The Breedlove Discovery Concert is a steel string guitar with solid spruce top. Like all other models in the Breedlove range, it was crafted at their factory in Bend , Oregon . This particular model comes with either mahogany or rosewood back and side, depending on the color chosen. The fingerboard is made out of ebony which provides for better intonation than plastic fingerboards that are usually found on this price range guitars. It’s got 20 frets and 1-3/4″ bone nut width (very comfortable). The head stock has an open gear chrome die-cast tuners just like Taylor uses. The finish used here is matte satin (semi gloss) one which does not show smudges.
To begin with, this is a thin body guitar. It’s not cut through at all, even though looking at the pictures one might get that impression. Breedlove guitars are made using thin laminates of wood called C-LAM which provide the appearance of thinness without having to go through the more expensive process of thinning down solid wood. You can see these thin layers of woods on the back side of the body in between binding strips. They are very well done and do not affect playability in any way (in fact they make it better). The top is very nice and it does look like good quality solid spruce (the grain pattern looks similar to Taylor ‘s Grand Auditorium guitars). Why they offer both mahogany and rosewood back and side models is beyond me, but it’s nice to have a choice.
The neck is also very thin, which makes for comfortable play. The frets are nicely finished and there is no sharp fret ends anywhere on the instrument. I have to say that overall construction quality on this guitar is exceptional for the price. It really does look and feel like a much more expensive guitar. Now let’s move on to sound…
This guitar has a bright sound with good clarity. It projects well and the tone is pretty even across all strings. The basses are present but not overwhelming, while the highs are crisp and articulate. For a mid-priced steel string acoustic, this thing sounds great!
