Blueridge BR-160A

Similar to BR-160 dreadnought, but with an Adirondack (Red) Spruce top. Quite plain otherwise, but in a good way. Solid Indian Rosewood back and sides, Rosewood fingerboard and bridge, bone saddle and nut, open-back butterbean tuners, mahogany neck. The top bracing pattern is modelled on the prewar Martin dreadnoughts. Polyurethane finish, Dalmatian style pickguard (presumably to imitate that on Tony Rice's old D-28).

The guitar is loud and very suitable for styles such as bluegrass. There is an even volume between strings and up the neck, which was a surprise. The bass is loud, but doesn't quite have the growl of a prewar Martin dreadnought. The sustain is very good. Articulation is good, making the guitar quite musical. There are similarities to the tone of a Martin, but I think that the polyurethane finish is a little thick and has a negative effect on the tone. I'd like to hear how this instrument sounds with a thin nitrocellulose finish. Nevertheless, this guitar gives a lot of sound for the money. The Adirondack top to my ears seems to give a larger dynamic range than Sitka and the mids sound a bit fuller.

The guitar plays beautifully in tune right the way up the neck, indicating that the saddle is perfectly positioned (unlike some high end Martin's I've played). Buyers ought to be aware that the fingerboard is dyed black in order to make it look more like ebony and the 'headstock overlay' is actually a painted over sticker, not real inlay. The geometry of the neck relative to the body is very good. The frets are a little underfinished, bearing slight scratches on top. I recommend taking the guitar to a luthier to rectify this slight problem. The nut is also a little underfinished: a little high in mass with the strings buried deep in the bone slots. The tuners work well and the finish is even, although the wrong composition and too thick for my liking (effects the sound). The pickguard pattern is a little loud for me, but it's an easy thing to change. A really attractive feature about this instrument is its light weight, which goes a long way to accounting for the volume it produces.

I've only had the guitar for a month. The guitar came with a 1 year warranty, but the build quality looks like it will last for ages. Some critics claim that they are underbuilt and will collapse prematurely, but I doubt that will be the case. People said the same things about Taylor necks and were proved wrong. Just store in the case, keep the humidity and temperature relatively constant and all should be fine. The hardware seems tough enough, but don't forget to lubricate the tuner gears with a little oil (thanks to Frank Ford for this tip).

I am aware that people started buying Blueridge guitars as festival 'beaters', but many now use them as serious instruments despite their relatively low cost.

1 Year waranty. I have not yet has to deal with a warranty repair issue for this instrument.

This guitar is very good value for money, but still sounds a touch 'Chinese' due to the finish composition and thickness.

Been playing 30 odd years, variety of styles including rock, blues, bluegrass, classical. I own some serious bluegrass dreadnoughts by other manufacturers and so have a good basis for comparison. Professional musicians have played the Blueridge and liked it.

I believe that I would buy another if this were stolen or lost.

It might be possible to thin the finish a little with a cutting compound, or better still to remove it altogether and put on some nitrocellulose.