The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    For those of you who don’t visit “The Builders Bench” forum where I have a build thread chronicling the construction of this instrument, I thought that I would share a NGD over where there is > 30 times the traffic.

    JOHN BUSCARINO: 16” Tapered Rim Monarch Archtop (Build Thread)

    For some reason, the forum moderators moved my thread there when I started it here. The guitar is a custom 16” Monarch archtop with a Carpathian Spruce top and a Fiddleback Austrian Sycamore Maple made by luthier John Buscarino.



    The custom aspects relate to it having tapered rims the graduate from 2-3/4” deep at the neck and deepen toward the end to 3-1/2” deep. This creates more body volume in an ergonomically comfortable size. Sonically, John carved it as an instrument suited for acoustic and low-volume electric play incorporating a sound port to enhance the player’s experience. Some custom aspects were ergonomic where I wanted a short scale length (25.0”) a 1-3/4” nut width with wider 2-3/16” string spacing. All the other aspects were subjective aesthetic preferences.



    I finally got to spend some hours auditioning John’s Monarch archtop this weekend and I am happy to report that it is a magnificent guitar. I was able to A/B it against my two archtops by Bill Comins and one from Bryant Trenier. Because string differences, it was difficult to make objective comparisons at this point.

    The guitar arrived with a hybrid set of strings comprised of Elixir Electric Nickel Nanoweb .012”-.052” but he swapped out the high E and the B with TI BeBop .013” and .017”. I usually play with TI Bebop .013s or when strung with acoustic strings PB, 80/20 or Monel strings depending on the instrument. I will need to experiment with strings over the next month or so.



    Acoustic

    My initial impression is that the guitar is responsive to touch; meaning it retains its voice with a light touch and as it gives more volume delivering the same timbre. It is balanced across the strings, great string to string separation and has a strong voice in all registers. For an archtop it has some nice sustain and additive overtones to add some warmth and complexity to its voice. The overall timbre is wonderful as a solo acoustic instrument that has clarity, warmth with trebles with weight and authority. I need to still try it with acoustic strings, but I am impressed!



    Electric

    The guitar has a low-wind floating humbucker made for him by Kent Armstrong. This pickup has twin blade pole pieces instead of individual pole pieces. This allows one to vary the string spacing when making a guitar. John placed hidden volume and tone pots under the finger rest. What he did that I like is he positioned the volume pot towards the bridge and the tone pot towards the neck. I like this because I adjust volume many times more than I adjust tone. Another nice detail is John does not route his pickup/pot wiring through the f-hole but has a discrete hole located near the finger rest mount.



    As for electric tone, I plugged the guitar in to my Acoustic Image Clarus 2R Series III head with my Buscarino Chameleon 8” speaker set on electric mode (high frequency driver off). Plugged in the guitars voice is clear and warm. I would place it in between the KA 6-pole piece single coil and the KA 12-pole piece humbucker. Unlike the KA single coil, it is dead quiet (it’s a HB after all). It has less midrange forwardness than the KA 12-pole piece HB. So it has a slightly warm, yet clear tone. Perfect for solo jazz guitar. I still need to try it with my Evans RE200 combo and Redplate RP40 combo to see how it performs.



    Last edited by iim7V7IM7; 10-05-2020 at 09:57 PM.

  2.  

    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    Fantastic!! Wow -- congrats!!

  4. #3

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    A truly stunning instrument! Play the heck out of it!

  5. #4

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    Whew--gorgeous!

    Danny W.

  6. #5

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    Great review and beautiful guitar.

    May she inspire your playing for many years to come!

  7. #6

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    Absolutely gorgeous! The back and neck are stunning! What a beauty! Congrats!

  8. #7

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    My god what a beautiful guitar! If it sounds only half as good as it looks you have yourself a total winner. Enjoy!

  9. #8

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    A splendid instrument! Congratulations, and play it in good health!

  10. #9

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    A marvel to behold! Congratulations!

  11. #10

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    A Superb instrument from John Buscarino, the Monarch is a fabulous model
    with some great features, the sound port, the tidy method of the discrete
    aperture for feeding the wiring out of sight under the finger rest. The finish
    absolutely first class, Congratulations to Bob on a truly beautiful acquisition.
    America certainly has its quota of top quality Luthiers who can satisfy the
    requirements of the most fastidious guitar owners.


