Description
Review of the Grote LPYS-006 Solid Body Electric Guitar in Purple
This is a single-cutaway solid-body electric in a purple finish, built with a mahogany body and neck, a rosewood fingerboard and a fixed bridge, and supplied with a gig bag. It follows the traditional carved single-cutaway template and is aimed at players who want that shape and its warmer, thicker voice without the outlay the original design carries.
Pros & Cons
- Mahogany body and neck is the correct pairing for this design. Mahogany is dense and midrange-forward, which is the source of the warm, sustaining character associated with this style of guitar and the reason the original design has used it for decades.
- A fixed bridge gives real tuning stability. With nothing floating there are no springs to balance, bending one string does not pull the others flat, and string changes are quick.
- Rosewood is a comfortable fingerboard timber. Open-pored and slightly oily, it feels warm under the fingers and takes fingerboard oil readily, which suits long playing sessions.
- The listed weight of 7.48 pounds is unusually light for this shape. Guitars of this outline are often heavy enough to be uncomfortable on a strap, so if the figure reflects the instrument rather than the carton it is a genuine advantage.
- A gig bag is included. Not a large saving, but it removes one decision and means the guitar has somewhere to live from the first day.
- The timber specification contradicts itself. The body and top are both listed as mahogany while the back is listed as maple. A mahogany body cannot have a maple back, and the page’s own summary describes a mahogany body with a maple back. The published data does not settle what is actually underneath the purple finish.
- Only one pickup is specified. The pickup configuration is recorded as “H”, a single humbucker. Guitars of this outline conventionally carry two, and the listing offers no control layout, no pickup count in the description and no switch information to clarify.
- The entire product description is one line. It reads “Grote Solid Body Electric Guitar with Gigbag LPYS-006” and says nothing else. No fret count, no scale length, no nut width, no hardware detail and no controls are published anywhere.
- The listed depth of 1.42 inches is too thin. A carved single-cutaway body is normally closer to two inches at the rim and thicker at the centre. This figure does not describe the instrument.
- The musical style attribute reads “world-music”. That is a database field with no useful meaning on an electric guitar of this type and is a sign of how carefully the listing was assembled.
Detailed Product Description
What can be established is a full-size single-cutaway electric, 40.16 inches long overall and 13.19 inches across, with a mahogany neck and a rosewood fingerboard. Mahogany necks are heavier and denser than maple ones and contribute to the sustain this design is known for, though they are more vulnerable to breaking at the headstock if the guitar is dropped, because the grain runs across a thin section behind the nut.
The finish is a purple gloss. Colour on a guitar of this shape is usually applied over a figured or plain top depending on the model, and since the timber specification is contradictory it is not possible to say from the data whether there is a separate top cap here at all.
The pickup configuration is listed as a single humbucker. Humbuckers use two coils wound in opposition, which cancels mains hum and produces a thicker, warmer output than a single coil. A single humbucker in the bridge position gives one strong, direct voice with no switching, which some players prefer for its simplicity; whether that is what is fitted, or whether the field is simply incomplete, cannot be confirmed.
The strings are nickel in a jazz-medium gauge, which is heavier than the light sets normally fitted at the factory. Heavier strings raise tension, add midrange weight and require more finger strength to bend, and they suit warmer styles. The string gauge guide covers what changing gauge does to feel and tone.
What Comes with the Product
The listing states the guitar ships with a gig bag. Nothing else is described as included.
Not included, and not claimed: an amplifier, a cable, a strap, picks, a tuner, spare strings or setup tools. No padding thickness is given for the gig bag, so it should be treated as transport cover rather than protection against knocks. Anyone starting from nothing needs an amplifier and a cable before any sound can be made.
Who It Suits
This suits a player who wants the single-cutaway shape and its thicker voice, already owns an amplifier, and is comfortable assessing an instrument on arrival rather than relying on published specification. It also suits someone wanting a distinctive colour in that outline.
It suits less well an absolute beginner buying with a fixed budget, since only a bag is included, or a buyer who needs to know the pickup count and control layout before committing, since neither is published. Anyone wanting a lighter, brighter guitar should look at a different body style. Other options sit in electric guitars, and how the established names in this outline compare is covered in the Epiphone and Gibson comparison.
How to Maintain
Wipe the strings after every session, since skin oils dull them faster than playing does. Keep the guitar out of direct sun and away from radiators.
Support the headstock when the guitar is on a stand and never lean it against a wall by the neck. Mahogany-necked guitars of this shape have an angled headstock with short grain behind the nut, and this is where they break. Oil the rosewood fingerboard once or twice a year if it looks dry. Check the neck relief a few weeks after arrival, and check the output jack nut periodically since a loose jack causes crackling.
Tips and Recommendations
Set the intonation once the strings have settled. On a fixed bridge this is a quick job at the saddles and it decides whether chords stay in tune above the fifth fret.
If the pickup sounds muddy, lower it slightly rather than assuming it needs replacing. Humbuckers set too close to the strings lose definition and can pull the strings out of tune magnetically. The jazz-medium strings supplied are heavier than most players are used to, so a lighter set will make bending considerably easier if the guitar feels stiff. Check the fret ends on arrival and dress any that feel sharp with fine abrasive paper.
Product FAQ
How many pickups does it have? The specification records a single humbucker. The description says nothing at all about pickups, and guitars of this outline conventionally carry two, so this cannot be confirmed from the listing.
What is the body made of? The body and top are listed as mahogany while the back is listed as maple. Those entries contradict each other.
Does it come with an amplifier? No. A gig bag is the only accessory included.
What comparable guitars are there? Alternatives include the Grote GTL-101 semi-hollow, the Grote GRS-001 semi-hollow and the Epiphone Les Paul 100 in Heritage Cherryburst.
