For the last 25 years Breedlove, an acoustic guitar manufacturer from Bend, Oregon, has steadily built a reputation with dealers and musicians for making award-winning stringed instruments. Their latest addition is no exception. The new, limited edition Pursuit Concert Koa has received raving reviews ever since its debut at the 2016 Winter NAMM Show, and deservingly so. This guitar is for musicians seeking a high-quality, reliable instrument that not only has delicious tone acoustically and while plugged in,
but also looks like an elegant piece of art (and won’t break the bank!). The Koa top, back, and sides are stunningly beautiful. More importantly, the solid top and unique truss support system guarantee a guitar that will last a lifetime with tone that improves through the years.
Verdict
It appears Breedlove held nothing back on the Pursuit Concert Koa. Based on its looks, sound, and quality, it’s ready for the stage right out of the box! While other manufactures are producing four-thousand-dollar acoustic guitars made from dazzling Koa wood, Breedlove managed to deliver the goods for under a grand. It’s a steal considering worldclass craftsmanship, easy neck playability, top notch state-of-the-art electronics. Oh, and Iforgot to mention that it comes with a padded gig for easy transport.
Features
The guitar incorporates two ingenious Breedlove designs: a graduated top that’s thinner on the bass side and thicker on the treble, and a proprietary bridge truss system that helps neutralize string tension at the bridge and disperse it to the sides and butt-end of the guitar allowing the top to vibrate more freely. This unique combination increases sustain and harmonic clarity in the lows, mids, and highs resulting in articulate notes and chords.
The Koa solid wood top, back, and sides yield a strong mid-range tone that will sweeten withage and add value to the instrument. But what attracted me most about the guitar was the thin, semi-gloss mahogany neck and rosewood fretboard, which was very comfortable and gratifying to play. The fret-job was impeccable and felt smooth up and down the neck, and there was no fret buzz. The guitar responded wonderfully with a cutting midrange that opened up the more I played it – whether softly or
aggressively.
The Pursuit Concert Koa not only sounds great acoustically, but it also effectively mirrors the acoustic sound through an amp, PA, and recording software with a Fishman Sonicore pickup and Isys Plus on-board pre-amp system. The control panel features volume, bass, and treble control knobs for shaping tone, tuning, checking battery life, and using the phase button – a cool feature for live performances that helps reduce feedback at louder volumes and improve bass response at softer volumes. The output is located on the bottom of the guitar and offers two options: a .” jack for connecting with an amp or PA, and a mini USB to link to a computer and recording software. The 9-volt battery compartment is next to the outputs.
The guitar is topped off with fully enclosed gold machine heads that frame the Breedlove headstock logo; and their 18-to-1 gear ratio guarantees accuracy every time you pick up and tune the instrument.
