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#1
12-29-2009, 12:12 PM
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Questions about what to choose for my first custom guitar!
Hey everyone,
So I'm sure you gents (and ladies, if you're out there!) get a lot of these type of threads, but I wanted to get some personal insight because I highly value the opinions of the people on this forum. I'm more of a lurker than anything else but I've recently met a young, aspiring luthier who is interested in making a custom guitar for me at a decent price - and I am very excited at the opportunity. So here I stand, before you, in desperate need of help. I've done some reading (both on and off the forums) so I have some rough ideas of what I want but I wanted to see what some of you might recommend for me as experts in this sort of thing! I guess I should start by giving a little background on myself. I'm a guitar player of about 9 years (that long huh? sad that I'm still this bad!) and have always been a heavy flatpicker. I'm the proud owner of two Taylors: a 914ce which sits mostly in it's case now (unfortunately), and a GS5 that takes up pretty much all of my time. I absolutely love the GS5 because it has some great low-end response, but is balanced enough so that it's a joy to record with as well. This past summer I experimented with tuning the GS5 up to B to B (a full octave above baritone, admittedly not my idea) and wrote some songs in that tuning that I really liked. Of course, using extra light strings really took all the oomph out of the guitar that I loved so much - so I was thrilled when I went into the studio to do some recording that a friend of mine had a Tacoma Thunderhawk Baritone acoustic laying around. When I recorded I played 1 track on the Tacoma and 1 on the Taylor (still an octave above) for a pretty neat effect. Needless to say, I fell in love with the Thunderhawk (mostly) and have wanted something similar ever since. So I'm looking at having a custom baritone acoustic built, but I know very little about what I should pick for all the different options. I know I'm looking at at least a 28" scale, and possibly mahogany for a top wood. I want to keep things semi-affordable so I'm trying to be conscious of wood and materials costs - nothing extremely fancy. I plan on keeping the guitar tuned mostly from B to B, but wouldn't mind being able to put it in D with some lighter strings (medium gauge I would assume). Any insight on things I should and need to consider would be appreciated. I'm not sure what kinds of decisions I'll need to make or what I'll be asked, so I want to be as informed as possible before going into this! Thanks in advance for any help, and sorry for the lengthy post. Just wanted to be as clear and specific as possible! 
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#2
12-29-2009, 12:44 PM
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Hey Justin,
Not sure if you followed Peter's threads as he embarked on his first baritone build.... http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=164744 http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=165041 http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=167893 Also, I was wondering if a baritone would be a little bit of a stretch for your "aspiring luthier", or has he built enough "standard sized" guitars to take on a baritone? I would assume that you won't be looking at a fan fret, which will make it a bit easier. Good luck, and be sure to post pics once this gets underway...oh and let us know the specifics once its determined, by posting the info here.... http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=171546 Aloha, Hen
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Andrew White Production: Cybelle 112 Rosewood/Sitka Andrew White Production: Cybele 312C Crossover Rosewood/Red Cedar Clark: A-Wedge Koa/Snkr Rdwd 12-str Clark: A-Wedge Monkeypod/Snkr Rdwd Cornerstone: Zion All Koa Cornerstone: Tenor Ukulele Prototype #2 All Koa Fay: OM Mac Eb/Englemann Stehr: Aud. Braz/Snkr Rdwd 8-str Plaid Coyote's gone home to play
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#4
12-29-2009, 02:19 PM
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Thank you Hen for the info. Perhaps I'm selling him short - when I said aspiring I simply meant he hasn't been doing this for 20, 30, or 40 years like some of the greats out there. He seemed confident that a baritone wouldn't be an issue, and I know he trained with luthiers in Michigan and Vermont and went to school for this sort of thing, so I don't want to sell his skillset short. It's definitely more than a hobby for him, I know that much!
Phil, I did reach out to him for suggestions as well. I'm sure he'll be able to help, I just didn't know if anyone on here had any personal recommendations. I will definitely look through the links posted though and appreciate the info!
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#5
12-29-2009, 04:42 PM
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Well, NOW I get it! You're asking for opinions and preferences and ideas! Opinions we certainly have in plenty around here!
Your 914 is likely East Indian Rosewood with an Englemann top, right? And your GS5 is mahogany with a cedar top, also right? And you are leaning toward woods that will a) sound great but not b) cost excessively. You mention a mahogany top, and while I personally love that (see my signature) that is a less frequent top wood. There are many here who love them. I think you'll find them "tight" - controlling even more the tones to a fundamental rather than "rich" and "open" like the rosewoods and spruce tops. If you like that sound, full steam ahead! If you want to moderate that a bit, you might stick with the mahogany for your back and sides - or a similar wood like walnut - and consider one of the spruces for a top wood. Or you might consider macassar ebony with a redwood top - that's what my baritone is being made with by Rob Bustos (Paragon). The rest is aesthetics and the skill of your builder to produce the tonal signature that you want. Some like big contrasts and some like subtle, flowing colors. Sound port, cutaway, double top/side/back ($$!!) options, etc. Browse through the Custom Shop build threads, and visit the sponsoring luthier's websites for pictures to get a feel for what can be done. And have fun looking and making the decisions! Finally, like Hen said, be sure to share with us what you decide and the build pics as this develops. Sounds like a fun project and we love our vicarious builds. Cheers, rr/Phil
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Paragon RW/Macassar Ebony Baritone Rainsong S OM1100-N2 Woolson LS RW/30s African mahogany LG 12 Baranik LS RW/"tree" mahogany OO Baranik Blue Spruce/"tree" mahogany OM Boswell RW/koa OO Baranik Retreux Parlour Adi/Pumaquiro Baranik Blue Spruce/Coco Meridian "Geo" Baranik Blue Spruce/Kingwood OO Woolson T13 RW/Walnut SIG
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#6
12-30-2009, 03:45 AM
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My suggestions (similar to some of those above):
1. be clear in your own mind about what you want from the instrument in terms of tone / playability / usage - and communicate these thoughts clearly to your builder 2. think about any personalisation you might want - perhaps something you've seen in another instrument by that builder that you'd like to incorporate into yours, such as a particular stye of inlay or purfling 3. be open to ideas from your builder, but don't forget it's your guitar so you need to be happy with every decision 4. keep the communication going - if you have doubts, ideas etc speak to your builder, ask questions etc 5. enjoy the process  Fliss
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