“You can’t help being convinced that if a guitar looks like a dread, then it’s going to sound like one, too. But not here”: JWJ Chorale Select review

What is it?

The fundamental design of acoustic guitars has remained fairly static for many years. Take the dreadnought, for instance; that particular design came about more than 100 years ago and is still in use, pretty much unchanged, today.

But recently we’ve noticed a distinct shift. Maybe it’s the leap forward in amp, PA and particularly acoustic guitar pickup technology that has allowed artists to use smaller-bodied guitars to achieve the effect they want, or perhaps it’s the current generation of luthiers putting their own twist on tradition – it’s hard to tell. We suspect it’s a combination of both.

One such twist is before us today, in the shape of a new design from Rich Jones at JWJ Guitars. Sure, it may look like a dread with a Gibson J-45 somewhere in its family history, but the fact is, it’s something a little bit more than that.

Or, realistically speaking, something a little less, as this is a downsized version of the famous dread blueprint. And its voice doesn’t correspond to a dread’s familiar boom and bombast, either. So what exactly is going on here?

The main reasons for going a little topsy-turvy on the established dreadnought formula are as follows. Simply put, the Chorale has been downsized to make it more comfortable to play, and revoiced so that it provides better accompaniment for vocals by realigning the low and mid ranges.

In practice, the first thing to be aware of is how much the Chorale has ‘shrunk’, when compared with a standard dread. A J-45, for instance, is 406mm (16 inches) at the body’s widest point, while the Chorale is a slimline 375mm (14.7 inches). And the body depth has reduced from a regular 122mm (4.8 inches) to the Chorale’s slightly slimmer 110mm (4.3 inches).

So while we’re seeing a significant reduction in dimensions, we’re not exactly talking about a Martin Dreadnought Junior here. In short (no pun intended), it’s compact and perfectly proportioned and, as we usually expect with instruments from JWJ, its spec comprises some top‑notch components.

For the top, we have torrified Sitka spruce that has been hand-sprayed with a satin nitrocellulose sunburst finish and topped off with a teardrop tortie scratchplate.

For the back and sides Rich Jones has gone with Indian rosewood – slightly unusual, as he’s more of a Honduras mahogany fan for his guitars’ back and sides, but here he thought Indian rosewood was a better fit for the Chorale’s revised tonal palette.

In any case, the rosewood here has a great-looking grain pattern with that darkish chocolate hue so typical of the genus.

Mahogany features for the one-piece neck, complete with a nicely carved volute just south of the headstock (which itself is adorned with a set of vintage-style Kluson open-back tuners). Fretboard duties are given over to ebony, with snowflake abalone position markers in all the usual places.

As we’ve seen before from JWJ, workmanship is faultless and the body furnishings, including herringbone trim and cream binding, are perfectly applied.

All in all, it’s a finely wrought build, but we can’t help but be fascinated by the effect produced by the revoicing of the instrument. A dread that thinks it’s an OM? Time to investigate.

Specs

• PRICE: £2,145 (approx. $2,945, inc hard foam case)
• ORIGIN: UK
• TYPE: Downsized slope-shoulder dreadnought
• TOP: Torrefied Sitka spruce
• Back/Sides: Indian rosewood 
• MAX RIM DEPTH: 110mm
• MAX BODY WIDTH: 375mm
• NECK: Honduras mahogany
• SCALE LENGTH: 632mm (24.9”)
• TUNERS: Kluson 18:1 open geared
• NUT/WIDTH: Bone/43.5mm
• FINGERBOARD: Ebony
• FRETS: 20 medium
• BRIDGE/SPACING: Ebony w/ bone saddle/57mm
• ELECTRICS: N/A
• WEIGHT (kg/lb): 1.8/4
• OPTIONS: LR Baggs HiFi pickup adds £300; custom builds from £1,845
• RANGE OPTIONS: The Select Series also includes a full-size Slope-shoulder, Orchestra and Melody models
• LEFT-HANDERS: Yes
• FINISHES: Natural – satin nitrocellulose
• CONTACT: JWJ Guitars

Playability and sounds

Freeing the Chorale from its hard foam case, we noticed at once how light the guitar feels in the hand. Compared with a few other acoustics that have come our way recently, this really is a featherweight.

We’ve always liked the carve on a JWJ neck in the past, as it has that Goldilocks quality of being not too chunky but a very business-like C-shaped handful at the same time. The satin nitro finish here really seals the deal, too, as the feel it gives to the neck makes it a joy to have in the hands.

There’s always a risk when you begin to mess with a well-established formula, that you might throw the whole thing out of balance. But we’re happy to report that the downsizing has kept everything nicely in shape. Firing up a few campfire chords reveals some surprises. You can’t help being convinced that if a guitar looks like a dread, then it’s going to sound like one, too. But not here.

It’s easy to see what Rich means by the shaping of the guitar being dictated by the sound he was going for. Having set out to make something more like an 00 size, the dreadnought outline of the Chorale came about almost by accident.

After all, if you take the traditional hourglass shape of an OM and broaden it at the waist, it’s going to begin to take on some of the characteristics of a dread. Factor in Rich’s fondness for slope-shouldered dreads and the deal was done.

The result is a sound that is uncluttered in the bass and low mids, with beautiful articulation and great note separation and clarity. There’s bags of volume present here, too. Strum it lightly and it responds accordingly with a gentle but rich voice; get a little more energetic with your right hand and the Chorale provides the goods without even breaking a sweat.

Verdict

Verdict: ★★★★½

What can we say? The Chorale is another hit for JWJ, and the fact that it’s light, compact and easily portable makes it an absolute boon for players who want to travel or commute to various open-mic nights or gigs.

Guitar World verdict: We’d love to hear it with the optional LR Baggs HiFi pickup as that would have been the cherry on top. But, even as it stands, the Chorale is a very worthy addition to a catalogue that’s already bursting at the seams with great instruments.

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• This article first appeared in Guitarist. Subscribe and save.