FRET-KING
SUPER-MATIC
BY CHARLES SAUFLEY
Individual
motor-driven
capstans for
each string
LCD Status readout
Vari-coil control
In a recent Rig Rundown on premier- guitar.com, Black Crowes and North
Mississippi All Stars guitarist Luther
Dickinson called tuning a “microsecond
to microsecond battle.” For many pitch-obsessive players, that isn’t far from the
truth. And if you’re a tuning freak who
switches between tunings and guitars in
Master control
button
Hex pickup to interface
with ATD HT440 bridge
performance? Well, that can add up to a lot
of variables—and stress—pretty quickly.
The dream of a self-tuning system has
probably been around as long as the electric
guitar itself. And the Fret-King Super-
Matic reviewed here is not the first guitar
to attempt the feat. But in terms of ease of
use and versatility, the Super-Matic may be
the most elegant and practical stab at a self-
tuning system yet.
From the Mind of a Restless
Innovator
Trev Wilkinson, the brains behind the
Super-Matic, has been tinkering with
electric guitar design for decades, and
