Sadowsky Jimmy Bruno Archtop: Little Axe, Big Sound · Sadowsky Jimmy Bruno Archtop: Little Axe,...
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February 2007 DOWNBEAT 71 Sadowsky Jimmy Bruno Archtop: Little Axe, Big Sound The Jimmy Bruno arch- top from luthier Roger Sadowsky looks great, plays smoothly and pro- duces a tone that’s much bigger than its physical size. Featuring a compact body, lami- nate construction and impeccable workman- ship, this axe is definite- ly a player. An expert setup and repairman, Sadowsky got into hollow-body guitar construction after spending 15 years work- ing on Jim Hall’s D’Aqui- sto. The Jim Hall signa- ture model was the builder’s first archtop, sporting a larger body design. Building on the success of the Hall, Sadowsky teamed up with jazz guitarist Jimmy Bruno to create this sec- ond archtop signature model. The Bruno scores high on both appearance and workmanship. The design is simple yet elegant. The craftsmanship is impeccable and the nitro-cellulose lacquer finish highlights the sunburst stain and flamed maple body. The instrument felt comfortable in both standing and sitting positions. Its body mea- sures a sleek 14 3 / 4 inches at the lower bout with a depth of 2 3 / 4 inches. The guitar features a single cutaway design constructed with five- ply maple laminate. A single custom-wound gold-plated pickup is mounted into the top, as are the ebony volume and tone knobs. The bridge, tailpiece and pickguard are also ebony. The neck is solid mahogany with an ebony fingerboard and 24 3 / 4-inch scale length (22 frets total); it joins the guitar body at the 15th fret. The guitar performed wonderfully. The tone was big, clear and warm without the heavy midrange that full-sized archtops are prone to have. In fact, Sadowsky designed the Bruno to maximize the tonal characteristics of the amplified sound. The combination of smaller size, laminate maple top and cut-in pickup mounting helps reduce the feedback problems that occur with many archtops, especially in larger and solid carved-top designs. This guitar is practical and functional. At a price of $3,995, the Bruno archtop com- petes and even excels over many higher- priced jazz models. —Keith Baumann Ordering info: sadowsky.com »
Transcript of Sadowsky Jimmy Bruno Archtop: Little Axe, Big Sound · Sadowsky Jimmy Bruno Archtop: Little Axe,...
February 2007 DOWNBEAT 71
Sadowsky JimmyBruno Archtop: Little Axe, Big SoundThe Jimmy Bruno arch-top from luthier RogerSadowsky looks great,plays smoothly and pro-duces a tone that’smuch bigger than itsphysical size. Featuringa compact body, lami-nate construction andimpeccable workman-ship, this axe is definite-ly a player.
An expert setup andrepairman, Sadowskygot into hollow-bodyguitar construction afterspending 15 years work-ing on Jim Hall’s D’Aqui-sto. The Jim Hall signa-ture model was thebuilder’s first archtop,sporting a larger bodydesign. Building on thesuccess of the Hall, Sadowsky teamed up withjazz guitarist Jimmy Bruno to create this sec-ond archtop signature model.
The Bruno scores high on both appearanceand workmanship. The design is simple yetelegant. The craftsmanship is impeccable andthe nitro-cellulose lacquer finish highlights thesunburst stain and flamed maple body.
The instrument felt comfortable in bothstanding and sitting positions. Its body mea-sures a sleek 14 3/4 inches at the lower boutwith a depth of 2 3/4 inches. The guitar featuresa single cutaway design constructed with five-ply maple laminate. A single custom-woundgold-plated pickup is mounted into the top, asare the ebony volume and tone knobs. Thebridge, tailpiece and pickguard are alsoebony. The neck is solid mahogany with anebony fingerboard and 24 3/4-inch scale length(22 frets total); it joins the guitar body at the15th fret.
The guitar performed wonderfully. Thetone was big, clear and warm without theheavy midrange that full-sized archtops areprone to have. In fact, Sadowsky designed theBruno to maximize the tonal characteristics ofthe amplified sound. The combination ofsmaller size, laminate maple top and cut-inpickup mounting helps reduce the feedbackproblems that occur with many archtops,especially in larger and solid carved-topdesigns. This guitar is practical and functional.At a price of $3,995, the Bruno archtop com-petes and even excels over many higher-priced jazz models. —Keith Baumann
Ordering info: sadowsky.com»
