About Alexander James

I strive to constantly improve the norm of guitar construction and design.

Since 2002, I have been building and designing custom guitars. My vast knowledge of exotic woods allows me to craft each instrument to match a certain tone. The quality of these instruments reflects my dedication and passion toward the organic feel of music.

After realizing my passion, I wanted to start a business selling my creations. In 2009, I opened my own shop in Peterborough, Ontario. All of the guitars are completely designed and manufactured by me.

Every piece of lumber is handpicked to create the finest sounding and best-looking guitars possible. My mission is to deliver quality handmade instruments that exceed your expectations. With every new idea and strategy, I continue to push the envelope of custom guitar building to new heights.

As well as building guitars I am constantly making music and building various other musical electronics. I build personalized amps and effects pedals for myself and friends. Maybe I will offer some for sale on this site one day.

Dave Stephan
I bought my first Alexander James guitar in April 2011; it's the Ursa Maple featured on the 12th Fret website. As nice as the guitar looks in those pictures, it's even nicer when you're holding it in your hands. I'm always knocked out at how beautiful the Ursa is; the workmanship and the quality of the woods and parts that Alexander use really stand out. Then, when you start playing! The guitar has a shimmering sound to it, it's kind of hard to describe but the combination of the brightness of the maple, the warmth of the ebony fretboard, and the sustain from the neck-through design sound great!

One day last December when I was playing this guitar, I was enjoying it so much that I thought I should send Alexander an email saying just that. He replied saying that he appreciated the comments, and that he happened to have the Ora Ziricote guitar available, and would I be interested in buying it? I immediately cursed him for making such terrific guitars, and since my powers of resistance were low, I bought it. Another hit! The ziricote/bubinga combination works really well; when I strum a chord or pick a note and hold it, not only does the sustain go on forever, but I can feel the vibration of the sound going right through the guitar. I couldn't be more pleased with Alexander's guitars.

Jamie Lefley
Being local afforded me the opportunity to gain a special level of customization on my guitar. Every 2 weeks or so I was able to stop by Alexander's workshop to check out the progress of the instrument and consult with him on new innovations being tested out on my guitar. This involved things like a thinner profile body and complete removal of the notch where the neck meets the body.

The finished product provides amazing sustain, fast playing and unparallelled fret access. A blend pot in place of a pickup switch provides unlimited tone options and the guitar seemingly never goes out of tune.

Jake Bartoli
I purchased an Alexander James custom Ursa model guitar about two years ago and I am thoroughly impressed with the dedication and craftsmanship that has been put into this instrument. The design is fluid and inspiring, and being able to customize the specs means it is exactly the sound I was looking for. Having an instrument that inspires me is an important factor in my creative process, and Alexander James guitars delivers just that.