Nebula Guitar

I had very little experience with aluminum guitars when I ordered my Nebula. I also had only recently discovered Aluminati, and I was a bit unsure of what to expect. Reviews were good, but few, and the instruments were priced in the custom shop range. Fortunately, they were very friendly and responsive, answered all my questions no matter how silly, and guided me through the process of ordering a guitar.

Once done, the waiting began, and I had big expectations from what would be my first aluminum guitar. And boy, I was blown away when my fuchsia Nebula arrived. This guitar looks spectacular, it's perfect as far as fit and finish go, and it sounds tremendous with Lollar pickups in it. It's amazingly versatile too. It takes heavy fuzz like a champ and shines again when played clean and with light overdrive.

The Nebula changed the way I feel about guitars. For the first time ever, I'm using it in two bands that play radically different tunes. I retired three traditional Gibsons and Fenders because of it. I can't put it down, and I haven't touched any of the other 20-something guitars I have, which is unusual and somewhat disturbing for me. Aluminati has ruined all other guitars for me, and I feel there's no turning back.

I'm so happy I was inspired to take the plunge with a company I knew very little about, but James and the team deserve credit for being such friendly, helpful, and business-oriented people. I love this guitar, and I've been highly productive in the short amount of time I had it as of this writing.

Is it expensive? Hell yeah! But it's equally innovative, bullet-proof, and super high-quality. It's the Rolls-Royce of guitars. And I'm hooked for life!

My Nebula DX has landed and i cannot tell you how thrilled i am. This guitar is everything.

There are some things in life that you will never fully understand until you have the experience. Becoming a parent. Experiencing the state of expanded consciousness that Hindus or Buddhists call ‘samadhi’ in which you achieve complete oneness with all of creation. Seeing the resplendent and awesome works of nature or man such as the Grand Canyon, Mt Everest, The Great Pyramids at Giza. The great rouge Egyptologist John Anthony West once said “Egypt is like sex. You can read about it and look at pictures of it but until you experience it you will never really get it”

Playing an Aluminati Nebula DX fits with every analogy I just listed. I’m being slightly facetious but not nearly as much ad you think. First of all, to truly understand anything Aluminati makes you have to understand the people who make up the company, and the ethos behind that company. Companies don’t make things, people make things. And the people at Aluminati are truly amazing people. In character and in trade. Founder and owner James was personally texting back and forth with me about my order. The attention to the customers needs is unparalleled. The more I learned about the company, the more videos I watched about how they create their instruments, the more I learned about the thought, intention and passion that goes into every aspect of the company the more I was blown away. They are literally trying to change the world. Renewability is something scarcely thought about in the music business. They have completely made that one of their highest priorities. I could go on and on about how amazingly they are but let’s cut to the chase.

This guitar is freaking INSANE. Top to bottom it’s a work of art. Plays like nothing I ever touched, and I own over 50 instruments. The sustain…. You can’t comprehend. I’m sorry, I would try and explain but it would be for naught. It has to be felt to be understood.

I own many expensive instruments and have a better than average understanding of how many thousands of dollars translates into what as far as instruments go. Every guitar, especially if the multi multi thousand dollar ones need lots of love an attention. Make sure the climate is right, proper set up and maintenance, maintaining a 60 year old instrument is in itself an expensive task at times. But you buy an Aluminati guitar and YOU WILL NEVER NEED TO DO ANY MAINTENANCE EVER. Change the strings. That’s it.

Do yourself the kindness. You own it to yourself. You own it to Mother Earth and your fellow man. And you should support great people doing great things. Get one and understand what reading about it and look at pictures will never give you.

I think I own about 12 guitars. The Nebula DX jumped to the front of the pack the moment I opened the case.

The finish and quality are immediately apparent. There's obviously some serious thought and engineering in the design of this instrument, but when you pick one up you realize there's an equal amount of love and craftsmanship involved in building one. Everything about it says precision and attention to detail.

And that 'precision' metaphor carries over when you play it. I told a friend that it "plays like a scalpel and screams like a laceration." I don't really know how to describe it, but the attack is so fast and the tone is so crisp and clean that it makes my other guitars feel sloppy by comparison. It rewards good playing.

Speaking of tone, there's a lot more tonal versatility than I expected. Max the knobs and switch to the bridge pickup and it's an absolute screamer, but backing off the tone and volume will surprise you with how warm and full the tone can get, and the neck pickup adds a lot of depth. The sustain caught me off guard as well - I expected good sustain from an aluminum-necked guitar, but this thing sustains for days.

Let's be blunt - it's a serious chunk of change for something this new and innovative, but now that I've got one on my wall and I've had a chance to spend some time with it? I consider it money very well spent. I think you will too.

This Nebula feels great, it’s the only neck I’ve really loved the feel of since my original Ibanez RG, but without a truss rod to adjust which is awesome, it’s just always straight m with super consistent string action. I’m a fan.