Chartwell Guitar

Rafał Turkowiak Amboyna burl and cedar double top.

Woods: Amboyna burl laminated back and sides with cedar over spruce double top. Sycamore maple neck. Water based varnish finish throughout.

Specs: 53mm nut, 43mm string spacing at nut, 58mm at saddle. 3.5mm string height 12th fret bass side. Custom Turkowiak case.

Condition:  new

Comment: Turkowiak guitars are somewhat new to the American market but his work will soon make Rafal and his sons a major player among serious guitarists. They are as unlike the traditional Spanish design as was the early Smallman era. Before getting into the particulars here, let me say I ordered this double top instrument and the solid top that accompanies it without much more than an impressive visit from the Turkowiak family, as they were traveling with some of their work. I knew their aesthetic features would impress, and they do. Truly an artistic as well as workmanlike sensation. In tuning the guitar I found it possessed plenty of energy; the low a and e strings have a growling, gut punch projection that is balanced by piercing trebles. There is so much power available that I needed to back off a bit to coax sweetness. The guitar is standard sized but feels small in the player’s hands–the neck profile is such that it feels narrower than the standard 52mm nut that it measures at. It is rather light in weight, which is surprising since it has laminated back and sides. As with most light guitars, the note bloom is quick and punchy.

Let me list the patented (literally) features that make this guitar unique. First, the neck is hollow, a design they call the “acoustic tube,” with openings under the high fret area. Their website claims this enhances sustain, and I believe it, though I wasn’t sure where the sustain was generated.  The back is braced only by two angled braces and is parabolic in profile, such as with the Australian lattices and some German double tops. This profile is known by those who promote it to influence a more focussed projection and add stiffness to the back. I know this works because American luthier Tim Harris’s new guitars feature this element and it immediately advanced the quality of his sound.

One significant feature that adds comfort and design points is the canted lower bout rim on the players arm side. Instead of a clunky armrest or none at all, this thin shelf looks cool and is quite comfortable. I also feel the energy in the guitar vibrating into my forearm.

Finally, what he calls a sigmoidal joint at the butt, where the sides join, is to my mind simply an artistic flourish, though he claims this long, swooping s shaped, curving joint adds stability. Ok, I buy that but this sensationally crafted touch is almost like showing off–see what we can do.

Well, I’ve seen what the Turkowiak family can do at their workbench, and it is stunning, but it is the playing and voice that counts the most.  One reviewer termed the double top voice as “thick,” which I agree with after a couple of extended plays.  When natural resonance/sustain couples with propulsive energy there is a powerful, breathy quality to high end double tops. A link to a previous musical era is Phil Specter’s “wall of sound.”  What makes this design work is that what could be muddy is made clean by having the treble end extend itself.  On a hunch I reached for my Canin double top and  I got the same effect. The Turkowiak holds its own against Glenn’s famous “hot rod” guitars.