Sound - I know, I know, I've been catching a lot of heat for not updating the Spotlight page in a while. You have to admit, though, that the Brook Taw previously featured was a pretty sweet guitar. Well, it's being replaced by a more than worthy instrument, the Fylde Orsino.

The first time I ordered an Orsino, I tuned it up and the first words out of my mouth were, "This is why I like Fyldes so much". This guitar has great character, with ringy, meaty lows, and plenty of guts in the highs, too. The punchy ring I hear in this guitar reminds me a bit of the Lakewood M32, but with a distinctly English flavor. I love guitars where the lower registers make it fun to thwack the A and E with my thumbnail, and this is such a guitar--there's something about that low E (or D when in dropped tunings) that reminds me I'm not playing a generic factory guitar.

We recently had Roger build a custom Orsino that's worth noting, too, because its cedar/walnut combo inevitably invites comparisons with our best-selling guitar, the Mcilroy A25. I actually found that in this guitar, I like the English walnut a bit better than the Orsino's standard mahogany for the back and sides. It has just a bit more fullness across the strings, which is of course to be expected when moving from mahogany to walnut. And it did sound remarkably similar to that Mcilroy, but whereas the Mcilroy has more of an airy tone, this cedar/walnut Orsino had more meat in the middle. Not better or worse, necessarily, just a slightly different take on the same tone.

Playability - Since many if not most of Roger's guitars are geared toward fingerstyle players, they all come set up for easy play. Both of these guitars arrived slung low, with good action and no buzz. The neck is a bit deeper than on some other models, but still quite slender, closest probably to a Lakewood or Larrivee neck in dimensions and geometry. And despite near-MJ dimensions--15 11/16 on the bout and 4 3/4 deep--I find this guitar much easier to hold on my lap than other guitars of similar size.

Finish - The finish on the standard Orsino is of course flawless, and the appointments are modest: simple purfling and a rosette of concentric wood rings. The fretboard is bound in ebony for that unbound look but without the exposed fret ends.

The custom model, in addition to the walnut, came a bit fancier, but still quite modest, as you can see on the guitar pictured to the right. It included rosewood bindings and more intricate purflings and rosette, as well as a laminate neck. In keeping with our preferred look for guitars, even these extra appointments result in an understated elegance, rather than the garish visual assault that you can find on some guitars with too much inlay.

Summary - Fylde was the first guitar builder we picked up upon buying Shoreline several years ago, and we haven't regretted it for an instant. Roger Bucknall makes a great guitar, full of character and playability. The fact that most of these guitars can be had for well under $2000 is just icing on the cake.

As I often do here, I'll let a recent customer's thoughts on his Orsino finish the review:

"I have been up since 5 AM playing this guitar. I have never played or heard anything like it. It makes my Taylor sound like a ukulele. Thank you for getting it to me in such good shape! I am already imprinted on this instrument. Send in the Amex charge. This is a done deal. It's funny how a bunch of wood and metal (properly arranged) can bring so much joy and harmony into the world. Perhaps we should send Fyldes to George Bush and Saddam Hussein."