McIlroy AS20 sitka/walnut — ca. 2006 #312 — R O A R S!

[usefultree]

To post on reverb.com with new pics and a full writeup in about 3-4 days — stay tuned! — but thought I’d offer AGF a read ahead with a Minimum Viable Product of an ad meantime. Pics taken the day I received it in April 2006 and they cut to the chase re its visual singularities in the McIlroy cohort (more TK), sort of a record of feature phone capabilities themselves back then.

Still in excellent condition — no dings, cracks, et cetera. Sports Dermot’s standard specs for the build, save the custom wood rosette. I ordered this guitar in April 2005 via John F. at Shoreline, but was on a military deployment so Dermot didn’t start it until my return the following winter. He reserved the highly figured back wood for months for this guitar order especially — and it speaks to how walnut can get downright psychedelic. Top exhibits silky grain in the spruce and has acquired some patina over the years.

This sitka/walnut AS20 is remarkably immediate, loud, and energetic — particularly for its size in the range, and it competes with or transcends my larger-bodied (former) A65c on those counts — and it’s easy to get caught in the McIlroy overtone riptide when you dig in. A phenomenally extroverted guitar that’s about pure projection, has what folks find in favor of the spruce/walnut makeup — very dry, very woody, w. a hint of sweetness on top end—a cousin to and contrast w. Dermot’s cedar tops. Perhaps b.c of the spruce top on the AS body, there’s a compression that practically veers on a natural overdrive effect when you lean into the lows and mids. Makes for a distinct and powerful strummer and quite articulate as an FS kit otherwise. I’d argue this one is still opening up.

Sound clip here. Is what it is, but still gets a good deal of the AS20’s equities across. The sweatstrung McIlroy takes the first two minutes, the rest is a Martin O-17 detuned beyond recognition, just perambulating along, no direction home, all that.

$2250 takes it and will show up on reverb.com at that quote as well. No trades on this one — unless you have a McIlroy AS15 w. a wood rosette —but thanks for asking.

This is the last of my acoustic unwinds — what started as just letting go at the margin became a late-season commitment to getting down to a handful of everyday carries (my AS35n among them — the darkest of dark horses and keeper of the lot) and possible warchest for a grail play. Thanks!

[tired fingers]

Great sounding guitar; a looker too. Wish I'd saved more xmas money -- ah well, I can't have them all. Good luck with the sale.

[bkharmony]

Darn, if this was an A20...

GLWS

[sayheyjeff]

Absolutely stunning. The back looks like a sunset. The simple rosette is a nice touch.

Jeff

[usefultree]

The fabled reverb ad posted here

https://reverb.com/item/1577485-mcil...tka-walnut-312

for the duration. Thanks!