First
Tone
The instrument has to speak with a center that fits the music it is being built for.
About
Tone first. Playability second. Structural reliability always.
I build guitars, teach at the bench, and make Lab tools for people who want to understand what an instrument is doing. I also write songs, record, and play, usually on the guitars I build.
Rick Molloy Guitars is operated by RM Media Group LLC.
Lineage
How I learned the work.
I studied with Charles Fox at the American School of Lutherie. That gave me a build sequence and a standard for bench work.
I built a guitar with Robbie O'Brien, and I'm grateful for the conversations we've had since about process, teaching, and what actually happens at the bench.
I've attended Trevor Gore's stateside workshops, and I'm grateful for the time he has spent reviewing the math and text in selected tools for accuracy and to keep them faithful to his published calculations.
The working order
This is the order I work in.
Every guitar starts with what it needs to do for a real player.
Body shape matters, but most of the real work is in the box. Top thickness, brace mass, bridge weight, neck geometry, and setup all change what the player feels.
Tone first. Playability second. Structural reliability always. Visual design last.
That same standard carries through the workshops and the Lab. I want to know what the instrument is doing before I decide whether the next move is removing material, a setup change, a measurement, or leaving it alone.
Systems and song
Software and guitars are different, but the habit is the same.
Outside the shop, I work as a Distinguished Engineer at iSpot.tv. I've spent most of my career around performance, systems, and large-scale software. The common thread is understanding how complex systems behave when the easy explanation is probably not the whole answer.
A guitar is not a distributed system, but the habit is the same. Pay attention to the behavior. Find the real constraints. Do not fool yourself.
I also write songs with Paul Statham, run a recording studio designed by Haverstick Designs, and play around the greater Seattle area, usually on one of the guitars I built.
Priorities
This is the order.
These priorities are useful only if they stay in order when tone, feel, stability, and looks pull against each other.
Second
Playability
Feel matters because a guitar that fights the player will change the music, even if the tone is impressive for five minutes.
Always
Structural reliability
Stability is not separate from tone. If the structure will not hold up, the rest of the design is not finished.
Last
Visual design
Visual design should support the instrument. It should not ask for attention the guitar has not earned acoustically.
Writing from the bench
Practical notes on guitars, measurement, and fit.
These are article-length notes for players who want to understand custom guitars, setup, measurement, and the decisions behind the work.