Alvarez Releases The Original Bob Weir Yairi Signature Guitar

From Harmony Central:

Alvarez Releases The Original Bob Weir Yairi Signature Guitar

Alvarez has introduced the Bob Weir Yairi Signature WY1BW guitar, an exact replica of the original prototype Alvarez Bob Weir Yairi Signature guitar first released in 1991.

As a member of the Grateful Dead, Bob Weir was deeply involved in the development of the original Alvarez Bob Weir Yairi WY1 guitar—crafted to exact specifications for Bob's eclectic playing style. Due to its popularity, the original WY1 model has evolved into an expanded range of Alvarez Yairi WY1 guitars, incorporating different woods, cosmetics, colors, and other specification changes.

The new Alvarez Bob Weir Yairi WY1BW guitar is based on the specifications of Bob's original prototype. The WY1BW cutaway folk guitar features figured coral rosewood back and sides, a solid hand scalloped cedar top, ebony fingerboard, natural satin finish, abalone sound hole rosette, and maple/herringbone binding. In addition, the new WY1BW is enhanced with a distinctive 12th fret "lightning bolt" inlay, gold die-cast tuners, and a Direct Coupled rosewood bridge.

An exciting new feature for the WY1BW is a custom designed electronic system that was developed to emulate Bob's rack-mounted stage system. The electronics combine a piezo transducer and internally mounted condenser microphone which can both be routed through a custom crossover, allowing the condenser mic to reproduce high frequencies and the piezo to reproduce low frequencies, all with little or no overlap. Three modes of output offer discreet full range outputs, discreet crossed over outputs, and the crossed over transducer summed to mono.

The Alvarez Bob Weir Yairi WY1BW will be available in April 2006 and has a manufacturers suggested retail price of $2799.

For more information, visit their web site at http://www.alvarezgtr.com/.