Making an acoustic guitar that feels alive in your hands and tells its own story is something Santa Cruz Guitar Company has been creating for nearly five decades, building handcrafted boutique guitars built with intention, artistry, and an uncompromising pursuit of tone.

At Haggerty’s Music, we’re proud to represent Santa Cruz Guitars: instruments that blend Old World violin-lutherie traditions with modern acoustic science to deliver unmatched balance, resonance, and longevity. These are guitars built not just to be played, but to be handed down.

What Sets Santa Cruz Guitars Apart

Founded in 1976 by master luthier Richard A. Hoover in Santa Cruz, California, the company was built on a simple but powerful idea: guitars should be composed, not assembled. That philosophy still defines every instrument leaving the Santa Cruz workshop today.

Producing just 400-500 guitars annually unlike mass-production factories, Santa Cruz operates as a true custom shop. Every guitar is built by experienced luthiers with an extraordinary level of attention to detail, allowing each instrument to develop its own voice and character.

Across the lineup, a few things stick out:

• Hand-voiced tops and tap tuning inspired by violin making

• Lightweight construction with exceptional resonance

• Traditional dovetail neck joints for enhanced sustain

• Parabolic and radiused bracing for strength without excess mass

• Premium, responsibly sourced tonewoods

These aren’t guitars built to hit production numbers. They’re built to inspire players for decades.

Featured Builds Available at Haggerty’s

Santa Cruz H13 42 Style Acoustic Guitar - Orcas Island Cedar/Waterfall Bubinga with Hardshell Case

Santa Cruz H13 42 Style Acoustic Guitar - Orcas Island Cedar/Waterfall Bubinga

The Santa Cruz “42 Style” pairs an old-growth Orcas Island cedar top with stunning waterfall bubinga back and sides, creating a voice that is warm, articulate, and exceptionally dynamic. The cedar responds with rich overtones and sensitivity to the lightest touch, while the bubinga adds piano-like lows, shimmering highs, and impressive sustain.

Visually, this guitar is every bit as refined as its tone. Blue paua purfling, engraved gold Waverly tuners, custom vine inlays flowing across the ebony fingerboard and up the headstock alongside a detailed bird motif, and a finely rendered scrimshaw heel cap depicting a lone man in a canoe. Combined with Santa Cruz’s hand-voiced craftsmanship, this is a timeless guitar built for nuance, expression, and lifelong inspiration.

Santa Cruz 00 Acoustic Guitar - Sitka Spruce/Ebony with Hardshell Case

Santa Cruz 00 Acoustic Guitar - Sitka Spruce/Ebony with Hardshell Case

This Santa Cruz 00 Acoustic combines the balanced, intimate voice of a classic 00 body shape with the meticulous craftsmanship Santa Cruz Guitar Company is known for. A Sitka spruce top delivers warmth, clarity, and dynamic range, while rare reclaimed Mun ebony back and sides add striking visual character alongside a focused, articulate response.

Traditional construction methods, including scalloped Adirondack spruce bracing and hot hide glue construction, give the guitar exceptional resonance and responsiveness that will continue to develop over time. Elegant details like abalone and mother-of-pearl inlays, a slotted headstock with torch inlay, and a vintage-style zipper backstrip complete an instrument that feels refined and expressive.

Santa Cruz OM Acoustic Guitar - Sitka Spruce/Indian Rosewood with Hardshell Case

Santa Cruz OM Acoustic Guitar - Sitka Spruce/Indian Rosewood with Hardshell Case

This Santa Cruz 00 Acoustic combines the balanced, intimate voice of a classic 00 body shape with the meticulous craftsmanship Santa Cruz Guitar Company is known for. A Sitka spruce top delivers warmth, clarity, and dynamic range, while rare reclaimed Mun ebony back and sides add striking visual character alongside a focused, articulate response.

Traditional construction methods, including scalloped Adirondack spruce bracing and hot hide glue construction, give the guitar exceptional resonance and responsiveness that will continue to develop over time. Elegant details like abalone and mother-of-pearl inlays, a slotted headstock with torch inlay, and a vintage-style zipper backstrip complete an instrument that feels refined and expressive.

Santa Cruz H13 42 Style Acoustic Guitar - Sinker Redwood/Walnut with Hardshell Case

Santa Cruz H13 42 Style Acoustic Guitar - Sinker Redwood/Walnut with Hardshell Case

The Santa Cruz H13 42 Style blends old-world craftsmanship with refined modern voicing, offering the responsiveness and warmth that have made Santa Cruz guitars so highly regarded among discerning acoustic players. Its 12-fret design delivers an intimate, expressive feel, while the sinker redwood top provides exceptional sensitivity, warmth, and shimmering clarity with impressive dynamic range.

Paired with walnut back and sides, the guitar achieves a beautifully balanced voice, rich and harmonically layered with focused lows, articulate mids, and sweet, defined trebles. Elegant 42 Style appointments including abalone binding and rosette, a slotted headstock with torch inlay, gold Waverly tuners, and ebony details complete an instrument that feels timeless, responsive, and unmistakably handcrafted.

Why This Matters for Players

Crafting an instrument that sounds good, has intentional details, and a beautiful story is what Santa Cruz Guitar Company does best.

These guitars respond to subtle dynamics, reward expressive playing, and continue evolving over years of use. Whether you’re a fingerstyle player, flatpicker, songwriter, or studio musician, the difference is immediately noticeable.

At Haggerty’s Music, every Santa Cruz guitar is professionally inspected and set up before it leaves the shop. A world-class instrument deserves careful attention, and we believe the experience should feel exceptional from day one.

Available Now at Haggerty’s Music

This is a limited selection.

If you’ve been looking for something that pushes beyond standard production guitars and something built for how you actually play, this is where to start.

Established in 1963, Haggerty’s Music serves musicians across the globe. Locally owned and operated in Rapid City, South Dakota. Questions? Call +1 (605) 348-6737.