Finished pics - Auriole "Panama Red", 2012 Montreal Show guitar

[Martin Keith]

Hello everyone,

As promised, here are some finished pictures of my second Montreal 2012 show guitar!

The Auriole model is a hybrid flattop with many features carried over from archtop guitar design.

Sonically, the result is very much its own texture - the guitars are fast to respond, with a strong and clear attack and a slight "dryness" to the tone that works very well for quick fingerstyle. However, unlike most archtops, the bass register is deep, broad, and very airy sounding with a lot of "space" and dimension.

Each Auriole gets a personal name on completion.
With the Central American Mahogany back and sides and Bloodwood trim, I just couldn't help but call this one "Panama Red". (Any Peter Rowan fans out there?)

Panama Red, thanks to the mahogany sides and ebony trim, has less natural sparkle than Coco - instead, it has a rich and dense low end and a clear, well-integrated treble response - with an almost nylon-string-like sweetness when played delicately.

The top is Sitka Spruce, braced in my own lattice/fan pattern.

On to the pics!





Neck adjuster:










Next in the queue is another Auriole in the same design - with a set of absolutely STUNNING birdseye maple - watch out for a build thread in the next month or so.

Cheers!
Martin

[mb propsom]

How tall is that bridge?

[Martin Keith]

Hi Michael,

The bridge is pretty tall - about 1 1/8".
However, this is primarily a function of neck angle and tailpiece position.
The break angle over the bridge is not too severe, and the resulting load on the top is pretty reasonable.

One of the benefits of my adjustable neck joint is that I can fine-tune the downward pressure on the top by varying the bridge height, and then dial in the neck to the correct position to accommodate that bridge.

This gives me a measure of control over the response of the instrument, even after finishing. The bridge height adjustments really make a significant difference in how the guitar performs, and there does seem to be a "correct" height/pressure for each specific top.

If I built to a predetermined angle/pressure, I would not be able to make these fine adjustments during setup, since the string height would not permit that range of variability. We're only talking about 3/16" of variation, but that means a lot in the Z axis of a bridge.

Cheers!
Martin

[apalazzolo]

i love it!