Product: Heiner Dreizehnter Model A
Price Paid: 2500 (Euro)
Submitted
02/18/2004
at
01:00pm
by
Cams
Features
:
9
-- Fully handbuilt in Germany, 2003
-- 14 frets to the bout
-- Tasmanian blackwood throughout.
-- Ebony fretboard, bridge, headstock veneer, bridge pins with abalone inlay
-- Oil finish
-- Slotted headstock with abalone HD logo inlaid
-- Schaeller tuners
-- Maple body binding
-- 45mm (1 3/4") nut width
-- 650mm (25.35") scale length
-- Very tasteful abalone rosette
-- Hard-shell case (not a particularly good one)
-- No pickup (I had it removed to bring down the cost as I wouldn't have used it anyway)
-- strap buttons on lower bout and heel of neck
Sound
:
10
It was the sound of this guitar that I fell in love with. I tried it for the first time at a guitar festival in Germany that went on over a weekend. I must have tried over 100 guitars in that weekend, but it was the Heiner Dreizehnter that I kept going back to.
Its tone is very rich, resonant and deep, particularly for a grand concert sized instrument. It has much more sustain than any of my other guitars and it suits the low C tuning that I am currently enamoured with. I use this guitar primarily for playing Celtic fingerstyle music and its sustain and depth make it perfect for that. I've also given it a good, hard strum with a plectrum and it responds really well to that too, although it is more at home with a lighter touch.
Intonation is good all the way up the neck.
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
10
The fit and finish of this guitar is as immaculate as one would expect from a German hand builder. The inlay on the rosette is particularly stunning, as is the inlay on the headstock.
I'd never seen an acoustic guitar with an oil finish before and it really brings out the aesthetic quality of the blackwood.
The action is perfect for the style of music I play. The frets are quite chunky, more so than on my other guitars and they make more of a difference than I would have thought.
Reliability/Durability
:
10
I'm sure that this guitar is as durable as any other. It would stand live playing without any trouble and the finish would hide dings and scratches pretty well too compared to a gloss or simple matt finish.
Customer Support
:
10
I met the builder, Heiner Driezehnter at the guitar show and he was very friendly and approachable. I didn't buy the guitar until a couple of months later. Straight after the show, I posted a review on my Web site and soon after received an email from Heiner to say thanks! Friendly indeed!
It wasn't until I realised two months later that I was still regretting my decision that I contacted him to see if he still had it. Luckily for me, I got in just before another interested party contacted him -- the other guy ended up with cedar on rosewood jumbo.
Overall Rating
:
10
I've been playing for 13 years, but seriously for only just over one. My other guitars are a Lakewood M-14 and Guild DV4. I just sold my Gibson J-150 and have a Brook Bovey on order.
This is the guitar I would grab in the event of a fire. If it were stolen or destroyed, I would order another one and hope that it would be as good. I've read about finding "the one" and this is it for me. Seriously. The fact that it looks so good is a bonus; it's the tone that makes this guitar. Oh, and did I mention the wonderful smell?!
The only downside is the case but that's not a problem as it fits in my Lakewood case anyway.
Pics and recordings are available on my Web site - Google for Celtic guitar talk and you'll find me.