    Best, Silverfoxx

  12. #11

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    Congratulations on the beautiful guitar. It's stunning! If it plays anywhere near as good as it looks, it would be hard to put down! I'd love to play it for a few hours, days, weeks, years, a lifetime! Man, I can't resist a beautiful guitar! My wife says that's OK!
    I wish you much enjoyment and inspiration to make great music with it!

  13. #12

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    Thanks to all for your well wishes...

    It truly is a superlative instrument. I still need to explore both strings and a few other amps to understand where it shines best. But so far, I am truly delighted with all aspects of the guitar. This is my third guitar from John. I also own a Cabaret nylon hybrid and a Rhapsody steel string flat top (all three are great).

    People may not know it, but John is 70 years old. He did not get into lutherie until he was 29 years old. He apprenticed for a year with Augie LoPrinzi (1979) followed by two years with Bob Benedetto (1980-1982). He still can be found in the shop almost every day of the week, but he has started to roll back on both the number of guitars coming off his bench and the percentage of custom commissions vs. spec guitars as well.

    If you are considered getting a guitar from John, I would not sit on the fence too long.

  14. #13

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    Beautiful results , congratulations


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  15. #14

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    Whew, I was following the build thread closely, so glad to see it finished and in your hands. What a work of art!!!! Simply stunning. I would love to hear it if you have any interested in sharing some recordings

    A Buscarino is on my bucket list but unfortunately lack the resources currently. With him slowing down the work it would likely have to be a used purchase rather than a build for me.

  16. #15

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    The Prettiest Guitar I've ever seen, by a large margin.
    iim, You are a very fortunate man. I'd have a difficult time playing that Guitar, because I wouldn't be able to concentrate on the "Playing" part very much. I could just stare at the Guitar for hours.
    The Color is simply the most perfect color to make a guitar with that amount of figure.
    You pay for the best and you get the best. And I cant think you enough for sharing this with us, because I personally would never see anything like this in my life otherwise.
    That is absolutely gorgeous.
    You made my day.
    thanks, Joe D

  17. #16

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    Bob, Thank you for your post and especially for your thoughts concerning the various KA pickups. Play it in good health. rob

  18. #17

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    Magnificent! The woods and execution are as perfect as I’ve ever seen. What a treasure to see, hold, interact with and hear. I hope it’s a lifelong friend. Congrats on your new guitar!

    Roli

  19. #18

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    Ya know, after all this SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is over, we live so close to each other it would be my pleasure to swing by your house and let you audition it or any of my guitars...

    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    The Prettiest Guitar I've ever seen, by a large margin.
    iim, You are a very fortunate man. I'd have a difficult time playing that Guitar, because I wouldn't be able to concentrate on the "Playing" part very much. I could just stare at the Guitar for hours.
    The Color is simply the most perfect color to make a guitar with that amount of figure.
    You pay for the best and you get the best. And I cant think you enough for sharing this with us, because I personally would never see anything like this in my life otherwise.
    That is absolutely gorgeous.
    You made my day.
    thanks, Joe D

  20. #19

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    One of your masterpieces? On the comfy brown couch?
    That would be really nice.
    Only if I can make you my famous Amatriciana Sauce, Joe D Style.. Bottle of Merlot.
    Then, it’s a deal.
    I live in Watchung, right off of Hillcrest now. Sold the Warren house.
    Joe D

  21. #20

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    True functional art.

  22. #21

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    One of your masterpieces? On the comfy brown couch?
    That would be really nice.
    Only if I can make you my famous Amatriciana Sauce, Joe D Style.. Bottle of Merlot.
    Then, it’s a deal.
    I live in Watchung, right off of Hillcrest now. Sold the Warren house.
    Joe D
    Absolutely, I’ll bring a bottle as well...

  23. #22

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    I keep coming back to look at this guitar. Just wow. That color is spot on perfect

  24. #23

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    A masterpiece of an arch top! Congratulations!

  25. #24

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    FYI, after many years of not changing his price structure, John will be increasing his pricing as of December 1, 2020.

    If anyone was “on the fence” about commissioning a guitar with John should keep this in mind. Over the last 7-years, John has built me three carved back guitars. I am delighted with each completely...




  26. #25

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    Bob,
    These are gorgeous examples of Johns work. The latest build is my favorite - the woods and color is just fantastic.