Organic Sounds Santa Cruz Tony Rice Signature
 

it was in July 2009 when i first laid hands on a Standard spec Santa Cruz Tony Rice. we were passing thru Sevierville Tn and had a planned stop at The Music Outlet to let my stepdaughter check out the Gibson and Weber mandolins.

she was 9 yrs old and had made a specific request that she wanted to learn to play mandolin. Mary had a serious side and when she said something as such, she really intended to follow thru. i had just sold a used Elderly Custom Martin 000-28 that i had traded into, and liked a lot, to fund her mandolin purchase.

we spent around 2 hours letting Mary play every Weber and Gibson they had and she kept coming back to one specific Weber-and it did sound excellent, so that one came home with us.

this being my first visit to The Music Outlet, i was bombarded with many great guitars all over the place. huge inventory of many brands. i noticed a Santa Cruz dread and wanted to check it out. it felt, played, and sounded great. it was the Tony Rice Signature model in EIR. this instantly became high up on the bucket list.

years came and went and i always thought of one of these, but early on i found out as much as i like the looks and sound of a dreadnaught, they just didn't fit me well. i hovered around OM, 00, and 0 size after going thru a group of GA and similar sizes. last couple years have gravitated to shortscale as well.

i had taken note of this TR that Organic Sounds had many months ago. i had purchased from Larry before and i truly enjoy everything i have ever got from him. he is an excellent player and imo orders guitars with a few special custom touches that most players would want. his shop has a neat vibe and its always a pleasure to do a purchase from him.

Santa Cruz dreads are slightly smaller overall in the body dimensions vs most other USA dread builds. also the slightly shorter scale, wider nut width and string spacing at the saddle had my attention many times over. i sold a few items and had the funds and took the leap.

fits great, sounds great, plays great. a light weight slightly smaller dread, such a great guitar. i feel very blessed to have this.

specs
guitar weight 4.1 lbs
1.75" nut width
2 1/8" fretboard width at the 12th fret region
2.25" string spacing at the saddle
25.375" scale
15 5/8" lower bout width
11 1/4" upper bout width
10 9/16" waist width
3.5" depth at the heel
4 9/16" depth at the endpin
adi top with aged toner
EIR back/sides
dark ebony headstock veneer
open gear waverly tuners(very smooth and hold tuning exceptional)

i like how Richard H designed the saddle slot lean to be cut so the height can be removed without need to recompensate(if memory serves i think its 5 degrees rear lean-this is from 2010 when i owned an OMPW, correct me if wrong on that number).
all around fantastic instrument with a pick or fingerstyle.

Congrats on the new guitar, Daryl!

I've purchased two guitars from Larry, including his personal SC OM Grand, great guy.

Great guitar! I think my Santa Cruz Tony Rice was the one that got away.... The only way I can describe it is it sounded the way a guitar should sound! Fortunately, a couple years ago I was gifted a Taylor Dan Crary which is very close in sound to the TR as I believe they were built in a similar manner... its a solid second..but I do miss that Tony Rice! Good luck.

They are pretty nice guitars. I have a VA. I like it alot.

Congrats on a great guitar, and how wonderful that everything lined up with the timing to get it.

Congrats on snagging a nice one!….I love the Tony Rice model…I have a 2010 standard that is just a great all around guitar….the large sound hole provides a bit more balance I think and gives them an OM like clarity….but they still have power when you need it….every time I think I can sell it I play it and realize it’s a keeper….

It doesn't get much better than that, in my book. Congrats!

You would not think such a small dimensional difference could have an ergonomic effect but it does. It also tempers the bass somewhat, creating a more balanced guitar. I played one or two Tony Rice models and always liked them even though I'm a mahogany fan. I could generally not justify the price either. I last went shopping with a $4k budget. I've said I never play instruments more than 20% over budget, but what's $200? Found my D PW in mahogany and have never been happier with a guitar. I'd buy a well worn SCGC over most other new guitars for the same price. I don't think they are overpriced, just that I can't afford most of them.