Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dave Mason and industrial designer Ravi Sawhney announced the launch of their company, RKS, the end result of their three-year collaboration. The new company’s line of electric guitars and basses, which introduce the concept of the “open architecture” instrument, are designed to appeal to the music enthusiast and professional musician alike.
“I’ve been involved with the design team from the start and I’m known around the design studio as the ‘not yet’ guy. That means, they keep bringing it to me and I go, ‘It’s cool, but…not yet. Take it back and do this,’” said Mason, co-founder of RKS. “In short, my job is to take the designs and actually make them sound, work and feel the way a guitar should feel and sound to a professional musician.”
“The collaboration between the RKS design team and Dave Mason has been highly synergistic. By switching roles with my design team as the musician and with Dave as the designer, we’ve had a chance to see things from the other person’s point of view and the end results have been truly magical,” said Sawhney, CEO and co-founder.
The new guitars and basses from RKS all use a “neck through body” construction, aluminum or wood ribs, and molded polymer or wood body shells, creating a revolutionary approach to the look and function of the electric guitar. Another unique feature is a removable pick guard that provides easy access to the pick-ups and internal electronics of the instruments so that they can be changed to suit the specific needs of the musician.
To listen to a sample of an RKS bass guitar at www.rksguitars.com/audio/eb/Bass_clip1.wma and to find out more information go to www.rksguitars.com/a>.
