Mike and his Pederson Custom Guitar

I've had the Drea here for about a week, and I'm really at a loss for words. Sometimes, I take it out of the case and just look at it. I can't believe I own this guitar!

Where should I begin? Quite honestly, I'm completely blown away. This is the 3rd guitar you've built for me, and I can't get over the level of craftsmanship in each of them, but with this Drea, you've totally outdone yourself. How are you going to top this? I'm confident that you'll find a way.

The way the guitar looks speaks for itself. The styling is amazing, finally a single cut that looks uniquely different but maintains that classic appeal! The craftsmanship is totally off the charts, even by my expectations of you. You totally hit the nail on the head with what I asked you to do with the inlay. Incredible.

All of the materials are master grade. Not a flaw in any of this wood. The flaming in the koa top and back and in the maple binding is unbelievable. It couldn't be any more perfect.

The neck laminations are off the chart. Not one detail is missed on this guitar. Everything is spot on and perfect.

Despite the fact that this guitar looks like it should belong in a museum, it feels and plays even better than it looks, which is unfathomable. The action and setup are flawless, the neck is smooth and unbelievably comfortable. Picking the Drea up is almost like putting on your old baseball mitt, or your favorite pair of jeans. It feels like it belongs here, like it's always been here, or like a perfect instrument that has been well worn and taken care of for decades.

Right out of the case, the tuning and intonation are spot on. Strapped up, it is perfectly balanced, unlike some other archtops and acoustics, there is no concern about the neck "divebombing" when you're not holding on to it.

No fret buzz, even when strum fairly hard. It sounds incredible even before being plugged in. It clearly has enough of a voice and sustain to be mic'd as an acoustic and played as such.

Plugging it in takes it to another level. I even dialed up a fairly aggressive metal tone and there was no feedback whatsoever. The sustain is incredible, I know I keep coming back to that, but it's unreal.

It sounds fantastic on clean settings, playing arpeggios, strumming, whatever I seem to throw at it. It kind of goes back to my theory that if an instrument sounds great clean, it will sound even better with any range of effects you add to it. This Drea proves my theory right.

I really don't know what else to say. I'm kind of at a loss for words. I just can't seem to put it down, it is the PERFECT combination of playability, tone, and looks. I'm flabbergasted.

Keep up the incredible work. Thanks for exceeding all of my expectations (again) and for delivering me the best quality instrument on the planet.

Mike Ewing
March 2012