CW80 80th Anniversary 808

Since 1967 the CW80 has probably been behind more great songs and performances than any other Australian acoustic guitar. It was never a precious instrument — it was built to be a reliable, robust workhorse, and it turned up wherever players did: in the recording studio producing hit songs, on the road with a touring artist, at an open mic in a coffee shop, at home after a hard day’s work. For generations of Australian musicians, the CW80 was simply the guitar.

After a brief hiatus it returns to mark Maton’s 80^th year, rebuilt in its classic timbers. A AAA Engelmann Spruce soundboard over Fijian Mahogany back and sides, with a figured Queensland Maple neck and rosewood fingerboard and bridge — the combination used on the model from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s, before the neck, back and sides moved to Queensland Maple. Five-ply rock maple purfling replaces the original plastic binding, and the polished nitrocellulose finish is stained in the traditional Maton colours of the CW80’s “golden era”, 1978 to 2000, with a herringbone rosette to match.

In the 808 body the CW80 reads differently. Maton’s own shape gives up some of the dreadnought’s low-end weight in return for balance: notes sit more evenly across all six strings, and the midrange stays open rather than being pushed aside by the bass. It suits fingerstyle, and it suits a singer — it leaves room for a voice instead of competing with it, and it records cleanly. Fijian Mahogany keeps that midrange warm and dry, and Maton’s current bracing gives it clear top-end presence. The AP5 PRO pickup system and chrome Grover Rotomatics ready it for the stage.

A guitar that honours a rich past, built to become a future classic.