Question Musicman Majesty or Majesty Monarchy

[Heavylaw]

Hello, I'm looking for the "ultimate guitar" to have. I'm currently interested in the Musicman Majesty but cannot find more information about the Majesty Monarchy.

I'm planning to buy a Purple Majesty Monarchy on April.

Unfortunately I cannot find more information, except short reviews and videos.
Could you please enlighten me about :
- When was it released ? 2017 or 2018 ?
- Is there gonna be a Majesty Monarchy this year or is it ended ?
I've heard the Monarchy is not going to exist for 2019, in order to keep a good "readability" about the Majesty range

- Which Majesty is the highest end ? Majesty or Majesty Monarchy ?
- What is their difference (besides humbuckers) ?
- Is there any known issue reported on this guitar ?
- Is the tuning easy ? (I had guitars with floyd rose, a hell to tune !)
- Can I detune it easily ? (From EADGBE to DADGBE for instance) without consequences on the overall tuning ? (At the contrary with floyd rose)

- Anything to know about this guitar, that I haven't written here ?

Thank you for your time.

 

[PeteDuBaldo]

Hello, I'm looking for the "ultimate guitar" to have. I'm currently interested in the Musicman Majesty but cannot find more information about the Majesty Monarchy.

I'm planning to buy a Purple Majesty Monarchy on April.

Unfortunately I cannot find more information, except short reviews and videos.
Could you please enlighten me about :
- When was it released ? 2017 or 2018 ?
- Is there gonna be a Majesty Monarchy this year or is it ended ?
I've heard the Monarchy is not going to exist for 2019, in order to keep a good "readability" about the Majesty range

- Which Majesty is the highest end ? Majesty or Majesty Monarchy ?
- What is their difference (besides humbuckers) ?
- Is there any known issue reported on this guitar ?
- Is the tuning easy ? (I had guitars with floyd rose, a hell to tune !)
- Can I detune it easily ? (From EADGBE to DADGBE for instance) without consequences on the overall tuning ? (At the contrary with floyd rose)

- Anything to know about this guitar, that I haven't written here ?

Thank you for your time.

The original Majesty was released around 2014 and had all matte opaque finishes (various colors), basswood body, laser etched maple shield, mahogany through-neck, buffed ebony fretboard, and mirrored acrylic fretboard inlays. DiMarzio Illuminator pickups.
The Artisan Majesty was released a year or two later, and had African mahogany body, trans matte finishes (various colors), laser etched maple top, mahogany through-neck. Again with DiMarzio Illuminator pickups, same fretboard & inlays.
The Monarchy Majesty was released a few years ago and mainly differed from the Artisan by having a gloss front of body w/matte back & neck, and a non-laser etched maple shield (various colors), and the Sonic Ecstasy pickups from the JP16. Same fretboard and inlays.
The BFR Majesty models first appeared in 2017 and are the most expensive version, with various body woods, tops, and colors. Some had gloss fronts with enlarged shields of various woods, some had sparkle finishes with no shields, some had Sonic Ecstasy pickups while others had Illuminators. Some had the same inlays, others had "runway" or "ribbon" inlays go the length of the fretboard under the E strings.
The new Majesty line (with a streamlined name) announced in 2019 has fully glossed front/back (except for the Stealth version in matte black), African mahogany body with non-laser etched maple shield (except for Stealth & Kinetic Blue), new fretboard inlay material (non-mirrored), and the new Dreamcatcher and Rainmaker pickups from DiMarzio. Still with buffed ebony fretboard.

BFR Majesty models are the top dog in the Majesty line and also from EBMM's offerings (the NOMAC Majesty is the Alpha Dog). The BFR Majesty had various offerings in 2017, 2018, and hopefully 2019.

You will have similar results trying to what you experienced with the Floyd Rose if you try and detune the Majesty on the fly - it's the same for any guitar with a floating tremolo, the string tension at pitch is balanced by the spring tension in the rear. If you change pitch, the springs react and the tuning of the other strings changes.

