The Victor Guitar

Edward Dick, the head of the repair shop at the Olde Towne Pickin' Parlor in
Arvada, Colorado, unveiled a guitar at the show that combines the fit and
finish of a custom instrument with a price tag usually associated with a
factory-built instrument. Actually the Victor guitar is a collaboration between Dick
and another luthier, Greg German. Greg's background in 3-D computer animation
led him to the CNC machine, which is a computer-controlled router. He builds the
necks and does the neck laminations and abalone inlays while Edward Dick
builds the bodies, does the assembly, and final set-ups. The result of their
tag-team approach is a $3500 list price guitar that looks and feels like it should
cost nearly twice as much.

A Victor Up Close

Rather than build another vintage recreation, the Victor model one guitar
represents a combination of both classic and innovative guitar design. Its
bracing is based on a Martin pre-war advanced X pattern, but its body shape has
modern proportions with a narrower waist and a more curved lower bout. Other
modern touches include a large oval sound-hole, unique saddle shape, linear rather
than circular fret markers, ultra-thin transparent pickguard, and abbreviated
frets where a scalloped fretboard crosses the body. This last feature allows
finger style guitarists to play up past the sound hole without striking the
frets or fretboard. This allows then to take advantage of a fuller range of tonal
colors.

Although the sample I reviewed had an Adirondack spruce top and Indian
rosewood back and sides with similar specifications to what you'd expect on a
flatpicking guitar, the Victor has been specifically built for finger style players.
You can also order the model one with a cedar top and Koa back and sides.
With its wider one-piece mahogany 1 3/4" neck and oval shaped neck profile, the
Victor makes it easy to play complex chord shapes and complicated picking
patterns. The Victor's top has been designed to be extremely responsive to even the
lightest touch. Even without fingerpicks, the Victor is loud with remarkable
sustain. With a flatpick the sound literally explodes from its body.

The Victor's harmonic balance makes it ideal for recording with close-miking.
Its excellent bass extension coupled with a warm yet pronounced midrange and
sweet top end gives it a wonderfully seductive voice. The Victor also has a
very articulate character that combines extraordinary sustain with superb
clarity, so no matter how complex the chord or melody line it never gets muddy or
homogenized.

Fit and finish on the Victor compares favorably with the work of top echelon
custom instruments. Although it lacks flashy multi-ply binding on the neck or
headstock, its delicate Koa wood body binding combined with abalone sound hole
trim gives the instrument an understated elegance similar to a fine classical
instrument. Workmanship on the Victor displays great attention to detail from
the ebony tuning pegs to the carefully sanded braces and interior kerfing.
Its craftsmanship should satisfy even the most demanding critic.

Although it isn't exactly inexpensive, the Victor delivers a remarkable
amount of guitar for the money. Anyone whose playing style requires an instrument
that has both finesse and power should investigate a Victor. For more
information contact Edward or Greg at Victor Guitar's website (www.victorguitars.com)