The Dean Exotica: Ultra Lounge Meets Natural Woods
by
ahand
,
in Musical Instruments at Epinions.com
,
Apr 11, 2007
Pros:
Fine stylish package at a great price point.
Cons:
Some of the styles may not appeal to purists.
The Bottom Line:
It's a guitar with Les Paul style at a Yamaha price.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
One of the most interesting trends in acoustic guitars is the divergence of styles, away from the usual copying of Martin or Gibsons. Companies like Yamaha and Takamine, which dominate that low and midprice market, pretty much fill that need.
A few years back, the Johnson company came out with a startling line of bright colored guitars that started at only 150.00 which sold pretty well. That is, until reality set in and people realized it was really just a cheap guitar.
Nowadays, stylish guitars have migrated into the midprice range. Lunas, for example, feature pastoral themes that appeal to women and girls.
The best of the lot is the Dean Exotica line, a very successful experiment featuring guitars with prominent wood grains and finishes, using lots of flame maple and rosewood. Add to that a decent pre-amp, and you have a pretty good package.
If one were to look at the Dean website, you'd find that that the pictures don't do the finishes justice. For example, the "Denim" model looks a bit flat, but in real life, it's one of the nicest looking of the lot.
Another spectacular finish is the Tiger eye, a rich brown finish covering a flame maple top. Other materials include spruce, rosewood bodies, etc. It's an good approach, and it's been successful due to the emphasis on good woods, not just flash.
One thing you'll notice about these Deans. Even though the guitars are acoustic/electric types, with a cutaway, the things are as loud as any acoustic around. Most guitars with a cutaway in this price range give up volume, assuming that the pre-amp will make up for that.
It's louder than many of the Ovation models, and the tone is clear, and resonant. It's street price of 369.95 makes it one of the nicest bargains around.
The truth is, most acoustic guitars in the 350.00-400.00 range are going to be competently made. More than good enough for beginners, intermediates, and the hobbyist.
Every so often, a company comes up with a line of guitars that are truly different, and introduces an aesthetic (like the flame maple finish normally reserved for expensive guitars) that makes the other guitars in it's class look suddenly very dull. Dean's done that with the Exotica, and at a fine price.
It has a great selection of woods, creative finishes, and a very stylish take on the traditional cutaway acoustic guitar body. Rounder in some places, more curved in others, it's ergomonically perfect.
It's a guitar that people will think is more expensive than it really is, and it's real price is a secret no one needs to know except you and your guitar.
