Blue Arch Big Bang Acoustic Archtop

Krzysztof Trześniowski's latest build, Big Bang, is a beautiful archtop. But what makes it so very special is what's under the hood. Krzysztof has dedicated himself to analyzing guitar sound, wood properties, and construction. His innovative builds result in a remarkable instrument - one that plays and sounds great. It merits a deeper understanding of how Big Bang came to be. Here's an idea of the thinking that lies beneath its beautiful surface:

In the builder's words:  
"The Big Bang top is made from a beautiful piece of Western Red Cedar (thuja plicata), which was cut from a tree that was at least 250 years old. Western red cedar is a very light softwood, the opposite of spruce, especially in the torrefied version. It is an excellent tonewood. Its radiation ratio equals or exceeds the best spruce pieces.

"The braces in Big Bang are extended to the edge of the plate. This guarantees sufficient structural strength, with the soundboard carrying less structural load and the braces carrying more than in my guitars with a spruce top.

"Big Bang, like each of my guitars, has its own individual sound, yet they're all warm and rich in harmonics. Due to the specific sound characteristics of western red cedar, I chose padauk (pterocarpus soyauxii) for the back of the guitar, which is not only phenomenally (Big Bang, so maybe explosively) beautiful but also (due to its lower density than Indian rosewood) has higher stiffness, so it resonates perfectly, supporting and coloring the guitar's sound with higher harmonics.

"The Big Bang is equipped with the same ultra-low-impedance humbucker as previous guitars. This pickup proved to work great for various types of music. It can be connected to any guitar amplifier via the supplied Shure A95 impedance matching transformer (due to the wide range of transmitted frequencies, an acoustic amplifier would be best) or to a microphone input in an amp, preamp, or PA system. Due to the nature of the signal coming from the pickup (a balanced, low-impedance signal), the cable length is not critical. The guitar comes with a 20-foot XLR cable."

From its carbon fiber bracing to its unique tailpiece, there's lots more to say. My friend and pro player, Mark Dzubia, wrote an excellent description of what it's like to play one of Krzysztof's archtops. You can read it here: https://www.crguitars.com/site/items/blue-arch-oldie-acoustic-archtop.

If you'd like to find out more about this item, just call or e-mail me. It would be my pleasure to talk to you about it.