 

[johnnyboogie]

The Monarchy Majesty was released in 2017 and is discontinued as of this year, but I believe you will be able to find one (new or used). I've spotted quite a few on Reverb.

No highest end Majesty really, simply different finishes. The Kinetic Blue and Stealth Black finishes feature Basswood wings embracing the Honduran Mahogany body (instead of African Mahogany, which is the case on all other Majesty models). The Original Majesty (now discontinued) featured Basswood wings as well.

Three differences between the new Majesty and the Monarchy Majesty are the humbuckers, the full high-gloss finish on the new versus the gloss front and satin back on the Monarchy and the inlay material.

Like Pete states above there's a whole other universe of special offerings called the BFR Majesties.

 

[Heavylaw]

Thanks for your answers. So impossible to detune on the fly, is there any way to block temporarly the tremolo without damaging the guitar or the tuning (when I'm on drop d for instance) ? I would love to have a tremolo but without tuning problems :/

 

[johnnyboogie]

Unfortunately it's Physics!! =D

That's the point where multiple guitars start being necessary.

 

[look_at_her]

Thanks for your answers. So impossible to detune on the fly, is there any way to block temporarly the tremolo without damaging the guitar or the tuning (when I'm on drop d for instance) ? I would love to have a tremolo but without tuning problems :/

You can install Tremol-No™ Pin-type to lock the trem and then detune as desired . Bottom line is you won`t be able to use whammy bar when in locked position .

 

[Heavylaw]

Thanks I will wait then

 

[grantgochnauer]

This thread is super helpful! I'm currently in the market for a new guitar and have been eyeing the Majesty and Monarchy. When the 2019 models were announced (shipping in April?) I paused to wait to see how these new guitars sounded.

Does anyone have any information on the new pickup system in the 2019 models? Do we know anything how the tone will differ and potentially why the switch? If they are discontinuing the Monarchy guitars, does that imply that these new 2019 Majesty ones are the replacement?

I'm primarily a lead guitar player and focus on more metal/rock/punk (In Flames, NOFX, Andy James) so if anyone has any further guidance for my purchase, it would be greatly appreciated.

For comparison, I'd be coming from a 1997 Parker Fly Deluxe.

Thank you!!

 

[johnnyboogie]

The new pickups (Dream Catcher & Rain Maker) are voiced specifically for the Majesty construction. According to JP they will compliment this guitar construction to its fullest.

 

[PeteDuBaldo]

The new pickups (Dream Catcher & Rain Maker) are voiced specifically for the Majesty construction. According to JP they will compliment this guitar construction to its fullest.

Correct, the new pickups are specifically voiced for the new line of Majesty instruments coming in April.

The Illuminator pickups were voiced for the JP13 and then used in the Majesty which came out the following year.

The Sonic Ecstasy pickups were voiced for the JP16 and then used in the Majesty Monarchy series which came out at approximately the same time (gloss front, matte back), along with some of the BFR Majesty models (not the Gold Sparkle).

 

[tbonesullivan]

If you want to detune on the fly, a standard floating tremolo is unfortunately not really in the cards.

 

[grantgochnauer]

Thanks. Stupid question - what does "voicing" the pickups do? In other words, if the pickups are specifically voiced for a guitar, how is that different than using pickups voiced for another guitar?

 

[beej]

It's a catch-all phrase you hear all the time. Just really means that they picked another set of pickups that were more pleasing to JP's ears, while playing that guitar.

 

[johnnyboogie]

A particular construction (bolt-on, body wood, fretboard wood, frets, etc.) combined with a pickup will produce a certain tone. A different construction (through-neck, etc.) combined with the same pickup will produce a different sonic result. Presumably/Supposedly... If you ask me, I believe the pickup, the cable, the amp&cabin is your sound. Other people argue that wood has also a major influence in the tonal outcome.

