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2006 Olson Parlor Brazilian/Red Cedar
We’ve got another jaw-dropper here from legendary luthier James Olson. Jimhappily built this one as a custom order for a good friend of ours, and he clearly enjoyed his work, executing the binding with figured Brazilian Rosewood and Abalone trim. This is a stunning parlor model, something James doesn’t get to build too often, and it’s beautifully appointed, flawlessly executed. The voice is nuanced and dynamic, bringing a powerful and articulate low-end to the mix, perfectly balanced with crystalline trebles and a warm, responsive middle register. The thunderous tone of Olson’s SJs is found here in a compact and infinitely playable package: Brazilian Rosewood and Red Cedar make this a true gem from this Minnesota Master.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.25 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.25 in Woods Cedar - Red, Rosewood - Brazilian 
New Rein RJN-3C Cocobolo/European
We have a commitment here at Dream Guitars: to find the perfect guitar for each player who comes to us looking for an instrument to inspire them–and this brand new 2015 Rein RJN-3C might be the perfect guitar for just about anyone out there. Thomas Rein has been building excellent acoustic instruments since the 1970s, ranging from Classical to Lutes to Steel Strings, and has incorporated a series of unique design features to overcome many of the maladies of wooden-bodied instruments: tops with too much belly, bridges pulling up, necks needing multiple resets. His solutions include, and are exhibited here, an alternative top-bracing system which employs a curved brace across the lower bout below the bridge where tone bars traditionally reside, and a fully (and easily) adjustable neck.Innovations aside, this RJN-3C showcases some of the best characteristics of the finest fingerstyle guitars. With Cocobolo Rosewood back and sides for richness and depth, and a European Spruce top French Polished to be as light as possible for clarity and attack, this guitar both whispers and shouts with equal aplomb. Rein has given this guitar Maple and Nigerian Rosewood purflings and a superb glossy finish, imparting a glassy smoothness to the neck which dovetails perfectly with the slinky low action to allow for speed and clarity. But the dream continues! There’s also a swooping Florentine Cutaway for easy access to upper frets, and a smaller body which is infinitely comfortable to hold and to play.As crisp as frosty breath on an icy morning, this RJN-3C from Tom Rein has an incredible potential for fingerstylists of all walks, capable of explosive crescendo and delicate ballad. It handles Blues-Jazz to fit Lyle Lovett, percussive taps, or Celtic fingerstyle arrangements with the same level-headedness of a beautiful machine–this guitar is a professional.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.4 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.25 in Woods Spruce - European, Rosewood - Cocobolo 
2003 Martin D-42K2 Koa/Koa
Koa, Koa, and more Koa! One of Martin’s coveted all-Koa Dreadnoughts, this 2003 D-42K2 has the lucky opportunity to have the best of both worlds: it sounds as gorgeous and aggressive as it looks. The typical Koa tone, this guitar has in spades–dry and crisp, with lots of punch in the mids–and with the typical Dreadnought voice (huge and brash), this guitar reinforces why Martin Dreadnoughts are the best in the business.And she packs a wallop, of that you can be sure. Flatpicked Old Time or American Trad music rings with muscularity and bark. Country Blues fingerpicking really lets the trebles shine, accentuating the great balance across the strings. With projection like an ocean wave–tsunami-size–and a sustain which hovers like endless sky, this D-42K2 has a primal, vigorous tone perfect for group settings and an aggressive attack. And, with shimmering Abalone trim, inlay, and rosette, you’ll be the envy of every guitarist.
