Who was it that said, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder?” That has always been thought of as primarily true but perhaps there is more. What are the unseen forces influencing the subjective mind? It is clear that we are very swayed by “social familiarity” such as what length of hair and style of shirt looks appropriate while other styles look rather odd to us. But if we have been paying attention, over time we notice that what we were so sure looked “right” completely changed and now looks out of place. This is because we have mistaken our shared group opinion for fact. And since beauty cannot be quantified it must be purely subjective, right? Maybe not!
New studies seem to indicate that we may be pre-wired to recognize certain mathematical ratios as beautiful. In fact research by Dr. Stephen R. Marquardt shows that there is what is known as the “Golden Ratio” of beauty. It is an enigmatic number that was identified as far back as the early Greeks and spoken of by Pythagoras.
Editors Note: Pythagoras is also partially responsible for the Buzz Feiten Tuning System incorporated on all Anderson guitars which allows them to play more in tune than any other guitars on planet earth. More on that in a future Guitar of the Week.
This esoteric ratio is 1.618-to-1 and you can find it occurring everywhere in nature comprising those things that are regarded as timelessly beautiful—including the human form.
It is this same “Golden Ratio” that was taken in to account when Dylan, from Garrett Park Guitars, deviated from vintage traditions and ordered this spectacular Tiger Eye Burst, Hollow T. He wanted to present its impressive sonic characteristics by way of single coil-sized pickups and wanted the elegant look of a no-pickguard arrangement. However, this look can compromise the way the lines flow so to realign with the “Golden Ratio” he added a middle pickup and selected a gorgeously quilted maple top to complete a perfect 1.618-to-1 relationship.
Along with its eye-popping quilted maple top, its hollow alder back supports capable, full-bodied lower-mid frequencies and expressive upper-mid clarity that is characteristic of alder. The maple top oversees all and grants a bit of fundamental authority for dynamic projection from stage. Chords are negotiated from behind a maple neck with an East Indian rosewood fingerboard and highlighted by the sleek and fast T/A Standard backshape. It makes you feel as though no complex musical passage is out of your reach.
Controlled by an ingeniously simple 5-way switching system, three Anderson-built, hum-canceling single coil pickups submit 14 awe-inspiring alternatives for presenting your musical vision. And if that wasn’t enough, the newly design and visibly undetectable Fishman Powerbridge contributes plugged-in acoustic guitar sounds by its self, or in combination with the stunning electric tones. To top it all off Dylan chose a vintage-style tremolo bridge to slightly boost the bottom-end tone and add subtle touches of vibrato when desired.
Sure, beauty is in the eye of the beholder but there are certain things that possess such intrinsic beauty that they transcend all law to become timeless.
GUITAR SPECIFICATIONS:
MODEL: – Hollow T (with full body contours)
FINISH: – Tiger Eye Burst with Binding
BODY WOOD: – Quilted Maple Top with Alder Back
BODY WOOD BACK COLOR: – same
NECK WOOD: – Maple with Indian Rosewood Fingerboard
HEADSTOCK COLOR: – Matching
NECK BACK FINISH: – Satin
NECK BACKSHAPE: – T/A Standard
NUT WIDTH: – 1 11/16th-inch
SCALE LENGTH: – 25 1/2-inch
FRETS: – Heavy
BRIDGE: – Vintage Tremolo with piezo pickup
HARDWARE COLOR: – Gold
PICKGUARD: – n/a
NECK PICKUP: – SA1R
MIDDLE PICKUP: – SA1
BRIDGE PICKUP: – TD3+
SWITCHING: – 5 Way with Push/Pull for 14 sounds
PICKUP COVERS: – n/a
PICKUP RINGS: – na/
STRING GAUGE REQUESTED: – .010-.046
DESTINATION/LOCATION: – Garrett Park Guitars/Annapolis, Maryland
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