auden Austin

£1,499

Finding a good 12-string acoustic is something of a grail quest for guitarists. In days of yore the player typically had to put up with a cheese-grater feel and suspension-bridge action. That’s improved quite a bit in recent times, but the really good 12-strings usually weigh in only above thethree grand mark, as with Taylor’s superb but saltily priced 562CE (£3,359)and Guild’s benchmark Guild F-512 (£3,591). That’s what made the Auden Austin such a breath of fresh air. It’s not a budget instrument but neither is it in exotica territory, price-wise. And the sounds and playability are superb. It’s really telling when everyone in the

Guitarist office hears a guitar being played and gets irresistibly drawn over like Bisto kids following the scent of gravy. Such was the case with this Auden, which got played for mere, idle pleasure far more than most review instruments that come to us do. The classily understated ‘Smokehouse’ finish of our review model hides a Sitka spruce top and what’s quoted as African mahogany back and sides. The resulting tone is airy but powerful and the playability is addictive. A fine acoustic. www.audenguitars.com