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(More customer reviews)I play mostly electric guitar and bass in a hobby originals band that I would characterize as post-punk/alt-rock. I have 20+ guitars but none are acoustic, so I have been searching for several months for a decent one in the under 400$ range. I have been very disappointed with the anemic sounds of even the +1000$ models from all the usual makers. I was shocked that a 1200$ Martin wasn't even all real wood! Sitting in the corner with the mandolins and banjos was a lone dobro (specifically, a Goldtone by Paul Beard - Resonator Deluxe Model- I never heard of either brand); since I had never even held one before I tried it out of curiosity. The first thing I noticed was that it felt SOLID and HEAVY, and had a very satisfying feel to it. I banged out my three open chord test song and I IMMEDIATELY knew I was not leaving the store without this guitar. This was exactly the full, LOUD, rich bass yet twangy sound I was looking for. The sound I remember from decades ago playing my friends dreadnought Martin. An unmistakably distinctive resonator metallic edge to it, but that was almost a plus. I imagine playing with a slide and/or fingerpicks would markedly accentuate those tonal features, but bare finger picking and strumming and flatpicking with a little palm mute produced a sound that gave me butterflies in my stomach. Plucked harmonics sounded better than most hot electrics or chicken picked teles. The dynamic range was incredible, and I sensed that this thing PROJECTS if you are in front of it. I can't wait to experiment with mic'ing techniques to capture that sound.
The build quality and materials seemed excellent to me; I detected no flaws in construction and the attention to detail was apparent. The finish was a little heavy on the poly, especially on the very thick, 'round n bound' neck, but the days of nitro are gone, and this axe did have the shine of a new Bently. The sealed tuners look Grover-ish but say "Jinks", which for some reason makes me laugh whenever I read it. The neck is very playable, even for an electric guy, but I think my bass muscles have something to do with it. To get the tone I was looking for the old fashioned mechanical way takes heavy gauge strings, and the surprisingly knowledgeable, friendly and helpful gut at the Hempstead Long Island Sam Ash recommended heavier treble strings than you might use on an acoustic. As far as the wood type, i only know from the web to be maple/ebony with tobacco sunburst. I have no idea where its made; the serial number/model number sticker in the cavity doesn't say. Other reviews are sketchy; I pulled this from the Mando Bros site's quote of the maker's site (which, strangely enough I have not visited since it was not on the first page results of my Google query;)---"Designed by legendary maker Paul Beard, this signature model guitar is hand made and provides unmatched tone in its price range. The Beard "open" soundwell body design utilizes genuine USA Beard cones & spiders...(and) feature USA assembly and setup by experienced luthiers..."
Price was $499 with OHSC (this was a spotless used guitar; MSRP seems to be around $1100 for the deluxe which I think just has inlay and binding; the standard is obviously less. Street price in my brief survey is 600-800$) I haggled the guy down another fitty dollas which felt extra nice.
Anyway, I'm giddy with delight that I finally found what I was after. Enuf now I'm going to play.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Gold Tone Paul Beard Signature Series PBR-D Roundneck Resonator Deluxe Guitar (Tobacco Sunburst)
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