[Ernesto]

Hi there, good to hear from you, Colin!

I have not been very active here the last weeks, crazy times. But I have played my Saddle Pal pretty much every day since I picked it up in December.

Frequently, I take it out it's case and just keep looking at it, it is the most beautiful and unique guitar I have ever owned. I have it in DADGAD all the time, and, due to the 25.5 scale, it works great. I put a medium gauge low e string on (56 instead of 53, I like to have more tension on the low e in DADGAD), after asking Chris if that would be ok.

Soundwise, what impresses me most is the sustain, which must have to do with the bracing and the design. It really goes on and on, and the sound port transmits it very well to the player. The guitar is very responsive to a light touch, it surprises me how much. In general terms, I would describe the sound as warm, mellow, clear, balanced. High notes are beautiful and 'airy', and the guitar does not lack in the bass department.

This is my first Cedar guitar, and the difference to Spruce is obvious. The price for the sensitive response, maybe, is a little less dynamic range. I would not do very heavy strumming (which I never do) on it, and for a blues with a lot of bite, I would prefer an Adi top. But this somehow restricted frame leaves room for subtleties. I play banjo tunes lately, with finger picking parts, strumming parts, and that shooting out of your middle finger with the back of your nail technique, and the guitar allows me to modulate the tone very well in each case. Same goes for Celtic fingerstyle. Here the guitar excells with its sustain, and it does not sound boxy at all. In spite of its size, I never have the impression to have a small guitar in my hands.

The tone has developed a bit during these months. I would say the bass has increased and improved, it sounds more 'precise' now. I realised the guitar is quite sensitive not only to humidity, but also temperature. We had a very hot summer here in Chile, and when I played it during the night, it definitely sounded better than during the day. I made use of the action adjustment feature and it works, very precise. This calmes my nerves, there are no good luthiers around here.

And I really like the magnetic armbevel. First I thought it was exaggerated since this is a small guitar, but you can take it on and off whenever you want. Surprisingly, I never take it off, it just looks and feels good. And it does not touch the soundboard, great design.

Just a few impressions. I hope you are well and enjoy your Baranik as much as I enjoy my Saddle Pal!

All the best