Buscarino Virtuoso European Maple/Spruce
A king among Jazz boxes! Whenever John Buscarino’s hands touch wood, the wood sings. This, his top-of-the-line Virtuoso, is no less than what we’ve come to expect from his guitars: strong attack, flawless construction, a hearty, meaty tone with that big jazz box feel, dynamically voiced for rhapsody or jitterbug.A gorgeous set of European Maple has here been paired with a European Spruce top to produce a muscular sound, with very present trebles with great sustain, and a fat low-end dripping with sweet sustain. For such a large-bodied guitar, it is surprisingly gentle to play, thanks in part to Buscarino’s glossy Nitrocellulose finish and glass-smooth neck profile, but it’s the little details and appointments which really let this looker shine. Featuring bound F-holes, Burl headstock veneers, Maple bindings throughout, and a laminated tailpiece and pickguard which exhibit gorgeous alternating bands of Ebony and Maple. Of course, let’s not forget his custom floating Humbucker pickup or the fleur-de-lis inspired soundport on the upper bout–a motif which is returned to in both the headstock inlays and in the tailpiece.With warmth like a roaring fire, and attack like lightning, this Virtuoso is ready to get down to the business of making music.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25 in Nut Width 1.81 in String Spacing 2.13 in Woods Spruce - European, Maple - European 
1971 Jeronimo Pena Fernandez Concert Palosanto/Spanish Pine
Powerful, but controlled–this 1971 Concert Classical from Jeronimo Pena Fernandez is one of the finest Classicals we’ve seen from the 1970s in quite some time. Decked out in Palosanto holy wood back and sides with a Spanish Pine top, this Fernandez exhudes the kind of richness of voice and tonal sonority found in guitars twice, thrice, its age. Set your fingertips to the trebles, and prepare yourself for an upper register which is shockingly clear, with immense headroom and expressive shimmer. To complement the agile trebles, the basses are sweet and responsive, but focused, with excellent sustain.Of course, Fernandez is known for more than just the richness of his guitars’ voices–the skill with which he has carved this headstock and bridge is astounding! With shapes and designs which are as extensive as they are delicate, Fernandez has rendered this instrument as much an objet d’art as a powerful tool for the concert Classical guitarist. Perhaps it’s the slow confidence with which Fernandez has rendered these carvings that informs the strength of the instrument’s voice; surely, the expressive, vigorous tonality this Concert Classical exhibits is a mark of his excellent voicing skills as well.Stained umber, but with a voice that spans the dark and mournful to the bright and exhuberant, this guitar is completely opened up and ready for many more years of beautiful music.
2009 Holst 16 Inch Archtop Laminate Maple/Laminate Maple
If you’re looking for a Jazz box ideal for gigging, the Holst 16″ Archtop is definitely worth considering. With a smaller-than-average Maple body, this Holst has all the warmth and round tonality of a full-size Jazz box, but the more compact and comfortable feel of a semi-hollow body. Amped up with an ES-175 Humbucker pickup perfect for fingerstyle, this guitar really lets those 6 and 13 chords ring in all their complexity–and the wider neck with 1 13/16″ nut makes fingering complicated shapes that much easier.The voice is warm and expressive, with lots of drive. Trebles silky smooth; basses clean and articulate. If you’re looking for the big, round sound for fingerstyle Jazz in a more manageable package, try this Holst 16″ Archtop on for size. This guitar also comes with an extra bridge and saddle, and a TKL hardshell case.
2004 Hoffman Jumbo Cocobolo/Sitka
Looking for a guitar which can handle fingerstyle and flatpicks equally well? Looking for a guitar which has a huge voice but a lightweight build that isn’t fatiguing to play? Looking for Cocobolo back and sides and Sitka Spruce top for a bright and responsive voice? Look no further: your search is over: this 2004 Hoffman Jumbo is here to answer all your prayers.Builder Charlie Hoffman was never satisfied with the thud and boom of standard jumbos like the Gibson J-200, but had been interested in building a Jumbo guitar which had the warmth of a larger soundboard and the articulation of a smaller-bodied guitar–hence his decision to build his Jumbos with a thinner body (from 3 1/4″ at the neck block to 4″ at the end pin), to allow for a much more balanced tonality and projection. This particular Jumbo features a gorgeous set of Cocobolo Rosewood back and sides and a Sitka Spruce top, granting the guitar a silky sustain in the upper registers. Fingerstylists will love the articulation between the strings; flatpickers will love the big sound and the crispy nature of the low-end. With a smooth setup for effortless playing and a Cedar Creek hardshell case to provide excellent protection in those rare moments when you won’t be playing this beauty, this 2004 Hoffman Jumbo can handle just about anything you throw its way.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 24.75 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.31 in Woods Spruce - Sitka, Rosewood - Cocobolo 
