Tom Sands M-12 / Swiss Spruce and Malaysian Blackwood

[dennisczech]

I agree with Steve. The TNAG crew know how to make any guitar sound fabulous recorded, and to be fair I think you can distinguish between different instruments, just nowhere near as much as with the naked ear. With this recording you can detect a bit more of the special characteristics of this guitar, job well done.
I'm not a fan of the "Somogyi" sound, and this bias has extended to all of the ex-apprentice guitars I have played, but this one sounds excellent even to my ears, very sweet and responsive, with that signature pillowy bass. I think the owner has every reason to be delighted.

[Vaillant75]

Originally Posted by steveh

I know it's YouTube yadda yadda, but I think I really do detect a definite sweetness and a deep resonance that I think characterise Tom's guitars. I've played many of them and they are beautiful sounding guitars, with tremendous response to a light touch. Sound to me like you have one of Tom's best coming your way for Christmas...assuming UK Covid restrictions let you get your hands on it.

Cheers,
Steve

Hi Steve,

I would concur. I have listened to both your Sands recording and I detected quite a bit of tonal overlap. If I manage to cross the border, I should be getting the guitar next Tuesday. We'll see how it goes..

I will take some time over the holidays to record. I have also worked with Will on a special project that I am excited to reveal in due time.

Cheers,

[Vaillant75]

Originally Posted by dennisczech

I agree with Steve. The TNAG crew know how to make any guitar sound fabulous recorded, and to be fair I think you can distinguish between different instruments, just nowhere near as much as with the naked ear. With this recording you can detect a bit more of the special characteristics of this guitar, job well done.
I'm not a fan of the "Somogyi" sound, and this bias has extended to all of the ex-apprentice guitars I have played, but this one sounds excellent even to my ears, very sweet and responsive, with that signature pillowy bass. I think the owner has every reason to be delighted.

Indeed, high quality mics and stellar playing make every guitar sound like holy grail stuff (I've been really impressed by Carl Miner recently). It can end up being misleading and GAS triggering

I am glad to hear you find the tone pleasing, I am excited to hear it in person 5 days!

[Guitars44me]

Holy Cow! That sounds fantastic. And Will certainly shows it off beautifully too.

I am always happy to hear a nice relaxed slower song showcasing a guitar.

The resonance, warmth, bass and overtones are very pleasing!

Can you let us know the signal path, mics, etc?

Congratulations and enjoy!!!

Paul

[Vaillant75]

Originally Posted by Guitars44me

Holy Cow! That sounds fantastic. And Will certainly shows it off beautifully too.

I am always happy to hear a nice relaxed slower song showcasing a guitar.

The resonance, warmth, bass and overtones are very pleasing!

Can you let us know the signal path, mics, etc?

Congratulations and enjoy!!!

Paul

Thanks Paul!
I know he is using Sontronics mics, but will ask for the rest of the chain!
Cheers,

[Portland Bill]

It sounds amazing but it also sounds like it's dictating the kind of music played on it.

[Vaillant75]

She arrived! Right for Christmas!

But let's go back for a bit...
I was supposed to pay Tom a visit at his workshop and pick the guitar myself on Monday. Sadly 2020 had to bring an ultimate twist, so the UK closed down when a new COVID variant was discovered, thus no travels in/out the UK. With the Brexit looming on the horizon, I made the difficult decision to ship the guitar and to postpone my reunion with Tom for another time. After an excruciating wait - I swear I looked at the window at least 50 times - the guitar arrived on December 24th right for Christmas time. Perfect timing!

Remember that this is my first custom build, so opening the case really was a special experience (close to an adrenaline rush, I now understand how you get the bug). I was quite nervous at first, because I've read so often about the unrealistic expectations one can develop after such a long wait and emotional build up.

Well, starting with the aesthetics, I have to say that Tom really delivered. From afar the guitar looks harmonious and sophisticated, and when going closer you notice all of the lovely details. This is craftsmanship at its finest, in line the Somogyi lineage but with some departures: use of Crelicam Ebony, copper rosette and backplate etc.

Tom sent me some professional shots that I'd like to share with you. [sadly the quality of pictures gets decreased and I had to import in different posts due to the size of images..]

[Vaillant75]

Full front:

Full front.jpg

[Vaillant75]

I am glad I went for the bevel. Adds some noticeable comfort and doesn't look too bad

Bevel.jpg

[Vaillant75]

Last but not least, the backplate in "The headstock is Lava" copper. Quite stunning to look at.

backplate.jpg

[Vaillant75]

As a disclaimer, I find describing tone to be a challenging exercise. Plus, I will refrain myself from an extended review so to avoid being overly bias after having the guitar for only 24h.

What really surprised me at first was the guitar's resonance and responsiveness. I have a rather light touch and the relative volume to the attack is quite impressive. I am still getting "in tune" with the instrument, and I almost had to adjust my playing to temper the crazy bass response and overtones during some pieces in alternated tunings (example in the second video). It's the first time I get to play Somogyi inspired instrument and I now understand their legendary appeal. I am only scratching the surface so I won't go further for now, but more to come soon.

I really appreciate when I can hear the guitar at the end of a build thread so I am sharing a couple of videos. These are Iphone recordings, so please excuse their rather "raw" aspect. Still, I think you can identify the guitar qualities and I wanted something transparent (eg. without reverb or EQ). I bought mics a month ago and I now have a great opportunity to learn how to use them. Tom will be releasing the introduction video soon alongside Will's (impeccable) playing and recording. At least you get 2 very opposite listening experiences

First is a short version of Bron yr aur I sent to Tom only an hour after receiving the guitar. You can feel the excitement in that awkward introduction:

[Vaillant75]

Here is a piece by Will Ackerman. I think it hints at the guitar qualities given the slow tempo and space available. Interestingly the fan fret is easy to adjust to, but there are still a couple of approximations (and grimaces) along the way:



As always, thanks for following.
Cheers,

[Deft Tungsman]

Congratulations, man!!!

After all the setbacks and the trials of patience, Dolores has found her way home to you, and I am so happy to see the two of you together.

And a special word of thanks for being brave and open-hearted about posting these quick clips of your new guitar when you're still all giddy from that first kiss. They're so moving, like the opening scenes of a long epic romance.

Best Christmas ever?

[MThomson]

Happy Christmas! Congratulations on your new guitar. I think it already sounds at home in your hands. I hope you've got some good time off now so you can enjoy getting to know it.

[cigarfan]

Oh what a feeling! So very schweet!

A special way to spend Christmas. Nice clips. Thanks for posting. I really is nice to hear the guitar after watching so intently every detail of the build. Congrats Tom (both of you)!