Jesse Brace Guitars MJ Madagascar Rosewood / Kermodie Spruce

I have a Jesse Brace MJ (Mini Jumbo) with Rosewood back and sides and Spruce soundboard and Ebony fingerboard and bridge, that I got used (in Massachusetts). I *think* that this is Indian Rosewood and Sitka Spruce, with a Mahoganey Neck. Appears to be a flame maple binding which is a beautiful contrast to the rosewood sides. All solid wood.

I am giving it a 9, with some uncertainty regarding what "features" means for an accoustic guitar. This is a very beautiful guitar. Accoustic guitars in general don't have many features (strings, frets,...). The case is rather heavy (I think that it has plywood inside it). No pick guard (which is fine with me).

Sound is wonderful. A very rich full sound. Slightly more bass than my Martin OM (possibly due to its slightly larger body), but in great balance. Slightly less bright and less echo than the Martin, and therefore a bit clearer on individual notes. I play exclusively fingerpicking -- some folk, some classical, some that is between the two (perhaps slightly jazzy).

This is a very beautiful guitar. Action, fit, and finish are perfect as far as I can tell. It came (used) with medium weight strings. When I changed to light weight, the action became a bit low. I had the truss rod adjusted by a local Luthier (Jesse Brace is much too far away for me to visit easily) and it is now perfect. It is easier to play up the neck than other accoustic steel string guitars that I have tried.

This seems to be very solidly built. Finish and hardware appear to be very solid also. I noticed an extremely tiny scratch on the back which aligns with my rather large belt buckle -- thus I now always play guitar with a different belt or with the buckle on the side. Other than that this guitar appears to be in perfect "as new" condition (after about 7 years, based on my guess on its age and what I was told by the person that I got it from).

I would use it on a gig without a backup (the one issue is that a string might break -- but fingerpicking doesn't break many strings).

I haven't used this.

I have played since about 1965, but have only played seriously (daily practice and regular lessons) for a couple of years. I also have a Martin OM, and a very old somewhat beat up classical guitar (Swedish Goya). If my Jesse Brace were lost or stoken, I would order another from Jesse directly (the chance of finding another used one in New England is rather small).

I love the sound, the ease of fingerpicking, the stunningly beautiful appearance, and the general good fit and finish.

I got this as part of a trade, which makes it hard to say quite what I paid for it.

2005 model. 14 freat. Solid Master Grade Kermodie Spruce top. Solid AAA Quartersawn Madagascar Rosewood. Mahogany neck. Ebony fretboard with pearl side dots. Ebony bridge. Bone nut and saddle Koa body binding with purfling. Cocobola neck binding. Custom headstock with custom MOP inlay and Flame Rosewood overlay. Shaller gold tuners with ebony buttons. Custom Koa/Cocobola rosette. Gloss finish on the body. Satin finish on the neck.Came with a nice case.

This guitar really shows what a good handmade guitar can do. Awesome sound! The tone is well balanced and acoustically very pleasing sounding to the ear. It is articulate with each note of the chord being heard and rings out baar chords like nobodys buisness up and down the neck. It is rich and powerful being extremely loud, really projecting its sound. It has eaten alive guitars costing several thousands of dollars more. Great sound!

In a word perfect!

I should say it should hold up a long, long time......time will tell.

The best, nicest, friendliest luthier ever!

I've been playing for close to 30 years. I have played hundreds of acoustic guitars looking for those special ones. I've owned several high end handmade acoustics. I am now in the process of selling some of the more expensive ones because this guitar blew them out of the water. I'm not a friend of Mr. Braces, he's in Canada somewhere and I'm in New Mexico, and I'm not just someone who leaves rave reviews, but this guitar deserves it. This is the second time I am having to leave feedback on this guitar as the first time Harmony Central did not get it posted, but this luthier deserves to have an audience of supporters; others need to find out about these wonderful guitars and if I have to submit this reveiw 100 times to get it posted I will, but I will allow a couple of weeks between each try. Awesome guitar! Worth every penny and then some!