Gerber Guitars at The North American Guitar featuring Mike Dawes

[Ben Montague]

From the moment we announced Gerber Guitars were joining our select roster of the finest luthiers in the world, the enquires began to flood in. But I don't think either Ryan Gerber or any of the TNAG team could have believed both his instruments would sell within minutes of arriving - in fact one never made it to the showroom at all and sold prior to leaving the USA.



For me personally, Ryan surpassed all expectations with both the RL15 (Macassar Ebony) and the RL15+ (Figured Mahogany) we ordered back in January this year. Visually his lines and attention to detail from headstock inlay, rosette, to the end graft are all bound in some way, showing a beautiful consistency and flow throughout the instrument. It is this attention to detail aesthetically that gives Ryan's guitars an air of sophistication that is both modern and refreshing.



Having played both guitars extensively at the Woodstock Show and here at TNAG HQ in London, I can safely say that the RL15 & the RL15+ were among two of my favourite guitars of 2017. Overall an incredibly responsive guitar that thrived on fingerstyle and alternate tunings (such as DADGAD), but also took a flat pick beautifully without losing any of the depth or volume.



This year we have been truly blessed with a host of incredible players and artists coming down to the studio to showcase all our stunning guitars, and having our dear friend and now 'Guitarist of the Year' Mike Dawes visit to demonstrate the first Gerber Guitar was a highlight for us all here at TNAG!



Mike has an incredibly light touch as a player, so any instrument he plays really has to step up and be able to project; quite the test for our RL15 in Macassar Ebony he demonstrated for us! I think all will agree who have seen the demo below that both the player and the guitar are one...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2EXGRsMRIM

Here is what our TNAG's Jimmy has to say:

"I am absolutely blown away by this instrument, what strikes me the most is the balance of its frequencies. The highs are sweet and flute-like with a rich and velvety bass, none of which are overpowering. It covers all the major territory for me, punching through for fingerstyle yet harp-like on its strumming attack, the feel in the hand is silky and the access to the upper frets is seamless. The guitar itself is nothing shy of a work of art, it’s aesthetically stunning and the attention to detail is out of this world. This instrument just keeps you coming back for more and inspires each time you pick it up."

After publishing the demo of Mike playing the Gerber it was no surprise that the guitar sold minutes later, followed by many enquires for it . So much so that in celebration of this masterful instrument, we have decided to recreate the exact guitar to arrive later in 2018:

Gerber Guitars Model RL15 Acoustic Guitar - Macassar Ebony & Master Swiss Spruce

Guitar Model - RL15
Scale length - 25.25”
Soundboard- Master Swiss Moon Spruce
Back and sides Macassar Ebony
Neck - Honduran Mahogany
Cutaway Florentine
Wedge body - (3/8”)
Nut material - Bone
Saddle material - Bone
Fretwork - Evo Gold or SS
Tuning machines - Gotoh 510
Custom nut width - Standard 1.75”
Custom String spacing at Saddle - Standard 2.25”
Custom neck thickness - Standard
Custom inlay - Custom Rosette
Carry case - Standard Ameritage Black/Black

For more information on Gerber Guitars please contact [email protected] or call +44 (0) 207 835 5597.