I was able to sit down for an hour this morning to begin to get to know my new Bristlecone. Here are my initial impressions
LOOKS:
The level of fit and finish of Mark’s wood working, purfling miters, finish application, fretwork and setup are all executed with mastery. I also think the elegant lines of his design, quartersawn woods that he chose with simple mottled Koa purflings and contrasting Macassar Ebony bindings looks great! The Brazilian Rosewood, while not visually dramatic, is the stable, quartersawn “stuff” we see so rarely these days. The custom Macassar Ebony buttons on the Gotoh tuners was a nice touch.
FEEL:
The guitar is 15-1/4” at the lower bout (a touch larger than an OM) but feels smaller due to the 1” Manzer Wedge with the depth at the lower bout measuring only 3-1/2” on the low E string side of the lower bout, but 4-1/2” on the high E string side. The guitar is not light for its size, nor is it heavy, weighing 4.18 pounds. The continuous contour cutaway allows for easy access to the upper fretboard and his setup provides strong notes even in the upper register. Mark’s standard neck profile feels great to my hand as well.
SOUND:
It is always difficult to describe tone, but I will try to describe it for you. Like all of Mark’s guitars that I have played, it is responsive to touch, is balanced across the strings and delivers fat trebles with authority. The guitar presents strong fundamentals with string-to-string clarity and is not awash with overtones as some guitars made with glassy, low damping hardwoods can tend to be. The overtones are there, but in a supportive manner, letting the fundamentals do the talking. The back is definitely playing an “active” role, interacting with the top which you tell most profoundly by keeping it away from your body when playing it.
WORKING WITH MARK:
Mark was a dream to work with throughout the process, from his initial discussions with me to specify the guitar, asking my input on decorative and player preferences, to communicating status as he built it and delivering a wonderful instrument on time.