Perfect Golden Lute

The perfect golden lute is said to be a flawless instrument; its tone and clarity are unrivaled. It is an instrument so fine it practically performs itself, granting anyone who plays it a +10 competency bonus on Perform (string instruments) checks with it. A character with ranks in Perform (string instrument) can play the lute to activate countersong, distraction, or fascinate (as the bardic performance abilities) as if he were a 1st-level bard, performing a number of rounds per day equal to his Charisma modifier. If the user of the perfect golden lute is a bard, he adds +2 to the DC of all bardic performance abilities using the lute, and can use bardic performance with the lute for an additional 6 rounds per day.

The perfect golden lute shatters into splinters if a day passes in which no music is played within 1,000 miles of it, or if its bearer is killed by a bard spell or bardic performance.