JOHN BUSCARINO Nylon String "Hybrid" (Carpathian/Honduran Rosewood)

[iim7V7IM7]

Originally Posted by Steve Kinnaird

That really is a remarkable set of Honduran rosewood.
For sure, that's the kind that doesn't grow on trees!

Steve

Thanks Steve...

It really is an unassuming, yet remarkable set of D. Stevensonii. Not exactly a show stopper exotic figure wise, but when one knows wood as you obviously do, it is quite a remarkable set. John said is was 20-year + old and had been seasoning in his woodlocker for decades. The set on the left was about 0.700" so it was thicker than >4 flat back quartersawn sets. This was a very dense and glassy set. It rings like a steel drum when tapped during carving.

He carved it to about 0.140" at the center of the arch and down to about 0.070" at the recurve and rims. Without ladder bracing or center reinforcement strip, the structure comes from the carved arch itself. He chose to join the seam at the edge of the heartwood near the sapwood. You can just see a touch of it on the inside of the carve near the end block.

[rgregg48]

A long time ago I had an opportunity to play Buscarino classical
cutaway guitars...
both were well built but to my ear were
unremarkable..they were both braced with fan struts.
HOWEVER, I never played a recent guitar with his newer
grid bracing. Based on this thread my guess is they are much better sounding now..I hope i get a chance to play a recent rendering!
Rick




.

[iim7V7IM7]

Originally Posted by rgregg48

A long time ago I had an opportunity to play Buscarino classical
cutaway guitars...
both were well built but to my ear were
unremarkable..they were both braced with fan struts.
HOWEVER, I never played a recent guitar with his newer
grid bracing. Based on this thread my guess is they are much better sounding now..I hope i get a chance to play a recent rendering!
Rick
.

John originally learned classical guitar construction from apprenticing under Augustine LoPrinzi for a year. 20-years ago, the Caberet was much more of a Hauser inspired guitar design than what you see today. It was smaller (13-7/8" vs. 14-3/8") guitar and also a less deep guitar (3-5/8" vs. 3-3/4"). It also had a 7-brace fan brace pattern vs. the hybrid lattice brace system that John uses today. You may or may not like it any better, but it is certainly a very different instrument than what you played all those years ago. Here Is a short video of the sound of one of John's more recent Grand Cabaret's in the capable hands of guitarist Mike Christiansen:

[rgregg48]

Based in your description, I think I would like the current offerings much better than the older ones!

[iim7V7IM7]

My Cabaret is now coming out 3-weeks of nitro finish drying/out gassing and is ready now to go into buffing, assembly and set up in John's shop this week. I thought I would share some shots of John's variable down-bearing bridge.

It has 12-holes and John likes to use the lower holes for the treble strings and the upper holes for the bass strings. He likes to have more break angle on the saddle for the treble strings and less for the bass strings. The strings are tied securely either under/over or over/under securely locking the strings. The bridge is made from some beautiful Brazilian Rosewood to match the headplate veneer and face where the 12-holes are laminated with some dense, hard African Blackwood. As a result, it is a fairly heavy bridge at 30 grams. The bridge is inlayed with abalone to match the bridge and headplate veneer.



Here is a short video link that John made showing how easy it is to use...

https://vimeo.com/29262405

[iim7V7IM7]

Just an update...

Good News: The guitar is in transit and should arrive this Thursday.

Bad News: John did not take any photos of the finished guitar so I will need to do that after it arrives to the best of my ability (which isn't great). Even worse, I am off on vacation starting Friday and will have very little time to audition it before leaving! Fortunately, it will be waiting for me when I return...

Eventually, I will put an update up here...

[iim7V7IM7]

Well the Fedex man arrived with my Buscarino Cabaret today...

It is fairly heavy nylon string due to the dense carved HRW back. It weighs in at 4.48 lb.. My Cherry/Cedar classical weighs 3.78 lb. in comparison. The difference is due to the density of the wood and the thickness of the carved back.

I have only played it for about 20 minutes, but its fit n' finish is as good as it gets and it sounds great and plays like butter. It has strong, present trebles which I look for in a nylon string. I haven't got a chance to try it plugged in yet to try out the Barbera Soloist.

Here are a few shots that I took of it at lunch:







More when I can...off to vacation tomorrow!

[Steve Kinnaird]

Oh, so nice! Congratulations!
And the over/under arrangement at the bridge is quite clever.
Will file that away for sure. Have a great vacation Bob!

Steve

[iim7V7IM7]

Originally Posted by Steve Kinnaird

Oh, so nice! Congratulations!
And the over/under arrangement at the bridge is quite clever.
Will file that away for sure. Have a great vacation Bob!

Steve

Thanks Steve...it really has nothing to do with break angle but John found that a higher break angle on wound classical strings caused the windings to unravel faster so he uses the 3 upper holes for the base strings and the 3 lower holes for the treble strings.

[El Conquistador]

Very Cool!!!!!

STeve

[iim7V7IM7]

Before leaving for the weekend, I got to play my Cabaret for two 30 minute sessions on Thursday. I thought that I would share my impressions for those of you who followed along during the build.



