fingerboard is blissfully blank, and the demure
lower case “f” on the ebony headstock face
makes a statement much like a single diamond
pendant does on a beautiful woman. The
ebony tuning machine buttons add to the
elegance of the understatement. A few nights
ago, my writers group got to talking about
Iowans eschewing ostentation and flashiness
for almost Spartan simplicity. There’s nothing
Spartan about this guitar, but Dave Flammang
speaks understatement with a silver tongue.
done, which is outstanding, and exactly what
you want in a studio guitar.
When you turn it over and check out the
back and sides, that’s when your hands
start to quiver and you start to drool. It’s
not just Brazilian rosewood, it’s drop-dead
sexy Brazilian rosewood. The grain whirls
like smoke, almost black in places over the
immediately recognizable Brazilian brown.
The sides complement the back perfectly, the
ebony bindings complement the entire theme
of understatement, and the finish is like silk
under the fingers. The scent of the guitar is
delicate; that hint of rose in the wood just
about takes your breath away. The shape is
lovely as well; the upper bout is 11" across,
while the lower bout swells to 15" from a
waist of 9. 25".
Does She Go, Eh?
Oh, she goes. And goes and goes. The sustain is remarkable. We’re used to bass ringing
on and on forever, but the treble sustains on
this guitar almost as long, too. This is what
guitars are supposed to sound like: rich and
brilliant, full and warm with no nasal midrange, and no mushy, muddy bottom end.
Just play an open chord, like an Em7, and let
it go. If you dig in you get an angelic roar,
incredible volume and magical tone. If you
play soft, you get delicacy and gentleness,
but the tone doesn’t wimp out and get thin
or reedy sounding. Capo’d, the Flammang
stays lively. There is the expected small loss
of sustain and brilliance, but it’s basically just
a slightly darker version of the same tone,
and no less desirable or beautiful.
The Final Come-to-Mama Mojo
The Druids of ancient Ireland called themselves “carpenters of song.” Once in a
while you find a guitar that lives up to that
idea. This one does. It literally (yes, literally) took my breath away from the moment
I opened the case. What’s not to love?
Gorgeous woods and sweet understatement
meet under six strings and sing like angels.
Flammang says, “I’m looking for a complete,
excitable voice that comes from wood. I
want the person who plays my guitar to feel
inspired to play that next note.” Nobody
could have said it better. As of this writing,
this guitar was available at Stars Guitars in
Cedar Rapids, IA.
Rating:
It plays beautifully, too. It’s nicely set up out of
the box, but this guitar would take a custom
set-up like a dream. I had no problems playing
anything; it was completely comfortable for
me. There’s no pickguard, so the intention is
most likely for fingerstyle playing, and with the
fretboard 1. 75" wide at the nut, it is wonderful
for that, but this is an outstanding flatpickin’
guitar, too, especially in open tunings that can
really highlight the gorgeous and brilliant sustain. Recorded with a really good guitar mic
(we chose an sE3 from sE Electronics), there is
so much depth and detail that it sounds like
you’re inside it. There are no crunchy or snotty
overtones to fight, no unmanageable boomi-ness to wrangle. You just record it and you’re
you’re looking for top-notch
craftsmanship, gorgeous woods,
beautiful tone and exquisite work.
Buy If...
Skip If...
you want something flashy instead
of substantively simple.
Flammang Guitars
MSRP $7900
(as reviewed)
flammangguitars.com
premierguitar.com
ONTHEWeb
[What’s this? See page 8.]
Click here or use a
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read this QR code to
hear sound samples
of the Flammang in
action at
www.premierguitar.com
PREMIER GUITAR MARCH 2010 177
