Furch Violet D-SM review – a first-class build that proves you don't need to spend silly money for a pro-quality dreadnought

What this Furch lacks in flash it more than makes up for with first-class playability and sound quality

Furch Violet D-SM
(Image: © Furch Guitars)

Guitar World Verdict

The Furch Violet D-SM may have a bare basics appearance, but details like its individually voiced soundboard, smooth playability, and refined tones compare fairly to those of much more expensive deluxe instruments.

Pros

  • +

    Shortened frets provide extremely comfortable playability.

  • +

    Open-pore finish allows tonewoods to breathe like raw wood.

  • +

    A brilliant dreadnought for the price.

Cons

  • -

    Aesthetic might be too austere for some.

You can trust Guitar World Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing guitar products so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Literally dozens of great acoustic guitars are available these days if you have around $1,000 to spend. While newer companies that specialize in entry level models offer some good choices, I often recommend considering a guitar built by a company with a decent history that also offers a selection of instruments extending well into higher price ranges due to experience and “trickle down” quality factors. 

The new Furch Violet D-SM ticks those boxes, coming from a company with more than four decades of history building guitars in the Czech Republic. Furch opened a US-based distribution facility in Nashville in 2019, making their craftsmanship readily available to American players.

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Chris Gill

Chris is the co-author of Eruption - Conversations with Eddie Van Halen. He is a 40-year music industry veteran who started at Boardwalk Entertainment (Joan Jett, Night Ranger) and Roland US before becoming a guitar journalist in 1991. He has interviewed more than 600 artists, written more than 1,400 product reviews and contributed to Jeff Beck’s Beck 01: Hot Rods and Rock & Roll and Eric Clapton’s Six String Stories.