Modern fan bracing Cedar/Ziricote

This is my second in a series of guitars which take inspiration from the work of Dominique Field, this time in Red Cedar and 640 scale. With the addition of an elevated neck and a discreet soundport, I believe these offer an excellent blend of tone, volume, projection and playability, perfectly bridging the gap between purely traditional guitars and modern, heavy body lattice braced soundboards.

This set of Ziricote has been in my possession for more than 10 years. Perfectly quartersawn and virtually impossible to improve upon. Finest quality old rosewood headplate and bridge, matched in figure to the ziricote, ziricote headstock back, maple binding, African blackwood fingerboard, steel frets, cedrella neck, Gotoh premium tuners. 

I am including a couple videos, as always the pure sound as it came from the microphones, without any silly reverb or any other enhancement. First with zero finish (raw wood) and second with partial finish on, giving a more polished, closer to final sample. Also including a video from when I was bending the sides, quite terrified at the prospect of anything going wrong, as ziricote has a reputation of being extremely delicate. These actually bent like butter with zero distortions or any other of the usual bending issues.

Carpathian spruce and Indian rosewood, small Spanish model

This is my smaller shape, Torres based guitar but which I am now reluctant to call a Torres hommage anymore. Through slow evolution it has migrated towards a more balanced sound, slightly more forward, clear and projecting than a close Torres replica. It might be close to what Romanillos tried to teach his students: a versatile, well balanced small bodied spruce traditional guitar.

The soundboard is Carpathian spruce, body and bridge Indian rosewood. African blackwood fingerboard with stainless steel frets, cedro neck and Ceylon satinwood binding.

Unfortunately no pro player demoing this one, just me trying it when absolutely new born and bare wood.

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An older spruce and Amazon rosewood lattice

This is a 2018/2019 build which I neglected to post. I think it has matured with a very interesting tone, modern yet not artificial or non-guitaristic, which for me is essential when building a concert guitar. Specs are lattice braced German spruce top, mahogany elevated neck, Amazon rosewood body, Brazilian rosewood bridge and armrest. For the sound samples two excellent modern pieces by Romanian composers Dan Dediu and Catalin Stefanescu.

A modern fan braced instrument in Alpine spruce and wenge

Pleased to present a 2022 guitar built for my friend, guitarist and teacher Costin Soare. Here I am revisiting the French school, this time taking inspiration from the works of Dominique Field. It is a Fleta style bracing (two harmonic bars under the soundhole but with only five fan braces, meaning a rather meaty soundboard) with densely braced, stiff back and sides. The guitar has excellent sustain and a thick, powerful first string. The tone is refined, reminding me of a Bouchet but with less nasality, more explosion, and a bolder more Spanish bass. The sound has good spontaneity and seems eager to project forward rather than being trapped inside. Overall I am very pleased and I will be using this as a starting point for my future modern spruce guitars.

Austrian Alpine spruce soundboard, African wenge back and sides, African sipo mahogany neck with rosewood reinforcement, African blackwood fingerboard with stainless steel frets, matched Brazilian rosewood bridge, heelcap and endgraft, Amazon rosewood carved headplate, Gotoh premium tuners.

Sample recordings are made in its early days (raw tone being bare wood) with carbon strings.

A Spanish/Torres model in Swiss spruce and Indian rosewood

One from 2021 which I forgot to show. Highest grade Swiss spruce and Indian rosewood, Brazilian rosewood bridge, African Blackwood fingerboard, maple binding. A studio recording by the owner, composer Adrian Andrei.

Alpine spruce/Madagascar rosewood Torres hommage

A Torres hommage I built with one of my oldest sets of high grade Madagascar. Lovely lyrical response with deep bass and plump trebles. Blackwood fingerboard, cedro / carbon fiber neck, maple binding, ultra light aluminium Gotoh tuners. 640mm scale, early, unedited recording with d’addario normal tension strings.

A double top prototype

One of my composite soundboard prototypes which came to completion during the pandemic. Alpine spruce outer, balsa core, cedar inner, Indian rosewood body, Brazilian rosewood bridge, ebony binding and armrest. As always I did not design this for absolute volume/boom but a blend of tonal quality, sustain and projection. I was very pleased with the result: quality, singing trebles, low nasality, natural tone.

Spruce/Wenge lattice

Continuing to catch up with the blog, this is my first wenge guitar made in 2020, and despite the difficulties of using this wood the tone is really a pleasant surprise. The top is Italian Alpine spruce, wood lattice bracing, ebony headplate and binding, African blackwood fingerboard and armrest, Brazilian rosewood bridge. Below the gallery, a couple videos made by the owner.

#74 Traditional with modern features

Celebrating the aquisition of “marianguitars.com” with a post 🙂 This is my number 74 delivered in spring 2021. Hauser engine but with an elevated neck and armrest, Alpine spruce, old Rio bridge, ABW fingerboard, Madagascar rosewood body. Fortunate to have Dragos Ilie in town for a test run.

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A special Torres hommage

This is a Romanian maple Torres style guitar with a rather unusual feature: a sterling silver mini-tornavoz (and nut). Alpine spruce top, sipo neck, Blackwood head, Rio fb and bridge, ebony binding.