Gallagher G-50 12-String

I recently commissioned a 12 fret, 12 string, mahogany backed, spruce topped G-50 Gallagher. It came with a cut-away and a fishman built in mike. A basic mahogany dread body with a mahogany neck. I paid about $3,300.

Gorgeous sound. Mellow with punch. Incredibly balanced without any jangle you often here in a 12 string. I've been playing in a many styles for a long time and I've never played a better instrument. It flatpicks fiddle tunes and fingerpicks anything from blues to Kottke to Bach. Absolutely awesome for fiddle tunes and old timey, Norman Blake type playing. The best thing about the guitar is that it seems to play itself. I don't have to work it at all. I just find myself humming the tune, sitting back, listening to the incredible sound of the guitar. I've purchased a number of guitars over the years and had buyer's remorse with all of them until now. Frets like a nylon string, holds a tuning marvelously, and just sorta sings. I had high expectations, given the builder's rep., but I was still stunned at the result.

The action is perfect for me. No buzzes or dead spots. Very, very easy action. I couldn't find any flaws in the workmanship. The spruce top has a very small brown knot in the wood that aesthetically takes away from the otherwise perfectly grained white top. The finish on the back is perfect, but held in a certain angle looks slightly uneven, which may be the wood itself. Otherwise, it's perfect.

The guitar is a 2004, just out of the box, so I can't speak to its long term durability. But, from the feel of it, I think you could drive a truck over it without a problem. Just pick it up and you get a sense that it's very solid. The G-50 model has been around awhile and durability is historically a strong suit. It's held its tuning exceptionally well no matter how it's played.

Don and Hazel are fabulous. Very good people. Don took my initial call and helped me decide what I was looking for (and he was right). He customized a standard model with no extra cost for the sound I wanted. Hazel followed up and took care of getting the guitar to me nearly to the day it was promised. The warranty is lifetime.

I've worked really hard at guitar for 20 plus years, complete with years of formal classical training. Everything I do is solo acoustic instumental. I don't play professionally, although there is very little music I can't play. I currently have Mexican and Italian handmade classical guitars and a Martin OM-21. As for steel strings, my Martin has a corner of my heart (it's a great guitar that's done me well for hours upon hours of fun), but the Gallagher is much more than I expected it to be. I'd buy another Gallagher in a heartbeat. If all my guitars were lost or stolen, I doubt I'd even think about another guitar. Maybe some of the new wave of great guitar makers, like John Grevin or Froggy Bottom, build equally wonderful guitars, but their prices are double for the same instrument, and I don't get the feeling that they'd be as tough. But what I love most about my Gallagher is that it really plays itself. I'm not kidding. I'm playing songs that I normally have to warm up a great deal to play and I just pick up the guitar, hit a few chords or an intro and the guitar is, like, "Yea, I know that tune," and off it goes. As for bang for the buck, it's the best guitar out there in my opinion.