NGD: Brondel A-1 Engelmann and Jatoba

[justonwo]

I received this new (to me) A-1 today and have been playing it for the last few hours. For those of you unfamiliar with Laurent's nomenclature, the "A" refers to a 14 fret design while the "1" refers to his largest body size (15 5/8").

The guitar is described as an "Essential Deluxe" - which is an upgraded version of his more bare-bones Essential guitars, complete with a gorgeous oil varnish finish and a simplified version of his arrow purfling. The guitar also sports his amazing "Daktari" celluloid bindings (as well as leopard print side reinforcement on the inside).

I have not played another jatoba guitar, but I can describe the wood as somewhere in the mahogany camp, though it has a certain honesty that likens it to maple. Perhaps a hybrid of those two woods. It's similar to koa in many ways, to my ear. It's a beautiful sound, as I love mahogany, maple, and koa in their own right.

I was concerned that the Engelmann might not have the headroom I need for my heavy picking, but it has incredible headroom and responsiveness. It's not quite as fast on the attack as red spruce, but nothing really is. Its tone is clear and powerful, with wonderful, subtle overtones and complexity. Just what I would expect from a Brondel.

The A-1 body doesn't really feel like a big guitar. The sound has a bit more girth and a depth to the bass that my A-2 doesn't possess, but it also doesn't quite have the projection of my A-2. These are the compromises one would expect moving between those two body sizes. The sound is quintessential Brondel, with wonderful clarity, complexity, and musicality. I always seem to be at home playing his guitars.

The setup is flawless and the playability top notch. He has the best neck profile in history. Made specifically for my hand.

It's reminiscent of my (dearly departed) A-2 mahogany in terms of its musical flavor, though the larger body certainly creates a different overall feel. Still fantastic - just more of what you would expect from a larger body.

The guitar features cocobolo on the head plate, end wedge, heel cap, and bridge. I may change the Schertlers for Alessi tuners, as I don't like the look of Schertler.

[colins]

Nice to see you have another Brondel in the house! Love that rosette.

Col

[CoolerKing]

This thing is killer. You know I love those bindings, and the headplate and wood is nicely figured. Congrats!

[iim7V7IM7]

Congrats on your new (2012 I believe) A-1...

Jatoba is dense, hard and stiff tropical hardwood like a rosewood. I have played one 16" Jatoba guitar at Bruce Sexauer's shop and it was a very strong in terms of the solidity of its timbre and projection. I sometime feel that Engelmann Spruce gets an unfair name in terms of what it can do. Like all spruces, density and stiffness can vary quite a bit within a species. The BRW guitar that Kent made for me has an Engelmann top and it has plenty of head room. I suspect the difference in attack may have to do with the larger body size vs. the top wood.

[CoolerKing]

Juston, now's your chance to ask the luthiers. Are there any drop-in replacements for the Schertlers? The good thing about the Alessis: I bet the base plate is bigger and would cover up any markings. The bad thing, the backlash issue.

[Diamondave]

Dude.....! Congratsulatious! Laurent is an all time favorite of mine, we have a 2017 project together... You know the only thing better that one Brondel is........🎯😜

[justonwo]

Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7

Congrats on your new (2012 I believe) A-1...

Jatoba is dense, hard and stiff tropical hardwood like a rosewood. I have played one 16" Jatoba guitar at Bruce Sexauer's shop and it was a very strong in terms of the solidity of its timbre and projection. I sometime feel that Engelmann Spruce gets an unfair name in terms of what it can do. Like all spruces, density and stiffness can vary quite a bit within a species. The BRW guitar that Kent made for me has an Engelmann top and it has plenty of head room. I suspect the difference in attack may have to do with the larger body size vs. the top wood.

Yeah, there is a lot of overlap between species, for sure. But I also believe the generalities about different top woods tend to hold true, on average. On average, Engelmann (at least as I understand it) has less headroom than, say, red spruce. That's not to say individual examples can't stray from the norm. And I certainly wouldn't expect Laurent to build a wimpy guitar.

[justonwo]

Originally Posted by matthewpartrick

Juston, now's your chance to ask the luthiers. Are there any drop-in replacements for the Schertlers? The good thing about the Alessis: I bet the base plate is bigger and would cover up any markings. The bad thing, the backlash issue.

Yeah, the backlash issue is a risk, but Laurent has a set without. He's checking on the footprint.

Originally Posted by Diamondave

Dude.....! Congratsulatious! Laurent is an all time favorite of mine, we have a 2017 project together... You know the only thing better that one Brondel is........🎯😜

Totally agree!

[Cocobolo Kid]

Congrats Juston. Your new Brondel looks amazing. I especially like the Cocobolo headstock and the binding. I like the look of the existing tuners so I wouldn't swop them out if it were me (especially if they function well enough for you).

[Diamondave]

Keep the tuners man....! that is, if it stays in tune🤔

[justonwo]

Don't get me wrong. They work just fine. I've just never liked the look. They look too . . . something. I think it's the matte gray color. They look like they belong on a Tesla.

[M Sarad]

I have played just one Brondel and it convinced me to get one.

I like the Schertler tuners, but the B string tuner is a bit wonky.

The night before last, Clive Carroll had a gig here at in Bakersfield. I got a 90 minute lessons from him and he REALLY liked my Wenge A2. Tony McManus had the same reaction when I got a lesson from him when he was in town.

Laurent has totally figured out.

[CoolerKing]

Originally Posted by Cocobolo Kid

Congrats Juston. Your new Brondel looks amazing. I especially like the Cocobolo headstock and the binding. I like the look of the existing tuners so I wouldn't swop them out if it were me (especially if they function well enough for you).

Wait, you like cocobolo?

[justonwo]

Originally Posted by M Sarad

I have played just one Brondel and it convinced me to get one.

I like the Schertler tuners, but the B string tuner is a bit wonky.

The night before last, Clive Carroll had a gig here at in Bakersfield. I got a 90 minute lessons from him and he REALLY liked my Wenge A2. Tony McManus had the same reaction when I got a lesson from him when he was in town.

Laurent has totally figured out.

Which one convinced you to commission a guitar?

[JoeCharter]

Congrats, Juston.

You'll have to find a way to shorten your signature in order to fit in your latest acquisition.