Guild S-100

The Guild S-100 is a double-cutaway solidbody guitar with dual humbucking pickups, produced from 1970 onward as Guild's answer to the Gibson SG. Its mahogany body and set neck construction produce a warm, thick tone with pronounced sustain, while its humbuckers deliver high output suited to heavy rock styles. Kim Thayil of Soundgarden made the Guild S-100 his primary guitar for the band's entire career, famously stating he'd been using the same guitar for seventeen years. Thayil's S-100, paired with Mesa/Boogie amplifiers and heavy fuzz, produced the massive, sludgy guitar tone that defined Soundgarden's sound across Badmotorfinger and Superunknown. The guitar's slightly different voicing from the Gibson SG it resembles — thicker low end, less nasal midrange — suited Soundgarden's drop-tuned, heavy approach. Original S-100s have become collectible partly due to Thayil's association, though Guild has reissued the model periodically.