I started playing bass (and later guitar) in my early teens. Shortly after, i found myself tinkering with setups, changing hardware and basically learning how the instruments worked and how they were constructed. Inspired by this, i ended up building my first own bass at age 15 on a community college course. After that, i continued to further learn the craft at Ikaalinen School of Arts and Crafts, from where i graduated as an artisan luthier in 2009 and shortly started Manninen Custom Instruments after in 2010. Now, as i'm writing this in 2025, i've been involved with building guitars for about 25 years, been in the business for 15 years and gotten an official Master Luthier degree in late 2024. 

During my years as a player, hobbyist mixing engineer & somewhat of a touring musician i've developed a quite a clear picture what the requirements for a great instrument are, especially in the variety of metal genres.