2010 Forster Guitar Bouzouki Camatillo/Italian
The Irish Bouzouki is the result of constant evolution. What began as a bowl-backed, three-course instrument from Greece has undergone a series of transformations in the past 40 years to become the flat-backed, four-course (or more) instrument we now find in Irish and Folk scenes across the world. A select few luthiers have taken the instrument one step further, by experimenting with using guitar bodies instead of the accepted teardrop shape, in an attempt to create a more dynamically-voiced and easier to play Bouzouki. Nigel Forster, former apprentice of famed luthier Stefan Sobell, is one of these pioneers–and the territories he’s exploring are deep and resounding.This, his Guitar Bouzouki (or Gouzouki, or Gitzouki, if you prefer), is a specialty of his, and this one in particular stands apart from his standard Guitar Bouzouki model with a removable neck, which the original owner conscripted Forster to include, in order for him to remove the standard four-course neck and swap it for a fretless version, or a different profile, or whatever caught his inspiration. Alas, this Guitar Bouzouki only comes with the one neck, but the possibility is still there.Tonally, this 2010 Guitar Bouzouki is fearsome. With a voice characterized by its clarity and depth, and a projection capable of shattering windows, Forster has built an exceedingly loud and expressive instrument. This Guitar Bouzouki is louder than an instrument this size has a right to be–honestly, it can achieve volumes most instruments need to be electrically amplified to achieve. Forster has written extensively on the particulars of his building style which result in this magnificent voice, and you can read his own thoughts on the subject below: http://www.nkforsterguitars.com/blog/loud-acoustic-guitars/ Forster’s use of a “cylindrical top,” based on a Howe-Orme design from the 1800’s, allows the Italian Spruce top to be incredibly light (literally: check out the photos below which show light passing warmly through the top)–and all of that lightness translates into dynamic voicings, projection, sustain, and a well-defined top end.This Guitar Bouzouki, with Camatillo Rosewood back and sides and a Cuban Mahogany neck, has an otherworldly voice, at once persuading, ecstatic, thoughtful yet confident, moving but focused.
Applegate C 7-String Nylon Cocobolo/Yellow Cedar
We know why you visit our site and our showroom at Dream Guitars: because we have the best, most unique, original guitars anywhere. Because we are good friends with many of the amazing builders we represent, and connect players with their favorite luthiers to achieve something beautiful together, like this guitar. Brian Applegate and Paul Heumiller have known each other for some time, so when Paul approached Brian with a unique request from a customer, Brian was unfazed. In fact, Mr. Applegate dove headfirst into the challenge of building this fan-fretted nylon string guitar with a low C string and an elongated scale of 26 7/8″ on the low E and 25 5/8″ on the high. As if that wasn’t enough to make a lesser luthier run away in fear, Brian decided to add an arm bevel to the lower bout, a soundport to the upper, and a five-piece neck of Mahogany, Rosewood, and Maple to the already herculean task presented to him. This is his first seven-string nylon string guitar–and folks, it’s a success.
Applegate’s attention to detail is preponderous: observe how smoothly the Rosewood bindings hug the curve of the arm bevel, fading into a thin line before returning to their regular width for the rest of the body. Follow the interlocking lines of his rosette, a series of geometrical shapes traced around the soundhole in perfect symmetry, or the elegant grace of the Yellow Cedar top as the upper bout and Venetian Cutaway tuck in toward that dark rosette, before sweeping outward across the lower bout and Applegate’s understated Brazilian Rosewood bridge, offset to accomodate that great low C string. And the Cocobolo back and sides! Can you find another set so brilliantly figured? Applegate is a master of the craft–and we’d expect no less from a former pupil of luthier legend James Olson.