Fit and Finish: The quality of the execution of the fit and finish on the guitar is excellent as one would expect from a luthier with John's experience and reputation. Small features such as the sharpness of the maple celtic knot in the snakewood reflect laser cutting (by Tom Ellis) and the subtle beauty of the Birdseye Sugar Maple binding is hard to capture in photos. The first ding will be a particularly painful one when it occurs.

Playing Comfort: The guitar is extremely comfortable to play. The 1-15/16" (48.2 mm) nut width, a comfortable neck profile, a flush cutaway with a perfect set up make it far easier for me to play than my Oberg classical with its wider nut 2-1/6" (52.4 mm) and no cutaway. It is however a heavy guitar for its size due to the dense, carved Honduran Rosewood back. This is not really an issue on a guitar that I play seated, neck up in a classical playing posture. It is a joy to play!

Acoustic Sound: With nylon string guitars, I always look for the solidity of the trebles it can produce with the nylon G, B and E strings. A lightly topped/braced nylon string guitar can produce a deep, sonorous bass. But a classical guitar that can produce thick, musical trebles up and down the neck to me is the mark of a successful build. considering the importance of the melody notes in chord melody. The bass a mids are solid and in proportion to the trebles. I find the guitar to be responsive to touch, with a somewhat fundamental clarity and excellent sustain. Being a spruce topped guitar, it will likely take some playing time to loosen a bit to produce more overtones and color over time. By comparison, my cedar topped Oberg is less fundamental and more "open" sounding with more overtones and tonal color.

Amplified Sound: Instead of a bone saddle, John installed a Barbera Soloist transducer (http://www.barberatransducers.com/guitar_pickups.html). Unlike an under saddle transducer, it is in direct contact with the strings. I think it reproduces an acoustic sound that is quite representative, but like most amplified systems not quite as good as the guitar acoustically. Some the secondary sounds from the top and body are missing. In a larger venue, I think that it produces a very acceptable acoustic sound and it requires no pre-amp, batteries etc.. Here is a clip of jazz guitarist Ken Hatfield playing a Buscarino Cabaret with a Barbera Solist PU that will give you a sense of how it sounds. Try not to get hypnotized by his monstrous chops...





More when I get back....

[iim7V7IM7]

Well, I have had an opportunity to spend a few more days playing the Cabaret that John made for me, and I am happy to report that I am still smitten with it from a visual, feel and sound perspective. It really is a different instrument from my classical guitar and I will try to highlight some of tehse differences. I think both steel string players of a variety of styles as well as archtop jazz players would be delighted with it. I know that I am.

The quality of the build is truly masterful in its execution from top to bottom. The guitars neck is quite different from a classical in feel. The neck is a bit thinner and has a comfortable C-profile. The nut is slightly narrower than a classical at 1-15/16” and the fingerboard is not flat but has a 30” radius. The cutaway and flat heel design allow for easy access to the upper registers. All of these elements make the guitar feel more at “home” for a steel string or archtop player.

Unlike a standard classical which will typically have an “active” back to interact with the top, the carved back acts very much like a parabolic “reflector” so the instrument’s timbre is more fundamental in nature with fewer overtones than my classical. I suspect as the spruce top “opens” up, that a bit more overtone content will come into play over the years. The G,B and E nylon strings produce a warm, powerful treble timbre with a surprising amount of sustain. This quality of tone remains intact up and down the fingerboard which is quite impressive on a nylon stringed instrument. The wound E, A and D strings also produce very solid, balanced bass accompaniment, but not the deep sonorous bass of my classical.

This combination of these sonic qualities is wonderful when playing 3 and 4-note chords where the higher notes in the chords are the melody line. There is a balance and clarity to the guitar. The pronounced mids and trebles and moderate bass accompaniment just works beautifully together in jazz standards and popular music. In summary, it is an extremely comfortable guitar to play that has a more fundamental timbre, dryer in overtones with strong mids, trebles and longer sustain. In contrast, my classical guitar (also wonderful) is less comfortable to play, but is more responsive to touch, with a stronger bass, colorful overtones with notes that develop quickly and decay more quickly. I actually find the Cabaret to be a more forgiving guitar with respect to touch; particularly if one’s right hand is not capable to bring out the subtlety of a highly responsive classical (which is my case).

I plugged in last night again, and I was surprised just how good it sounds. The Barbera Soloist pickup, together with my Acoustic Image Clarus 2R Series III head with a Buscarino Chameleon Speaker produces a very authentic acoustic tone. It requires no preamp, batteries etc. It does not seem susceptible to microphonics or string noise. Is it as good as it sounds acoustically? Well, no. But I think for venues where a performer needs amplification it is definitely a good option, particularly on a nylon string where the downward pressure on the saddle is less. Other luthiers making nylon strings should consider trying this pickup.

[printer2]

Enjoyed your playing, guitar sounds great.

[iim7V7IM7]

Originally Posted by printer2

Enjoyed your playing, guitar sounds great.

Thanks, but that was not me, but jazz guitarist Ken Hatfield...

[printer2]

Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7

Thanks, but that was not me, but jazz guitarist Ken Hatfield...

OK, he almost sounds as well as you do.