Alvarez Masterworks MDR70e Sunburst

A 12-fret Dreadnought really works for many players – some say it’s because the position of the bridge is right in the middle of the soundboard. Others say it’s that your fretting hand is closer, or even just the overall feel and string tension. Whatever it is, it certainly works.

The MDR70SB has a round and full tone with lots of clear bass frequencies and glistening trebles. Its response is instant, and its notes are clear and robust. When strumming, the FS6 bracing system and AAA Sitka top help deliver clarity and separation. The balance is clearly audible across all six strings.

The MDR is a beautifully finished instrument with a deep shine and thin poly finish. Traditional appointments come in the way of a slotted headstock, open gear tuners and pre-war style sunburst.

The projection and overall breadth of tonal reach in these guitars is outstanding, making it hard to put down for those players looking for a powerful open voicing and feel of a 12-fret Dreadnought. The MDR70e is fitted with the LR Baggs HiFi system.

About the Alvarez Masterworks Series

Making a guitar from all-solid wood delivers strong tonal benefits, and we approach the design of Masterworks to embrace all of them. Top thickness, brace weight and tapering, back design and wood choice all count, and when each is considered as a part of the sum total of the instrument’s voice, great articulation and quality of tone is achieved.

Our FS6 bracing system is a forward-shifted, scalloped X allowing for a slightly larger soundboard area around the bridge. This helps generate more vibration, which is heightened by AAA soundboards and premium components throughout, culminating in powerful voicing, inspiring articulation and instant response.

Masterworks acoustic-electric models are fitted with the LR Baggs HiFi system. HiFi is a premium, non-invasive design that pairs dual bridge plate sensors with high-fidelity electronics, providing exceptional balance, definition and dynamics. Due to the closed sensor design, HiFi also has excellent feedback resistance and its built-in, studio-quality preamp is voiced to compliment the pickups for an optimal plug-and-play experience.

All Masterworks ship with our durable AFC30 Flexicase.

Our Approach to the Build

All of our solid tops are selected by our team and graded independently of our suppliers. If it isn’t worthy, it isn’t used. Our laminated backs and sides are uniquely constructed with Mahogany as our middle layer, and our inner and outer layers are always matched. 

Artist Elite guitars strike the right balance between strength and vibration, crafting a voice to both inspire and give players “tools in the tone.” Alongside this approach to development lies our respect for sourcing, preparation and nurturing the wood we use to make our guitars. No matter how considered design may be, it can only be as good as the wood we use to realize them. 

Our all-solid wood tops, backs and sides, as well as the mahogany used for our necks, go through a curing process developed over years to create stability, strength and tonal benefits. Depending on the wood and its use, this process takes many months or even years for some of our models.

After months-long seasoning, we perform an extra drying stage in thermo-kilns to further enhance wood stability and improve resonance. We call this process ATR—Advanced Tonal Response. ATR™ is a form of torrefaction—oxygen controlled, vacuum curing at special temperatures to remove more moisture and volatiles such as saps and sugars from the wood. 

This does two things:

• ATR™ makes our wood more stable when exposed to adverse dry or humid climates. While we can’t stop the effects of dryness or moisture saturation that can damage guitars, ATR™ goes a long way in helping our guitars become more resilient. Guitars will move or change according to the environment they are in and are more likely to move within the first two years from their production. A guitar usually becomes drier as it ages; this is one of the reasons why players often like the sound of an older guitar. ATR™ advances the natural, post-build drying process so the wood behaves as if it were more mature, stable, and resonant from the first day it is used.

• The effects of ATR™ are also audible in the instrument. The biggest difference is the clarity and separation between notes and the overall response of the guitar. As the top is drier, it’s also quicker, more resonant, more open, even louder. New guitars can sometimes take time to reach this state as the wood dries over the years. ATR accelerates this effect to deliver a more sophisticated and complex voicing from day one.

Our caring approach to development comes from one unwavering goal: To deliver the best guitars in the market at every price point—instruments of a truly remarkable value that offer an unparalleled player experience.