A precisely crafted instrument that prioritises tonal refinement, balance, and responsiveness, Jake Fuller’s Purnell Model is an exemplary expression of an English concert guitar. With its featherlight build, unique innovative features, and elegantly understated beauty, it’s a concert guitar that rewards the most discerning of players and invites deep musical exploration.
Key Highlights
Handbuilt by renowned UK luthier Jake Fuller
Locally sourced Cherry back and sides
Lightweight construction (just 1258g)
Active back design
Removable Soundpost (for extended tonal possibilities)
Sweet, lyrical tone with remarkable balance
Overview
The Purnell Model is Jake Fuller’s flagship guitar and finds a home for itself squarely within our premium concert guitar range. Aimed at advanced players and professionals, this guitar offers an elegant alternative to louder, more aggressive concert instruments. It’s designed for nuance, control, and tonal sophistication — making it a true thoroughbred for those seeking musical depth and interest over brute power; a refreshing return to the ethos shared by many of classical guitar history’s greatest guitar makers.
Construction & Materials
The Purnell Model’s soundboard is built from fine European spruce, delivering clarity and the potential for subtle musical complexity. Paired with locally sourced cherry for the back and sides, the guitar maintains a gentle warmth and depth while primarily singing with a bright, articulate voice.
One of the guitar’s most distinctive features is its “active back” design — a construction approach that enhances body resonance, giving the instrument a lively, responsive feel. Jake’s design utilises the natual resoancne of the back to help push energy into the soundboard. This approach is in stark contrast to most makers, who favour rigid back/sides to achieve a similar feat. Further innovations include a removable internal soundpost, which allows the player to affect the internal resonance depending on playing environment or tonal preference. Jake remarks that the soundpost has the capability of altering the body resonance by an entire semitone – in essence, giving you two concert guitars in one.
The ebony fingerboard has been intelligently engineered using a routing method that reduces weight by 40%, helping bring the total guitar weight to just 1258 grams. The neck follows a gentle D profile, offering comfort without flat spots, and the rosette and purfling use only natural woods — free from dyes or artificial colours — for a beautifully honest visual identity.
Tone & Character
Tonally, the Purnell offers a clean, poised and elegant sound. It has a bright leaning, but without harshness — striking a delicate balance between clarity and warmth. The tone is refined, lyrical and sweet, with overtones that are always present but never intrusive.
Trebles are pure and expressive, ideal for melodic work, while the basses are clean and slightly punchy, always in balance with the top end. Transitions across all strings — particularly through the G and B — are seamless, providing a cohesive voice across the entire range.
While not the loudest concert guitar available, it has ample projection and dynamic capability. The focus here is not raw volume, but rather a beautifully sculpted tone. It’s a guitar that encourages expressive, intelligent playing with an immense depth of character.
Playability
Jake Fuller is renowned for building light, ultra-responsive guitars, and this Purnell is no exception. At just over 1.25kg, it’s effortlessly manageable — making long practice sessions or performances a joy.
The neck is well designed to appeal to the majority of players, and the weight distribution across the body is perfectly judged. The guitar responds immediately to the lightest touch, rewarding refined right-hand technique and offering easy dynamic control.
Comparisons
Players familiar with the Steve Toon Concert Model will recognise a similar tonal character — the classic English concert guitar voice: clean, balanced, and full of tonal interest. Compared to fuller-bodied or heavier concert guitars, the Purnell offers a more intimate experience — it encourages detail over volume.
Its removeable soundpost system makes it uniquely versatile, allowing players to fine-tune body resonance for different repertoire or settings. This level of tonal adjustability is exceptionally rare at any price point.
For those considering an upgrade from a studio-level instrument, Jake Fuller’s Purnell model represents a significant leap in build quality, responsiveness, and tonal integrity. This is a concert guitar of supreme quality with craftsmanship that is hard to match.
Why Should You Buy It?
This guitar is a dream for the advanced or professional player who values tonal clarity and expression. Its precision makes it ideal for contrapuntal music (such as the works of J.S. Bach) where the independence and clarity of multiple voices are critical.
At the same time, its lyrical treble and smooth projection make it equally suitable for a wide range of melody-driven works with harmonic accompaniment. Whether you’re performing Dowland, Barrios or Britten, the Purnell delivers.
This is a versatile concert guitar that is equally at home in the practice room, recording studio or stage. Non-performers will appreciate it’s wide tonal palette and ease of playability, whilst professional players will enjoy tinkering with the most subtle of changes in tonal character made possible by this highly responsive concert guitar.
Conclusion
The Purnell Model is a guitar for the thoughtful player — someone who values expression, responsiveness, and refinement above raw power. With its locally sourced materials, hand-built artistry, and unique, innovative construction, it offers a deeply personal playing experience that’s hard to find elsewhere.
If you’re looking for a responsive, lightly built concert guitar that is incredibly easy to play — and one that invites you to uncover the finer nuances of it’s tonal possibilities every time you pick it up — the Purnell model is waiting for you.
Book an appointment to try it in our studio, or order online with full confidence and support from Classical Guitar Academy.
