Gibson Limited Custom Shop J-45 Standard Red Spruce

Harness the Power of Red Spruce

Wildwoodians, we are over the moon and frothing at the mouth with joy over the Custom Shop J-45 Red Spruce. You might think "That's an over-the-top and hyperbolic response to a different variety of spruce" but we assure you, it is an entirely reasonable reaction to these spectacular instruments. Here at Wildwood, we love red spruce (also known as Adirondack spruce) with the intensity of a thousand suns. It presents a delightfully inspiring flavor of acoustic tone that we can't get enough of.

The Spruce is Loose

The biggest reason is Red spruce's incredible amount of headroom, a concept more commonly applied to amplifiers. Much like your favorite tube amp, acoustic guitars reach a point where they can go no louder, after which compression occurs if you apply more right-hand force. For guitars with red spruce tops, that "point of no return" is higher, which means that they sound open and expansive even when you push them and hit really hard. Having so much headroom also means that the instrument's dynamic range is much broader because you can hear the difference between triple and quadruple fortissimo. Basically, it's the acoustic equivalent of an amp that actually does go to eleven! As a result, the Custom Shop J-45 Standard Red Spruce from the Exclusive Collection is an absolute wooden cannon with immense projecting power.

But that's just one of red spruce's delectable sonic characteristics! It also produces a supremely powerful fundamental tone. To understand what that means, we have to (very lightly) get into harmonic theory. Any time you strike a note, you're actually hearing more than one tone. If you play an E, you can also hear a G# and a B and a bunch of other fainter notes above that. The E is the fundamental, and the G# and the B are the overtones. Red spruce strongly emphasizes the fundamental in a pleasing way while maintaining enough overtones to sound full-bodied. In a practical sense, it means that the Red Spruce J-45 sounds warm and woody while maintaining excellent clarity. Speaking of which, red spruce also imparts a wonderful percussive articulation to your finger or pick attack.

A Classic For a Reason

Lest it get lost in the nitty-gritty regarding the sonic differences between varieties of spruce, let's take a step back and touch on what makes the J-45 so awesome. To do otherwise would be putting the cart before the workhorse! The J-45 is an enduring icon of our shared musical history for a lot of reasons, but to put it succinctly, it's pretty much a flawless design. Spruce of any species and mahogany go together like peanut butter and Nutella, and together they produce a tone that is balanced, full-bodied, clear, and woody. The J-45's light build philosophy also gives it a marvelous responsiveness that makes for a supremely dynamic, expressive playing experience whether you play fingerstyle or with a pick. The third ingredient to its greatness is its 24.75" scale length, which gives it a slinky, addictive handfeel that practically begs you to play for hours and boosts the percussive articulation of your attack.

A Perfect Match

If all of that sounds like a match made in heaven with red spruce, you're absolutely correct! The spectacular tone of red spruce complements the J-45's strengths in all kinds of fresh, exciting ways, resulting in a responsive guitar that sounds powerful, articulate, and dynamic. It's a beast on the stage thanks to its LR Baggs pickup system, and it records beautifully. We have no doubt that if you take one of these Custom Shop J-45 Standard Red Spruces for a spin, you'll be just as excited as us after one chord!