 

[Shadow1psc]

I have an original matte blue Majesty and just picked up the Charred Silver BFR. The BFR is... hard to describe. I purposely picked the lightest one available (just north of 6lbs) and it is just everything I've ever wanted in a guitar. I really like the high gloss finish.

I can't say that one is necessarily better than the other, but from the look and feel of the BFR you know you've got something special. I specifically try to not buy any two guitars that are too similar, so I also own a JP7 BFR and it was my favorite until this new one arrived. I will be looking very closely at the 2019 Majesty, however, as mentioned because it will have the first pickups actually designed for the Majesty, as well as that Mahogany body.

TL;DR, I don't think you should pick one up sight-unseen - get yourself to a guitar store or two, try as many different Majesties as you can find because even within the same production run, there will be variance (my BFR had choices from 6lb to almost 8lb).

 

[acwild]

I've been eyeing the Charred Silver BFR as it's gorgeous but I'm in line for an Enchanted Forest Majesty. It's a tough choice. As far as the pickups go, I'm not too concerned about the changes. If I've got to do a side by side to hear the difference, it's not a deal-breaker for me.

 

[Shadow1psc]

I've been eyeing the Charred Silver BFR as it's gorgeous but I'm in line for an Enchanted Forest Majesty. It's a tough choice. As far as the pickups go, I'm not too concerned about the changes. If I've got to do a side by side to hear the difference, it's not a deal-breaker for me.

You're literally in the position I am (was). I already had the JP7 BFR and original Majesty, so once I was informed that the Silver BFR had Sonic Ecstasy pickups, I resolved myself to picking up that now (since it's limited) and getting an Enchanted Forest with the new pickups at a later tbd date since it will be a normal production run.

Let me just say, that Charred Silver finish is done NO justice in the pictures alone - the finish is pure brilliance incarnate. I am over the moon for that guitar.

 

[acwild]

I'm looking at the pictures of the Charred Silver finish from the Sweetwater page and I think it looks extremely classy! Although I'm generally not a fan of silver burst finishes, the Charred Silver looks gorgeous. Maybe it's because of the subtle black edging. Whatever the reason, it works.
My stupid reason for not ordering it is because I'm going to be away from home for a month. If I get the Charred Silver Majesty, it'll sit around until I get home. The timing of the Enchanted Forest version is much better.
This will be my first Majesty. I've owned the JP7 and JPXI (as well as a PDN Axis).

 

[Manuel]

Tengo una majestad monarquia royal red hace 6 meses la palanca del selector de pastilla es de rosca o a presion?
Gracias!!

 

[Daniel]

This thread is super helpful! I'm currently in the market for a new guitar and have been eyeing the Majesty and Monarchy. When the 2019 models were announced (shipping in April?) I paused to wait to see how these new guitars sounded.

Does anyone have any information on the new pickup system in the 2019 models? Do we know anything how the tone will differ and potentially why the switch? If they are discontinuing the Monarchy guitars, does that imply that these new 2019 Majesty ones are the replacement?

I'm primarily a lead guitar player and focus on more metal/rock/punk (In Flames, NOFX, Andy James) so if anyone has any further guidance for my purchase, it would be greatly appreciated.

For comparison, I'd be coming from a 1997 Parker Fly Deluxe.

Thank you!!

Hi, The new Dimarzio Dreamcatcher and Rainmaker pickups are designed to complement the body woods on the Majesty to bring out the natural warmth and timbre of the guitar. The pickups have an increased sensitivity to pick attack and an extended dynamic range resulting in pickups that are clearer and broader with a more pronounced expressive tone.
The Monarchy Majesty came with DiMarzio Sonic Ecstasy pickups which are mid-bass heavy due to the gloss finish. The Illuminator pickups that come with the 2018 Majesty were designed to have a more even output to accommodate the matte finish on that specific model guitar. Each of these pickups was designed to allow the Majesty to achieve the most optimum output based on the tonewoods and finishes. This way, you're getting the best possible sound to your amplifier.