• General Specs
• Parker NiteFly models
• Comments about the NiteFly
• Article from Guitar Player
• Where to get a Parker
• MIDI Fun for guitarists

Body: Solid, one-piece select maple.

Colors: See-through red, see-through blue, tobacco sunburst, white, and black.

Neck: The NiteFly's 22 jumbo frets are made of spring-temptered stainless steel and like the Fly Deluxe, are precision surface mounted to an extremely durable fingerboard made of high-modulus carbon and glass fiber.

Pickups: Custom designed DiMarzios in a humbucker/single/single array are mounted in the NiteFly's platic pickguard. A Fishman passive, piezo transducer system is mounted in the bridge.

Controls: Controls for the magnetic pickups include Volume, Tone and a five position selector switch. Additionally, a Volume control for the piezo transducers and selector for magnetic pickups, piezo transducers or both are also included.

Vibrato: The NiteFly's free floating stay-in-tune vibrato system utilizes a premium steel and high strength aluminum bridge.

Tuning Machines: Locking Sperzels.

Updates on the New Models!

Parker NiteFly exists in at least 4 different versions.  Version 1 has three (3) single coil pickups along with the piezo pickup on the bridge.  The version 2 is the same except one of the pickups (by the bridge) is a humbucker instead of a single coil.

Versions 3 and 4 are the updates to 1 and 2 respectively.  Version 1 updates to version 3 and version 2 updates to version 4.  So what's new about NiteFly version 3 and 4?  The main differences is the circuitry for the two types of pickups.  Formerly, you had to use the supplied sterio cable to get sound from both the magnetic pickups (mags) and the piezo electric pickups.  This posed a burden on the guitar player as he couldn't just use any cord out there - he had to have his stereo cable.

Q: How can I tell if I have a version 1, 2, 3 or 4?
A: As mentioned above, a humbucker will indicate either a version 2 or 4 while three single coil pickups indicate either a version 1 or 2.  The visible difference between versions 1/2 and 3/4 is a recessed small round black push-button toggle switch.   All the photos on this page are version 2.  They have the humbucker pickup at the bridge and don't have the toggle switch. 

We spoke and Parker listened.  The upgrade to the new models lies in a tiny switch that can let you switch it from "normal" mode (to emulate the old models) or "new" mode which lets you send signal from both sets of pickups down the same path.  This allows you to use a regular guitar cord and get signal from both the mags and the piezo electric pickups.

This is a very nice improvement.  Thanks Parker Guitars!

Authors Comments on the NiteFly 

Its fretboard makes it easy to play and it is extremely durable. Its tremelo bar is incredible. It doesn't have a locking neck, yet when I whammy'ed the strings to the point where they were so loose that they didn't play - 3 times in a row, the guitar was still in tune! It was amazing.

Perhaps its greatest feature is its build-in piezo pickup system. With this you can instantly switch from a thrashing metal sound, to a clean, clear, crisp acoustic sound. If you weren't staring at the guitar, you would swear that you had actually switched guitars. To get this excellent separation, however it is best to have 2 dedicated amps; one for the magnetic pickups and an acoustic amp for the piezo's.

There are no dot inlays in the fretboard, but there are dots on the side. This can cause a little trouble to the uninitiated. That is the only drawback I see with this guitar; one that I can certainly live with.

The only thing that I don't like about this guitar is that I currently don't own one! But it will definitely be my next guitar.

Simply put, the NiteFly is one of the best guitars for the money on the market today. If you are conidering getting a new axe, then try this one out before you buy, otherwise don't try it out at all because you will only feel bad that you didn't buy the Parker.

Mail any comments or suggestions to Brian Dill

Transparent Blue

Article from Guitar Player Magazine

March 1997 Issue

     The NiteFly is a super-smooth player thanks to its nearly ideal neck proportions, satiny fretwork and low action. The trem feels sure and precise, and the guitar's responsiveness begs your hands to strech out and, well, fly. The hybrid pickup combination is most happening; the single-coils deliver crisp Strat-like flavors in positions 1 through 4, while the bridge humbucker boots out the chunk you need for fat solos and crushing chords. One of the main reasons for considering the Parker, of course, is its saddle transducers. Like its costlier stablemate, the NiteFly lets you choose between magnetic or piezo flavors or any combination of the two. The only catch is you have to use the included stereo cable to access these sounds simultaneously (the Deluxe's active circuitry lets you mix them through a standard guitar cord). Parker informs us that a box will soon be available that interfaces between the guitar and amplifier and allows the mag and piezo pickups to be mixed to mono.
     While the NiteFly's piezo-only mode yielded believable acoustic-electric response when pumped through our Trace Elliot TA-100R, our favorite setup was the magnetic and piezo sources feeding dedicated amplifiers. In particular, the combiniation of a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe 410 and the Trace provided a big, crisp, spacious sound that no single amp could possibly duplicate. Splitting and separately processing the pickups would also allow you to create a huge stereo spread in the studio - ideal for those atmospheric clean tracks.
     The NiteFly packs more sounds per dollar than any standard electric we can think of. If you're too Strat- or Les Paul-fixated to even consider playing a hybrid, be careful about giving this guitar a try - you might just find yourself becoming a Parker Convert.