Well, it was a much better run affair this year than last. It was nice to see the boutique builders segregated from the rest of the MMMIS and given some decent space and privacy. The cover charge also weeded out the purely test pilots.
A few more soundproof booths could have helped BUT at least they addressed the issue of making them small enough so that they couldn't be shared with competing players. Proper-height chairs would have been better than stools for those of us who like to have both feet on the ground or at least, given the option...
As for the guitars themselves, I found it very difficult to assess their attributes, beyond craftsmanship and feel, since most that I played were less than a month old and weren't even close to opening up sonically. I suspect many sales were on builder reputation alone. Surprisingly, I was less than impressed with some of the big guns at the show: the tone of their guitars wasn't even remotely desirable to me, as a fingerstylist. Way too heavy on the bass. No sale. Some that I liked last year, came up short this time 'round. Strange, maybe it was the weather...
It seems I missed a few tables too. Al Carruth? It might have been because I blew by anybody with mostly archtops - no interest.
Anyway the good news was the three guitars that really clicked for me:
- Sergei de Jonge's Jazz Nylon with the adjustable neck
- Tim McKnight's Hickory OM
- John Osthoff's 000-12 Blackwood cut-away
Wonderful tone, super-clean craftmanship, a pleasure to talk to: either the builder or one of their associates.
