Manson DR-1
The Manson DR-1 Series is a limited series of 99 identical guitars, released by Manson in 2016 as special 'Numbers' editions, with all of them having a special marking of "DRONE:0X" on the body. The guitars were designed by Bellamy after his inspiration during the making of the album Drones. The guitars appear to have been built around the Manson Matt Black 2.0. According to Mansons, the guitar sits somewhere between a Cort MBC-1 and a Manson MB-1. Bellamy presumably owns the first four DR-1's of the batch, the #00, the #01, the #02 and the #03, with only the #00 and the #03 making live appearances to date.
Manson DR-1 #00
| DR-1 #00 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Manson Guitars |
| Used | 2016-05-11 — 2016-06-24 |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Matte Green paint |
| Wood | Body: Alder Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Rosewood (22 frets) |
| Bridge | Gotoh Tune-O-Matic |
| Electronics | One volume, one tone, 3-way toggle pickup selector |
| Pickup(s) | Neck: Sustainiac Bridge: Psychopaf PF-1 (uncovered) |
| Special circuits | – |
Background
This guitar is the first of the four DR-1's that Matt owns. This guitar was first seen at a The Guitar Show in Birmingham, in February of 2016, where this new signature series was introduced. Back then, this guitar featured a standard neck pickup and normal volume and tone knobs.
Touring
The guitar was modified for Matt after the showcase. It got a Sustaniac in the neck position and custom control knobs.
After having it photographed before one of the O2 Arena shows in April 2016, it was used for the first time live at the Zürich Hallenstadion gig on 11th May. It was used for songs that require drop-D tuning. It was last used at the Glastonbury Festival 2016 gig on 24th June and was replaced by the DR-1 #03.
Songs used for
Manson DR-1 #01
| DR-1 #01 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Manson Guitars |
| Used | — |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Matte Green paint |
| Wood | Body: Alder Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Ebony (22 frets) |
| Bridge | Gotoh 510 Tune-O-Matic |
| Electronics | One volume, one tone, 3-way toggle pickup selector |
| Pickup(s) | Neck: Sustainiac Bridge: Manson PF-1 |
| Special circuits | – |
Background
This guitar is the second of the four DR-1's that Matt owns.
In comparison to the DR-1 #00, this guitar features a lot of the specifications of the other new Manson guitars that he got in 2015 and 2016. Instead of the normal Gotoh bridge this guitar has the 510 version and the area around the truss rod adjuster is the same as on all other 2015/16 guitars. The finish of this guitar has a relic style.
Touring
This guitar has not be seen live yet.
Manson DR-1 #02
| DR-1 #02 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Manson Guitars |
| Used | — |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Matte Green paint |
| Wood | Body: Alder Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Rosewood (22 frets) |
| Bridge | Gotoh Tune-O-Matic |
| Electronics | One volume, one tone, 3-way toggle pickup selector |
| Pickup(s) | Neck: Sustainiac Bridge: Manson PF-1 |
| Special circuits | – |
Background
This guitar is the third of the four DR-1's that Matt owns.
It is exactly the same guitar as the modified DR-1 #00, only that it has normal control knobs and normal tuning pegs.
Touring
Like the #02, this guitar has not be seen live yet.
Manson DR-1 #03
| DR-1 #03 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Manson Guitars |
| Used | 2016-06-28 — 2016-08-20 |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Matte Green paint |
| Wood | Body: Alder Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Rosewood (22 frets) |
| Bridge | Gotoh Tune-O-Matic |
| Electronics | One volume, one tone, 3-way toggle pickup selector |
| Pickup(s) | Neck: Sustainiac Bridge: Manson PF-1 |
| Special circuits | – |
Background
The fourth DR-1 that Matt owns.
In terms of specs it is the same as the modded DR-1 #00 and the #02.
Touring
The DR-1 #03 was first used live at Eiffel Tower gig on 28th June 2016, replacing the DR-1 #00. Like the latter guitar, it was primarily used for songs that require drop-D tuning, though on rare occasions it was used for songs in different tunings.
The guitar was used for the last time live at the Rock am See gig on 20th August 2016. It was however used during the recording of Simulation Theory.
Songs used for
- Agitated (one occasion)
- Assassin
- Butterflies and Hurricanes
- Hyper Music (one occasion)
- Micro Cuts (one occasion)
- Psycho
- Stockholm Syndrome
- The Handler
- Uprising (one occasion)
Studio
As mentioned above, the guitar's been seen in Muse's Instagram pics during the making of Simulation Theory. Bellamy fitted on a Fishman Tripleplay MIDI Pickup system. It's presumably been used to record The Dark Side and probably a couple of other songs on the album which Bellamy used the Tripleplay on.
DR-1 Gallery
DR-1 #00 live debut
DR-1 #00
DR-1 #00
DR-1 #02 with Hugh Manson
DR-1 #03
DR-1 #03
DR-1 #03 during the making of Simulation Theory
DR-1 #03 during the making of Simulation Theory
