Brook Guitars Custom Taw

Manufactured in 2005 in England

I visited the workshop, deined the specs with the guys from Brook, chose the raw timber and held my breath for 6 months until it was born. This is not just an exercise in buying a guitar, it's a really special experience in which you, maybe for the firtst time, critically define what you like and dislike about other guitars, decide what is your vision for the guitar (workhorse or object of adoration etc) and then select woods for both sound and aesthetics. Throughout Brook have the patience and consideration to work with you to ensure that the end product is exactly what you want. It's also very stressful indeed as you wait to see what results.

The vision: finger-picker in English woods.
The outome:
OM-sized, no cutaway
14 frets to the body
Slotted headstock with Gold-plated Schaller tuners
Yew back and sides
Walnut one-piece neck with dovetail joint
Spruce soundboard with abalone purfling and soundhole rosette
Lacewood binding
Cocobolo (OK, not English!) fretboard and headstock veneer
Bone saddle and nut
Fishman Acoustic Matrix and Elipse blender system with endpin jack
Hiscox fitted hard case.

I expected it to take time to play in but it sounded great from the off. The neck is amazing: I have two Taylors as I love their necks but the Brook has the edge. Having watched Simon make these with very simple tools, hardly any measurements and enormous skill I'm amazed at the outcome. This is the best guitar I have played and I've played (and bought) guitars costing quite a bit more.

Having said that, this is a simple guitar, by choice, so the rating for features is 8.

Suits me perfectly. Has even volume across the strings with depth to all tones. If anything it's a little bright which is what I would expect until the soundboard loosens up a bit. Not as bright as a Taylor though.

When I use an amp I use either an AER compact 60 or a Trace Acoustic 35CR. No bad habits although this is my fisrt blender system and I needed to learn some new feedback-avoiding tricks.

Currently I'm home recording through a Boss BR 1180CD using an Audio Technica ATR4033A/SM and/or a Rode NT1A mic and the recorded sound is very authentic.

Set up was perfect. Simon, who built it, is a player and had played the guitar for a few days before I collected it and had made any necessary adjustments.

I've inspected the instrument very closely and I can't find a single build flaw: the attention to detail of these guys is incredible.

Who knows? I don't see anything that would indicate that it might deteriorate with age or normal use. Evertying looks as solid as a rock. Brook have an enviable name for quality and that sort of thing is hard-earned. I'm also confident that if there is a problem, they will fix it.

Over the last few months I've had numerous phone calls and emails and have visited the workshop twice, once to choose woods and once to collect. Both times they were happy to chat for as long as it took and during the build they sent me regular progress photos by email.

If ever I need it, they'll give me a free set-up.

I don't think that I could have asked for more.

I've been playing for 36 years and also own a Taylor 714ce, Taylor 312ce, Larrivee Parlour, Squire strat.

Would I buy another if stolen...you bet. I may buy another Brook anyway, probably a Bovey or one of the other travel guitars they do.

The price I paid includes a number of extras (electrics, glold tunders, binding, abalone etc) and the basic model is about #1600 which is, frankly, way underpriced. If you see and play these instruments you'd pay the money and not even think about it.

Ordered in August 2003 collected March 2004 - European spruce top with English Yew (stunning!) back and sides bound in Indian rosewood. A mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard and bridge, finished off with a slotted headstock with yew veneer and Schaller tuners. Oh and a Fishman Matrix pickup. Hiscox case included in price!!

The features of this guitar are perfect as they are exactly what I asked for!! After being blown away by a similar guitar in Mairants in London I paid a visit to the workshop in deepest Devon and spent several hours chatting with Simon and playing many of the beautiful guitars they had there. After a fascinating tour of the workshop I picked out the pieces of wood that would eventually become my guitar.

Sounds sweet, warm and lively without the slightest hint of harshness and this should only improve with age! Great for finger picking with every string able to make itself heard. Also great for playing with a pick in a Neil Young kinda way. Played through an amp it sounds pretty much the same but louder, pickup suits it well. This guitar just sings to you, makes any acoustic I've previously owned sound totally lifeless.

Flawless. Laquering is top notch. A quick peak inside shows you the attention to detail, no messy glue or poor finishing even where you have to struggle to see. The wood is absolutely stunning, knotty yew with sapwood through the center of the back and the top of the sides and bear clawed spruce on the top that looks great when it catches the light. If you don't play guitar you should buy one of these as a work of art! Action is spot on, makes it possible to play things I used to struggle with.

Very solid, treated with the respect it deserves it should last beyond a lifetime.

Well what can I say, the most friendly and helpful company I've ever dealt with in any line of business. A bunch of top guys who have a great passion for producing the best guitars possible. I was more than happy to hand over my hard earned cash to them. From helping me to spec the guitar and picking out the wood to emailing me photos as the guitar was built and offering me a free setup in a few months if needed. They were a joy to deal with. (BTW I have no vested interest in Brook Guitars they are just genuinely nice guys who really care about what they do)

After many years of fruitless searching for a guitar that I "had to own" I made a trip to London with a friend to seek out an acoustic that would be with me for the rest of my life. Many Martins, Taylors and even Santa Cruz's later I stumbled accross a Brook Taw. From the moment I saw it I knew it was special. The quality of the finishing and the beautiful wood made it stand out, even in a room full of expensive guitars. Once I had played a few bars on it I knew my search was over.
If you are looking for an acoustic guitar you owe it to yourself to try a Brook. If you can get down to the workshop even better. There's something very special about knowing that the guitar was destined to be mine and not just another one rolling off some automated production line. I now own a guitar that I once held in my hands as a couple of pieces of timber and saw develop into something very special - MY GUITAR!! If it were ever stolen... well I don't even want to think about it.
Visit http://www.brookguitars.com you can see my guitar and hear me play it in the gallery (alongside Adrian Legg, Woody Mann and a host of other incredible players (How did I get in there?))