Of course, all these beautiful examples of fine woodworking are heart-stirring, but they pale in comparison to the grand, orchestral, absorbing tone of this guitar. The multiscale design allows for an amazingly articulate low-end (that low C string sings a somber and resonant song), and articulation across all the registers is crystal clear. The middle and upper registers exhibit smooth separation, and there’s more sustain than a room of slack-jawed onlookers will know what to do with–and trust us, wherever this guitar goes, people will stare. Applegate’s maestro techniques have yielded a guitar which, surrounded by unique and irreplacable guitars such as only Dream Guitars has, still manages to stand alone, a truly singular instrument.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.625 in - 26.875 in Nut Width 2.25 in String Spacing 2.63 in Woods Cedar - Yellow, Rosewood - Cocobolo 
2007 Andrew White F80 Brazilian/German Craig D’Andrea’s Personal Guitar!
We have a special treat here: an Andrew White F80 in German Spruce and Brazilian Rosewood that was sent to us by none other than Canadian fingerstyle guitarist Craig D’Andrea himself! Could you find a guitar with more sweet tunes played through it? We don’t think so. The tone of this guitar is mature and alive, the trebles are crisp with a well controlled bass presence, perfectly suited to fingerstyle. The wood options used here are top notch, the Brazilian is dark with great grain character and the German Spruce is straight and true. If you are looking for a guitar that will sound excellent plugged in, look no further, this F80 has been equipped with a K&K Trinity pickup system that reproduces an articulate and accurate acoustic sound. This is an exceptional guitar that has been broken in by a master, grab it up while you can!
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.5 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.19 in Woods Spruce - German, Rosewood - Brazilian 
New Manzer Dehlicaster Indian/Spruce
We like to think that our shop contains some of the finest, strangest, and unique guitars on the planet. We’ve got seven-string nylons and 12-string baritones, Somogyi Mod Ds and Matsuda Deconstructions, fan-frets and adjustable necks and interchangeable saddles–but there’s nothing quite like the Linda Manzer Sitar Guitar. Linda’s work spans the length and breadth of what’s acoustically possible in guitar construction, so by comparison this “Dehlicaster” looks almost (almost) like an ordinary guitar with gorgeous Indian Rosewood and Spruce. Take one look at the bridge, however, and all bets are off.Linda’s sole source of information when she was building the first Sitar Guitar for Pat Metheny in the 1980’s was a brief two-page article titled “Djovari: Giving Life to the Sitar,” in which the respectable career of an Indian Sitar saddle carver is explained to Western audiences, perhaps for the first time. Linda scanned the article, and we’ve included it below. In modifying Djovari for the guitar, Manzer has implemented a system of Ebony shims to adjust the height of each string’s long saddle, allowing each string to be adjusted individually to optimize the amount of buzz and shimmer.Haunting and rhapsodic, with single-string leads inspiring sympathetic resonance from adjacent strings, the Dehlicaster is particularly moving. This is an instrument to completely change your perspective on what a guitar can look like, and what a guitar can do. With its esoteric and unmistakable sustain, the Dehlicaster is guaranteed to transport every fingerstyle arrangement or flatpicked solo into uncharted and exhilarating territory.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.5 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.06 in Woods Spruce, Rosewood - Indian 
2012 Charis Heart’s Home Series SJ Pau Rosa/Cedar
Not a Charis passes through our shop that doesn’t leave our jaws hanging and our hands itching for one more minute with that butter-slick neck and that resounding projection–this “Heart’s Home Series” SJ is no different. Bill Wise’s technique lends each guitar with scientific precision and laser-cut articulation between the strings. Blessed with Pau Rosa back and sides and a Cedar top, what we have here is an SJ with all the expressiveness of a 00 and the power of a Dreadnought–while simultaneously maintiaining a flawless separation of notes. Fingerstylists, of course, will love the articulation and even presence of each register, but there’s also an ease of playability and aptitude for projection and sustain which flatpickers recognize as essential for a guitar to faithfully broadcast chords, leads, fiddle tunes, and overtones. Here’s something on which both kinds of players can agree: this SJ handles dropped tunings like no guitar’s business, lending the guitar an even more full-bodied voice. Packed up securely in a Cedar Creek hardshell case, this Charis is ready to go anywhere and play any tune.
