The Regal RD-52 Black Lightning is a square neck resonator acoustic guitar. I’ve used this guitar a few times on my own sessions at a studio that I used to work at. In general I’m a huge fan of the sound of resonator guitars and find square neck versions extremely fun to play. This is a beautiful instrument, made of mostly mahogany and an ebony fingerboard. It’s just an acoustic instrument, so there’s no pick ups or setting controls here…



UTILIZATION

The overall feel of the Regal RD-52 Black Lightning is nothing short of impeccable. I’m not the most proficient slide player since I’m not accustomed to all of the different tunings, but I still find this really easy to play. It feels like it was made with a lot of care and has a beautiful overall finish and look.


SOUNDS

There’s really nothing like the sound of a resonator guitar, and the Regal RD-52 Black Lightning has is nailed down perfectly. It’s a very sweet sounding instrument in general and the RD-52 in particular sounds really great when compared to the others that I’ve used before. I got some great sounds in the studio with myself playing but would love to hear how it sounds when a true picker gets behind it!


OVERALL OPINION

The Regal RD-52 Black Lightning is a great way to get a reasonably priced square neck dobro/resonator guitar. There are certainly better dobros out there, but I’m really a big fan of this one, especially considering the inexpensive price. I’d definitely recommend doing a good amount of trying and research before buying, but if you don’t want to settle for a cheap instrument and don’t have money to drop on the big boys, the Regal RD-52 Black Lightning is the perfect in between. When I’m ready to get a square neck dobro at home, this will most likely be the model I get…