Bourgeois Aged Tone Addy/Maddy Deep Body OM #7059 - Used  From Bourgeois

THE STORY:

Pre-war guitars are prized by players for lightning fast response, elevated volume and presence, tonal complexity, and the deep golden-brown color of their tops. These guitars sound different today, however, from the way they sounded when first strung up. Part of the difference comes from the effect of many years of playing. Another part is attributable to the chemical and structural transformations wood undergoes after decades of natural curing. 

  Dana’s vision for the six Aged Tone models blends vintage appearance and Dana’s exclusive approach to voicing with the new Aged Tone finish and theAged Tone top .  

Aged Tone tops

Our new Aged Tone tops are treated with a unique curing process. The commercial version of this process, known as, “thermo curing”, “wood torrefaction” or “roasting”, was developed in Finland to enhance durability and appearance of such products as siding, decking, and outdoor furniture. Commercial processing typically uses higher curing temperatures to maximize stability and rot resistance. Higher temperatures, however, can also sacrifice structural integrity. 

The process used to cure our Adirondack tops is a highly controlled, low-temperature variation of the basic commercial treatment. During processing, water, sugars, and resins are cooked off, leaving behind cellulose and lignum--the “glue” that binds cellulosic fibers together. Once processed, mass and weight are reduced, absolute stiffness is increased and internal damping is decreased;  stiffness-to-weight ratio and Velocity of Sound (the rate at which vibration transmits through solid material) aredramatically increased.  

Our observations concur with industry research data, which reports increased stiffness at lower curing temperatures. It’s thought by at least one expert that low-temperature curing optimizes the distribution of lignum throughout the cellulosic structure, while higher temperatures break lignum down. The trick is to findthe temperature and curing schedule that optimizes Velocity of Sound.  

Like naturally cured spruce, Aged Tone tops are darker in color, opaque vs. translucent, highly stable when exposed to changes in humidity, and have a sweet, woody smell. These same changes naturally occur in spruce tonewoods after many decades of exposure to oxygen, UV radiation and other environmental elements. 

In the pictures below, we show our standard Adirondack top (on the left) and a Aged Tone Adirondack top on the right.  Neither top has been stained.

The Aged Tone process gives the tops a dark, rich hue, without any aging toner or finish.  

Bourgeois guitars made with Aged Tone Adirondack tops combine characteristics of both new and vintage guitars.  Players describe their sound as “immediate, “open”, “ responsive”, “loud” and “surprisingly broken in”.  New guitars made with Aged Tone tops will continue to break in as the top reacts to continuous string loading and vibrational activity.

 Aged Tone finish

Dana recently developed a light but durable finish to complement Aged Tone tops. The Aged Tonefinish, combines the sound and look of a well-preserved older finish with the durability of a modern catalyzed finish.

Aged Tone Series

Our vision for our new Aged Tone models – a mahogany and rosewood D, mahogany and rosewood OM and a short scale Slope D and a DS-Mahogany 12 Fret Slot-head -- blends vintage appearance, a new vintage-style finish, Dana’s exclusive approach to voicing, and a unique method of tonewood curing.   

According to Bob Minner, flatpicker extraordinaire and Tim McGraw sideman, “For the past 20 years Dana has consistently set the bar for modern guitar construction, all the while paying homage to the great guitars of yesteryear.”