2019 Fritz Ober SP/CSAR

Over the last several years, Fritz Ober has been building some of the best Torres/Hauser style guitars available. In our opinion, this maker stands in his own right as one of the great contemporary guitar makers in the world. His style of sound is reminiscent of the "Spanish-style" Hauser I guitars which were typical of earlier Hauser I instruments: the soundboard is a bit thinner (in contrast to later Hausers which had thicker tops) which produces increased volume despite the more compact body size. The sound has a strong old-world character and is immensely charming. It is bold and clear, with loose, colorful basses and resonant, harmonically rich trebles. Indeed we would say that of any maker we've seen since Hauser I, these are the closest in style of sound to Spanish-style Hauser I guitars, period. This is also likely due to Fritz's preference for deeper body resonance which gives the tone a bit more of a mysterious and dark character - an extremely attractive quality when done properly, as is the case here. Aesthetically, Fritz builds an extremely beautiful instrument with a great "classic" look - subtle use of half-herringbone in the rosette and top purfling, 4 piece back made with some of the most gorgeous CSA rosewood we've seen, and the gorgeous piece of aged, dark spruce for the soundboard make it as beautiful in appearance as in sound. Although a second-hand guitar, it has virtually no signs of prior use and is in like-new condition.Orfeo article on Hauser III, Blochinger and Ober