Richmond Series

Godin introduced the Richmond electric guitar line in 2008. The Richmond models had retro styling and featured two models at launch - the Belmont and Dorchester, with the Empire model released in 2010. The Richmond brand was named after the town in Quebec where these guitars were manufactured. The Richmond brand was discontinued in 2013.

Richmond Belmont

The Richmond Belmont was introduced in 2008 and made until 2013. The Belmont packed a full gamut of classic rock muscle into its vaguely SG styled solid mahogany body. This 24 ¾” scale axe is powered by two single coil Lipstick pickups by Seymour Duncan, along with a Seymour Duncan ’59 humbucker in the bridge. All of which is controlled by a 5-way selector switch and separate volume and tone knobs. The Belmont’s bolt-on mahogany neck features the worn in feel of an Ergocut rosewood fingerboard for a comfortable playing experience.

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Richmond Dorchester

The Richmond Dorchester was introduced in 2008 and made until 2013. The Dorchester has retro Mosrite inspired style with a 25 ½” scale, two classic sounding Lace Alumitone humbucker pickups, housed in a double cutaway chambered body with a silver leaf maple center and poplar wings. The pickups are controlled by separate volume and tone knobs, along with a 4-way switch that allows you to select between various sounds, including the first position which enables the neck & bridge to be in-series, giving the player a fatter tone and more output.

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Richmond Empire

The Richmond Empire was introduced around 2010 and made until 2013. The Richmond Empire has a retro 70s style similar to the Ovation Viper.  The Empire features a 24 3/4 ” scale, a low noise single-coil pickup and a Custom Godin humbucker in the bridge or two Godin Kingpin P90 single-coil pickups (Mahogany model only). Pickups are housed in a single cutaway solid body with a silver leaf maple center and poplar wings or the solid mahogany body of the Empire mahogany HG.

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Specifications:

ModelImageFinish colorsFinish effectsMade inNumber of stringsScale length
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
black finish, red finish, white finishgloss finishCanada6 strings24.75 inches scale-length
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
black finish, cream finish, natural finish, red finishgloss finish, sunburst finishCanada6 strings25.5 inches scale-length
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
black finish, cream finish, mahogany finish, natural finish, white finishgloss finish, satin finishCanada6 strings24.75 inches scale-length
ModelControls shapeNumber of control knobsPickup selector controlsTone controlsVolume controls
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
top hat controls2 control knobs5-way selector switch1 tone control1 volume control
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
top hat controls2 control knobs4-way selector switch1 tone control1 volume control
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
top hat controls2 control knobs3-way selector switch1 tone control1 volume control
ModelPickups brand and modelPickups configuration
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
Seymour Duncan 1959 pickup(s), Seymour Duncan Lipstick single coil pickup(s)2 single coil pickups and 1 humbucker pickup
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
Lace Alumitone pickup(s)2 humbucker pickups
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
Godin pickup(s)1 single coil and 1 humbucker pickup, 2 single coil pickups
ModelBody materialBody shape featuresPickguard materialHollow body
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
mahogany bodydouble cutawayblack pickguard, white pickguard-
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
maple body, poplar bodydouble cutawayblack pickguard, white pickguardsemi-hollow body
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
maple body, poplar bodysingle cutawayblack pickguard, white pickguard-
ModelBridgeHardware colorTailpiece
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
roller bridgechrome hardwareBigsby Vibrato tailpiece, stop tailpiece
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
roller bridgechrome hardwareBigsby Vibrato tailpiece, stop tailpiece
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
wraparound bridgechrome hardware-
ModelFingerboard material
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
rosewood fingerboard
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
rosewood fingerboard
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
rosewood fingerboard
ModelNeck jointNeck widthNumber of fretsTuner layoutNeck material
Richmond Belmont
2008 to 2013
bolt on neck1.69 inches wide at nut22 fretthree-each-side-
Richmond Dorchester
2008 to 2013
bolt on neck1.69 inches wide at nut22 fretthree-each-sidemaple neck
Richmond Empire
2010 to 2013
bolt on neck1.69 inches wide at nut22 fretthree-each-sidemahogany neck