This is the second in a series of three guitars resulting from the study and repair of four of J. Castelluccia’s guitars from the 1950s. This one has the same Makori laminated backs and sides as the Jan, 2012 guitar, but has a cedar top, lower break angle over the bridge, rope binding and a polished varnish finish. Again, a guitar with a huge voice and very vintage, old school sound. Loud popping highs, great mid-range, loud but tight bass. You can really hear those bass runs in a performance setting. This guitar gigs well and cuts through walls of sound with ease. As you can tell, I am very happy with this guitar. FOR SALE on Djangobooks.com. Read what Michael Horowitz had to say about it HERE (see NOTES & VIDEO) and what Djangobooks Forum members had to SAY about my guitars.
Craig Bumgarner 
2 Comments
I am the proud owner of the Castelluccia-inspired prototype #2, and have been playing it for several months, now. I am a violinist who doubles on guitar, plays in a variety of styles, and needs a lot of versatility. This guitar has everything I had hoped for. Its tone, volume and cutting power are as impressive as the forum posts indicated, but the tonal range and sensitivity were a welcome surprise. I play as a soloist, with a classical guitarist, and with various local groups, so any guitar I play has to wear several hats. I have to amplify for most of my gigs, and the guitar shines there as well. It is extremely mic-friendly and the Castelluccia D-hole shape accommodates a Baggs M-80 soundhole pickup without the need for clips or any other extra hardware. Purists (myself included) may cringe a little at the thought, but the resulting sound is superb! It sounds exactly like the guitar, just louder, and there is virtually no effect on the acoustic sound. As Gypsy guitars can be a challenge to amplify, I am thrilled with this result.
Sorry to have rambled on so long, but I wanted to share how pleased I am with this instrument.
All the Best,
Allen Ames
Thanks Allen, glad you’re diggin’ the guitar. Interesting to hear about the Baggs M-80, I recall playing with another guitarist about a year ago who I think had one of these and his sound was very good. I’ll have to give it a try, thanks for the tip.
Craig