Brook Guitars Custom Tamar

My Tamar is a bit of a high bred, based on a standard Tamar but customised to my exact specification. It has a slightly wider 45mm nut, body depth reduced to 110mm and a scale length of 640mm. Back and sides are in stunning Cocobolo which I selected from sets Brook had at the time I ordered the guitar. The top is Stika spruce with a cool looking tortoise shell guard. Pau abalone on the top and sound hole rosette with the body, neck and head bound in Koa, it?s a stunning instrument. The unusual scale length of 640mm resulted from discussions I had with Simon at Brook when I described my wish to get a versatile but easy playing guitar. I was playing a Martin OM-28VR at the time as a main guitar but was experiencing hand problems, which I put down to a combination of the large neck profile and the long scale of the vintage reissue Martin OM?s. The highbred scale on the Tamar has turned out better than I could have possibly hoped, the playability of a short scale with the drive of a long scale. Perfect for fingerstyle and flatpicking styles, simply the most versatile guitar I have ever played.

The guitar is obviously brand new and so has a lot of opening up to do. The remarkable thing about it is how good it sounds now; it should be simply stunning with a few years of playing. It more than holds its own against the Martin OM-28VR it replaced, plenty of bass on hand when you dig in, brilliant mids and singing highs with amazing sustain, which I think has a lot to do with the Cocobolo. The score of less than 10 simply says it is fantastic now but will I am sure become amazing with age.

The finish on the guitar is flawless throughout. The action is the easiest I have experienced on any guitar. I simply cannot fault the guitar in any way, a craftsman built instrument by people who genuinely care about what they do, it doesn?t get any better.

Time will tell but I can see no reason why this guitar will not be around long after I am gone. It is a true quality instrument, which given the care any instrument of this quality deserves should last indefinitely.

My experience of Brook has been great, I first came across Brook after I was lucky enough to come across a second hand Brook Bovey that I still have. They supplied a new strap pin for it, refused payment even though I didn?t buy the guitar from them, a small thing I know but never the less an attitude increasingly rare in today?s commercially driven world. I guess this experience combined with the reputation Brook are creating for themselves contributed to me taking the leap of faith to have them custom build me a guitar. I am confident that if I have any problems the guys at Brook will respond, when you meet them you get the feeling a lifetime guarantee means just that.

I guess I should apologise if this review sounds over gushing, the fact of the matter is Brook have provided me with the best guitar I have ever played. I have been playing for more years than I care to admit to. I have owned several high-end guitars, still have a couple of them, my custom Tamar has relegated them to the back room. If you have concerns as I did about taking that leap of faith to have a guitar custom built, you will not find a safer set of hands than Brook Guitars. I have never played a bad Brook, my custom Tamar has turned out exceptional. Simon and Andy at Brook are turning out some of the best instruments available anywhere today. Add to this that they are thoroughly good blokes to boot, I think they have the recipe for a great future ahead. If you are in the market for a high end acoustic I strongly recommend them, go along and meet them and play the instruments, you won?t be disappointed.