One of the brands offered by Saga Musical Instruments, Regal is known for its affordable National-style metal- and wood-body resonator instruments. The company’s RD-40 line is available in several configurations, with various colors and wood combinations, and with a round or square neck. The RD-40VS is part of Regal’s Studio series. It has a square neck, a sunburst finish, and is constructed with mahogany back and sides and a spruce top. A spider resonator with a US-made, hand-spun cone is installed in Regal’s Power Reflex resonator chamber and is designed to produce authentic dobro tone.

Peghead Nation Dobro instructor Mike Witcher’s first dobro was a Regal RD-40 and he recently had the opportunity to check out one of the company’s current Regal RD-40VS models. In this video, Mike plays the guitar and discusses how Regals make a great, affordable entry-level instrument that can be upgraded with different components as a player progresses.

SPECS: Wood-body, square-neck resonator guitar. Spruce top. Mahogany back and sides. Mahogany neck. Rosewood fingerboard. Aluminum spider bridge. Hand-spun, US-made aluminum cone. 25-inch scale. Two-inch nut width. Nickel-plated, enclosed tuning machines. Made in China. $549 list/$400 street. Sagamusic.com

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