2008 Sexauer Companion O Cocobolo Negro/Carpathian
Want a guitar which is small enough to travel with, but as loud, rich, and dynamic as a full-sized guitar? Enter: the Sexauer Companion 0. If you close your eyes while playing it (and trust us, that’s going to happen), you’d think a much larger instrument was making music in your lap than this little gem! Featuring Cocobolo Negro back and sides (a rare and desirable tonewood similar to Brazilian Rosewood) and a Carpathian Spruce top, the Companion 0 has amazing depth and projection, with a warm, expressive bass and trebles with an electric shimmer.And, as if Bruce’s excellent construction methods and tonewood selection weren’t enough, this guitar aso has a multiscale design with 25 3/4″ bass and 25 1/4″ on the treble to allow this smaller-scale guitar to handle lowered tunings like DADGAD without sounding cheap and tubby, and is easy on the hands. Lastly, the strange and beautiful Cocobolo Negro is a rarity in the back and sides department: Bruce himself claims to have only seen one or two such sets, and this one’s coloration probably comes from a submerged log, so you could even call this “Sinker” Cocobolo Negro, and features a clean, bright tap tone.Protected by its Cedar Creek hardshell case, the Companion 0 is ready for the car, the bus, the train, the airplane–and will give you amazing tone and playability wherever your travels take you.
2005 Lucas LD-28 Brazilian/Adirondack (Red)
If you had to list your favorite Bluegrass Dreadnought makers active today, we’d bet good money that Randy Lucas would be one of the highest on your list. This LD-28 that we’ve got in the shop is absolutely top of the class in terms of tone, playability, and sheer fun. Randy’s reputation has been built on years of repair and restoration, and as such his guitars are bombproof and dynamite-voiced–at the same time!This 2005 LD-28, in particular, has a tendency toward explosiveness: the low-end is crystal clear and articulate, with a low E and A string that each have great presence and are perfect for accentuating the bass lines of chords in Bluegrass accompaniment. Add to that trebles which pop like firecrackers and a middle register which is tight, controlled, and crisp, and you have an instrument which fully lives up to the title “Bluegrass Cannon.”Built with a dark-grained set of Brazilian Rosewood for the back and sides, this box is beautiful to behold, and with the expertly voiced Adirondack Spruce top, the LD-28 has huge potential for projection, but doesn’t top out easily. In short, with Brazilian richness and Adirondack attack, this Dreadnought has enough acoustic force to level a room of the fiercest banjos.That said, this Dreadnought also responds easily to fingerpicking, and with a thumbpick it can broadcast Doc Watson arrangements with the best of them. Traditionally-built contemporary Dreadnoughts which play like butter are few and far between: this LD-28 is on the short list of such Dreads, for sure.
SOLD Read moreScale Length 25.125 in Nut Width 1.75 in String Spacing 2.25 in Woods Spruce - Adirondack (Red), Rosewood - Brazilian 
2008 Mustapick Aurora Macassar Ebony/Koa
Every now and then, we get a guitar in the shop which is so staggeringly beautiful, it reminds us of the first time we fell in love with music. This, a custom build from Matt Mustapick which became his standard Aurora model, is just such an instrument. With a huge, bold voice, articulate and finely honed, the Macassar Ebony and Koa body are tuned with depth and sonority in mind.Set up for lowered tunings like DADGAD, the Aurora is perfect for the fingerstylist looking to blow doors down with the force of their arrangements–with a monstrous projection and haunting sustain, the Aurora sounds more like a three-piece band than simply a six-string guitar. The Macassar Ebony provides a clarity to the low-end, and Mustapick’s renowned skills with Koa have yielded a top that evens out the tone and provides the trebles with great body and a clean, invigorating presence.Per the custom build specs, this guitar features gorgeous crimson Bloodwood bindings, rosette, and headstock veneer, with a slight arm rest bevel and a slight Manzer Wedge for ease of playing–and let’s not forget the upper bout soundport to project the bass straight to the player’s ear! As mentioned above, this guitar has a longer-than-average multi-scale fretboard (27 3/8″ on the low E and 25 5/8″ on the high), so we recommend keeping this guitar in lowered tunings, rather than up to standard, unless you use lighter strings.Replete with sumptuous appointments and playability upgrades, this Aurora is your next guitar to expand your definitions of what a guitar is, and what it can sound like.