This guitar is a hybrid, with the playability of a steel string guitar, but the sound and strings of a nylon, classical guitar. The inlay is mother of pearl and koa.
There are a lot of choices out there for the buyer of a fine guitar. The choice between a “Brand Name” guitar and a handmade custom guitar can be daunting and there are a lot of factors one must consider before buying. If you’ve made it to this page, chances are, you are looking for a quality guitar that will last you for years to come. A quality guitar is an investment and gets better with age. Any quality guitar, whether it be from a famous brand or handmade, costs what most people consider to be a lot of money. Are there convincing reasons to spend your money on a handmade guitar from a custom builder instead of from a brand name factory? There most definitely are.
The assembly line prevents mass manufacturers from individually voicing their guitars, which is a key component in determining how the finished guitar will sound.
Brand name guitars from companies such as Gibson, Martin and Taylor defined the industry, and for good reason. They brought innovations to the guitar not seen before and created beautiful instruments with exceptional tone. With the help of famous musicians, these guitars became iconic. Think of Johnny Cash and the Martin D-35, Bob Dylan and the Gibson J-50 and Eric Clapton with the Martin 000-28 (what my guitars happen to be modeled after). It’s no secret, however, that the big brands have switched to a mass produced, assembly line operation to keep up with their increasing demand. While the assembly line is great from a large volume manufacturing point of view, when it comes to creating a guitar with exceptional sound qualities, it does not work so well.
That’s not to say you cannot buy a great sounding guitar from the big brands anymore. You still can, but they seem to be fewer and farther between than in years past. Most guitars coming off an assembly line will sound average, some will sound exceptional, while others will be duds. Why is this? The assembly line prevents mass manufacturers from individually voicing their guitars, which is a key component in determining how the finished guitar will sound. On the assembly line, the guitar parts are machined and assembled with consistency and to a standard that in some cases can be quite high, but this process still falls short of individuality and proper voicing of the instrument. Enter the handmade guitar.
The difference between one of my guitars and a mass-produced guitar is that mine are made to order, and that means they are made for you. For a guitar to sound its best, the wood must work well together. Every component of the guitar matters when it comes to tone and each piece must work seamlessly with the next. This is an impossible task on the assembly line. The beautiful thing about wood is that each piece is unique and has its own characteristics. The assembly line manufacturing process does not take these individual characteristics into account and therefore, it is rare to get a truly great sound from a mass-produced instrument.
The most important step in determining the finished sound of the guitar is the voicing of the tone bars.
Each of the tone bars are tuned to a specific note and every piece works seamlessly with the next, creating a beautifully sounding instrument.
On my guitars, I individually tune (or voice) each tone bar to ensure the best possible tone for that guitar. Each tone bar is tuned to a specific note and while the technique of doing this is basically the same with each guitar, the amount of wood to take off or leave on each tone bar differs depending on how each individual piece of wood interacts with the next. The most important step in determining the finished sound of the guitar is the voicing of the tone bars.
Another important aspect of tone is the quality of the material used in building the instrument. I want to make one thing very clear regarding wood on guitars. Some of the less expensive guitars out there use plywood as the material of choice. Oftentimes, this plywood is veneered to look like an expensive exotic wood. Do not be fooled by this tactic. The great thing about a quality acoustic guitar is that as the wood ages, the instrument opens up and begins to sound even better than the day you bought it. The more you play your instrument, the better it will sound. This will not happen with a less expensive, plywood based guitar. The sound will never change and improve because plywood will not age well. I only use solid wood, meant for fine instruments in the construction of my guitars.
On my guitars, I use wood grades ranging from AA – Master Grade, depending on the customer’s budget.
Wood is graded in quality and just like most things in life, the higher the quality of the material, the better the finished product will be. Many mass-manufactured guitars may use a high-quality wood for the sound board, but sacrifice the back and sides to save costs. Some even use plywood veneered backs and sides, which destroy a guitars tone. On my guitars, I use wood grades ranging from AA – Master Grade, depending on the customer’s budget. The high-quality wood I use on my instruments ensures a top-notch instrument, with exceptional looks and tone, that gets better with time.
Another advantage to buying a custom, handmade guitar is that it is tailored to you and your playing style. Who is the mass-produced assembly line guitar made for? Were you and your playing style kept in mind when that guitar was on the assembly line? Unless you are far more famous than the rest of us, chances are the answer to that question is no. What if you have big hands and you struggle to play clean notes on the narrow fret boards found in many guitars? No problem, I can make your guitar with a wider fret board, with the strings spaced a bit wider, making it easier for you to play. Maybe your hands are on the smaller side and you’ve been struggling to play those chords that really make your hand stretch. I can just make that neck a little narrower and shallower and you’ll be hitting those chords perfectly in no time.
Do your tastes favor an intricate, detailed and decorated guitar with many inlays or do you prefer something a little more subtle and discreet? Do you want a guitar with an exotic tone wood such as Hawaiian Koa or Australian Blackwood or do you prefer a tried and true, industry standard wood such as Indian Rosewood? A fine guitar is an extension of the player and is a great way to express your own unique style. There’s no better way to do that than buying a truly one of a kind, custom instrument.
Finally, not a factor at all to the sound of the guitar, but still really cool and not something you’ll get from a mass-produced guitar, is that with one of my guitars, I will include a picture book of the production of your guitar. I take step by step photos of the construction of your instrument and make a book just for you showcasing your instrument. It’s the least I can do for giving me the opportunity to build you a guitar.