innovative.

Centerfold
The world’s first folding guitar that actually solves the problem of “where should the strings go when I fold the neck”. How are strings packaged when you buy them? Rolled up in a paper sleeve. If that’s the way strings are sold, it must also be a pretty good way to store them when the guitar is folded. That’s why the Centerfold collects the strings on a roll when you fold the neck.

The Centerfold is hand built in Sweden using only high end components and the finest pieces of tone wood. This is a guitar of the highest quality for dedicated players. The neck joint is made of airplane aluminum and locks the neck to the body in a way that’s superior to ordinary bolt-on necks. This construction together with high end components and quality tone woods makes this guitar a fantastic instrument. We use nitrocellulose lacquers and oil finishes to further strengthen the tonal qualities, the wooden feel and the look of our guitars.

Specs:
Body - Black body in Honduras mahogany
Neck - C-shaped maple neck with rosewood ?ngerboard, 12” radius, 22 frets and 25.5” scale, 2-way adjustable trussrod
Pickups - PAF classic humbuckers from DiMarzio®
Electronics - 3-way switch for pickup choice (bridge – both – neck), Switchcraft® output jack, CTS® pots for volume and tone control
Tuners - Locking tuners from Grover®
Bridge - Tuneomatic bridge from TonePros®
Hardware - Nickel, Folding mechanism in airplane aluminum
Extras - Comes with Rotosound® strings, DeVillain backpack included

FAQ's:
Does it stay in tune?
If it’s in tune when you fold it, you will be really close when you unfold it. Only minor tuning is needed unless you touch the tuners. Once the guitar is unfolded it works like any other guitar. This has been the most common question. The thing you should also consider is that normally you will only fold the guitar for travel and when you arrive and unfold it you will need to fine tune for sure, but that’s no different from any guitar you would put in a case and travel with. When you fly with your ordinary guitar and send it as luggage you will probably loosen the string tension with the tuners, right? So the Centerfold will be in tune much quicker than any other guitar after air travel.

Does it have any sustain?
Oh yes. The neck joint is very, very tight and it gives the guitar lots of sustain. Our customers claim that it’s as good or better than other guitars they own like Tom Anderson, Parker, Gibson Customshop and so on. That’s probably the best feedback we can get. We’re not afraid of a shootout between the Centerfold and any other guitar on the planet. We know it sounds amazing. The reason for this is that the neck and body are connected with 2 aluminum plates that slide into each other plus a big stainless steel bolt that tightens the connection unbelievably hard.

Does it come in blue?
It comes in Blueberry! And 6 other colors!!!

I am a lefty, what do you have for me?
I’m sorry - no lefty versions at the moment. We are looking into it, though. Send us a mail and demand a lefty version if you feel it’s important!

Is it really hand made?
The guitar is in fact hand made. That’s one of the reasons we’re only releasing 300 guitars this year. Not the aluminum parts, though. We machine those in CNC routers.

What do you really know about guitars in She-left-you (Skellefteå)?
Skellefteå is the indie guitar capitol of Sweden. We’re practically born with guitar in hand. Also, our chief luthier was trained in Canada and has been building guitars for 15 years.

Why does the Centerfold look so weird?
It doesn’t look weird. You’re just not used to the design yet. You have had 50 years to adapt to some other brands…We wanted a design that would stand out and be as small as possible without losing the feel of an ordinary guitar. All the aluminum parts are fully visible to give the guitar a sturdy look. Kind of like a fifties car. I wonder what people said about the early Fender guitars with solid bodies, bolt-on necks and cut-aways.

Do you have any plans for a folding bass?
Yes we do. Our patent is for stringed instruments, so we can translate this to all stringed instruments. Electric bass is a bit harder than electric guitar, but we have some cool ideas. Keep your eyes open…

Demo and buy these products at a dealer or music store near you:

Also available at the following online music retailers: