Bown OM in Amazon Rosewood

[Stephenl1829]

Been playing my recently arrived Bown OM for a month or so and am amazed every day at how good it sounds and plays. It was built in 2013 for Ewan McLennan and became available after Ralph built him a slightly smaller 12 fret model. It has Amazon Rosewood back and sides and German spruce top. The fingerboard is quite wide (47mm at the nut), and this suits me fine - it's the easiest playing guitar I've ever played. I've kept it tuned down to Eb for some songs and the intonation is still spot on.
I've been searching for one of Ralph's guitars for a while and this one is a beauty. His reputation is well deserved!
I'll post a photo as soon as I can work out how to do it.
Any other Bown owners out there?

[ewh2]

Originally Posted by Stephenl1829

Been playing my recently arrived Bown OM for a month or so and am amazed every day at how good it sounds and plays. It was built in 2013 for Ewan McLennan and became available after Ralph built him a slightly smaller 12 fret model. It has Amazon Rosewood back and sides and German spruce top. The fingerboard is quite wide (47mm at the nut), and this suits me fine - it's the easiest playing guitar I've ever played. I've kept it tuned down to Eb for some songs and the intonation is still spot on.
I've been searching for one of Ralph's guitars for a while and this one is a beauty. His reputation is well deserved!
I'll post a photo as soon as I can work out how to do it.
Any other Bown owners out there?

Is this your guitar?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMymkCI32oY

Sounds superb. Ralph's guitars have an excellent reputation.

(I have a German Spruce/ARW OM on order, hope it works out to be a good combination!)

[ianLP59]

I have a Bown OM, Sitka spruce / Brazilian which was originally made for Clive Carroll. It's a total monster, a wonderful guitar. Mind you, it has to be, as it shares house room with two Sobells and a great guitar built for me by Steve Fischer. Oh, and then there's the two Collings guitars as well !

Cheers,

Ian

[niko]

I own a Leadbelly style guitar made by Ralph Bown in 1993a great guitar, sounds wonderful.
The french webzine "laguitare.com" wrote a short article about this guitar when I brought it in Issoudun (a large guitar festival in France) a few years ago. Here is the article if interested (in french..) :
http://www.laguitare.com/guitare-lut...10-6945-0.html

Nicolas

[Trevor M]

The easiest way to download photos I've found is to upload them to photobucket, then click on an individual image, then click on the IMG code (bottom right) and paste into your post.

[Stephenl1829]

Originally Posted by ewh2

Is this your guitar?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMymkCI32oY

Sounds superb. Ralph's guitars have an excellent reputation.

(I have a German Spruce/ARW OM on order, hope it works out to be a good combination!)

Yep, that's my guitar. Sounds great any way I play it. If Ewan gave this up for a better guitar, I'd like to hear that one! I'll post a couple of photos.
One thing I've noticed is that it's very light weight - just like my vintage Martins.
Most new guitars I play are quite heavy.

[ewh2]

Originally Posted by Stephenl1829

Yep, that's my guitar. Sounds great any way I play it. If Ewan gave this up for a better guitar, I'd like to hear that one! I'll post a couple of photos.
One thing I've noticed is that it's very light weight - just like my vintage Martins.
Most new guitars I play are quite heavy.

This Ewan's new Bown.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpbMsI1TXI4

It's amazing, sounds like a classical guitar.

Ralph must be an amazing woodworker if he can get ARW to the weight of a vintage guitar, it's heavy wood!

[westman]

Originally Posted by ewh2

This Ewan's new Bown.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpbMsI1TXI4

It's amazing, sounds like a classical guitar.

I think it sounds nice and accurate (clear) but the strings sound a little on the light side for my taste though I realize it's a new guitar, the player is using a lot of classical (or trained) technique and phrasing which might give the classical 'sounding / feel' impression of the instrument.

[steveh]

Originally Posted by Stephenl1829

Been playing my recently arrived Bown OM for a month or so and am amazed every day at how good it sounds and plays. It was built in 2013 for Ewan McLennan and became available after Ralph built him a slightly smaller 12 fret model. It has Amazon Rosewood back and sides and German spruce top.

Timely post; I was at a UK meet yesterday where I was expecting to play that guitar and knowing that I was going to have to try hard to resist buying it - thankfully your actions have saved me the problem.

I had a Bown OM made from the "sister" piece of Amazon to yours at my home for a few weeks last year, thanks to the incredible generosity of the owner (a fabulously talented player). I got the opportunity to reacquaint myself with that guitar yesterday where there were - I think - at least 8 Bowns to test-drive. They were all great but that one was the stand-out to my ears.

here's a recording I made of the one I babysat for a while:



You're very lucky.
cheers,
Steve

[dennisczech]

I played the same guitar that Steve showcases so admirably in his video when it was virtually brand-new, and it remains the best Bown I have played. The owner has quicksilver fingers and pulls a marvellous tone out of the guitar. Some instruments just beguile and bewitch you with their quality. I suspect yours may be in a similar league, so happy days.

[3thumbs]

I love the sound that Steveh is getting from his Bown, but we all know that string selection has a big effect on sound. I've always found that Martin strings work well with my Martin D18 but I haven't yet found the right strings for my Bown. I think it's a SJ model; ie; small jumbo. So, the question is; who is using what?

[steveh]

Originally Posted by 3thumbs

So, the question is; who is using what?

I think I had D'Addario true mediums 13-56 on that video but I myself am going to be trying some new strings soon since I haven't really settled;Nanowebs are on my radar.

I really like John Pearce but they go off quick and are very difficult to get at a sensible price in the UK.

cheers,
Steve

[3thumbs]

I always used D'addario strings before obtaining my D18, which I found through trial and error sounded best using Martin strings. I feel I'm not getting the best sound from my Bown because of the strings. Ralph did give me a set of Pearce which I instantly removed after a trial. I'll give the D'addarios a go.

Thank you Steveh.

[Stephenl1829]

Originally Posted by steveh

Timely post; I was at a UK meet yesterday where I was expecting to play that guitar and knowing that I was going to have to try hard to resist buying it - thankfully your actions have saved me the problem.

I had a Bown OM made from the "sister" piece of Amazon to yours at my home for a few weeks last year, thanks to the incredible generosity of the owner (a fabulously talented player). I got the opportunity to reacquaint myself with that guitar yesterday where there were - I think - at least 8 Bowns to test-drive. They were all great but that one was the stand-out to my ears.

here's a recording I made of the one I babysat for a while:



You're very lucky.
cheers,
Steve

Beautiful playing Steve! That guitar sounds very similar to mine - like brother and sister as you say. I don't play much in altered tunings but I've kept mine tuned down to Eb and I love it. 8 Bowns in one room! It's taken me 6 years to get hold of one after I played Kristina Olsen's Koa Bown here in Sydney. Cheers, Stephenl

[Yrksman]

Just come across this thread. Have to claim some credit for the guitar's trip down to the Antipodes.

Just back from coffee with Ralph in his workshop. One guitar nearly ready to be strung up and another almost ready for spraying.

One of the world's truly great luthiers and a fellow Yorkshireman to boot!