PJE Legacy Mars - Electro - Rosewood

The importance of body shape:

Faith Legacy Series guitars raise the standard for professional quality ever higher and focus entirely on Patrick James Eggle's historic acoustic body designs. The Mars is based upon Patrick’s historic ‘Kanuga’ shape, which is drop-shoulder or slope-shoulder dreadnought design. This body design concept was first seen in the 1930s as the two major American guitar rivals tried to set themselves apart from each other. The rounded shoulders were offered as an alternative to the flatter, square shouldered instruments that had been available up until then. (See the Faith Saturn model for an example of a square-shouldered dreadnought.)

The dreadnought shape was originally designed for power – hence the naming after a battleship of the period – and this characteristic is still evident today with the Legacy Mars. This elegant beauty is a full-voiced, confident performer, sure to fill a room with a sweet and evenly balanced tone.  

What is Torrefied Wood?

Complementing the elegant drop-shoulder design, the Sitka Spruce top of this Legacy Mars has undergone a process called 'torrefication', or 'torrefaction'. This Canadian tonewood is air dried to minimise moisture content before being ‘roasted’ in a kiln with precise controls over atmospheric conditions and oxygen levels. After this drying process, as it cools, a controlled level of moisture is re-introduced which then re-humidifies the wood to an exact, ideal level. This resulting ‘torrefied’ tonewood is not only enriched with a deeper colouration, but it is more stable thanks to a change in the cellular fibres of the wood.

A guitar with a ‘young’ top will, over years of playing, gradually vibrate its fibres into a steady state where they will find a final resting position. At that point, the tonewood will sound its best, which explains why older guitars can so often have ‘that’ sound. And this is the secret of torrefaction. The precise drying and re-hydration process causes the fibres to settle into a steadier state very quickly, allowing the tonewood to ‘age’ rapidly, producing an even better tone much more quickly.

Which Tonewoods are used and Why?

For the back and sides of this Legacy FG2 Mars, the tonewood of choice is Solid Rosewood. The back features 2 pieces of beautifully book-matched (mirror-image) Rosewood, which is truly a special feature, as large pieces of rosewood – big enough for guitar backs – are highly sought after and command a premium reflective of their desirability.  
Most of our Rosewood comes from Indonesia, which due to its unique climate, produces trees with remarkable figuring, often somewhat wavy in appearance and much more varied in colour than its Indian Rosewood relations.

By using two pieces that are book-matched, an infinitely mesmerising number of patterns can be discovered across every guitar, which makes them even more remarkable.

How does it all come together?

So, when we are pairing aged, caramel-hued Spruce with the famously stiff and resonant properties of Rosewood, we can be confident of a strong low-end but still with brilliance at the top too. This clarity of tone is tempered by the mature voicing of the Torrefied Spruce, so overall is reminiscent of a guitar already 20 years into its journey.

Each Legacy FG2 model is bound in highly figured Flamed Maple; has Figured Ebony fingerboard, bridges; plus, genuine unbleached bone nuts, saddles, and bridge pins for incredible resonant transfer. Each guitar also has a 1mm thick figured Ebony pickguard which will help protect your beautiful instrument.

The Electronics:

Faith Legacy models are fitted with Fishman's FLEX-T-BLEND preamp system which features both an undersaddle piezo pickup, and a condenser microphone located just inside the soundhole. By combining these two pickups types, a greater sound balance is achieved, plus percussive techniques can be fully explored as the body sound can be more easily ‘dialed-in’ when required. The preamp features 3 ultra-discreet knobs integrated into the side of the guitar; a built in tuner with a discreet screen; an EQ contour control; a pickup blend control (Piezo/Mic); and a phase control to control feedback.

The battery is stored in a special bag located inside the guitar fixed to the neck block, and the jack output is combined with the strap button at the base.

The Case:

Your new Faith Legacy Mars will be supplied complete with an ABS moulded hardcase, ideal protection for your beautiful new guitar. We always recommend that you keep your guitar in the hardcase whenever not in use.