This 1992 Olson SJ falls in one of our favorite ranges for Jim’s guitars from the 1990s. The voice is sweet and melodic, completely opened up and responsive, and the setup is slinky smooth in just about every application. The original LB6 pickup has been replaced with a McIntyre Feather (you’ll find the LB6 in the neck compartment of the case), and we’re happy to report that it sounds rich and organic, even plugged straight into an amp without additional preamp power. Bill Tippin did some work on this beauty, and it’s in fabulous condition for many more years of good tunes ahead. Indian Rosewood back and sides, Cedar top, the classic Olson sound.

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Sold! Before we could even list this beauty. Suffice it to say, this 2000 Olson SJ is a killer piece of work in Indian Rosewood and Adirondack Spruce. Keep checking in with us, though: Olsons come our way more often than you’d think. Better luck next time!

James Olson hit a great chord early on, and his guitars’ music has only gotten sweeter with time! This 1998 SJ is the classic Olson, Indian  Rosewood and Cedar with bird inlays across the board, and with 20 years’ playing its voice has blossomed handsomely.

Excellent string-to-string balance, with a well-tempered bass response that fills out the voice without overpowering it. The trebles are impressively clear, and fingerstyle arrangements especially will bring out that clarity in spades. A slick setup and slim neck profile combine for deliciously easy playability, and the guitar is overall in great shape.

The Olson SJ is an industry standard in the boutique fingerstyle world, and this ’98 beau is no exception.

Liveliness and balance characterize the tone of this gorgeous 2002  Olson  SJ in Rosewood & Cedar. It’s opened up handsomely over the past 15 years and offers a rich, dynamic response under even a delicate touch. There’s a modicum of added warmth to the trebles from the Cedar top, and they’re filled to the brim with colorful overtones that have a blooming effect after the initial attack. Lots of depth to the voice: digging in with a flatpick yields a huge projection that doesn’t easily top out.

The body is trimmed in Abalone, Jim’s dove inlays flying across the fretboard, and the fit-n-finish is so good it almost looks like a new guitar. Tortoloid bindings, 5-ply Mahogany neck, Calton flight case for maximum protection; there’s little room for critique. An excellent fingerstyle guitar in standard, DADGAD, and beyond.

Every Olson has that trademark clarity and playability which has made Jim such a household name in the fingerstyly guitar world–but not every Olson comes so beautifully opened up as this 1997 SJ (#682) in Indian Rosewood and Cedar. As a result of being formerly owned by a professional musician and recording artist, this Olson has blossomed into a sweet-voiced SJ with incredible warmth and depth in the mid-to-lower ranges, and snappy, articulate trebles on the other end.

You can play this Olson as gentle as a lamb and still get an easy richness, or dig for some crunchy Blues and those bass strings can growl in a throaty roar. The setup is slinky and low for fast and easy playability, and a K&K Pure Mini passive pickup is installed, so this SJ is equally ready for the studio as the stage.

We are extremely excited to offer you this 2010 Olson SJ today! This masterwork has got all the sweet spots covered: Brazilian Rosewood back and sides, Western Red Cedar top, Olson’s trademark 5-piece neck of Mahogany, Maple, and Rosewood. Olson’s bindings are all Brazilian Rosewood—as is the rosette, in a beautiful radial arrangement of grain patterns—and everything’s trimmed with Abalone and wood lines. Olson’s doves demarcate the Ebony fretboard, and rich Brazilian Rosewood adorns both the top and bottom of the headstock. Rosewood bridge: check. Ebony Gotoh 510 tuners: check. Perfect fit and finish: check.

All of those beautiful components, when assembled with Olson’s calibre of Luthierie, yield a guitar which puts all others to shame. To call an SJ a ‘sound cannon’ is almost cliché—but this is an SJ which sets the bar at an almost unreachable level. Each register, from low to high, absolutely sings; it’s like there’s three or four guitars playing at once. The tone is rich, decadent, vibrant. Everything, from note separation to setup, is perfectly balanced. It’s practically perfect.

This guitar comes with an L.R. Baggs LB6 pickup.

Jim Olson is one of the most successful luthiers the industry has ever seen, and for some very good reasons. Olson guitars are laser precise, from one guitar to the next you know exactly what you are going to get, flawless craftsmanship and superb tone. This is a 2002 SJ in East Indian Rosewood and Cedar. As expected this SJ is beautifully built and finished, but the tone is the real star. Top end shimmer and controlled bass and mid sections make this a perfect fingerstyle instrument, every note is captivating and draws you in further and further. You won’t ever want to put this thing down.