Ashton Symmetry Sublime - "Rhythm King" Mk2

 

When the "Rhythm King" Mk1 sold in late 2025, there were folks who just missed the mark to buy it asking if I would be making another. And so I did, bringing in a few changes and some notable improvements to the overall design to make it even MORE playable...

 

Built from a swanky Ashton Symmetry/Sublime round-topped thick-walled box, the "Rhythm King Mk2" is made for full-sounding chord-work and throaty leads/melodies.

 

Equipped with a vintage-style "toaster" pickup that's warm but really chimey-sounding, along with a hidden passive piezo for those honking, rough-around-the-edges old-school CBG sounds. The "toaster" pickup has its own volume and tone control, and the piezo has its own independent volume as well, for nice blending possibilities. The piezo gets great raw lo-fi sound on its own but also blends well with the electric pickup, surprisingly.

For the Mk2, I went with a little different neck-join location (plus an all-maple neck, which looks great with the box's finish) and a top-loading hardtail 6-saddle bridge.

This one has a classy look due to its shiny walnut colored finish and smoothed-over front corners, and it's also a very lively, resonant-sounding instrument to boot! The deep box also allowed me to use a "Strat-style" jack (the "football" jack), and I went with mid-sized mesh sound hole covers to keep it tidy in front. Thanks to the "bookend" placement of the bridge and pickup, I was able to show off the ornate decal on the front.

A killer-sounding guit-fiddle for beating out those blues and Americana riffs! Very happy with how this one turned out, and it definitely improves on its predecessor!