Jasper guitars are built with unique, groundbreaking technology that increases sustain, enhances desired harmonic overtones, and inhibits unwanted feedback. Our guitars are manufactured in Green Bay, Wisconsin using hardware and parts nearly 100% locally sourced or made in the USA. Quite truly, there is no other guitar available today like a Jasper.
Jasper Guitar Company, LLC (JGC) is a small dedicated group of inspired luthiers and musicians building high quality guitars which we sell directly to the public. Our staff draws from a deep well of guitar repair and manufacturing experience.
To provide high quality guitars made with passion in an environment of innovation.
Tony brings a wealth of rich history and industry experience to Jasper Guitar Company. Repairing guitars since 1972, Tony previously worked for music industry leaders like Alembic Guitars as well as Taylor Guitars where he was one of their first four employees. Tony was also the founder of the Wisconsin based company, Luthier’s Workshop.
Check out this brief video interview with Tony as he tells of his history with American Dream/Taylor Guitars. This video was created by the great people at the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) for their Oral History Program. This wonderful program, spearheaded by Dan Del Fiorentino, produces video archives of select people in the music industry that focus on the stories of these individuals’ contributions to music.
(Photo credit: Paul Hanna)
Mike is the owner of Spruce Machine Inc. since 1991. He is a Northeast Wisconsin Technical College graduate with a degree in Machine Tool Operation and has over 30 years of skilled experience. Mike plays an integral role in the day-to-day operations at Jasper Guitar Company sharing ideas and skills in a long collaborative/design relationship with Tony. As a result of their affiliation, Mike manufactures a large portion of quality guitar components for JGC in his shop right in our building. Our special thanks and gratitude go out to Mike for his passion, skills, and dedication to our goals.
(Photo credit: Paul Hanna)
Karen has been a guitar nut for decades. She majored in Graphic Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and obtained her Bachelor of Science degree from the UW’s School of Education in 1987. Since then her career has included a variety of graphics related jobs during stints at various design firms, larger companies, and as a freelancer. Karen wears many hats for JGC including marketing, instrument design, graphic design, sales, and various other tasks. In her free time, she enjoys dabbling in recording in her small home studio.
(Photo credit: Paul Hanna)
Nate is in a way a prodigal to Luthier’s Workshop/Jasper Guitar Company. Nate was Tony’s first apprentice a decade ago and returns to us a very seasoned veteran luthier. Over the past ten years, Nate has worked for some reputable guitar businesses and gained a wealth of experience in the process.
As you can probably tell from his surname, Matt is Tony’s son. Matt brings an outstanding skill set to both Jasper and Luthier’s Workshop which includes the getting-your-hands-dirty manufacturing duties as well as handling the administration of our business systems. On any given day you might find him cutting hardware on the CNC machines, sanding and prepping guitar bodies, or keeping records and data organized to keep our businesses running efficiently.
Jasper Guitar Company was born from the singular desire to create a better pathway for installing and repairing electronic components in a semi-hollow body electric guitar. What happened next was a discovery process that unfolded over several months and eight prototypes with an end result that was simply groundbreaking.
When considering the extensive history of guitar design and manufacturing over the past couple decades, it’s very difficult to distinguish much that is truly unique. Yet unique was just what we discovered—unique enough to be awarded a Non-Provisional Utility Patent in only nine months’ time (the typical gestation period for patent applications is 18-36 months). US Patent Attorney/Examiner Robert Horn, the issuer of the patent, said in a candid discussion with Tony, “You have created a new category for guitars. There is nothing like it and I look forward to seeing it on the market.”
Jasper Guitar Company (JGC) is nestled in the Midwestern city of Green Bay, Wisconsin and we are proud to report that nearly 100% of our manufacturing, parts, and hardware are locally sourced or made in the USA. We are fortunate to have very talented individuals right here in our little community that possess the high level of skill required to produce world-class guitars.
JGC is a farm-to-table (i.e. direct-to-consumer) company. We sell our guitars directly to individuals, not to music stores. This provides a unique opportunity for the client to experience a one-on-one build relationship with the luthier during the manufacturing process. We feel our direct-to-consumer business model is beneficial because it not only offers a better build experience for the client, it also provides a more accurate transfer of the manufacturing details and requirements. Direct-to-consumer allows JGC to focus on a smaller production output rather than scaling our production for retail distribution.