Day 2: Winter NAMM 2016

Taylor Issues a 610e Dreadnought Offers the Mojo of Big Leaf Maple

The Taylor 610e is an impressive dreadnought blessed with power and lush tone. The secret is the torrefied Sitka spruce top paired with big-leaf maple back and sides, and featuring the 600 Series Advanced Performance bracing, and amplified through the Expression System 2. Watch Taylor master luthier Andy Powers demonstrates the guitars rich sound.

Taylor 610e

• Model: 6-String Dreadnought
• Top Torrefied Sitka
• Back & Sides Big Leaf Maple
• Bracing 600 Series Advanced Performance
• Fretboard Ebony
• Neck & Heel Hard-Rock Maple
• Scale Length 25 ½
• Nut & Saddle Tusq Nut/Micarta Saddle
• Nut 1 ¾-inch
• Binding Ebony
• Rosette Ebony with On-Edge Ivoroid/Paua/On-Edge Ivoroid
• Electronics Expression System 2
• Accessories Hardshell Case
• Price $3,398

Martin Gives a Nod to John Lennon with Commemorative D-28

“This guitar celebrates John’s life and songwriting. May it inspire all who play it to carry the torch of peace and light that John embraced through his own life and music.”—Yoko Ono

To commemorate John Lennon’s 75^th birthday, C.F. Martin Guitar & Co. has released the D-28 John Lennon 75^th Anniversary Edition. This model is limited to only 75 instruments. A solid Adirondack spruce top with Vintage Tone System (martinguitar.com/VTS) is combined with Madagascar rosewood back and sides for a strong and powerful bass resonance—the back being inlaid with HD-28 style zig-zag peace sign marquetry. The Madagascar rosewood headplate is adorned with John Lennon’s famous illustrated self-portrait resting beneath the Martin script logo. This beautiful mother-of-pearl, John Lennon themed design is inlaid throughout this model to make this a truly unique instrument. ($11,999 MSRP) Learn more about the D-28 John Lennon 75th Anniversary Edition.

Breedlove Introduces Brazilian Rosewood Models

Over 50 years ago, a few Brazilian rosewood logs were shipped from northeast Brazil to a village just outside of Madrid, Spain, stored in an open-air warehouse for two decades and then sawn into tonewood sets, labeled, and left to season for decades more. Brazilian rosewood has long been regarded as the pinnacle of all tonewoods for it’s amazing ability to resonate deep, rich, powerful bass notes while still shimmering with treble tones.

With this aged tonewood, Breedlove is building two limited-edition models of 50 each: Breedlove Journey ($5,332 MSRP) and Breedlove Journey FS ($6,665 MSRP). These concert instruments are designed for completely different playing styles and sound.

The Breedlove Journey Concert is designed to deliver powerful, robust sound. It takes full advantage of the Brazilian’s character, delivering highly present bass tones much as a woofer does for a sound system. There is little subtlety with this instrument. The more a musician dives into the Breedlove Journey, the more it will respond. The salvaged Sitka spruce top is paired perfectly allowing for tonal balance and, most importantly, tonal range. The Breedlove Journey truly comes alive the second it is played.

The Journey FS Concert is designed for fingerstyle play to deliver note-for-note warmth and beautiful sound. Breedlove concert body fingerstyle guitars are known for their tonal spectrum and volume balance. Innovations like a graduated top, the Breedlove bridge truss system, asymmetrical headstock and the winged pinless bridge have all contributed to the unique Breedlove fingerstyle sound.

With the Journey FS Concert, Breedlove has gone to two extremes to create our most incredible fingerstyle guitar yet. The tops are salvaged redwood. With Breedlove’s bridge truss system the graduation and thinness of the redwood tops are finessed to create amazing resonance while still supporting the integrity of the tops. This allows the redwood to resonate longer allowing each note to swell and deliver a warmth that is rich and beautiful to the ear. Pairing this with aged Brazilian rosewood, which is the world’s most efficient tonewood for reflecting the lower energy bass notes in balance with the higher energy treble tones, the ensuing voice of the instrument is one by which all other acoustics will be judged.

• Model: Journey:
• Body Type: Concert
• Neck Wood: Honduran mahogany
• Top wood: Solid Sitka spruce
• Back & Sides: Solid Brazilian rosewood
• Top Finish: Natural high gloss
• Fretboard: Ebony
• Frets: 20
• Nut Width: 1-3/4-inches
• Tuners: Gotoh 381 gold w/ black button
• Lower Bout Width: 15”-inches
• Waist Width: 9”
• Upper Bout Width: 11 1/4-inches
• Body Length: 20-inches
• Body Depth: 3.75-inches
• Strings: D’Addario EXP 16
• Pickup: LR Baggs Anthem TRU-Mic
• Bridge: Winged bridge, African ebony
• Binding: Ivoroid
• Inlay: Dots
• Case: Deluxe Hardshell
• Limited Lifetime Warranty
• Handcrafted in Bend, OR U.S.A.
• Price: $5,332 MSRP

• Model: Journey FS:
• Body Type: Concert
• Neck Wood: Honduran mahogany
• Top wood: Solid salvaged redwood
• Back & Sides: Solid Brazilian rosewood
• Top Finish: Natural high gloss
• Fretboard: Ebony
• Frets: 20
• Nut Width: 1-3/4-inches
• Tuners: Gotoh 510, X-finish
• Lower Bout Width: 15-inches
• Waist Width: 9-inches
• Upper Bout Width: 11 1/4-inches
• Body Length: 20-inches
• Body Depth: 3.75-inches
• Strings: D’Addario EXP 16
• Pickup: LR Baggs Anthem TRU-Mic
• Bridge: Winged bridge, African ebony
• Binding: Ivoroid
• Inlay: Mosaic pins
• Case: Deluxe Hardshell
• Limited Lifetime Warranty
• Price: $6,665 MSRP

Handcrafted in Bend, OR; USA

Fender Debuts New Acoustics

Fender Guitars has introduced several new acoustics to its Paramount series. The new lines include three dreadnoughts, three parlor guitars, and three Triple-0s. Each comes with a Fender/Fishman pickup system and is available in natural or sunburst finishes. All the models are equipped with solid Sitka spruce tops; back and sides of either solid East Indian rosewood (on the deluxe models) or mahogany (on the standards); quartersawn scalloped-X bracing; slim, C-shaped mahogany necks; fingerboards of either ebony (on the deluxe models) or rosewood (on the standard models); and a bone nut and saddle. The MSRP is $999 for the deluxe models; and $799 for the standards.